You can get a lot done on a long weekend.

[AZ300X]

Finally had all of my parts and a chunk of time to get my Goblin 500 Sport started. Next weekend, finish the build and start the setup. 😀

[toadiscoil]

Looking good!


Those are full size servos right? I like to have mid size even on my 570 but those black brushless look really cool


You indeed got a lot done. My 500 has a lot of work to do.

[AZ300X]

Yes, those are full size brushless servos. Really excited, off to a great start, just need to assemble the tail. Then I can focus on the radio and FBL setup.

[rex09]

A great effort
I got my orginal 500 at a fun fly, where the Auz factory pilot was there, with two visitors from a round of the world masters, They decided to help, since I looked way too bewildered. They finished in 2.5 hours , then handed it over for me to maiden I was just learning nose in hover and nose in landings, They soon got bored, and borrowed it nice to see it in the hands of experts

[AZ300X]

Now the real work begins. I've got a Soko Heli Tools pitch gauge coming this week. Hopefully, I can that part done next weekend...

[toadiscoil]

The Classic skids actually look pretty good! Looking forward to the maiden video!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[UpsideDownWhirlyBird]

Originally Posted by AZ300X

Now the real work begins. I've got a Soko Heli Tools pitch gauge coming this week. Hopefully, I can that part done next weekend...

My best flying helis are eyeballed, swash leveled, and then simply pitch gauged, but people swear by that tool. I’ve been tempted but it seems too involved just to set the tool up.

Am I the only one that completes entire builds in one day?! So stressful.

Watching for a maiden update.

[toadiscoil]

I built a heli once that I felt was really well setup. My lousy tic tocs were much more spot-on and it was easier for me to keep them from moving either towards me or away from me. That was an Oxy 3 Tareq Edition that I setup at a hotel room on a business trip.


I took paper and leveled the table with a bubble level and then confirmed zero on all corners with a pitch gauge. Then I also used paper under the skids to ensure the heli (measured at the boom) was level to that "perfect zero". I was able to measure zero along the rotation of the disc after the swash leveler and then some tweaking. Then I set my zero pitch. That's the best heli I have ever setup. Took an insane amount of time to do and I haven't done it since.


It was better but my other helis have been good enough. I do want to try a Soko one day of course I need to stop crashing and have enough budget to buy one LOL.


Now I just eyeball the servo arms, then use a mechanical swash leveler. Set zero pitch measuring at the top of the motor can on one blade and fold back blades to adjust the other for correct tracking. I did my trim flight and now that I have been devoting a lot of time to setup I can make it behave much more to my liking.


But yes I want to try a Soko one day.

Originally Posted by UpsideDownWhirlyBird

My best flying helis are eyeballed, swash leveled, and then simply pitch gauged, but people swear by that tool. I’ve been tempted but it seems too involved just to set the actually tool up.

Am I the only one that completes entire builds in one day?! So stressful.

Watching for a maiden update.

[tonys-heli]

if you want to waste 5 hrs of your life setting up a heli, then the soko is for you.
what that thing does in 5 hrs, I can do in 15 min.. or less..

[toadiscoil]

My problem with setup is that I always have a lot of variation on the pitch gauge. Unless the whole plane is perfectly zero'd (like my Oxy 3 example) then if you tilt the blades a bit and re-measure you will get a different number.


There is no good way to keep the shaft from spinning to have a consistent measurement. That's the only thing why I want a Soko, its ability to measure until it finds the exact amount of tilt of the shaft and compensate on whatever plane you have to have a perfect "virtual" plane.


So what I do works but I still am looking for a better method that gives me a bit precision. Yes need that fine line between excessive perfection and darn good enough.


What is your method?

Originally Posted by tonys-heli

if you want to waste 5 hrs of your life setting up a heli, then the soko is for you.
what that thing does in 5 hrs, I can do in 15 min.. or less..

[tonys-heli]

eyeball the swash and 90 the servos.. by eye. use digital pitch gauge to get zero at half stick on one blade, rotate head to other blade, re zero pitch gauge, get zero again on that blade.. finish the rest of the setup in the fbl.. never track a blade, go fly and never touch it again. unless I crash.

[jrman83]

Originally Posted by toadiscoil

My problem with setup is that I always have a lot of variation on the pitch gauge. Unless the whole plane is perfectly zero'd (like my Oxy 3 example) then if you tilt the blades a bit and re-measure you will get a different number.


There is no good way to keep the shaft from spinning to have a consistent measurement. That's the only thing why I want a Soko, its ability to measure until it finds the exact amount of tilt of the shaft and compensate on whatever plane you have to have a perfect "virtual" plane.


So what I do works but I still am looking for a better method that gives me a bit precision. Yes need that fine line between excessive perfection and darn good enough.


What is your method?

Not sure why you worry about the plane? As long as the surface is level you are good, no need to get the shaft level or perfectly vertical. The blades have the same natural rake as the main shaft. The direction that the measure of zero is taken is on a different plane than the shaft is at. No need to get X and Y both to zero. I think you should YT this process It should take you about 10min or so to set a head up. The only time it takes longer is if you have unequal pos/neg pitch and you have to adjust to even out.

[rex09]

Originally Posted by UpsideDownWhirlyBird

Am I the only one that completes entire builds in one day?! So stressful.

Kit inspected, sanded cleaned one day
Put it togeather one day
Wiring three + days, because I am OCD when it comes to that
setup 1/2 a day.
oh some of the days are quite long, my wife hates the time I spend on a new kit, everything and everyone gets put on hold

[AZ300X]

Watch "Goblin 500 sport maiden" on YouTube

Goblin 500 sport maiden (4 min 40 sec)

Finally, maiden and attempt at a trim flight.

[AZ300X]

I usually run 85% rate and 5% expo...forgot to set that so it was a bit twitchy. Setup the 3Digi for a trim flight but forgot to do the stick movements on start-up, so no go on the trim flight. Ran at 2,350 rpm so the tail was wagging a bit. First build ever and first big heli, but I made it through without peeing my pants! It may be the heaviest Goblin 500 ever at 6.44 lbs (RTF)! Yikes...:-)

[jrman83]

Looks like tail gain is too high for that headspeed.

[AZ300X]

The goblin manual says to expect that on the first few flights. Next flight, I will definitely initiate a trim flight but will run 2550 rpm instead. Hopefully, that will solve that problem.

[jrman83]

If it is from too high of tail gain, it will get worse the higher in headspeed you go. I would back down your gain at least 10% and go from there.

[toadiscoil]

I tried to tune my helis "the Brain way" and it's a bit different. I would follow the tuning guide on the manual. Yes, start with trim flight for sure. I am learning a lot on tuning as I am going back and forth redoing it as I was tuning it like a Brain and kept messing stuff up.

[jrman83]

What exactly is "the Brain way"? You? Tuning? Glad to hear it. Only a couple of years late, lol.