Evan T.

hey guys well the battery is charging as we speek just plugged it in yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

J-MICHAEL

Glenn ~

I hear ya on the TT...! I'am REALLY starting to like it already, and I haven't even flown it yet to try it... The same reason you just listed... It will literally take a couple minutes if that to swap out those crown gears in the rear if they do break... The belts are a pain in the butt ! PLUS... For like me and traveling, A simple few screws, and a few seconds later, and the whole boom assembly is off and ready for packing in the car... A few seconds more, and she's assembled and ready for flight !... Try doing that with the belt set-up...LMAO... I'am excited to try it... If it doesn't work out, We'll blame Nick...!...Kidding... Man, I'am thinking mine is going to be nose heavy ! If worse comes to worse though, I'll install the Futaba 9254 in the butt of the heli then for the rear tail servo... I've been hearing of guys running what Nick has on his 600, and that is that JR gyro, and the JR8900G and supposively that set-up also on the 500 is rock hard... I guess in hard 3-D, or even big wind gusts hitting the heli broadside, the tail doesn't budge... So I may see where my CG is at, and just go with one of my 9254's since it is a little faster than the 9257, and offers twice the torque... Not for the 3-D aspects, but for the wind I'am usually forced to sometimes fly in... We'll see....


JPEE ~

Good to hear that fire is somewhat passing... I bet it gets a little crazy in those times... I've never got to experience anything like that with a raging fire like Cali can get sometimes... I bet the smoke is just horrible... You might have to stay inside, and ponder with the MCX... I flew mine outside again this morning... I even crashed it a good far distance up, and no damage to the craft... That is except a missing flybar I still can't seem to find...LMAO... That last mod I did, where I allow the flybar to pop out in a crash works superb, but only for inside flights... Outside... I wouldn't go there....LOL...! I'll find it... Its either in the tree that the MCX hit as it was falling, or down on the rocky hillside that it finally rested upon... Those things are TOUGH... I'll tell ya...Crazy...

I flew the Vapor also... It was fun, cause I snipped off the landing gear, as I didn't need them anymore, and so now its a throw launch, and catch landing... You gotta be quick on catching it though... I filmed one of the flights... I should put it on You-Tube later, so you can see... The Vapor is twice as much fun as the MCX, and you can still fly the vapor in minor breezes, in which I also showed in the video, as I put the Vapor down on the ground, and you can see it moving back and forth from the wind that was hitting it, and then picked it up, and flew it for about 5 minutes or so... I can fly 10 + minutes with those 110mah MCX batts... The Vapor only weighs though 12 grams, and only has one motor, so it helps...

I haven't done really anything to much more with the 500... I'am going to wait for parts that will come hopefully Wednesday... I did pick up at the LHS today though, some extra flybars, tailbooms, and a pair of the Align CF tail rotor blades for it...

I'am to anal anyway on getting it all set-up... Even before I installed the flybar, spindle, main-shaft, and rear tail spindle, I rolled them on glass to make sure they were perfect... I don't take anything for granted with the heli's and sure enough, the flybar that came with the 500 was not true at all... It was bent very slightly. You couldn't tell looking at it, but when you rolled it on glass it wouldn't roll smooth... I found this out last week before I put together the head assembly... I always check that stuff, as it is all mass produced, so its expected sometimes... Just like Nick's main shaft issue he just recently had... I'am glad the LHS had some extra flybars...

Alright, I got a major headache, so I gotta get of the puter for a bit.... Talk with ya guys later though...


Cheers,

~ Jeff

J-MICHAEL

Well why the batts are charging, why are you pacing back and forth for........?!... Wax that puppy up...!...LMAO....

rotarydoc

Evan,

That is awesome! Be sure and check everything over....and try to do some reading up too...

Did you put the batteries in the radio and turn it on yet?

Keep us posted!

You'll be busy for hours...LOL!!!

Nick,

Glad there was no issues with the battery or charger!

Good to hear that you had some fun flying too...

Do you have to work tonight?

Glenn

rotarydoc

Jeff,

When you get a chance, can you check and see if in your instructions for the CF, if they use bag # 500HZ7 ???

I have the whole bag left over, and I think it's for the belt driven tail model...and they just included it in the ESP anyways? It has some screws, ball studs, and some aluminum spacers that look like they fit inbetween the frames...

I was cleaning up, and realized I hadn't even touched this bag...kinda freakin' out...LOL!!

Glenn

evdreamer

Glenn,

Align usually has a bag full of spares which might be the same bag you are talking about.

Nope I don't have to work tonight. I have been working on my balancer, so I haven't checked RCU for awhile.

Nick

Evan T.

well i havnt flown it yet i need to set everything up and my dads coming to pick me up right now so i had to pack it all up to go to his house then i need to finish doing everything to it but i bound the dx6i to my cx2 and got it working so i will keep you posted if i can but i think my dads internet is down and i really want to talk to you guys so this is gonna suck if i have anything to ask you oh and i checked all the servos and when i use the tail servo like the tail seems kinda sticky like i use rudder then realese it to center and the servo centers but the tail blades dont so i might need to check that out

J-MICHAEL

I skimmed through my manual, and didn't see that bag listed... But also I do have one bag left over also, that wasn't even listed in the manual also, and I'am pretty certain that was the bag # that you just also listed. The tail bags only really have a couple of fasteners/screws in them and that's all. Not much really in there... I threw my bags away already, and all my fasteners/screws are accounted for, as I checked and double checked to make sure I had a home for each and every one of them (You know me LMAO) as I didn't want to be short any before I placed an order for parts for the 500...In fact its scary, but I think I have every screw/fastener memorized of where they go now...LOL..! As today I even picked up some more Stainless Steel metric screws for other crucial areas like the main-rotor blades, tail rotor blades, and the two holding the rear tail case on the boom as Finless freaked me out saying he's seen a few fly off the boom...YIKES.. He even drilled a hole through his CNC rear tail case assembly fastened another screw to the boom to attach it better for safety reasons... I'll probably end up doing the same we'll see... But with the CF booms you don't need to as there a tight snug fit, and less "slippery" than the aluminum boom like he states... I believe it also, because I did notice that with the CF boom that I only use on my 450. Everything down to the rear tail servo mounts fit locked and snug more than the aluminum booms... Plus the CF booms are just tougher period, and lighter... Pound for pound CF is stronger than steel as noted by RC-Heli magazine like nicks probably read about as they overview the CF...

The bag you listed, and the extra I have Is just a extra hardware bag... At least mine is. Mine also came with ziptie's in it along with everything you see in the first pic below... Did yours also ? You can compare and see... I just tossed the extra ziptie's in my ziptie case and added them to the collection... Yikes, I have enough of those things...LOL.. Anyway, I wouldn't worry about it I'am certain that bag you have is just an extra bag for spares... My 450 kit was the same way...

Alright, gonna go out for dinner so I'll see ya guys later probably....


~ Jeff

rotarydoc

Evan,

Sounds cool, try to keep in touch while you are at your dad's so we can help...

That is totally normal for the tail servo to do that, don't worry about it, there is nothing wrong...it's because it's in heading hold mode, and it will do that in HH mode.

Cool that you got it bound to the CX2...it will let you get more used to the controls on the DX6i.

Try to keep us posted!

Glenn

Evan T.

well i hope he has internet because i will need it

rotarydoc

Jeff,

Thanks for checking that out...my bag is identical, except mine has two aluminum shafts that look like frame spacers, they are exactly the width of the frame distance apart...I was thinking that they spaced the frames apart when you use the belt setup...at any rate, it's nice to know I'm not the only one...lol

I have also heard of securing the tail boom into the tailboom mount, for similar reasons...a guy on HF told me about it...not a bad little insurance policy!

Not to rain on your parade, but when I was asking those guys on HF about using a CF boom to help with the CG....they indicated that they were having problems with vibrations and harmonics with the CF booms....so just keep that in mind...most said they went back to the aluminum boom.

But who knows, maybe they had some other issues contributing to vibrations too...just figured I'd pass it on...

I'm going to have to use spacers for the Helidirect FRP blades, it was very cool of Align to include them in the kit....

Glenn

rotarydoc

Evan,

LMAO!

We'll be here....

Glenn

J-MICHAEL

Glenn ~

Oh crap.... Its not in the pic, but I also had two of those "spacers" left over... But mine are plastic... (Again...Gotta love the ESP kit better...) But no worries, I'll have the ESP parts soon enough, its just that it sucks to choke up another 250 + to get there ! Dang it....LMAO... But yeah Glenn, with my TT conversion kit, It came with the Aluminum spacers also... They went into the tail boom mount. There was 4 I believe... For the 500 CF kit they are plastic, which I then also have two extra's in the extra hardware bag... So I'am glad I at least don't have to order the aluminum ones now, as they came in the TT kit... So I was able to scratch that off the list...

Yeah I heard that about the CF booms. But I thought it was from guys running the cheap ones that were only like $13.00, and so Ia'm wondering if its the same with Align' CF boom they offer for $23.00... Heli-Direct has both... There was bad feedback even on the cheap ones, but no feedback on the better quality ones... Even such, I'am staying with the aluminum until I know and feel the 500 very well... This way If I do try the better CF boom, I'll be able to note and tell the difference better...

Alright, I gotta run......


~ Jeff

Carljw

I got my Radio Control Helicopter mag today and there is an ad selling A123 batterys
For the Trex500.
Carl

rotarydoc

Jeff,

Whew, you had me worried there for a bit...but then I realized that my tailboom mount came mostly assembled, with all 4 aluminum spacers already installed in the case....so I guess the extras are for the belt driven tail...I guess they just throw them in there because they are already in the bag with the other stuff...

There could be a difference in the CF tailbooms, they didn't elaborate much on which ones they were using, only that they were having vibration issues with them.

LOL, I guess Evan got cut off from the world...no internet....I would DIE....LOL...my 42 inch Sharp 1080 LCD TV set with high def from the cable company ($$$ bill each month) sits there, unused most of the time...


Carl,

That is interesting on the A123's for the 500....do you remember or can you look up what the company's website address is? I'd be interested in checking that out for sure...


Nick,

Busy on the charger, I suppose?


Evan,

HELLO OUT THERE????

JPEE,

ARE YOU OK???


Glenn

evdreamer

Glenn,

I thought I would show the balancer for a 4S setup. It started to get confusing where I put wires and what not, so I think I will just make a 2S balancer to debug it on a CX battery. Then I will eventually make a 5S. I still don't know how I want to compare a voltage to drive an IC yet, but I figured the rest of it out.

Nick

Carljw

Ok I got the mag here.
ED enerland a division of A123 Systems

[email protected]

A123 Raceing Pack on the Trex500
Has a photo of one installed
On the battery ( Nanophosphate 2300 6sip 19.8 voltage
Size 136x55mm
weight 502g

There is no web address just the E-Mail.

Also in the mag Wing Tote is selling blade covers for 600 sise and 50 to 90 helies $28.00

Any one find a nice case for there T500. I have a Wing Tote for my CPP and the B400 just
makes it in.
I here Dicks Sporting Goods sells a bow case Dosco SE44 cost $29.00 . I am going to look at one tomorrow.
Carl

rotarydoc

Nick,


I see now, you are actually BUILDING a balancer...I thought you were just setting it up or something...

Pretty interesting, looks like you've got one transistor for each cell? Are they MOSFET's? I know the basics, but have never built any circuits outside of the Radio Shack type 200 in one kits...

Yeah, I would imagine a 2S would be easier, and simpler to debug/troubleshoot...

I should put my main blades on the 500 and set the pitch, but I can do that later on...

I think I will try and do two flight sessions tomorrow....the first just getting the basics down, spooling it up, checking tracking, gyro and what not...then come back, charge, and hopefully go out and do the maiden later on.

I'm hoping the wind won't be too bad. I know the 500 will handle it well, but I'd like to be able to make a good judgement on the gyro settings...

Glenn

rotarydoc

Hey Carl,

Thanks for the info...sounds very interesting....that pack will definately get rid of any tail heaviness issues at 504 grams!

Should be interesting how the A123 packs become in popularity over the next few months/years.

Hopefully, they can improve them even more, and make commercially available packs, so people won't have to build their own.

Thanks again for the info.

I probably won't be buying any "serious" packs for the 500 until next spring...but it's good to research now.

Glenn

evdreamer

Glenn,

A123racing does make commercially available packs, but they are for RC cars and trucks.

They are PNP transistors that can handle 65W. Yeah there is one for each cell in a battery. I finished a 2S balancer. I still feel it is safer to try it on the A123 packs, so it will only balance 2 cells.

Hope you have good weather for a maiden tomorrow.

Nick

HeliStyle

My Feedback: (2)

congrads on the b400 evan, hope you have tons of fun with it. My dx6i and ar6100 are all alone. Geez alot has been happening over here, tons of posts I missed today while being at work. As far as a laptop glenn im not sure what im going to get, something not to expensive but something that isn't junk lol you almost ready to get that 500 in the air? Hope everyone is alright and safe with the fires. Its werid here tonight, its mid november, 65 degrees when it should be in the teens, and we have a tornado watch lol

JPEE

Hey Nick,

What a neat little balancer. YEP your an engineer!

Carl, I can't wait to read the article on the 123's thanks for the lead.

Glenn, we are good. Just smells like smoke bigtime outside.

Poor Evan, no net connection and a 400 in his lap.


JPee

evdreamer

I got the balancer to turn on!!!! But it turns on with the wrong cell voltage. I need the other kind of transistor to make it easier because I have to make the way it works backwards now which is kind of confusing to me. I am using my 2S E-Flite battery since the TP balance connector is spaced to far apart to work with my A123 batteries.

rotarydoc

Hey Heli,

LOL, enjoy that 65 degrees while ya got it...it's about the same down here, too, but I think tomorrow is supposed to get alot colder, and be windy too.

There are alot of good deals on laptops out there....you could probably do really well on Black Friday, if you can wait that long, and don't mind getting up very early in the morning (or you can get good deals online on black Friday too).

The 500 will be in the air tomorrow...how high in the air remains to be seen....LOL!

Just gotta do some last minute adjustments, and some luck...

You must be getting the weather that went through here earlier...we also had tornado watches.

Hope you can get a heli to go along with the radio gear soon...maybe Santa will bring you one!

Glenn

rotarydoc

Nick,

Cool, sounds like your electrical expertise is coming in handy!

I guess you need some NPN transistors? Those you have there are pretty heavy duty at 65 watts...looks like something out of some of my vintage stereo receivers....you would love to see the caps in one of my hi power Pioneer receivers (120 watt per channel RMS)...they are the size of 12 oz soda cans...LOL

Glad you got it to at least fire up...you'll get it in time.

Glenn