evdreamer

Glenn,

That is cool you are getting more comfortable with the mCPx to do inverted flight and backwards flight.

It looks like your heli fits great into the case.

I can't remember if my 450 tail held better in the past. I haven't flown it in over a year, since my flight a few days ago. I reprogramed the gyro and put some carbon tail blades on and will see if that helps.

The noise kind of sounded like some air was leaking out of the engine. It is also louder and kind of has a sqeeking sound. I wanted to get to the bottom of this, so I don't crash the heli due to an engine failure. I pulled the engine out last night and checked it over again. As far as I can tell the bearings are still good because it was easy to turn the engine over by hand. The glow plug still looks like brand new. I noticed the seal on the back plate looked damaged. It looked like it came out of its normal spot and got squished between the back plate and the engine. Do you think this might be causing my problem? They are pretty cheap and easy to replace.

I also got a cold over this weekend. I am starting to feel a little better now.

Dave,

That is cool you ordered a mCPx too.

Nick

jroo

So who all has an MCPX now? Glenn, Mark, Dave, Me? That it? JPEE come on man!

I just checked my MCPX order. I got it actually under retail. 179, free shipping, shipped via fedex. Should be here this Wednesday.

My 120SR is up to 40.99 with 121 views, 33 watchers and 2 days left. come on big money!

rotarydoc

Dave,

Congrats on the new MCPX on the way! I see you have been bitten by the bug now as well....I doubt you'll regret it, it's a fun little machine, Eflite did a nice job with it, for sure!

Did Horizon give you any time frame for delivery? I was just curious, since they seem to be shipping some lately...

Nick,

Hope your 450 tail holds better since the blades and gyro reprogramming. I guess it would be hard to remember after a year of not flying it... I didn't realize it's been that long.

Yeah, that oring doesn't look good at all...all 2 cycle engines are very sensitive to crankcase air leaks, so it could very well be responsible for the noise, and probably not running very well.

There is postive pressure in the crankcase when the engine is running (thus the pressure port on the backplate) and this might have been what you heard escaping when it was running.

Does the crankshaft feel smooth when you rotate it as well? I think I would still take a close look at the crank bearings while you have it that far apart anyways...they are high maintenance/repair items on .50 size nitro engines...and probably the most failure prone part of the engine...I would just make sure they still look good and spin smoothly, shouldn't take long to check.

I looked at an old O.S. engine out of curiosity, and O.S. uses a flat paper gasket on the backplate, not like your oring, so I've never seen the problem you have there. But yeah, definitely time for a new oring there!

Glenn

evdreamer

Glenn,

I did a quick flight in the backyard with the 450 and the tail seemed to be holding when I was flipping it around. The piro rate is still kind of slow compared to my G770 gyro. I will have to take it back to the field and really push it to see if the tail blows out again.

It is kind of a PITA to get to the rear bearing on this engine, but I spun it by hand at the clutch and it was smooth. The rear bearing probably has only a gallon and a half on it. I ordered a couple new orings and a rear bearing just in case. If the new oring doesn't fix the problem I will probably tear the engine all the way down.

Nick

Aframomum

My Feedback: (10)

Hey guys,

Nick...that o-ring definitely looks like it needs replacing. During my plane days I had an OS AX series engine and it had an o-ring like yours and if you weren't careful in putting on the backplate it could crimp the rubber. Can heli engines be tested on a bench like an aircraft engine w/o having to reinstall it in the heli? I don't even know if you could put a prop on the it to keep it cool during testing? Just throwing out some ideas for ya.

Sounds like your 450 tail just needed some different blades and a readjustment of the gyro. I'm sure you'll put it through its paces at the field.

Are finals around the corner yet? Sorry to hear about your cold but sounds like your on the road to recovery.

Been very windy the past few days but have been trying out the high performance blades on the mcpx...so far not bad but I can tell a difference between these and the bullet blades. Getting the hang of doing the bobbing thing when flying against the wind to help it move forward with little effort. But have to watch that drop it does when the wind hits the blades just right.

BTW, Glenn...I did a simple CG check by balancing on the rear canopy tabs...they are in line with the main shaft.

Looks like we are converting more...got Dave now.

Mark

Aframomum

My Feedback: (10)

RCU bloober.

evdreamer

Mark,

I wouldn't be able to start the engine if it wasn't in the heli. If I put a prop on like you said I could probably test it outside the heli.

I maxed out the travel adjust in my transmitter for the 450, so hopefully that will trick the gyro into spinning faster. If this adjustment doesn't work, the only other thing I could do is get the gyro adaptor and change the settings in the computer. I sure like my new charger. I can charge my 450 battery at 5C and be back out in 13min or so.

My finals start tomorrow. All my lectures ended last week, so I have the day off today. It was nice sleeping in and just taking it easy with my cold. I got lucky and my computer class doesn't have a final, so I just have a calculus and a biology final.

Hopefully the wind will calm down for you soon.

Nick

choppersrule

Glenn,

I ordered the MCPX at 11:45 pm last night and got the typical e-mail confirmation back that they received the order and would be shipped in 1 to 2 business days.

Horizon Hobby is 134 miles from my house, a little to far to drive at todays gasoline prices for sure. I've ordered from them before and it's usually 5 days from placement of my order. Hopefully, I'll have it by Friday, for the weekend.

I've been wanting to get one for quite sometime and read about the blade grip problems early on. So I waited until the problem was resolved. It appears that it was really a quality control issue rather than a design problem. I'm not sure if they are using the same bearings on the "B" grips or not though.


Mark,
It's all your fault.[X(]

Dave

evdreamer

Mark,

That adjustment in the transmitter made a huge improvement in my 450 tail. It is now spinning as fast as my big helis and piro flips are now easy with the 450. I am going to bring the 450 to the field a lot more now.

Nick

choppersrule

Just now, 4PM, I received a confirmation from Horizon that my MCPX has been shipped via UPS. Forgot to tell you guys, it was free shipping too. Gotta love that.

I'll keep ya all posted.

jroo

WHAAAT?!

delivered already? noooo

hah. I want mine now.

choppersrule

Jreue,

Somehow, I got to the front of the line on shipping. I can live with that for sure.

Dave

rotarydoc

Dave,

You should be having some fun real soon! I know around here, that if it's being shipped only a short distance, even UPS Ground is overnight...hope ya get it tomorrow!

Nick,

I have a techincal/electrical question....

I got this, as you may have read....

http://astroid-designs.myshopify.com...ery-connectors

I think I got the theory down....with parallel charging, I'm going to use the same voltage on my charger for 6 packs as I would for 1 pack (1S, 3.7 volts) but at a higher current, let's say .7 amps x 6 packs, or 4.2 amps....

Now, will the cells basically balance or equalize in a parallel circuit like that.... i.e. say I have some that are more discharged than others, will they all come out at 4.20 or thereabouts?

Just curious, never charged like this before....

Glenn

evdreamer

Glenn,

You are correct with all your statements. When you charge in parallel with a 1S battery the charger only "sees" one cell. You can charge at a higher current because the current is evenly distributed between all the cells. You just take the 1C rating x the number of cells you have in the adaptor to get your charging current.

The cells will balance themselves. The cell with the highest Voltage will basically charge the cells with the lower Voltages. It will act like a short when doing that, so it would be a good idea to only put cells near the same Voltage in the adaptor to avoid stressing a cell.

Nick

JPEE

Hey Guys,

I would like to chat about everything over the last two pages but I have to go out and get the wife from train station shortly so I will try and

help Glenn for now. My understanding that those batteries have a "over charge protection circuit in them". When you charge in parallel the

voltage will be 3.7 for all of the batteries. I believe that as long as a battery is low even if the one next to it is higher that the low one will

absorb power until it is topped off. It works much like a camera battery. When you charge in series like our 3S packs then the charger cannot

tell between who is full and who is not, thus the balance adapter. If you have ever opened up a 3S pack you will see the circuitry under the top

where this is managed in conjunction with the charger.

For all of these reasons, this is why I built my own pigtail and made it a 3s pack in theory so the charger thinks it is charging a 3S pack at 11.1.

Yes! if there is a bad battery the charger will pull down the others so in the end the overall voltage will be down, even on the good cells. But if

I saw a pack that was a low performer I "filed" it and replaced it. Nick will be able to spell it out better but that's the jist of it. Godda run, bye

PS: Hope you feel better Nick and do well on your finals.

rotarydoc

Nick, JPEE,

Thanks for the clarification, and extra details that I wasn't 100% sure of....

I charged one cell by itself last night, then put the other 5 on the board, and everything seems fine.

I'll know better how it works out after I get some discharged cells to try out.

Didn't get any flight in yesterday, I ended up doing the battery board and I few other thngs, I got my new hot glue gun and was playing with that....

Glenn

Aframomum

My Feedback: (10)

A new toy Glenn...congrats.

We had a b e a u t i f u l day this morning...absolutely no wind so a perfect time for the mcpx (esp. considering the past few days have been very breezy).

Well, just 10 seconds into the flight I was doing a flip and the tail blew out and down she went...with things flying off this time. Oh uh, this can't be good I thought. Luckily it was just the canopy that took a hit and it fractured into a few repairable bits. But I had to fly without it. If you think the mcpx is small w/ the canopy, try it w/o one. I also thought of that fragile (but waaay important board up front) and knew another crash would most likely take it out so just kept it to inverted hovering and nothing else. It was a good day overall and a little tape took care of the canopy when I got home. Definitely will be picking up some more batteries next trip to the LHS.

Yeah Dave...blame me.

Now we'll have to see who gets their mcpx first...Dave or James. And the race is on!

Glenn, looks like you guys may be getting some rain in the next couple days. Hope it clears out by the weekend for you.

Mark

choppersrule

Mark,

I just received my MCPX today about 4PM. Man that was quick delivery from Horizon. I just ordered it Sunday night.

I won't be opening the box until later this evening, almost time for supper and a few chores first.

Did I win the race???

Glenn,

I remember your post about the acronym for MCPX, on the box it's "mCP X". Don't forget the space. LOL!

Dave

Aframomum

My Feedback: (10)

I know someone in Texas who's going to be extremely jealous!!

And yep, you won the race.

Congrats on your new lil'heli. Not bad shipping time, esp since it was free. Soon you'll be getting more batteries for it...that I guarantee.

Now finish those chores and get a maiden in before the sun sets out there in Indiana.

Mark

choppersrule

Hi Guys,

I just finished flying two packs through the MCPX and my first impressions were WOW. Mine came with the "B" series grips and had an inspection sticker on the box from Horizon Hobby. It's very stable and the 3 axis gyro and flybarless system does their job very well. I flew it in the basement and was only able to do some hovering, small ff ,some piros and 6 foot diameter circles. Can't wait to get it outside.

A couple questions if I may.

Do you guys tighten the blades in the grips or just let them flop around?

What kind of charger would I need to charge multiple packs, with a charging board like Glenn purchased? Right now I have a Bantam charger for 2 to 6S lipos I use for my batteries on the 450, 500 and 600 helis.

Thanks in advance fellers,

Dave

evdreamer

Mark,

Sorry about the crash, but it sounds like it wasn't too bad.

I just got back from my calculus final. The room was cramped and hot. My knees were in the back of the chair in front of me the whole time. The test was kind of hard, but I think I did alright.

I am going to try and get a quick flight in the back yard with the 450 before it gets dark.

Dave,

That is good you are also enjoying the mCPx.

Nick

JPEE

Nick,

I hope you get your motor fixed and all goes well when you take her out for a try. And I agree with, that o-ring or flat gasket looks bad..... I hope you were able to trace down the issues with the 450? As you said,

when you take her out and push her to the limit you'll know just what you have. And again, best of luck with your finals. But I really thing you don't need my good luck wish. Your study hard and most importantly

you "love what you are doing in class". Just read you took your test, sounds like you feel you did OK. Great news!


Jreue,

Sorry , there is not MCPX in my future. I have more heli's than I need now. But I hope you really enjoy yours


Mark,

Boy oh boy are you getting in on all of the fixes and mods. That heli of your is gonna fly like a honey! Sorry to hear you went down but it sounds like you got right back up and back at it.


Dave,

Looking at your HH order form with all of the blacked out information looks like the "White House" Papers.


Glenn,

How did the new charging strip work?


The weather her has been HOT and HOT! ! Yesterday we got the field early and I flew 3 ea 600 sorties and 1ea 500 and just for good measure I flew 2 ea 450 flights and the called it. The breezes were coming in

and we started getting gusts, no fun. My buddy and I are already loaded for tomorrow mornings flying. I dressed up my 600-2. It came with a white canopy and with blue flames, I could not see the heli for beans.

I forgot to mention this is a HK canopy. They do not fit out of the box. I like the colors but it needed a lot of Dremelsing to get it to fit and get around my servos, So I dressed her today for easy eye ball tracking,

for these old eyes. I see a slight loss of vision over the last three years plane as day. Not to worrie, I still still fly out further than anyone I know! Now who's your daddy lol. I may put some color foam on the skids,

that's my downfall, orientation. Nothing and no one stopping my fun by gum


JPEE

Aframomum

My Feedback: (10)

Hey guys,

First off...Nick, congrats on finishing your Calculus final. Sorry the 'environmental controls' (Trekkie humor ) were so off, not to mention the room sounded like it was packed like sardines. You'd think a larger school would have more money to invest in larger rooms? What kind of break do you have between semesters, or do you take the summers off? (sorry if I already asked this, memory is a bit slow tonight)

Hope you got that 'after class' relaxing flight in before it got too dark. Good to hear the 450 fix was just adjusting the tx.

You know, if you could find someone with an mcpx I'd love to see you take one for a spin...I bet with your skills you could do some extremely interesting stuff with it. No, sorry, I'm not sending you mine.

Dave,

Congrats on the basement maiden, oh what I wouldn't give to have a large basement instead of just a little ole garage to fly in. You northerners.

To answer your question on blade tightness...mine don't flop around...they are just tight enough so that you can move them with your finger but not have the main gear turn when applying pressure. I want them to easily fold out of the way when the heli goes down...sparing the feathering shaft. I think another great idea is the main shaft coming loose from the main gear with almost every crash, really takes that energy away from damaging parts.

To date I have done the following mods to mine:

extended boom - does help in blowouts, not a cure but makes things better.
canopy grommets on the swash balls - I used a whole grommet (not cut down the middle like a bagel) and only on the front 2 swash links, not the rear link...I really didn't notice any play in the rear link and plus it is extremely tight in that area.

There is a mod to the elevator servo link discussed [link=http://www.helifreak.com/showthread.php?t=290043]Here[/link]...these guys did just about any and every bend combination possible for the link and also pro's and con's to it.

Lastly, some are putting the tail fin from an mSr and having some success with preventing tail blowouts. Something I would like to try my next trip to the LHS...in addition to getting more batteries.

JPEE,

That is one nice and bright heli you have there...gotta keep your reputation for the furthest heli flyer around! I can somewhat relate with your heat...we are only hitting the 90's during the day and is that nasty and miserable...makes for pre-dawn flying all the more worthwhile. I hope you guys get a cool front pass by soon.

Mark

rotarydoc

Hey guys,

Dave,

That was fast! I figured since you were so close, it would be pretty quick shipping...

Yeah, wait until you get it outside, and with some room to let it go, you'll have a blast!

Like Mark, I keep my blades just tight enough that they don't swing free, but loose enough to give in a crash..

I am using an Eflite C-505 charger with that board....or I could use my Thunder Power TP 610, you need a charger that has single cell (1S) capability...

JPEE,

Hope your hot windy weather gives way to something nicer for tomorrow's flights...

Sounds like you got a good mix of flights in yesterday, and had some fun...and still getting it out there further than anyone I see!

Nick,

Glad your Calculus final is over, that must be a relief....

I'm just getting started studying...I ordered a prep book...just got it today...it has 674 pages...[X(]

My test is a week from Thursday, but I want to get most of my studying out of the way, so I don't have to do much of it on the weekend...if that's possible...

Hope you did well on the test, and are feeling better from your cold.

Mark,

Sounds like a nasty little crash....but easily fixed....

Yeah, ya gotta be careful flyin' with that 5 in 1 board exposed...I think those are like $70...[X(]

Good to hear the canopy was easily fixed with some scotch tape...I was reading one thread on HF about weight, and a couple of those guys have weighted down MCPX's from tape on the canopy, and the solid tailboom, etc, and swear they fly better a bit heavier...

I probably won't be posting as much, or flying as much in the next week or so....I only want to take this test one time, then it's over for the next 5 years....so it's study time for the next week or so...but I'll still get some flying and posting in...in beween..

Glenn

jroo

BAH! You beat me. Good thing is, mine is on the truck for delivery today.


My 120 SR is looking good!

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...STRK:MESELX:IT