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e-E-Flite Blade CP CX 400-3D > Impressions from a newbie heli (Blade) pilot
 
 
tsitalon1
Heliman
Location: Montgomery AL

Hey guys,

I have flown r/c nitro planes for 10 years. I decided that I wanted to try Heli's. The E-flite Blade cp seemed great. It was cheap, seemed durable, and has recieved great reviews from others.

Well, I bought one about a month ago. One of my buddies let me borrow his g3 simulator to get the knack of controlling heli's. Within about 1 day, I could very successufully hover the heli. Next day I was performing FF.

Now, I figure... Ok, I'm ready for the real thing WELL, I thought I read somewhere that each heli is test flown at the factory.... I doubt it. All the trims on the TX were completed to the right. So my first few flights were pretty bad. I didn't know that flying over grass was so bad Well I do now!

Anyway, after 5 sets of blade and 3 main shafts, I can now hold a decent hover in my living room which has about a 6'x6' free airspace to it... So not bad if I say so myself.

Here's my problem, as noted by numerous other members.... the tail control is HORRIBLE! I am constantly fighting either the gyro or the toque steer. YES I tried adjusting the gain and the propo.

I am now able to sustain a hover outside up to about 30' high. However, any wind at all, and the tail is completly at the mercy of the wind. (example full right rudder..tail still moving left) Yes new tail motor (1hr old)

While I can hover the heli indoors and out, I feel this heli requires a tremendous amount attention and work to keep the tail straight.. I think more than there should be.

Am I ready for a T-rex? Does a T-rex have much better tail control? I know that most if not all of that is dependant of the gyro, so If I choose the t-rex, I would also get the gy240 gyro. I really would want something a little larger...say maybe a 35" diameter...but I say that "assuming" that it would be a little more wind tolerant.

Help me out guys please! I've spent easily $350 on this heli with all the replacement parts.

James
08-03-2005 Over year old.
 
 
JiggerInc
Senior Heliman
Location: Arlington, VA

Hi James,

I have both the Blade and TRex. They're different animals altogether. The 401 on my Trex holds the tail through anything.. completely hands off. The only time that tail moves at all is if I move it. (Still doing hovering/FF circuits.. I'd guess if you do a piro-death-flip-stall-turn into an inverted-tic-toc you might have to nudge the tail). But in general, as the heli gets bigger it gets easier to fly.

In G3 all of the models have heading-hold gyros like the 401 or 240.. so like me you probably assumed the Blade's tail would behave similarly. Its olde school rate gyro and motor driven tail hardly seems like its doing any work for you!! The TRex with HH and a belt drive tail is much, much easier... and the Raptor 50 I flew a whopping half dozen times was easier still. In G3 I do believe you can adjust the gyro so that its not heading hold and/or reduce the gain... if you plan on continuing to fly the Blade it might be worth trying that to get a better simulation of it.

I know $350 feels like a lot, and for the Blade it probably is.. but the TRex will put you back a lot more than that just to get it in the air, and crashes will be more expensive.

Good luck and happy flying!

-Greg
08-03-2005 Over year old.
HOMEPAGE  
 
 
tsitalon1
Heliman
Location: Montgomery AL

Greg, Thanks so much for replying. That is what I thought. So your tail is completely stable on the t-rex, even in a 10-15mph wind?

So you attribute all of the tail stability of the t-rex to the HH gyro right? Does being a belt driven tail help at all? I would imagine that when the voltage starts to taper you don't see any dramatic control differences in the tail like in the Blade right?

I understand that the T-rex will be considerably more expensive than the Blade. I also understand that I could install a radio/gyro/esc into the blade and make it a better heli. But I also think that the tail will still suffer due to it's design (motor/gear driven) and I will still have a main shaft that bends if I breath to hard on it.

Would you consider the T-rex my next logical step? Also being thet the T-rex can get as expensive as the nitro heli's, Do you think the conveniece of electric power still outweighs the stablity of the nitro's?

If you had to do it again, would you still buy the T-rex, or would you go for a larger electric(eco8) or nitro .30?

Thanks,
James
08-03-2005 Over year old.
 
 
utahrc
Heliman
Location: Provo, UT - USA

I don't have a TRex and haven't yet flown my Blade CP, but I have flown a number of helicopters over the years. A fixed pitch tail rotor will never be as strong or responsive as an adjustable pitch rotor like you see on the TRex and larger helicopters. To adjust the tail rotor thrust, the motor has to spin up or down which takes a certain amount of time. An adjustable pitch tail rotor can respond to the gyro instantaneously and provide much better tail control.
08-04-2005 Over year old.
 
 
genovia
Elite Veteran
Location: N UR NECK OF DA WOODS

If the blade has mixing capability control the mixing by 2 increments either to the left or to the right, but keep in mind that if it doesn't work if you adjust to one direction, reset to default.

The mix allows you to mix a certain flow of power to the tail motor.

1) If your tail is outputting a surge of power, adjust mix.
2) if it wags or drifts adjust GY.

Note: Do not feed a whole lot of adjustment, increments of small % adjustments is all you need to find the soft spot.

The 5 n 1' is a Century design module, that Century put into into the 100% ready to fly Humming V3 and the Tx is a Century's old version mold of an ealier "Lighting" version TX. So I have a wide know-how of it's system.

The TX doesn't respond quite well in 3D, but in sport is just perfect. The 5 n 1' is a rate modulated GY. In 3D flight one would need the latest and the greatest GY in the market.
08-04-2005 Over year old.
 
 
JiggerInc
Senior Heliman
Location: Arlington, VA

Quote 
So your tail is completely stable on the t-rex, even in a 10-15mph wind?

Yes. I've never measured the wind exactly, but its been what I would describe as "windy with moderate gusts" and I've never had the tail move at all.

Quote 
So you attribute all of the tail stability of the t-rex to the HH gyro right? Does being a belt driven tail help at all? I would imagine that when the voltage starts to taper you don't see any dramatic control differences in the tail like in the Blade right?

The HH gyro is a big part of it, but I also believe the belt driven/variable pitch tail makes a huge difference. As utahrc said, the tail can respond almost instantaneously, and with the GY401 taking 270 measurements per second and outputting adjustments just as fast to a servo that can move a 60deg arc in 0.09 seconds... well, its a stable tail.

Quote 
Would you consider the T-rex my next logical step? Also being thet the T-rex can get as expensive as the nitro heli's, Do you think the conveniece of electric power still outweighs the stablity of the nitro's?

I actually started near the top and moved down. My first heli was a Raptor 50v2 and as I mentioned, flying it was as easy or easier than the sim. But it just barely fit in my trunk, I had to carry around a starter, glow ignitor, jug of fuel, fuel pump, etc. etc. .. I also couldn't fly it *anywhere* near my home or work as I live in the Washington DC area and this place redefines "concrete jungle". I did do some basic hovering in the parking lot behind my office building, but in retrospect that was really stupid. If I had lost control I had a major highway on one side, my office building on another, and a parking lot full of BWMs on another. Those 50s could easily kill and frankly scared the crap out of me.

Got my Trex recently and a Blade even more recently. They're perfect for me. I can bring my Trex, Tx and everything I need to fly in one aluminum case that easily fits in my car. I can hover them on the second floor of my building which hasn't been populated with people/cubes yet. I can fly FF circuits in that same parking lot... it feels so much bigger when you're flying a model 1/3rd the size!

Quote 
If you had to do it again, would you still buy the T-rex, or would you go for a larger electric(eco8) or nitro .30?

I'd go straight for the Trex, and probably skip the Blade and the Raptor. For me, its the perfect blend of performance and portability. Resist the temptation to bling it out right out of the gate. The basic kit is super stable and a ton of fun to fly. As you break parts, consider replacing them with the bling. It'll help keep costs under control and make you feel less bad about the crashes.
08-04-2005 Over year old.
HOMEPAGE  
 
 
tsitalon1
Heliman
Location: Montgomery AL

Thanks for you comments.. After my 2nd tail motor died in 2 days.. I have decided to ditch the blade and get a t-rex.. It will take some time to save up the $ to get it all. But I look forward to it.

Thanks again,

James
08-06-2005 Over year old.
 
 
R-Rocks
Heliman
Location: Porterville Utah

James buy a good plus radio, thats if your hooked into helis. this most likely will out last your first heli and then some. My first heli was a Venture 30, flew the heck out of it crashed many times EZ rebuild. I have a ilkarus ECO 8 this ele cost plenty to get up and running well, more than my nitros, the heli I now fly is a caliber thirty very nice and flys well. Get a nitro heli 30 size, or 50. down the road you will be glad you did.
08-06-2005 Over year old.
 
 
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e-E-Flite Blade CP CX 400-3D > Impressions from a newbie heli (Blade) pilot
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