The laboratory has been buzzin' again

[nightflyr]

No need to hold anything... my dog always gets me up.

[SKYQUEST]

lol...my cat wakes me up at about 5am every morning. All of a sudden I am getting walked on and kneaded like bread dough until i wake up and pet her...and feed her too

The 2 things in life that can always make me smile: My cat and my heli

[Stumblebee]

Night, as usual your creations are a sight to behold. I must admit I was surprised to see usually pristine grounds of Castle East had leaves on them the same as Castle North. Of course, you have been very busy. You have to get Igor busy on that.

[nightflyr]

The ground was too wet from the rain, hopefully get out there today

[Luvmyhelis]

Originally Posted by helihaven

Richard, do you ever sleep? lol

A thought many of us have voiced over the years.

Originally Posted by nightflyr

3 hours a night if I need it or not...

That explains things!

Another masterful creation. A mecanical work of art, it would be a shame to hang a canopy on this.......and I am over in the upper northwest drooling.

[nightflyr]

For those who like a little in depth look..


[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b9blQSi3AOg[/ame]

KF-700 Startup (1 min 21 sec)

[nightflyr]

Castle East is still very much live and kickin'

[Just Another Flyer]

What do you guys think? If I got a Warp 360 could I stretch it to a 500 without major work and money?

[nightflyr]

Don't know that specific make, but anything is possible.

[Just Another Flyer]

Compass it is a stretch 450 when it comes stock. Do you think it will have 450 sized frames or larger. Maybe helihaven will know.

[Luvmyhelis]

Originally Posted by Just Another Flyer

Compass it is a stretch 450 when it comes stock. Do you think it will have 450 sized frames or larger. Maybe helihaven will know.

I haven't heard of a soul doing one of these yet. But like NightFlyr says, anything is possible.

[helihaven]

Originally Posted by Just Another Flyer

Compass it is a stretch 450 when it comes stock. Do you think it will have 450 sized frames or larger. Maybe helihaven will know.

OK...it's not out yet, but there is a manual for it already...and from what I see, it could be stretched (any heli can *GRINS*)...but it has a few design elements that worry me...the main rotor head is made like a tail rotor...no dampers at all...then there are the main grips themselves...a 3 piece affair...with an aluminum hub, but carbon fiber(?) top and bottom plates?...with no dampers wouldnt they tend to flex? It has a main and tail belt drive which I trully like..but the main drive was just one stage it looked like? not gonna have much in the area of gearing choices to help with bigger blades...doubt you will ever get much over 8...maybe 9:1? Tail boom looked pretty good size in the illustrations...15...maybe even 16mm in diameter...stated length was 400 mm...

The tail was nothing special either...once again using the carbon fiber side plates, and the age old "L" shaped pitch control lever that is always a major cause of slop...it did use a 4mm tailshaft and a 6mm main...but I have found that is pure overkill in an area that just doesnt need it, and being made of steel adds a sh!t ton of weight for no good purpose...on my 450 stretch I run 420mm blades (500 size) with a stock 5mm mainshaft with no adverse effects... As anyone who has done any real stretching will tell ya..the weakest link is the gearing...they did address THIS point by going with a belt drive..but like I said its only a single stage, and the gearing is gonna be real low the way it looked in the manual...Of all i seen of it..i DID like the DFC arms on the main rotorhead..once parts become available...gonna have to pick me up a set of those...but thats about all i liked...that's just my opinion...

[Stumblebee]

Hey Night. Over here at Castle North, we have been following the weather reports for the east coast. Wishing you, the dog and the Castle East Air Command all the best in preparedness for whatever happens with Hurricane Sandy. Some of the reports we are getting indicate this will be an ugly one. There are pictures of bulldozers pushing the sand in Long Beach.

[Tim Marks]

Originally Posted by Stumblebee

Hey Night. Over here at Castle North, we have been following the weather reports for the east coast. Wishing you, the dog and the Castle East Air Command all the best in preparedness for whatever happens with Hurricane Sandy. Some of the reports we are getting indicate this will be an ugly one. There are pictures of bulldozers pushing the sand in Long Beach.

Reporting here from Maryland. I guess it's on the way. Fortunately, we got all of our leaves up off the yard this afternoon!

[Stumblebee]

Good luck to you guys and all the folks of the eastern seaboard. Nothing can do a better job of humbling the works of man than Mother Nature. Right now, she has some serious attitude.

[Stumblebee]

Tim, somehow I suspect more than a few people would be glad to have no more to worry about than the leaves. You folks stay safe.

Originally Posted by Tim Marks

Reporting here from Maryland. I guess it's on the way. Fortunately, we got all of our leaves up off the yard this afternoon!

[nightflyr]

So far the weather has been holding out...
Cleared the yards ..though they covered up again in a few hours with falling leaves.
Managed to squeeze in a few flights along with trying out my new leaf blower..

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFbfQXfv0XU[/ame]

[pril250]

Nothing like the sound of metal on metal............

[Tim Marks]

Originally Posted by Stumblebee

Tim, somehow I suspect more than a few people would be glad to have no more to worry about than the leaves. You folks stay safe.

Hey no doubt. Not to make light of a big storm. It's just that in MD, we usually don't feel Mother Nature's anger too much. Hurricanes are usually reduced to tropical storms at the most before they reach us and I've experienced exactly one small earthquake in my entire life. We have had maybe two, but the epicenter of the first one was too far away for me to feel anything where I live. Worst we have to deal with is the occassional big snow, but compared to north of us, even that's usually not a major deal. Still I can guarantee you that by tomorrow night, there won't be a gallon of milk or a loaf of bread on a grocery store shelf one could purchase!

[Tim Marks]

Originally Posted by nightflyr

So far the weather has been holding out...
Cleared the yards ..though they covered up again in a few hours with falling leaves.
Managed to squeeze in a few flights along with trying out my new leaf blower..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sFbfQ...ature=youtu.be

Night:

RE: the leaf blowing, I sure could have used your help today! That appears to work a bit better than the new Craftsman we bought Friday night!