So you just crashed your mCP x... (things to check before flying again)

[Mojappa]

Just wanted to make a quick checklist of things to check after any crash, similar to how the guide pin would pop put of the AR bracket on the MSR, there are a few key areas that take the impacts.

• Make sure the linkages are attached to the grips and the swash, this is a common "break point" to save other parts from damage.

• Check that all three servo links are still attached to the swash and that there aren't broken balls on the swash as well.

• Another designed impact absorbent is the main gear spinning and sliding down on the shaft. First make sure the "D"'s are keyed into each other, mine seems to spin and come down at the same time. Hold the grips and spin the gear until the flat spots line up, then with one thumb on top of the mainshaft, using your fingernail press the gear back up into place, there should be about 1/16" of the shaft sticking out below the gear. If your heli suddenly requires more collective than usual to lift off or vibrating this is likely the culprit.

• Check that the grips don't suddenly have any side to side or excessive up/down movement as this could be an indicator of a bad or failing bearing. It's a good idea to feel this when it's new to get an idea of how it should feel.

• Check your tail rotor for the white stress marks around the middle, it gets bent fairly easily and will lose it's ability to hold, especially on punch outs, if it's got the marks its best to just replace it. While you're back here gently flex the tail boom to check for splitting, this can be fixed with CA if it does start splitting.

• Make sure the battery is pushed in fully otherwise it will offset the CoG.

• Check to make sure the landing gear is fully pushed into the mounting holes and none of the struts are broken, though so far this gear seems tougher than my mSR's was.

• ALWAYS RETURN TO NORMAL MODE AND COLLECTIVE IS FULLY DOWN BEFORE DISENGAGING THE THROTTLE HOLD. Accidentally spoiling up sucks and reminds you really fast that this is a serious toy, capable of causing more damage than similarily sized Blade helis. (see next post for more info on this and some peace of mind)

• If you've gone through this list and the heli still won't fly right (shakes, shimmies, or is just random in it's response to inputs) check that the little brass looking "keepers" on top of the servo shafts aren't loose and allowing the shaft to move up and down freely. They are threaded on this (MSR's were press on) so you can take some tweezers or small needlenose pliers to tighten them back down. I don't think this is likely to be caused by a crash, at least not a single one, but if all else checks out and it's still not flying right then this is another area to inspect for play.

• Still not right? Two more things. The feathering shaft/spindle could be bent. To check for this remove one blade, preferably the one on the phillips screw side, and use the screwdriver to turn the shaft clockwise (so as not to inadvertently loosen), the other blade should remain stationary, if it makes a circle when you turn it then the shaft is bent.

• All of this hasn't helped, eh? As a last resort per Finless Bob, try rebinding it. His had a performance issues that he couldn't track down and they went away immediately after rebinding.

• If you're still getting a vibration after all of this and you've got a decent amount of stick time on it (40+ flights) you may want to try ChrisH's tip of cleaning the wipers and plate behind the servo. Here's a link to his thread.
https://www.helifreak.com/showthread.php?t=289666


Once it's deemed to be okay then return it to a level surface and prepare to fly again. This heli takes more attentiveness than the MSR and the like. They're more sensitive to being improperly setup (or tweaked in this case) and have the potential to cause much more injury and damage than FP's with lower headspeed. If you're ever unsure of your heli or the way it's acting then immediately power down and diagnose and/or post your problem here for assistance. A slight wobble on a MSR was annoying more than anything, a wobble on this could lead to much more than irritation. I can't stress enough to be safe with these little guys and treat them as if they're a 700E, it may fit in your hand but it's risky to lift off from it. It's small size gets people off their guard thinking it's not potentially dangerous, it can be.

Also, doing a preflight is something you should get in the habit of, especially if you are going to move to bigger birds. I made a habit with the SR to attempt to tighten every screw on the heli before the days first flight. Doing this can bring a problem or possible malfunction-to-be to you attention and save you unecessary damage. You should also, before spoiling it up, check that the cyclic servos are all functioning properly.


***ADDITION***

I'm sure it'll end up in it's own and in other stickies but here is a link to the Finless videos on the mCP x. Lots of great info there regarding Tx and heli setup.

https://www.helifreak.com/showthread.php?t=289344

[ChrisH]

Good list.

Just as a note for those flying exclusively in idle up: the mCP X does have a soft start. You can go straight out of hold into idle up.

Disclaimer: You CANNOT go from hold to normal with anything more than 0 stick. The slow start only seems to work with idle up modes.

[Mojappa]

Thanks for the additional info, never knew it had soft start, I always spool up to right below midstick and then if all is well and smooth I flip into IU and take off.

[shadowreader]

Also make sure that link rods are inside the antirotation bracket guides. they can pop out but still be attached at the swash and grips.

[Keith C.]

Thanks Mojappa...I knew about the gear sliding down but I didn't realize about the 'D's.

I just take the gear off instead of spinning and stripping it and then turn the heli upside down and rest the top of the heli on a table while lining up the 'D's and sliding the gear back on. Seem to work well. Really good list thanks.

[questerng]

Hi,

Does anybody has a tail hunting problem.. Even out of the box.. There is this little hunting.. after awhile.. the tail drift left..

Did my Flip attempt today.. Crash of cause.. Done everything that's possible but now after the crash.. it's more obvious..( Ive check everything that's mention.. even re-binding it) and there is a vib..

Can it be the throttle and rudder relationship.. I've got my Travel Adj at 130 both side..

Oh... the other thing is the blade is not tracking straight now.. after the crash.. can it be the servo screw came loose.. I've check seems to be ok..

thanks
Q

[Brick]

no dis...kinda glad i didn't jump on this chaos !!! i hope HH/Eflite gets all these problems fixed...

rockin the mSR

[tracknoob]

Originally Posted by Mojappa

• Make sure the battery is pushed in fully otherwise it will offset the CoG.

Good list.

By the way, this might seem off the wall, but maybe it will save someone some heart ache:

On the 120SR thread, I noticed someone had done exactly what I had considered: taken the connectors off the board and the leads, and then trimmed and soldered the wires directly. It's radical, and if you don't like soldering, you better not do it. Not recommended for the squeamish. But you can get more current (higher performance), lower weight (higher performance) and a cleaner looking heli.

That said, I was eyeballing the length of the batt cable on the mcpx today and thought 'Hmmm, that's awfully long, if you have the battery installed when you plug it in... but the next five minutes reminded me of why that amount of wire is essential: I had a crash, and the links came off, the maingear shifted, AND the battery popped out of the tray. But no damage at all.

If you have that same kind of crash without the 'service loop[' of those longer wires, all that battery stress in motion would have been communicated directly to the connector on the board. Not good.

[smokingcopter]

I did a check over on my mcpx after a crash.I noticed the blade was about 10 foot away before the heli went down,grip bearing seperated,also noticed the tail was hanging down when I picked it up..So lhs,here I come till I get some boca bearing or find something better..

[swizzie535]

I have an mSR and 450 but for some reason I cNT FLY THIS mcpx----AS SOOON AS IT STARTS TO GO UP IT WANTS TO TIP OVER----I DONT GET IT, my trims are all at 0---im using a dx7---Ive been outta the game for bout a year so i feel like a newbie. can someone please tell me what I should set my dx7 to as a beginer? the hobby shop guy set it up fpr me and I think he followed the book but maybe I should slow it down till i get used to it,

even when its just on the ground about to take off its starts to tip over? I hate feeling like NEWBIE

Flew my 450 fine and the MSR I have mastered but I cant get this off the ground without being scared to crash

I miss my dx6

it was so much easier to settup

any help is greatly appreciated

[Arecee]

I found a new issue: My swashplate came apart before the crash, hence causing it to crash. That was on the first flight.

Seriously, the center of the swash popped out of the plastic ring. I called HH and they are sending a replacement once they restock in a couple weeks or so.

[thegeek]

Originally Posted by swizzie535

I have an mSR and 450 but for some reason I cNT FLY THIS mcpx----AS SOOON AS IT STARTS TO GO UP IT WANTS TO TIP OVER----I DONT GET IT, <SNIP>
Flew my 450 fine and the MSR I have mastered but I cant get this off the ground without being scared to crash
<SNIP>
any help is greatly appreciated

I'm with you swizzie, i simply cannot get my mCPX of the ground, with similar experience to you. I just don't get it. Is there some unspoken trick with the mCPX to getting them to lift off?

Frustrated.

[ChaosShadow00x]

huh... strange. Mine wants to tip, but then again every heli i've ever flown wants to roll a bit on the ground before its all spooled up.

Try spooling it up a bit quicker. Get the blades spinning and then take off. I found that lingering on the ground is a quick way of dirting a heli before its even in the air. Just get it in the air and balance it out, it should fly fine from there as the 3 in 1 will start to do its job.

If its tipping over in the air (which it seriously shouldnt) check these things (in order)

1) Check for smooth operation while spooling up. Make sure theres no vibration or anything like that. Just hold the heli in your hand while revving up. Note, the heli may want to try and tip while your holding it, it always does that to me if i'm not inhumanly holding it perfectly level, or move in the slightest. The blades might not be straight out at first, but should flatten themselves when the rotor gets going, in which case the first second or so the heli will vibrate, then clear up. If the vibes dont stop after only a second, check that your grips arnt too tight. If theyre fine, check your shaft isnt damaged, and theres nothing impeding its rotary movement.

2) trim settings... THERE SHOULD BE NONE. The FBL system acts as additional stick inputs, and it shouldnt be necessary.

3) If that doesnt change anything, or makes it worse, look at your swash. It should be PERFECTLY level, or as close to as possible. If its off even a few degree, it will present itself in flight.

4) Throw up throttle hold, and move cyclic around, and pitch pump it. Check for smooth operation of the swash plate. Your servos should all sit (though abit nosily) at around middle, and be level with each other. While moving the pitch, all ascend and descend at 100% the exact same time. Moving your cyclic, the servos should move the plate freely, with no binding or sticking. Any issue here could present a few potential issues, most likely with the servos, but the swash might be defective and be binding. Check the swash first by removing the links, and moving it around a bit, it should feel smooth and clear, including sliding it up and down. Any problems on the swash would require further analysis to determine if its a bad swash or maybe a bad main shaft. Uneven movement of the servos indicates a possibly dirty servo contact. I wont list the steps here, but i'll hunt the link if this ends up being the issue.

5) Check your servos. Try to move the servo shaft (between the white gear and brass tip on top) up and down gently. It should feel pretty solid, and no wiggle at all. If it does move, tighten up the brass bit on top with some small tool. Make sure to be gentle.

6) Failing all that, unplug your motor and tail from the 3 in 1. Put it on a very flat, level surface. Make sure you have ABSOLUTELY no trim on your radio. With everything unplugged, give it throttle. You should see the plates rise. Check that your plate doesnt start tipping in one direction or the other (excessively). I found mine moves a noticeable bit in 10 seconds or so, but if its clearly moving to the eye, there may be a problem with your TX or 3 in 1. A fix is to give it trim until it stays where its supposed to, but in reality you shouldnt have to. The other option is that your 3 in 1 is defected.

I'm sure theres more checks, but this would be worth while to go through first. Its probably something way simpler, but these checks will eliminate any potential minor problems. Hope it helps and you get in the air soon. This heli is a blast to fly!

[thegeek]

Great tips chaos. will persevere. thanks for your time.

[Stevin]

personally two things I have missed after crashing and then realized was

one: The swash plate pops out of the anti-rotation bracket. The heli will still fly but will not fly correct. This happened to me on atleast 4 occasions. Once I realized and popped it back in all was good.

two: Make sure the main motor gear is pushed on as far as it can go. I experienced this first hand and couldn't believe the difference in climb rate that the tiniest adjustment inward makes. If you notice that you have the thottle pumped to 85+% to gain hover this is most likeley your problem.

[Dixter]

Sounds like when you connect the battery you don't have the heli sitting on the ground correctly... With your MSR you can have the heli laying on its side when you connect the battery and it initializes... With the MCPX the heli needs to be sitting with landing gear on the ground during initialization so the gyro can reference the correct orientation due to it being a flybar less setup..

[BHChieftain]

I need to rebind fairly often with the DX4. Sometimes it will "forget" that it is in non-computer radio mode, and she won't lift off that way. You can tell this has happened if you hit the TH switch, and instead of going into TH, the pitch of the blades change.

Chief

[blade400dr]

Its nice to know there is someone who wants to help. Thanks.

[Hawzzy]

Originally Posted by BHChieftain

I need to rebind fairly often with the DX4. Sometimes it will "forget" that it is in non-computer radio mode, and she won't lift off that way. You can tell this has happened if you hit the TH switch, and instead of going into TH, the pitch of the blades change.

Chief

YEAH...i found that out the hard way when i i throttled up and the heli didnt want to lift off...i started tipping over so i hit the THROTTLE HOLD...only to find that the heli flew horizontally about 15 feet into the bushes...im going to contact HH ahbout it!!

Ive had to REBIND it alt least for half of my 15 flights

Tye

[Rick~K]

Great list! Wish I'd seen it before I had to figure out the no lift at full stick.
Rick