Another Crash

[2TOFLY]

Well it was the day after Christmas and the sun was shining and i thought it would be a great day to fly. I am after all still a newbie and need all the practice that i can get. So i cant out there and man was it cold and the wind was blowing pretty strong. But hey i wanted to fly!! All was going well even with the wind(after the first turn and the tailwind really hit, i figured out how to deal with it) and I even did my first roll!!! Man was i excited and that's when it happened,SMACK into the ground..Im still not sure what happened, I think i stopped concentrating on it and lost orientation. But oh well it didnt sour my mood and i have the replacement parts here at home. Overall visible damage--One main blade, Flybar, main gear has a bunch of chewed up teeth(cause???) and thats all i can see right now. Still need to take apart and rebuild. But i Tell you what. I love this hobby!!!!!!![IMG]file:///Users/andrekidd/Desktop/IMG_1552.JPG[/IMG]

[ChrisH]

Do yourself a favor and get some good old 325 Pro Wood blades ... THEY will break instead of stripping your main gears and/or other more expensive parts. Not to mention they fly better than those paint stirrers you've got on there now!

[ken22golf]

Hey, I crashed today also...well, it wasn't really a crash. I was hovering in my yard, (all I can do with the small space, I was adjusting the gyro gain w/ pitch pumps) and I set the bird back down and turned and was talking to my father for a second. While I was turned and looking at him, the heli fell over (either wind or was not level in grass). Only the main shaft and flybar were damaged, the upper jesus bolt was sheared. I learned to never take my eyes off the heli when the blades are spinning. I'm just happy the CF blades are fine.

Hey, sorry about the crash, but it sounds like you have a good attitude about it and you're prepared with spare parts.

The teeth on the main gear get torn up more easily if the pinion to main gear mesh is too loose.

Also, hitting the throttle hold before hitting the ground can save you a lot of damage.

Don't take too long on the rebuild, but be careful to go over everything. Mechanical failures can cause a quick second crash.

[2TOFLY]

yep learned real quick too never stop paying attention!! But thats why i fly the 450 right now, to learn how to fly..i have a 600 that i have to build. Think if i would have crashed that one i would have cried

[wlfk]

main gear has a bunch of chewed up teeth(cause???)

Well, that one's simple. You had the motor running when it hit the ground. Whenever a crash becomes inevitable, hit throttle-hold right away. If the motor stops spinning before the helicopter hits the ground, you will never strip the main gear. You will also have less energy in the rotor, and it is rare to damage any parts other than the feathering spindle and the main shaft. I wouldn't bother with wooden blades yet. If you can cut the motor in time, wooden blades will be the most expensive part of any crash (plastic ones almost always survive).

[2TOFLY]

Thanks WFLK, it was only my second crash and my first one i didnt chew up any teeth. I would have hit the throttle hold if i knew i was going to crash. LOL. By the time i realized that i could recovery it was to late

[Skarn]

Whether you use woodies or not, you will still strip the main gear. Even when I hit TH quickly I end up stripping the main gear. But that's not a biggie, they are cheap and easy to fix!

Good luck bro,
Skarn

[2TOFLY]

She is up and running again like a champ. Wish it was just warmer outside. I tried to go fly but its flat out to cold (29F). Thanks to all for the help

[McDaniel]

I flew my 450 today also, it was bitter cold.....

I also do the winter training just with the 450 and sometime the 500er, I find it harder to fly with the small 450, my 600 is a rocksolid babe.....

So I hope next year I can master fast freeflight and nose inn hovering, then I can start to tear up the skies......

Its a great hobby and a good balance for all the stress I have.....

See you all in 2009!

Have fun!

[JAG1]

Originally Posted by Skarn

Whether you use woodies or not, you will still strip the main gear. Even when I hit TH quickly I end up stripping the main gear. But that's not a biggie, they are cheap and easy to fix!

Good luck bro,
Skarn

hi,i find i get less damage with 325 woodies,and ive not had to replace a belt ever since i started spraying my belt with WD40!

[Skarn]

Originally Posted by JAG1

hi,i find i get less damage with 325 woodies,and ive not had to replace a belt ever since i started spraying my belt with WD40!

Agreed! Definitely less damage but I was just pointing out the main gear is one of the first things to get damaged for the most part.

As far as the belt, I've never had to replace a belt...and I never lube. I did put on a gates simply because I had one

Skarn

[JAG1]

Hi,you are right it is the main that goes 1st! i had a crash with 315 carbon's the other week(i only bought them because they looked good! waste of money!) and they made more damage than good! back to woodies.

cheers.

[crehop]

you need CF blades for 3D Flight

[testpilot58d]

Originally Posted by Skarn

Agreed! Definitely less damage but I was just pointing out the main gear is one of the first things to get damaged for the most part.

As far as the belt, I've never had to replace a belt...and I never lube. I did put on a gates simply because I had one

Skarn

I'm with you Skarn. Don't know where this mandatory wd-40 belt soaking thing came from, but I've never done it and have never replaced a belt.

[Ah Clem]

2tofly,

Congratulations on that first roll!

That is a very big step, and something to be proud of.

[heli-on]

I've had a couple of crashes that I thought for sure had chewed up the main gear because sometimes you just can't be quick enough on the TH. Best tip I can give you is to upgrade your upper jesus bolt with the silver ones from Ready Heli. I haven't stripped a main gear since. I'm not sure if they're stainless, zinc, or whatever, but the shear strength is a lot more forgiving than the black ones Align gives you with their kit. They come as a pair (for upper/lower), but you don't need to use the lower. I cut those down and use them for the top.

[wlfk]

I still say it's rare that you need to replace a main gear if you are sharp on throttle-hold. I think I've only had to replace one in my past 10-20 crashes.

[02deuce]

Originally Posted by wlfk

I still say it's rare that you need to replace a main gear if you are sharp on throttle-hold. I think I've only had to replace one in my past 10-20 crashes.

+1 Thats what TH is all about. Relieves the energy in the drive line.

[Skarn]

I think you guys have been lucky then lol! I hit TH every time and have even hit it prior to a crash and still stripped a couple teeth on my main gear. Think about it, even with TH on, the blades are still spinning up extremely fast and they studdenly stop......

Skarn

[wlfk]

Think about it, even with TH on, the blades are still spinning up extremely fast and they studdenly stop......

Think about it a bit more though, and you should realise that the motor and main gear will be immobile, however fast the main blades are going round. That's what the one-way bearing is for.

If it were the tail and autorotation gears, I would agree with you. But although I have some spares lying around, I have never needed them.