Found my Blade4003D

[Usman]

[Usman]

She already blew some !

[Usman]

Thank you for the servos Harbormaster, they work perfectly, this blade 400 already flew in the air perfectly! ! ! I'm soo happy that I found it and got it back! I missed it soo much and am soo happy to have it back with me !

[Usman]

It is snowing now. Its now 8:30. If it was summer, I'd be outside flying this right where I lost it for many months ! Plenty room inside ~

[Harbormaster]

Ah, cool. So long as she has returned to the air!

[Usman]

Yes, thank you soo much Harbor Master for all your help my friend and everyone else who helped me, mpowley also for the parts-really appreciate and helpful as I rebuilt my Blade4003D. The belt is a little dry from being unused for soo long and possibly from being in the elements for months. I figure the more I use this the more "broken in" it will be and eventually return to it's functioning self. I'm just going to take it easy and hover indoors for now. I am soo happy to have it back in the air and up and running. The belt needs to be broken in, and I've got some of this on order to help:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/LIQUID-WRENC...item4acd20d6c6
The tail boom actually warms up tremendously from the belt. The ESC also warms up. This Blade400 was barley used and so I'm soo happy to have it back so I can actually enjoy it ! !

[Iceberg86300]

Might want to just get a new belt.

The elements can wreck havoc on rubber. If it's stiff and you see any cracks (if you bend the belt backwards so the teeth are around the outside of the bend cracks that you can't normally see will show up) just replace it and put a bit of silicone lube on the new one.

Regards,

Steve

[Harbormaster]

Originally Posted by Usman

I've got some of this on order to help

Hey Usman -- Silicone spray that isn't "food grade" often has solvents that can really soften plastics, and that doesn't look like "food grade" to me. If you do a search on "food grade silicone" here at HF you can find some sources (like restaurant supplies and scuba shops). Do not believe the people who say "any silicone spray will do." I have a can full of plastic melting silicone spray that says otherwise!

(BTW, safe silicone grease for the o-rings in the head can be bought as "o-ring grease" in the plumbing supply section of hardware stores. I use "Master Mechanic" brand.)

[nartac]

Originally Posted by Usman

Yes, thank you soo much Harbor Master for all your help my friend and everyone else who helped me, mpowley also for the parts-really appreciate and helpful as I rebuilt my Blade4003D. The belt is a little dry from being unused for soo long and possibly from being in the elements for months. I figure the more I use this the more "broken in" it will be and eventually return to it's functioning self. I'm just going to take it easy and hover indoors for now. I am soo happy to have it back in the air and up and running. The belt needs to be broken in, and I've got some of this on order to help:
Liquid Wrench M914 Silicone Spray Aerosol 11 Oz | eBay
The tail boom actually warms up tremendously from the belt. The ESC also warms up. This Blade400 was barley used and so I'm soo happy to have it back so I can actually enjoy it ! !

I wouldn't use that for the belt. I bet it has petroleum distillates that will degrade the rubber. Get RC car shock silicone oil from your LHS which is rubber safe.

https://www.helifreak.com/showthread.php?t=262660

Edit: Harbormaster beat me to it, LOL

[Usman]

Thanks for the heads up...I guess I'll just install a new belt.
I thought this belt would have been fine, but from the results of the first few runs, I guess I can say its bad.
The whole tail boom was very warm after a half flight ( I only did half flights because I didn't want to crash and wanted to look for any abstract findings. )
The tail boom being warm certainly indicated to me this belt has been taxed by the elements from having spent months outside lost. The belt must be bad because I've never had a tail boom get so warm after usage. I thought maybe I could bring the belt back after using it several times but I guess not, and I certainly don't want to risk a mid flight crash due to a bad belt.
Everything else seems fine....maybe the ESC was "hot" from the belt issue. I'm just glad I found this beautiful helicopter and its up and flying...but I won't fly it again until I get a new belt installed. It will be well worth the new belt installation to know I won't have to worry about a belt malfunctioning on me.

[Usman]

I do have RC Car shock oil, several different weights from 30weight to 80 weight.....should I maybe try to relube this belt and throw it in my box of spares? The belt really looks fine, no cracks visible, but obviously from the tail boom warming up significantly after usage and the noisiness of it, maybe its dried beyond restoration. Its been outside in the elements for like a half year, maybe a new $5 belt would be the best idea. But I am a fan of salvaging parts that can be.

[Iceberg86300]

I wouldn't worry about flying before you get a new belt. Just getting warm isn't a big deal in the short run. Belt is just stiff from being dried out. The belt isn't all rubber, just looks like it (unless it's cut along its length which is often the case, then you can see the fibers that reinforce the belt). The fibers run the length so you really aren't in any danger of it breaking on you. (unless you see a bunch of frayed fibers, in that case it's just like tires on your car, depending on the tire of you ever see frayed steel or fibers you want to change em ASAP. I've driven on tires in that condition for a couple weeks without issue and that's in addition to how long they were like that before I noticed the problem. Of course you can baby your tires by changing your driving though, can't really do that on a heli)

Sorry I didn't check out that link earlier. At least you have a can of silicone / oil spray for pretty cheap.

You can get rubber / plastic safe stuff at the auto parts store as well, just have to look for it.

You can get a jar of human safe silicone gel from a scuba shop. Good to keep any o-rings or other rubber parts supple. Divers use it in their regulators and masks. I use it to make my custom ear buds slick so they go in and out of my ears easily. I really prefer that over the don't clean them because the ear wax acts as a lubricant instructions from the manufacturer lol.

Regards,

Steve

[Iceberg86300]

Originally Posted by Usman

I do have RC Car shock oil, several different weights from 30weight to 80 weight.....should I maybe try to relube this belt and throw it in my box of spares? The belt really looks fine, no cracks visible, but obviously from the tail boom warming up significantly after usage and the noisiness of it, maybe its dried beyond restoration. Its been outside in the elements for like a half year, maybe a new $5 belt would be the best idea. But I am a fan of salvaging parts that can be.

Really can't hurt it if you want to wind up the belt and soak it. It will just be a bitch cleaning it. Because you don't want any oil left on the belt, it'll make a huge mess and make skipping teeth easier. Problem is that you don't want to use alcohol or other solvent like CRC electronics cleaner because it will dry it right out again.

Lots of rinsing with hot water is about all you can do.

Regards,

Steve

[Harbormaster]

Originally Posted by Usman

The whole tail boom was very warm after a half flight

Maybe the belt was twisted in the boom? That would be my bet...

[nartac]

Originally Posted by Harbormaster

Maybe the belt was twisted in the boom? That would be my bet...

I was going to say the same. That is my best guess as well

[Iceberg86300]

Originally Posted by Harbormaster

Maybe the belt was twisted in the boom? That would be my bet...

Originally Posted by nartac

I was going to say the same. That is my best guess as well

I haven't seen the gear train on this heli, but the belt gets a half twist in the boom anyway correct? Or is it a straight shot?

Either way the belt would be twisted at least one full turn from normal, possibly 2, so that could definitely account for any belt noise, in fact I think it would sound horrible.

Regards,

Steve

[Usman]

Thank you soo much for the replies and suggestions. I double checked the belt and it is lined up with the pulley behind the main gear....and then is rotated 90 degrees clockwise....that is how it should be right?
The belt is mega stuff from being stuck in one position outside. My Blade400 was lost in Spring and found early winter. So its been outside in rain, and through hot temps and very cold temps. I'll double check to make sure it is supposed to be rotated 90 degrees clockwise at the tail and i'll try bathing it in something in the mean while my new belt arrives.
Either way I'm happy to have found my Blade400, and from all the help from everyone. It is greatly appreciated it. I'll never forget this or the ones who've helped me here ! THANK YOU soo much ! ! ! Time for some sleep....there is mega snow falling here in Albany and that means some shoveling to do in the morning. I'll keep everyone updated ! ! !

[Usman]

I forgot to mention....the belt looks brand new...it is just stiff. Where it was stuck outside for over a half year....the belt still takes on the U-turn it was left in around the pulleys. It was barely used prior to it getting lost outside up in the trees where it feel down to only be found a half year later. No frays, just dry and hard and stiff.

[Iceberg86300]

Yeah 90° is normal for pretty much every heli.

As far as direction of twist I have no idea. You've already flown it so I'm assuming it is correct. If it was backwards and everything was put together correctly (looks good to me) then the gyro compensation would have had to been reversed.

Looks like this model follows RC convention.

So main rotor turns CW (top down) and the tail rotor also turns CCW (looking straight at the tail rotor.

Damn near every RC heli (if not all) are set up like this.

When the tail is setup normally (no grip flip mod) the tail blade's leading edges should rotate up into the main rotor wash. When I replaced booms (and tail blade's because I killed those with every boom strike) on my old belt drive heli I would just auto the head by hand and make sure the tail grips rotated up into the rotor wash.

I don't know why I added all this discussion; very simply the main rotor should rotate CW and tail rotors should rotate CCW.

Regards,

Steve

[terryv83]

I'm sure the mains should rotate CW, not CCW.