[RookieOne]

If it's any consultation Lazer, I had the recevier drop out on me in my Trex 600 this morning......

Had just punched the collective and it was heading up to about 30-40 feet. Receiver went out and I had NO control

Luckily, I have the electronics setup so that when the RX drops out, the heli goes to 0* pitch and throttle hold (motor turned off). So I got to watch it, completely level fall from 30-40 feet and hit, completely level, the ground.

Took about 3 seconds....3 VERY long seconds.

Got pretty lucky, walked away with only broken frame members, broken landing skids, and a few toasted bearings. All in All, less than $100. Given the alternatives (Easily $300+) I'm pretty stoked.

I'm bummed, cause I was flying an older battery to get a baseline, so I could compare the performance of a few new batteries....never got to them.

Oh well, it will be down until Monday, when I can get the spare parts....That's why I got multiples!!!

Good luck Lazer, holler when you get another go at it......

Later

[DocG2828]

Of course in order to learn how to fly your heli....you actually have to have the heli in working condition and the ability to fly it more than twice a month!

I may be wrong, but I'd say a good part of learning is the very fine motor control of your thumbs. You pretty much have to train your thumbs for minute adjustments that you will be doing all the time. As you already noticed, a very small movement to the side and she'll take off sideways! And you have to be able to pull it back a tad the other way to get her back to a hover position.

You guys all gave me a hard time when I first got mine, I've honestly never had mine over 2 feet more than once or twice, and it was never really on purpose. My brother had a fixed pitch Honeybee that the wind took up to about 20 feet. Somehow by sheer luck I brought it back down safely. So yeah, I fly very very very cautiously, mainly because I do not want to wait on replacement parts for getting cocky.

Do the RADD's. I still can not fly mine, but I've learned a lot about what NOT to do. I also have not spent much time on it lately. My flying pad is my driveway which is two car widths....but has obstacles beyond that. So hovering is a very careful procedure.

[RookieOne]

Originally Posted by DocG2828

I may be wrong, but I'd say a good part of learning is the very fine motor control of your thumbs. You pretty much have to train your thumbs for minute adjustments that you will be doing all the time. As you already noticed, a very small movement to the side and she'll take off sideways! And you have to be able to pull it back a tad the other way to get her back to a hover position.

You guys all gave me a hard time when I first got mine, I've honestly never had mine over 2 feet more than once or twice, and it was never really on purpose. My brother had a fixed pitch Honeybee that the wind took up to about 20 feet. Somehow by sheer luck I brought it back down safely. So yeah, I fly very very very cautiously, mainly because I do not want to wait on replacement parts for getting cocky.

Do the RADD's. I still can not fly mine, but I've learned a lot about what NOT to do. I also have not spent much time on it lately. My flying pad is my driveway which is two car widths....but has obstacles beyond that. So hovering is a very careful procedure.

Pretty passive agressive there Doc!!! "I may be wrong....but"

Naaa, your pretty much right on point...IMHO. Learning to fly/hover these has 3 distinct steps.

1. Learn the controls. Learn how to make the correct inputs with your thumbs without thinking about it.

2. Learn the movements. Learn how much of an input is needed. Learn the results of a given input.

3. Learn the Motion. Learn how the helicopter behaves. Learn the momentum/inertia of the heli relative to the inputs.

Once you really get a good grasp on all of these you tend to be proactively flying the heli, and not constantly reactively chasing the heli. Your never in full control if your constantly reacting to what the heli is doing. You need to get to a point with your skills where you KNOW what the heli is doing, will do, and will continue to do.

It just take patience and experience.

[DocG2828]

Yup, and when you master all 3 of those, you might be ready for forward flight. Mastering the orientation of the copter is a whole different beast. But one where flying a coax with authority comes in handy. I actually bought my collective first, then backtracked to the coax just to get comfy with the orientation and all that. Sure, flying tail-in is easy enough, but masterfully controlling a heli and doing so from all angles, directions and orientations is a very intense thing!

I've had people who can fly very well tell me its one of the hardest things they've learned how to do. I knew a guy who could fly a real heli and he said its easier flying the real thing.

[RookieOne]

Originally Posted by DocG2828

Yup, and when you master all 3 of those, you might be ready for forward flight. Mastering the orientation of the copter is a whole different beast. But one where flying a coax with authority comes in handy. I actually bought my collective first, then backtracked to the coax just to get comfy with the orientation and all that. Sure, flying tail-in is easy enough, but masterfully controlling a heli and doing so from all angles, directions and orientations is a very intense thing!

I've had people who can fly very well tell me its one of the hardest things they've learned how to do. I knew a guy who could fly a real heli and he said its easier flying the real thing.

Learning hovering in all orientations is DEFINATLY the hardest thing to learn. The close second is learning to hover in all orientations inverted. Learning these two skills is downright terrifying. Your completely out of your comfort zone and your constantly anxious because of that.

After learning hovering and orientations, it becomes much less scary, and just frustrating to learn the the proper Timing of maneuvers. Once you have hovering in all orientations down pat, you ALWAYS have a "safe place" to go to when things get away from you. In the middle of a flip, fast forward flight, tic-tocs...whatever, when it gets away from your, or does something you don't expect, you always have somewhere to go where your comfortable and can catch your breath and refocus.

Once you lose the fear of the machine, things become much less complicated and pressing. In fact, one of the most interesting things is the sense of time. Right now, I'd wager that Lazer is viewing everything the helicopter is doing as incredibly fast. As you get more comfortable, time starts slowing down a little bit.

I remember trying to learn stall turns (where you make a high speed pass, pull straight up, and then spin the heli 180 at the top of the climb while falling down). The first few dozen, there didn't seem do be ANY time at the top of the climb. Things happened SOO FAST!!! Over time, getting more comfortable with it, things slowed down drastically. Now, when I throw a heli up there for a stall turn, it feels like I have eternity. I used to barely be able to rotate the heli 180 in time....now I'm typically rotating the heli 540 one way followed by 540 the other before I pull out.....sometimes I just get lazy and jam the rudder and spin the heli 6 or 7 full rotations before I pull out.

It's all experience. That's all it is. Just need to get to a point where you are CERTAIN what you need to do and the results of what you do. You need to get to a point where your aren't THINKING about what your doing...or if you are, your thinking of what your GOING to be doing rather than what you are doing. If your thinking about what your doing, your lagging, and if your lagging your reacting to the heli, and things just go downhill from there.

Unfortunately, getting there can be quite frustrating.......I know, trust me...

[LaserSVT]

Originally Posted by DocG2828

Should have kept it on the concrete. At least your training gear will slide around. I tried in the grass once and the training gear just catches and you flip the heli. No offense, but I think you need to avoid the wind completely, and stick to a concrete pad for now.

This is why I prefer the cheap plastic parts.....cheaper to replace

Dude, I got 8 main blades, 8 tail blades, main shaft, 3 belts, tail boom, 5 feathering shafts, 5 main gears, new hub, autorotation gear, tail boom mounts and a new head all for $39 shipped. Sounds cheap to me.

[LaserSVT]

well that was fun and expensive.

My new heli parts showed up way early and the weather was perfect so I took her for a flight. Had some trimming to do at first and put the blades in the soft dirt which bent my main shaft. So I swapped on a new shaft and had back at it. I was so thrilled to keep it within 10' of me for a good 15-20 seconds with minor corrections, I was just happy as could be. Well Izzabella (my painted horse) is very curious so she was walking up to inspect this big bird and I dont have enough skill to keep it from sliding into he so I gave a little more throttle and got it above her head and was just impressed with its controll. Well it started sliding towards the corral so I gave some more throttle to clear that and try to make it come back so I could land it and catch my breath (its a bit nerve racking). Very minutemovements really gave it speed fast and it was instantly over 150' away. I paniked and gave some more throttle to do a climbing stall turn and it was beautiful! Got up a good 80'. pirouetted and brought it back but man did it move fast! I was already pulling back for level flight before it was even done with the turn but the thing shot past me doing well over 50 mph. I banked it and brought it around for a wide slow turn (trying to do minute stick changes) and was doing alright. I tried to keep the altitude low to controll it better but it was so far away I mis judged which way the tail was pointing and when the heli went a little sideways I ended up correcting the wrong way and watched it slam into a very tall fence post doing 35+ mph. What an impact! Parts everywhere. I went to go get it and it shattered both new blades and really twisted the feathering shaft as well as totally destroyed the canopy. The fly bar was slightly bent too but its so pliable it was easy to straighten. Big bummer is it stripped the gears from a servo too so now I need a couple of those (need a spare). So all together about a $30 crash +/-.

I was bringing it back home thinking what the hell did I buy something like this for. My father reminded me that the first few flights were expensive on my little heli but I learned quickly and now fly it great. The thing was so freaking cool flying past my head at 50+ mph and while it was flying I was just over joyed. So I will stick with it and order the new stuff next week and give it another go.

Man these things are hard to fly. The inpact was so severe though I cant believe how well everything held up though. Heli is a real trooper!

[DocG2828]

[RookieOne]

welcome to the hobby.

Constant anxiety, and a constant expense.

You need to start practicing in an area completely free of obstacles. Living or not......

I know seeing it fly around is cool....but you REALLY REALLY need to master hovering before moving forward. If you can't keep it in a 6' box for a full battery pack, you shouldn't be thinking about forward flight. The two hardest skills to learn and master are hovering and transitions. Transitions between forward flight and hovering.

It's a bummer that you crashed. Yes, helis are robust. I've planted quite a few and they always hold up better than you expect. However, the converse is true as well. I've had plenty of times where I've had a SLIGHT mishap, and find damage I don't expect...HOW THE HELL DID THAT BREAK!?!? It's a crap shoot. That's why you aim not to crash!!!!

I don't know what your setup is right now...but there are things that can be done to "Slow" a heli down. Flybar weights all the way out at the paddles will slow down the cyclic, resulting in a heli that is slower to react. Your max cyclic pitch can be dialed back, I fly with mine at ~10*.....around 4* would result in a very docile cyclic. Your pitch curve could be flattend out (if your radio has 5 point curves). And you can put Expo on all controls (if your radio has that ability)

Basically, one can take a 450 and dial it back so far that inputs have to be consciously inputed at a much larger scale than normal to make a result. The trick is to dial the sensitivity back up as you get more skilled.

Quick question.....are you flying in normal mode (motor speeds up with stick movements) or idle up/stunt mode (motor speed stays constant and stick only changes pitch)?

[DocG2828]

I think he'll finally get tired of fixing it and replacing parts....and he may actually heed the advice about hovering....

in a larger area!

[LaserSVT]

The hovering is my plan and thats what I intended to do. The horse was aproaching quickly and I first gave some left stick but it wasnt fast enough and I felt at that altitude I was too low to give any more stick (crashed many timesin the sim like that) so the alternative was to get above her. I forgot the helicopter tends to want to go right when climbing so I had to give power with left stick to keep it from going inverted (I dont fly in 3-D mode, dont have that controll yet). So it went up very quickly, rotated 90* and hauled ass that way. I rotated it bock 90* and figured the one thing I knew how to do well was a climbing fast stall turn (I had done a couple hundred on the sim) and bring it back. Well on the sim I can scrub its speed off much better and instead of it stopping above me it just shot past.
Im going to practice on the sim more. In the sim I would hover for 2-3 minutes and get bored and go fly. Always had a problem going back from flight to landing though. I would pick out a 2' sqaure box but could only land it just at the edge or outside that box.

[RookieOne]

Originally Posted by LaserSVT

The hovering is my plan and thats what I intended to do. The horse was aproaching quickly and I first gave some left stick but it wasnt fast enough and I felt at that altitude I was too low to give any more stick (crashed many timesin the sim like that) so the alternative was to get above her. I forgot the helicopter tends to want to go right when climbing so I had to give power with left stick to keep it from going inverted (I dont fly in 3-D mode, dont have that controll yet). So it went up very quickly, rotated 90* and hauled ass that way. I rotated it bock 90* and figured the one thing I knew how to do well was a climbing fast stall turn (I had done a couple hundred on the sim) and bring it back. Well on the sim I can scrub its speed off much better and instead of it stopping above me it just shot past.
Im going to practice on the sim more. In the sim I would hover for 2-3 minutes and get bored and go fly. Always had a problem going back from flight to landing though. I would pick out a 2' sqaure box but could only land it just at the edge or outside that box.

I don't remember, which Sim did you say you were running?

It's mildly amusing to watch people learn this hobby, I have to be honest. You are definitely not the first person I've seen belly up to the bar, convinced that they would figure it out quickly. There is a definite level of amusement in the amount of humility that the learning curve produces. I have to be honest.

Unfortunately, it is really hard to convince committed individuals without them having exposure themselves. Hopefully, initial exposure is enough to tamp down expectations and bring the humility required to keep from being too aggressive. Those that don't come to this point tend to wash out early and with a larger repair bill than others.

Several things to keep in mind.....

-The sim(s) are not perfect. Scratch that.....they are perfect, and that's the problem. The heli is setup perfectly neutral in the sims, the radio is perfect, the servos are perfect, the environment is perfect. The real world is not. You don't gain anything from the sim other than muscle memory. The heli will not react and perform EXACTLY as in a Sim. Doesn't happen.....Won't happen. Don't expect it to.

- Once the heli is moving...the name of the game is energy management. Once you transition into forward motion, the vast majority of control needs to be done relative to the energy of the heli. Failing to get a grasp of the energy management of the system results in over correcting, under inputs and gross misunderstandings of timing, speed and momentum....usually resulting in damage.

- MASTER HOVERING. Hovering ends a few feet from where you start in all directions. Letting the heli drift 20 feet away is not hovering...it's merely reactionary control.

- PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE. When learning, I was burning through 5-10 battery packs a day. I only had 3 so I was flying, charging, flying charging. Sounds like a lot, but at 5 minutes a battery, and being able to practice in smaller areas, it doesn't take much.


Keep at it Bill. If you keep at it, you will get there. But I can not stress enough that you have to SLOW DOWN and be very methodical and patient.......I can't stress it enough. LEARN THE FUNDEMENTALS.


Good Luck

[DocG2828]

Rookie.....I went to use mine after not using it for a bit. The lipo didn't seem to want to hold a full charge. It would run, but not enough power to lift it. I tried to run the battery out and recharge fully. The battery then began to puff as I used it....still not lifting though.

I then remembered you do not discharge a lipo right??

So anyways, I have two new batts on order for my CP copter so I've been tooling with my CX.

Is it normal for a lipo to not hold a full charge like that after sitting? If I'm gonna let it sit, whats the best charge on the battery for this?

Keep in mind I do not have a good charger, just a cheapo ESKY one that came with the kits. It charges or doesn't once full.

[DocG2828]

Originally Posted by RookieOne

It's mildly amusing to watch people learn this hobby, I have to be honest. You are definitely the first person I've seen belly up to the bar, convinced that they would figure it out quickly. There is a definite level of amusement in the amount of humility that the learning curve produces. I have to be honest.

Troof. I am by no means an expert.....but I learned that lesson on my first flight....and backed it up way way far.

I've run through at least 15 charges on my batt.....and have only replaced a set of blades and a servo. I have learned to be vewy vewy careful.

[RookieOne]

Originally Posted by DocG2828

Troof. I am by no means an expert.....but I learned that lesson on my first flight....and backed it up way way far.

I've run through at least 15 charges on my batt.....and have only replaced a set of blades and a servo. I have learned to be vewy vewy careful.

Oops... that quote had a typo....I meant to say Lazer definatey WAS NOT the first I've seen.....

[RookieOne]

Originally Posted by DocG2828

Rookie.....I went to use mine after not using it for a bit. The lipo didn't seem to want to hold a full charge. It would run, but not enough power to lift it. I tried to run the battery out and recharge fully. The battery then began to puff as I used it....still not lifting though.

I then remembered you do not discharge a lipo right??

So anyways, I have two new batts on order for my CP copter so I've been tooling with my CX.

Is it normal for a lipo to not hold a full charge like that after sitting? If I'm gonna let it sit, whats the best charge on the battery for this?

Keep in mind I do not have a good charger, just a cheapo ESKY one that came with the kits. It charges or doesn't once full.

Are you running the Esky 1000 mAh packs? Not that it really makes a difference....but they are definately on the cheaper side and less reliable of the lipos out there.

LiPos are sort of black magic. As ten people the rules of lipos, and you will get 11 opinions.....so take mine with a grain of salt. Mine are based on experience with my particular setups.

LiPos are NOT NiCads or NiMH batteries, and thus don't behave as such. LiPos have very high energy density, but lack the robustness of other chemistries. LiPos operate in "Packs" of single cells. Everything related to a LiPo boils down to the single cell. A single cell has a narrow band for operating voltage....3.0 volts (empty) to 4.2 volts (charged). You run into trouble when you exceed either of those. Read trouble as....fire.

They don't have "Memory" either. Discharging and recharging won't make a difference, and it doesn't matter if you partially discharge a pack and then recharge right away. SOME packs are shipped with stabilizer chemicals in the cells for shipping that do "burn" off during use. You may see new packs gain performance with a few light break-in cycles...but not all packs have this.

The other issue is that RC LiPos don't contain any safety circuits to regulate this voltage tolerance. Your laptops, cells..etc all have safety circuits on the batteries to control voltages during discharge and charge. In RC, that function is split between the Speed Control (Discharge) and the Charger (Charge)

LiPos, espeically high discharge ones used in RC, breakdown over time. The chemistry just starts breaking down. Technically, the internal resistance of a cell increases. It happens more quickly when they are warm/hot and when they are fully charged.

Rules of thumb with LiPos :

- Only charge at 1C. (1000mAh battery @ 1amp, 2200 mAh battery @2.2 amps etc)

- Don't keep a LiPo charged for too long if your not going to use it. I tend to keep them charged for a week at a time, but if they are going to sit longer, I keep them discharged.

- Keep battery temp as low as possible during discharge. I tend to get a bit nervous around the 130*. If they are getting too hot, I'll decrease headspeed, shorten my flights, not fly as hard.......Common belief is that ~140F is the "Too Hot" point

- Store batteries in a cool place. Don't store them in a garage that gets hot. Some Manufactures even reccommend the freezer if they are going to sit for a long time.

- LiPos go high order when they are punctured. At that point, the Lithium is exposed to moisture and chemicals mix, producing hydrogen and igniting. A "Puffed" LiPo has started generating gasses and is more susceptible to going high order. BE CAREFUL WITH A PUFFED LIPO.....Especially one that doesn't "deflate" when it gets cooler.

Sounds like your batteries are shot. If they are the stock batteries (1000 mAh, 10C) they are slightly undersized to begin with. They will only produce 10 amps continous, and the HBKII will suck ~13-20 amps on a brushless setup....thus why the batteries get so hot.

Typically, I get around 75-100 cycles out of cheaper chinese batteries I fly, but towards the end, they are tired feeling.

3.80 volts per cell (11.4 volts for a 3cell pack) is usually referenced as a "Storage" voltage. With bigger/expensive chargers, you can set it to that voltage and it will stop there. With the ESky one....I'd recommend taking a fully charged pack and flying only half of what you normally fly to get to that point.

Ok...that's a long enough post.

Later!

[DocG2828]

It was the 1000mah pack. I ordered to Mega Pack 1300mah 15C packs. I know there are mixed reviews about this brand, but most of them seem to be just fine for my usage.

I typically run a pack out to where the copter no longer lifts with full power.....then charge it back up.

I'll have to reread the rest of that tech-babble when I've got less rum in me.

Time to fly my co-ax

Rookie....you're da man dude. I appreciate your heli help.

[RookieOne]

Originally Posted by DocG2828

It was the 1000mah pack. I ordered to Mega Pack 1300mah 15C packs. I know there are mixed reviews about this brand, but most of them seem to be just fine for my usage.

I typically run a pack out to where the copter no longer lifts with full power.....then charge it back up.

I'll have to reread the rest of that tech-babble when I've got less rum in me.

Time to fly my co-ax

Rookie....you're da man dude. I appreciate your heli help.

MMMMMM, Rum.......

A few years ago, there was a valid argument for brand name LiPos versus cheaper versions. These days, everyone is getting their LiPo cells for their packs from the same few manufactures, and the QA on the cells has gotten better and more consistent.

End result, where as a few years ago, a cheap no-name battery pack would be a paperweight before you blinked, these days there is little to no performance difference between brands. The major difference, save the cutting technology ones, is the warranty and customer support pffered.

1300 mAh 15C pack will get you 19.5 amps continous. Burst (10s or less) is probably ~20-25C, or ~26-30 amps. A little on the light side if you were going to thrash the heli (I'll see ~35-40 amps in my Trex when really giving it a beating)...but more than adequate for basic hovering and light sport flying.

Your not doing yourself any favors flying until you can't lift off before stopping, but in a 300 class (HBKII) or a 450 class (Trex, Shark) with mild setups, your power train will be starved before the battery is discharged too low. Meaning, you may be shortening their life, but your not doing so dangerously.

Typically, you want to only discharge ~80% of the pack at a time. To get the best life, you should always leave ~20% charge on the packs. This is because a LiPo discharge is sort of like a sideways "S". Initially, the voltage is hight (12.6 volts) it quickly drops to ~11.1 volts under load and maintains that voltage for a significant duration...as the battery begins to run out of capacity, it drops off quickly from that 11.1 volts to your cutoff point ~9 volts. The drop off point is variable between packs, but typically is around the 90% mark. This is where the significant amount of heat is created. By limiting the heat, your able to extend the life....or that's the thought.

The better the quality of the pack, the flatter the voltage is between when it initially drops off to when it finally drops off. A perfect battery would maintain 11.1 volts no matter what...but realistically it is ~11.7 volts to ~10.8 volts with countless minute spikes during times where your hitting the power system for extra punch.


Also, an interesting side note, is that there is a direct relationship between the batteries, methods and technology used in this hobby and the new battery packs being used in Electric vehicles. Hell, one guy that I have gotten some packs from and have worked with in my daily job developed the circuitry for balancing and charging the packs in the Tesla.

[DocG2828]

Ummm....so after 8 cokes and rums.....well a couple of those were Mango rum with Sprite....Yum Yum.

Anyways.....I gather that you're telling me that with my copter....a smaller and less powerful, running until it doesn't lift with full power is ok.

I get what you're saying about packs. When I first bought mine, I was a regular on one of the RC forums.....they have a thread on my heli that is way longer than any thread here. I figure those guys know what they're talking about.

My goal is to get mine back to a point where I can continue my hover practice. I really haven't flown her in at least a year. I figured two of those packs will keep me flying at least.


A funny side note....my buddy next door has always been peaked by my RC toys. I let him drive my Rustler. I started letting him fly my Llama CX copter. Even with no wind in my garage he was all over the place. He nearly hit my Fox but he caught it mid air before it landed on my Fox. I was gonna kill him and he knew it!

He broke a couple blades on the walls. I replaced....and flew and told him to watch my fingers. Granted....I was pretty lit and rusty, but I held that little CX within 6" at hover. Let him have at it again....and he got better.

It was interesting watching the learning curve for a newb.

*goes to drink more coke and rum*

*still hasn't flown his CX....bout gonna*

[DocG2828]

Rookie......any advice on a Nimh and charger? I have a non brushless Rustler which is good fun.....but the cheapo packs only run for like 2 mins. I've seen some pretty high cap Nimh's and a pretty good charger at Tower.

Looking to spend maybe 100 on a charger and at least 1 or 2 packs that might run at least 5 mins or more.

I know what you're saying about the Lipos and cars tho. I've known some guys that ran a brushless in something as simple as a Rustler like I have......a huge cap Lipo....they run for 15 mins at 60mph+


BTW...I'd love to spend the cash on the brushless setup....a high price Lipo and charger.....but I'm working on funds to put AC and a supercharger on my Fox. Thus I'm trying to keep the RC hobbies in check if you know what I mean.

[RookieOne]

Originally Posted by DocG2828

Rookie......any advice on a Nimh and charger? I have a non brushless Rustler which is good fun.....but the cheapo packs only run for like 2 mins. I've seen some pretty high cap Nimh's and a pretty good charger at Tower.

Looking to spend maybe 100 on a charger and at least 1 or 2 packs that might run at least 5 mins or more.

I know what you're saying about the Lipos and cars tho. I've known some guys that ran a brushless in something as simple as a Rustler like I have......a huge cap Lipo....they run for 15 mins at 60mph+


BTW...I'd love to spend the cash on the brushless setup....a high price Lipo and charger.....but I'm working on funds to put AC and a supercharger on my Fox. Thus I'm trying to keep the RC hobbies in check if you know what I mean.

God knows I do......:stares at wall with 12 helis on it:

I've dumped way too much money into it. But it's cheaper than rehab, divorce...and golf.

Chargers can run you anywhere from $50 to $500. Comes down to name brand and power capabilities. Cost goes up exponentially with power capability. For a 50 watt system, you can get in for ~$50 or less....but for a 350 watt system, your looking at $300+. Keep in mind most RC chargers out there are intended to charge off a DC battery, like a car battery...so you need a power supply. One can be made from an ATX power supply for a PC with little work.

GT is a name of a Chinese knock off line of chargers that is relatively decent. Turnigy is another. You can get into a 50Watt charger of either of those for $35 (linky) But end up paying shipping sometimes is killer.

Most LiPo smart chargers will do Lead Acid, NiCad, and NiMH packs without issue. Your running 3cell packs, so you want something that can balance your packs, and 12.6 volts * 1.3 amps = ~15 watts. That will charge in an hour. If you want to be more agressive charging (at the cost of battery life) you can charge at 2C, which would require 30 watts.....still under 50 watt charger limitations.

Lots of choices for smaller 3cell packs. Trouble comes when your running large packs. I have buddy flying a 10cell pack. Thats a 42 volt battery, charged, and its 4000 mAh. 1C is 4 amps. 4A*42V = 168watts. So, you can see where it starts getting cumbersome. Guys running 12cell packs wanting to charge in 30 minutes at the field are needing 300+ watt chargers.


Hey.....do you have a brushless setup in the HBKII? PM me with an address if you don't. I have most, if not all, of the stuff around here that is just gathering dust. I'm more than willing to donate it for the cause

Not sure why it took this long for me to realize that.......maybe it's the beer :raises Fat Tire:

on point, I've not got too much NiMH experience. Just the recommendation to pickup a charger that does LiPo, cause inherently it will do NiMH as well. Only NiMh packs I have are in my Roto-Starter for my Nitro Savage XL.

[LaserSVT]

Great bit of info! Thanks Rookie!

My parts should show up Monday but I cant order the canopy or servo I need till Tuesdat so it will be a couple weeks before I am up in teh air again.

I found a deal for 4-ball bearing metal gear micro servos for $40 so I am gonna change out all the crap servos in my heli at once. They have more tq and speed so I hope that helps me.

Untill then I am just gonna play the hell out of my sim.
The heli came with FMS but it dont run on Vista (even with the patch) so I downloaded HeliSimRC. Its free and only has one bird (t-rex 450) but you can set all your charechteristics into it and it has helped me allot.

[DocG2828]

Well at the moment....I'm in a pissy arse mood! And I have a BB gun and some stale water bottles....and my CX to fly.

[LaserSVT]

Well this has been one interesting learning experience. All my new stuff showed up today so I went to work. Had to change some stuff to use the T-rex gears and the servos were another trip but I got it all together and working. Just have to wait for the main blades, not sure why they didnt show up.
The metal gear/ ball bearing servos are much nicer then what was on there. They respond so much better and return to center much better then the old ones. I was suprised that they all moved in reverse from what the other servos did but that was easy to fix. Also had to adjust all the linkages because the servos are a hair taller. I also wanted to make sure the gyro was ok so I set the heli down and ran it on its lowest speed setting to see where I was at. I adjusted the tail with the remote and after centeringthe stick the gyro over shot the center and man did that little heli spin around fast and slam into my foot. So I lowered the gain and the throw (throw was WAY too far)and I hope I have it good to go. I hope the blades show up Monday cause after workingon the heli for the last few hours I reallywant to fly it.

Expensive damn hobby! With all the parts I also had to order some specialty tools to work on the damn thing. Also got my balencer and a decient extra battery.

Its a little ugly cause I was having a hard time with the blue and white canopy against the sky so now (untill I learn the damn machine) I got a bright ass yellow canopy and red rotor blades.

[RookieOne]

If your your heli VIOLENTLY spins on spool up, and it just seems to go faster and faster....it's not your gyro gain, it's the direction of the gyro. There should be a switch on the gyro labeled "Reverse" or something similar. If not, check the instructions and figure out how to reverse the gyro. It has to be done on the gyro itself, not the radio.

At worst, with REALLY bad gain settings, the heli will drift significantly when stationary and the tail will spin quickly during high power punches. It won't constantly spin, that's a red flag that the gyro is reversed. If your servos (between stock and the metal gears) were reversed, that's why it needs to be reversed now. You can fix the issue by either flipping the tail servo 180* or by reversing the Gyro...either works.

Easy way to check. Power up the heli, make sure that the throttle hold is on, or that the motor is disconnected. Hold the heli in front of you, so your looking at the side (the nose is to your right and the tail is to your left). Rotate the heli by pulling the tail towards you (counter clockwise). The gyro should be making the tail SLIDER slide towards. That is the correct motion. If not, then reversing the gyro should fix it.