History is made!

All of my helis are flight ready! The holiday screwed up shipping, along with our mail person dropping everyone's mail off at the wrong houses (funny watching us all trade mail...).

I got the UFLYS put back together. The tail assembly was tight, and stressed out the tail servo. I loosened some of the pivot points and the links to the tail blades (damn, cracked one, but the heli doesn't seem to notice and it's still secure). We'll have to see how she flies now. I may have to try turning off the 3x gyro system, since someone mentioned that buggered up the control and turning it into an HH gyro made all the difference. I also used the stabilizer fixing set from the CB180Z instead of the fragile UFLYS one (have broken two trying to repair the boom assembly). It's much sturdier. I had to place a fixing bolt to keep it in place. I also used a bolt in the tail to the frame and the tail assembly to secure them in place. The heads of both of those screws broke off... Hopefully I won't need to remove them again. In setting the power takeoff pinion against the main gear I was careful not to push them together hard and pulled it back a scoshe to allow some flex. I think that's how I damaged the torque shaft before.

The skids are back on the errant CB180 D and she should be fun to fly! Not sure why she keeps going rogue in the distance, but I think its an antenna line-of-site issue.

Today I purchased a new tool box from PDY called Lift-n-Lok. I have a lot on my work table, and when I go off to fly I have to shuffle tools between the table and a tackle box. I also don't take my spare parts. This box makes it so I can leave everything in the box and just take it with me when I go to fly. Looking forward to getting it.   http://www.pdysystems.com/

The 450 kit arrives around the 3rd!

EXI 450cf Pro Kit Build Purchases

Taking advantage of a couple of Black Friday Sales I purchased all the parts for my EXI 450cf Pro Belt Driven Heli build.

Horizon Hobby
- Spektrum Dx6i Transmitter with AR6100e DSM2 Microlite 6-Channel Receiver and 4-DSP75 Spektrum Servos
- Hitec HSG5084 Digital Tail Servo

xheli.com
- EXI 450Pro Carbon Fiber Belt Driven RC Heli
- Exceed RC Alpha 400 3500kv Outrunner Brushless Motor
- MKS GY-292 Professional Headl-lock Gyro

RaidenTech
- Exceed RC Brushless 30A ESC with 3A Linear BEC
- Exceed RC Volvano Series Brushless ESC Programming Card

Hobby King
- Turnigy 2200mAh 3S 20C Lipo (x3)

It all came in, postage included, for around $448. Really the Spektrum Dx6i is a one time buy; I won't need tp buy one again, but I will need to buy servos and a receiver separately for my next build, I hope a Trex 700.

Merry Christmas to me!

My EXI 450 Pro Carbon Fiber Kit Build

EXI 450 Receiver Ready Build  (As posted on HeliFreak.com)

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Here's a community project I hope you all will participate in!

I am planning to build an EXI 450 carbon fiber kit ( http://www.xheli.com/18h18-exi450pro-belt.html ) with Spektrum D6xi transmitter, with Spektrum's package receiver and servos, an MKS GY 292 gyro, Exceed Volcano 30A ESC, and the Exceed Alpha 3500kv 450 size brushless motor. This would be my first build. Pretty sweet getting a 450 size with Spektrum receiver and sevos and the D6xi for under $350.

I really would like to hear your advice, comments, and guidance. I'm reading, watching videos (been through most of Finless' basic vids) as I go along. I am in planning stages now.

I have never built a kit before and have been flying helis only for a couple months but am doing pretty well (when I can get my low end heli's in flight status). I don't have ready access to a local mentor, so have been teaching myself online.

I will be doing this through my blog at: http://pretorian435.blogspot.com so as not to clog up Helifreak with this. If you are interested, please visit my blog and "follow" it.

Look forward to hearing from you!

__________________
Ken Schroeter
Walkera CB100 CB180D UFLYS
pretorian435.blogspot.com

Pouty face...

Got all excited when the guide set arrived from HeliDirect (Thanks, Larry!). I had removed the rotor head and was able to replace the guide, set the rotor, and get the Jesus pin in place. Leveled the swash, balanced the blades. All was good.

On spin up it was clear something was still wrong. She couldn't find her balance. before I could trouble shoot that her tail rotor stopped spinning. Again. Inspection revealed another delaminated tail rotor power takeoff pinion shaft. Crap. Right now I hate my UFLYS. I've had it for a month and I've not been able to fly it. The tail boom needed to be changed anyway (some dings, had to replaced a snapped tail mount because a screw post popped and was being held in place with zip tie). So I am going to try one more time. Ordering another shaft, another pinion, and another stabilizer holder, then rebuilding it. I already have a new boom. I had to take the entire tail assembly apart to get it off the heli. Hope I can remember where everything goes. Pisser... I hate my UFLYS. I was soooo looking forward to flying it.

So I took the CB180D out for a spin. Hovered okay, still no authority. Dead calm. It got about 30 yards away from me and rolled hard and dove. This was reminiscent of the crash that sheared the rotor head off. Is this actually a gyro issue? There was no response to the cyclic when it happened. Jeez. broke off a tail blade set and a skid. Grounded because I don't have a skid set, but I replaced the tail blades. Can't wait for those longer servo arms to come in.

I also took the Cb100 #1 outside. While its still an indoor cat, it had fun. It didn't take much for it to get pushed around. The thing can't develop a roll for a banked turn unless its got some speed on. Had to turn the gyro down a little, a bit of head seeking. It was a good girl and came home in one piece. I think it needs to have the swash leveled some more, but otherwise it was a satisfying flight. flew 2 packs with her before moving on to the CB180D in the waning light.

I hate my UFLYS.  Did I say that already?

Looking at building a heli. I am probably going to get an EXI 450 SE carbon fiber kit from xheli .
( http://www.xheli.com/18h18-exi450pro-belt.html ). I will pair it with a new Spektrum D6xi which comes with 4 microservos and a receiver (with remote receiver attached). I will need these servos for the EXI build.
( http://www.horizonhobby.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdID=SPM6620 )  I will need to buy a 30 amp ESC ( http://www.xheli.com/60aspco.html ), and a Exceed Alpha 3500 kv motor ( http://www.xheli.com/al4003oubrmo.html ). I think I'll skip the BEC.  I can bring this all in for less than $350. Great bargain!

I am also still very much considering instead the Blueray ARF receiver ready kit ( http://www.xheli.com/revolution-450-arf.html ), and pairing it with the Spektrum D6xi that comes only with a receiver ( http://www.horizonhobby.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdID=SPM6600 ) but that takes me up another $100 to $450.  Its essentially the same heli.

Building and setting up the EXI 450 would be easy, and that may be worth the $100. And it would have Spektrum receiver and servos. Oh, yeah...

Fixed Pitch Blade Tracking

I noticed that my CB180Ds blades were not tracking properly. When looking at the rotor disk on edge I could see that the blades were taking two separate paths through the air. I read online that fixed pitch (FP) helis need their blades to track properly, just like CCPM helis. I also read that by putting a piece of white electrical tape on the end of one blade (small enough not to cause a gross imbalance) I could see which blade was tracking high, and which was tracking low. It really worked. I also read on this same link that placing a small piece of tape at the blade grip would change the blades pitch and bring the blades in line. I had to chose to either bring the high blade pitch down, or the low blade pitch up. I arbitrarily chose to bring the high blade down. I found I had to put a piece of tape in front of the bolt on top, and a piece behind the bolt on the bottom, tilting the blade forward reducing the pitch. This levered the blade so the leading edge pitched down. On spin up the tracking was spot on! (See this link on RC Airplane World:

http://www.rc-airplane-world.com/rotor-blade-tracking.html

Windy day, so I hovered the CB180D in the Man Cave for one pack. With the mixer set up for in flight as opposed to hover stabilty it was still easy to hover, but I couldn't take my eyes off it for second. Can't wait to see what happens when I can let her run. If it doesn't improve her handling in flight, I will bring them to the middle, balanced for hover and flight. (See this thread on the subject of bell mixer set up on HeliFreak:

http://www.helifreak.com/showthread.php?t=258027

Beautiful day to fly!

Went out on this beautiful, calm day.

The CB100 loved being able to run, but just isn't an outdoor cat.

The CB180D is pokey too.  It seems to have good headspeed, but it just has no go. Even in light winds today it got pushed around. The stubby servo arms are not adjustable and I maxed out the extent on the receiver. It just isn't fun to fly as it just gets swept away. I found some longer servo arms at WowHobbies and ordered them. I don't want to do an all brushless upgrade as it makes it a direct tail drive, and costs as much as the heli did. Hopefully the longer servo arms will do the trick. I think the spline on these servo arms might fit the CB100's (wouldn't that be great)! Well, that pokieness lead to a loss of control and a broken blade. I tried just replacing one, but the vibrations were too great. Replaced both and it balanced out nicely.

Realized that I am waiting for the new guide set for the UFLYS, which DirectHeli has just mailed me (sending me the parts for free!), before I can fly it again. No flying for you!

My CB100s Seizure disorder

Video of the Seizure disorder suffered by my CB100 #2...



One of my CB100s developed a seizure disorder, where it would literally seize, fall from the sky, sometimes coming back to life in fits and starts. The issue is not the mesh, or the motor. I suspect the receiver, as the tail rotor appears to be affected at the same time, suggesting the main motor ESC and the tail ESC are not the culprits. The receiver is a stock Walkera RX2406C.

UPDATE: Well... I wanted to see if it was the receiver, so I swapped the bad heli's receiver, and the motor ran the same, so it's not the receiver. When I put things back the way they were supposed to be I noticed that one of the 3 pins in the plug from the main ESC to the motor was back further than the other two, so I pulled it forward. I squished everything, and would you believe the problem is gone? Sort of. After some hard landings it returns. I squish everything, the ESC, the receiver, the plugs, and the problem is gone. Its a loose connection somewhere. Flying this heli is smooth like butter... tuned and trimmed, locked in. Very nice!  I have a soft spot for the twins.