Buying a 550 Hurricane

[arunaska]

Hey to all,

just wanted consult you guys, I got a very nice deal from a bloke selling a 550 Hurricane with the plastic frame. It has got a turnigy 4260-500 brushless motor, 3 x Hex HX5010 servos, DS650 tail servo, futaba GY410 gyro, 2xturnigy 2200mah batteries, bunch of spare parts, all plastic parts replaced with CNC parts: rotor head, grips, motor mount so on.., in very good shape, looks like new and the price tag is: 280$.

My question is; I am a newbie and sooner or later I'm gonna crash it, I've got a 450 clone on its way and while I'm assembling that, I wanted to practice hover and some sports flying (I am practicing on the sim for a few months, hovering in all directions not problem now, banked turns figure of 8s are fluid. I have a mSr and 120SR, flying very fast in all directions nose-in, tail-in no matter what) And now I want to taste the real thing.
So is it logical at this point to buy this heli? It comes with bunch of spares, but sooner or later I am gonna crash and they will deplete, so I will be ordering from HK as long as they have the spares for this old model.

Regards,
Anil

[Jerrymac]

The Hurricane 550 is a very stable helicopter to fly. Since you already have some flying experience with smaller helicopters, the 550 should be fairly easy for you to learn to fly. Once you fly it, you will probably not want to bother to finish the 450 clone.

Although it is an older model, it uses nearly all of the same parts as the Hurricane 425 which is still made, so parts should be available for quite some time. The only difference in the two is the longer boom/belt, and the main and tail blades and paddles. The frame, head, tail, and gearing are both the same.

I say, get it, you will like it.

[PTcaflyer]

+100 on what Jerry said...get one and you will have more fun than should be allowed!!!
You will probably find that just one is NOT enough and wind up (like a lot of us...) with at least 2 or 3 Gaui's...I'm currently working build No. 4
PT

[stark]

You could go ahead with the 550 and even convert it to a 425 in the beginning. 550 blades can be expensive for beginners. 430mm blades won't hurt that much.

[arunaska]

Thank you guys for the positive and quick feedback,

my hesitation grew a little bit with the following offer Is it logical to choose it over the hurricane 550? I know this may be an insult to Gaui, but the offer consists of a clone 500 size heli a HK clone even, but the electronics are very nice; since I'm gonna crash eventually I'll be damaging better stuff when I buy this one, but spare parts will be plenty and cheap, cause almost every 500 size heli (trex, copterx, hk etc.) part will be ok for it. For Ex. if I crack the frame, I'll buy the cheapo HK-Kit and I have all the parts I need. Currently residing in Turkey so spare parts for Gaui are non-existent, therefore I'm obliged to HK. On the other hand Gaui 550 is bigger and more stable, would fly more smoothly and the offer is far more cheaper tan the clone 500.

The offer is :HK 500 CMT-Torque Tube version
Motor : Scorpion HK3026-1210KV 110$
Align 60A
Cyclic Servos : Goteck GS9650BB Analog
Gyro : KDS900 Gyro+N590 Digital servo
Batarya : Turnigy Nano-Tech 2650 mah 6S, 25-50C
Paller : Turnigy CF
Kanopi : Fiber Glass

With PLENTY of spare parts, frame and everything,almost enough to build it from scratch, with the carrying case an so on, but it costs 395$, the Gaui was 280$

I'm asking for your humble guidance. Thanks in advance!

Anil

[PTcaflyer]

...Exactly...550 blades are too costly for me...I use the GF 550 from 3d and those are bad enough...500's are next...I'm running 500 "Woodies" from Gaui on my mid-boom after my last 500 CF Tig Z Weaves met with the tarmack...I have a bunch of 425's in the parts trunk...
PT

[arunaska]

Bought the Gaui 550, my previous post is irrelevant as of this moment
I hope I did the right think. Thank you all for the constructive and encouraging feedback


Anil

[arunaska]

Hope it's worth it!

[PTcaflyer]

...Looking good!
PT

[TunaBlue]

Originally Posted by arunaska

Hope it's worth it!

I think you got a smokin' deal...

[arunaska]

Originally Posted by TunaBlue

I think you got a smokin' deal...

you think? Well I'm glad then.
Hesitated for over a week, I just wanted to invest the possible minimum at the beginning, so I won't be devastated when I break it, which I'm eventually going to, deep inside I feel, that my zippy msr and 120sr experinces and my sim-hours gonna pay off.

Anil

[Jerrymac]

If you didn't get a manual with it and want one, here is a link to Gaui's download page. Just look for the EP 550 manual.

http://www.gaui.com.tw/html/download.asp

One suggestion. Since you got it used, it would be a good idea to check it all over real good. Make sure nothing is loose, worn, or ready to fall off and cause a crash.
I have bought a couple of used helicopters on here and found lots of little things that needed attention. Nothing major, but found loose screws, worn ball link ends and things like that. Better to find them before you fly it, then after you crash it because it needed a little bit of maintenance.

[arunaska]

Originally Posted by Jerrymac

If you didn't get a manual with it and want one, here is a link to Gaui's download page. Just look for the EP 550 manual.

http://www.gaui.com.tw/html/download.asp

One suggestion. Since you got it used, it would be a good idea to check it all over real good. Make sure nothing is loose, worn, or ready to fall off and cause a crash.
I have bought a couple of used helicopters on here and found lots of little things that needed attention. Nothing major, but found loose screws, worn ball link ends and things like that. Better to find them before you fly it, then after you crash it because it needed a little bit of maintenance.

I don't have the manual, but now I do, thank you! It'll help much.

will certainly check it all over, thanks for pointing that out, it'll be wise to check everything no to feel like this after a crash.

Anil

[=\TICxTOC/=]

Hey Anil,
Chin up bro! If you are careful with setup and make sure your gyro direction is correct and all your screws are in place, your pinion is tight, your TX is programmed correctly, your batteries are sound, you will not crash. The hurri lifts off like an elevator rock steady. Just take your time. Now if you insist on "3D" flying right away kiss it good bye. Patience will reward you in this believe me. And oh yeah you got a really good deal.

[arunaska]

Originally Posted by =\TICxTOC/=

Hey Anil,
Chin up bro! If you are careful with setup and make sure your gyro direction is correct and all your screws are in place, your pinion is tight, your TX is programmed correctly, your batteries are sound, you will not crash. The hurri lifts off like an elevator rock steady. Just take your time. Now if you insist on "3D" flying right away kiss it good bye. Patience will reward you in this believe me. And oh yeah you got a really good deal.

Oh thanks man for the tips. I will give it a thorough check before I get that beast in the air . 3D is not my thing right now, I can't do 3D even and probably won't . Can't wait to see its long blades turnin' and lifting off the ground like you said .

Anil

[arunaska]

guys I need help,

1) I want to change the tail blades on my 550 Hurri, they seem a bit banged up. I again prefer a relatively cheaper solution. I think the stock tail blades are ca 80mm, is every other tail blade with this length suitable for the 550 gaui? Stock tail blades are dirt cheap, around 4-5$, but I want to buy from amainh....s, cause I got other things to order from that site. Which one on there are suitable for my 550?
Would this be ok for example?
http://www.amainhobbies.com/product_...ck-Tail-Blades

2) Do I need a receiver battery? It says in the manual either a 7.4V and BEC or a 4.8V receiver battery. My clone doesn't need one? Is it because it's BEC is connected with the ESC. I'm a little confused I guess

Thanks

Anil

[Jerrymac]

The tail blades in the link you provided (84mm) will work fine on the Hurricane 550.
As far as using a separate RX battery, that all depends on whether the ESC you are using has it's own bec, or, if not, what bec you are using. If you use the stock Gaui bec/regulator it may only be rated for a 2s battery. In that case, you will need to power it with a 2s lipo.
Some ESc's have a built in bec that can handle 6s and can be used with the flight battery. Some ESC's come with no bec. In this case you can use a separate bec rated at 6s or higher and still run it from your flight battery without using an RX battery. Again, it all depends on what electronics you are using.

I hope this helps more than it confuses you.

[kavic5150]

Right off the bat you should consider either getting a Trex 600 (taller) vertical stabilizer, or just cutting one out of plexiglass or something. This will help prevent tail blade strikes and allow you to run slightly longer tail blades too giving more tail authority.

I only had one mishap due to mechanical trouble in the year plus I've owned the gaui. One of the linkage balls on my swash disconnected mid-flight about 10 feet off the deck. No damage owing to an auto and mostly luck. Loctite those swash balls and every other metal to metal bolt on the whole bird. Lots of work but well worth it.

Happy flying and welcome to the club.

[arunaska]

Thank you and sorry for the late reply. So I'm gonna order a 600 vert. Stab and thus I can maybe go say up to 90mm or so tail blades. Since my tail blade is chipped at one place I'm gonna replace it according to your suggestion. I'll give the bird a thorough check before I get it in the air.