CX450 tail boom upgrade
11-30-2010, 07:53 AM
#1
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CX450 tail boom upgrade
well i finally got to fly my heli outside for the first time 
I had it hovering for a few minutes trying to fight the wind.
I was about 20 feet away from my house, but using the house to block the wind.
The wind blew a good one and i leaned the heli into it to counter, and when i tried
to get it to lean back level it stayed over and hit the ground tail first from like 2-1/2 feet up.
I thought it was my inexperience that caused it to crash, but it had no control when leaning back level.
After a good inspection of the heli, the tail tube snapped like a twig. The belt burnt a hole in one spot,
the tail supports pulled up out of the end links, and the tail slider now has a small binding spot in the
center. And the cause of all of this was one of the things i was nervous about right from the setup.
When I was setting up the heli i had to move the swashplate up higher almost 3 times to get even pitch
from neg to pos. I kept getting -13 /+5. So I made the linkages longer and it really seemed that one ball
link was very close to the end I worried that it would pull out, and apparently it did. Would I need to
get a longer link, or is there something i messed up in the setup to make this link be off? All other
links have plenty of thread in them, just that one that was adjusted way out. Total repair cost, with
extra carbon blades, and carbon boom $60......................***** Hobbies
I had it hovering for a few minutes trying to fight the wind.
I was about 20 feet away from my house, but using the house to block the wind.
The wind blew a good one and i leaned the heli into it to counter, and when i tried
to get it to lean back level it stayed over and hit the ground tail first from like 2-1/2 feet up.
I thought it was my inexperience that caused it to crash, but it had no control when leaning back level.
After a good inspection of the heli, the tail tube snapped like a twig. The belt burnt a hole in one spot,
the tail supports pulled up out of the end links, and the tail slider now has a small binding spot in the
center. And the cause of all of this was one of the things i was nervous about right from the setup.
When I was setting up the heli i had to move the swashplate up higher almost 3 times to get even pitch
from neg to pos. I kept getting -13 /+5. So I made the linkages longer and it really seemed that one ball
link was very close to the end I worried that it would pull out, and apparently it did. Would I need to
get a longer link, or is there something i messed up in the setup to make this link be off? All other
links have plenty of thread in them, just that one that was adjusted way out. Total repair cost, with
extra carbon blades, and carbon boom $60......................***** Hobbies
12-03-2010, 07:16 PM
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RE: CX450 tail boom upgrade
Sounds like you had something messed up in the original setup. If you have a computer radio with adjustable end points you should have been able to change the two end points to match. Rule of thumb for a 450 on pitch is +11 To -11, or that is what I've always been told, some of the newer style 450's is going up too +15 to -11.
When you set it up the first time did you make sure all of your servo's, trim tabs, and sub trim's was centered before you placed the servo arms was installed.
Did you set it up at 0 degrees at center center stick? Are you sure you didn't mix up the control rods, all of my 450's had different length rods for the 3 cyclic servo's.
Let me know what transmitter you are using and let me get boats out of my head and screw on my heli head. I had the same problem with one of my first helis and I'll try and remember what was screwed up, thats been awhile and I still overlook things on every build.
When you set it up the first time did you make sure all of your servo's, trim tabs, and sub trim's was centered before you placed the servo arms was installed.
Did you set it up at 0 degrees at center center stick? Are you sure you didn't mix up the control rods, all of my 450's had different length rods for the 3 cyclic servo's.
Let me know what transmitter you are using and let me get boats out of my head and screw on my heli head. I had the same problem with one of my first helis and I'll try and remember what was screwed up, thats been awhile and I still overlook things on every build.
12-18-2010, 08:09 AM
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RE: CX450 tail boom upgrade
well its been about 4 weeks now and im still waitin on a huge order of replacement parts for my heli
It did turn out to be that one of the linkages was just not threaded enough onto the ball link.
The ball link just pulled off and i lost control of the heli. I think the problem was my washplate setup.
But anyways I ordered a full set of ball links and rods, so I'm going to replace the rod that pulled out with
a longer one. Its my first heli that i had to setup, and i checked it about a 1000 times before flying it.
The only thing that concerned me was that one rod being too short, and it was
It did turn out to be that one of the linkages was just not threaded enough onto the ball link.
The ball link just pulled off and i lost control of the heli. I think the problem was my washplate setup.
But anyways I ordered a full set of ball links and rods, so I'm going to replace the rod that pulled out with
a longer one. Its my first heli that i had to setup, and i checked it about a 1000 times before flying it.
The only thing that concerned me was that one rod being too short, and it was
