Copycat 500 build

[Ironrotor]

Originally Posted by Steemo

No you are probably not dreaming, ESCs can affect the way the motor sounds when it's running. First time I spooled up my 450 with the Castle Ice 50 on it i thought the motor was broken because it made this sound that almost sounded like a whistle at the start of the spool up. But I've learned that many Castle speedies make different motors sound like this, it's just a trait they have.
So yes the motor in your 500 probably does sound different

Steemo, you are right, it does have a slight whistle. Sounds very much like the whine of a gas turbine.

I got two packs in today, and then managed to break a tail blade grip and bend the tail drive shaft and susequently striped the TT drive gear by landing in high grass. I ve flown in this field before, but the high grass got me this time, stupid move on my part. I guess I was too excited to fly the ESC and wasn't thinking about a blade strike. Ordered the repleacement parts and grounded for now.

Observation at 2 Packs:
The Turnigy 70A K-Force ESC flew very well and is easy to program with the Rx. I absolutely noticed a great performance improvment over the HK 70AESC/BEC( No Surprise). The Turnigy 70A K-Force is very smooth, consistent, powerfull and efficient. I gained an extra minute of flight time, WOW! The ESC was barely even warm but the Lipo was warmer than usual. I backed timing down one setting and this helped keep pack #2 a little cooler and had no obvious impact on perfromace at all (hovering).

Additionally, the seperate Turnigy High Voltage BEC worked very well. Without the proper test equipment I make this guesstimate: the servos seemed to perform better as a result of proper or steady voltage. The Heli seemed to be dead-on! Big Fun!

I will report further after more flights.

[Ironrotor]

Parts came in, made the repairs and got a short test flight in between the rain showers. Seems good to go . I will do sme testing and report, hopefully with some video.

[Ironrotor]

Put a couple of packs through the heli today even though it was much windier than I like.

The new Turnigy K-Force ESC (http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...hless_ESC.html) performing well. Very steady and fast power delivery. After a solid 6 minutes of flight time the ESC is hardly warm. The soft start is fair, initialization is very quick, the spark eliminator works perfectly, and the signal loss protector works great. Programming through the transmitter is super simple now that I have tuned it a couple of times; I am glad I didnt spend the extra money on a program card as it would have been a waste.

The new Turnigy HV BEC (http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...input_.html)is set for 5v, I am tempted to go to 6v for the DS520 tail servo, but I am afraid the GOTEK 9650's on cyclic might not like added voltage and die. I am playing it safe for now. If anyone else uses the Turnigy HV BEC from HK make sure you tape the 5v/6v jumper in place as mine fell off and was lost in the grass; before flight. Luckily they come with two.

On a seperate note: I changed the tail control rod to a thicker and less flexible solid piece of graphite rod; but had to drop the pitch sliders. I never liked the HK metal rod as it flexed and the HK pitch sliders never really lined up perfectly for me. In flight it appeared as though the gyro/servo worked just a hair less to stay locked. I know it I am flirting with disaster not having the slider; anybody else tried this? I will go back to sliders once I get an upgraded control rod/ and some better sliders.

[JettaManDan]

Originally Posted by Ironrotor

Put a couple of packs through the heli today even though it was much windier than I like.

The new Turnigy K-Force ESC (http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...hless_ESC.html) performing well. Very steady and fast power delivery. After a solid 6 minutes of flight time the ESC is hardly warm. The soft start is fair, initialization is very quick, the spark eliminator works perfectly, and the signal loss protector works great. Programming through the transmitter is super simple now that I have tuned it a couple of times; I am glad I didnt spend the extra money on a program card as it would have been a waste.

The new Turnigy HV BEC (http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...input_.html)is set for 5v, I am tempted to go to 6v for the DS520 tail servo, but I am afraid the GOTEK 9650's on cyclic might not like added voltage and die. I am playing it safe for now. If anyone else uses the Turnigy HV BEC from HK make sure you tape the 5v/6v jumper in place as mine fell off and was lost in the grass; before flight. Luckily they come with two.

On a seperate note: I changed the tail control rod to a thicker and less flexible solid piece of graphite rod; but had to drop the pitch sliders. I never liked the HK metal rod as it flexed and the HK pitch sliders never really lined up perfectly for me. In flight it appeared as though the gyro/servo worked just a hair less to stay locked. I know it I am flirting with disaster not having the slider; anybody else tried this? I will go back to sliders once I get an upgraded control rod/ and some better sliders.

i hate the flexible rods for the tail control...thought of making a strong rod up for mine as well...but never found a solution i trust yet...one of my 450's came with a carbon rod made up..going to use it on my cheapo ebay 450 kit i'm going to finish building here shortly...

[Ironrotor]

JMD,

I am really liking the carbon rod for pitch control. I focused on it during a flight this morning and there is no flex at all, of course it is twice the thickness as the metal HK one. I am now positive the lack of flex allows the gyro to perform a little better. Good luck on the 450; post some pic's.

[JettaManDan]

Originally Posted by Ironrotor

JMD,

I am really liking the carbon rod for pitch control. I focused on it during a flight this morning and there is no flex at all, of course it is twice the thickness as the metal HK one. I am now positive the lack of flex allows the gyro to perform a little better. Good luck on the 450; post some pic's.

i have carbon tube and some threaded rod i can use to make my own control rod...have thought about it..but then trusting my epoxy to hold up and the rod to not flex...

my "good" 450 is now in my Huges 500D fuselage..but the tail is kicking right..not seeing anything binding but have to figure it out. My 2nd 450 had a tail problem as well....it is a EXI kit i got fancy with and bought a carbon tail boom for and other parts and it looks like it didn't hold in right...so when i flew it the tail jumped hard. So i got a real align 450 tail boom and whole setup to swap in. Little did i know the tail box with the main gear interface was different. So i'm using the back end of the align stuff and the boom and the stock tailbox from the exi setup. Seems secure and tighter than the setup i did have. Going ot also change out the rudder seervo and the ESC..have a Hobyking 55/60 amp heli dedicated esc on it and i want to swap it for a hobbywing one i have. The hobbyking esc is ok but it is big and heavy....designed for a larger heli..i have 2 of them and may sell them to finance some other stuff.

My ebay 450 is built (has been for a year)...just no electronics...it was a kit i got for all of $20 off ebay..all plastic and cheap..so going to load it up with cheap servo's and a motor and esc to just see if i can fly it for 30 seconds ....i'm gonna stuff it into my Blue Thunder fuselage for display purposes for an upcomming heli fly-in i'm helping out at....so we'll see how that all goes...

[JettaManDan]

Originally Posted by Ironrotor

JMD,

I am really liking the carbon rod for pitch control. I focused on it during a flight this morning and there is no flex at all, of course it is twice the thickness as the metal HK one. I am now positive the lack of flex allows the gyro to perform a little better. Good luck on the 450; post some pic's.

i think you are right and i need ot make a carbon hybrid control rod..i just got my 2nd 450 back together and the rod was flexing so badly i needed 4 guides ot keep it from doing that...so i may take some 2mm carbon rod i have..and epoxy it to the metal guide rod..and then heatshrink over the 2 of them for a super strong rod and pull the guides off all together....we'll see how that goes! lol!

[Ironrotor]

Originally Posted by JettaManDan

i think you are right and i need ot make a carbon hybrid control rod..i just got my 2nd 450 back together and the rod was flexing so badly i needed 4 guides ot keep it from doing that...so i may take some 2mm carbon rod i have..and epoxy it to the metal guide rod..and then heatshrink over the 2 of them for a super strong rod and pull the guides off all together....we'll see how that goes! lol!

I bet it will work pretty good.

[Steemo]

I took 2mm carbon tube (1.5mm id) and jbwelded in a 450 servo-swash rod at either end. working a treat with no guides on the 450. no flex at all

[JettaManDan]

Originally Posted by Steemo

I took 2mm carbon tube (1.5mm id) and jbwelded in a 450 servo-swash rod at either end. working a treat with no guides on the 450. no flex at all

nice..was thinking of that too...i have some full carbon control rods on the way from overseas to try out...i'll make my hybrid 1st and see how it works and then go from there...

[Ironrotor]

In my spare parts bin I found an old Blade CP tail boom; it seems perfect to make a hybrid control rod. Thick, hollow, very light and super strong. Just jbweld a swash rod at either end like Steemo said and Shazam! Its the perfect size.

[JettaManDan]

cool...

i just made my hybrid rod...took some 2mm carbon rod and used epoxy for it and the stock control rod and then ran some heatshrink over the 2 rod and shunk it and let the epoxy dry. So far it looks like a winner for me...lightweight and strong..we'll see how it does on a heli...

[JettaManDan]

Originally Posted by JettaManDan

cool...

i just made my hybrid rod...took some 2mm carbon rod and used epoxy for it and the stock control rod and then ran some heatshrink over the 2 rod and shunk it and let the epoxy dry. So far it looks like a winner for me...lightweight and strong..we'll see how it does on a heli...

forgot i ordered 3mm carbon tube...lol! got 2 of them in ysterday and couldn't resist making 2 more CF tail control rods lol! This was easier than my sandwich and heat shrink setup for sure. Did the same thing though really...mixed up some epoxy...put one end in the tube and past the threads..then slathered on the epoxy on the metal rod...and slid it into the tube. Wiped off the excess that came out and let it sit. Done...couldn't be simplier! They are light and strong and with the metal and the carbon there is no flex..

took a few pics...

this 1st one is a couple of my rods made up...the white ones are the solid rod and metal rod sandwiched in heat shrink. I put epoxy on the 2 rods and then slid the heatshrink over and heated it to squeeze them together. Came out really good. The black ones are just the metal rods slid into the 3mm tubes...



and this is just a closeup of the ends..you can see the excess epoxy leaking out of them lol!



I have 2 more ot make tonight...the goal is to have a carbon hybrid rod for all my helis...all 3 of my 450's and my 2 500's...(one 500 still to rebuild) i hate the control rod flex and the stupid boom stays for them...will be glad to dump that system all together and see how this is...

Dan

[Ironrotor]

JMD,

The hybrid rods look great. Just a thought, if you have some of the old rubber antanae tube cover plugs/caps; you could poke the threaded rod through them and slide them down for an aerodynamic look.

I dinged my blades and stripped a cyclic servo learing flips; got low and sketchy. Minor damage but I am waiting on the parts to arrive. Temporarily grounded!

[Steemo]

Altitude is your friend, I don't hover inverted unless I am at least 20ft up. When I first started trying static flips and rolls same deal.

[JettaManDan]

Originally Posted by Ironrotor

JMD,

The hybrid rods look great. Just a thought, if you have some of the old rubber antanae tube cover plugs/caps; you could poke the threaded rod through them and slide them down for an aerodynamic look.

I dinged my blades and stripped a cyclic servo learing flips; got low and sketchy. Minor damage but I am waiting on the parts to arrive. Temporarily grounded!

not a bad idea! right now i'm not about style..just functionality!

sucks you hurt it...i'm way too scared to try anything cool yet...

but my boss was away the past 3 days..so what did i do? i finished building my ebay 450 and took all the parts i gathered to rebuild (well really build from the ground up) my wrecked 500....and got as far as i could go on both of them while waiting for some parts...so it was a productive few days! I'm hoping to have 5 CP heli's flying or at least hovering for a heli evnet in a week and a half...

Originally Posted by Steemo

Altitude is your friend, I don't hover inverted unless I am at least 20ft up. When I first started trying static flips and rolls same deal.

if i EVER try a flip i'll be at about 200 ft!

[robbancs]

Originally Posted by JettaManDan

if i EVER try a flip i'll be at about 200 ft!

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRcQ9MV3nHU[/ame]

0:20

[JettaManDan]

looks like about how i would do it! and then use a vaccuum to get my jewels out of my body

[Ironrotor]

Pilots friend; sky below you and speed behind you! I was practicing at a reasonable altitude, I just couldn't manage to stay there for very long! Fixing the bird right now. I ve gotta get one of those CAM's!

[Oldladypilot]

Yep, got some medical bills to pay.
I wanted to give you guys a chance before I put it in the for sale section. I never finished assembling it, so it needs to be finished.

Comes with an Align motor and ESC
1 new, (installed on the heli), Blue Arrow D26012MG 29.7/Kg/.11 sec. High Torque digital tail servo.
Quark outrage edition gyro, new, in the box.
3 brand new, in the boxes, Hitec HS-5245MG servos.
1 Turnigy 3000mAH, 20-30c lipo battery. Used once. charged to storage voltage.
1 new AR6210 Spectrum receiver.
$360 firm, includes shipping

Let me know if anyone is interested. I'll let this sit on here for a few days then put in the for sale section. Thanks guys!