RE: New Mini Electric is here the Falcon 3D!!
To all you Falcon thread users and visitors...Hope Santa was good to you all...Got my P-51D ARF from Hong Kong...also a tiny little 4 chan Corona synthesized 72 mhz receiver I can use with my old Futaba and JR Transmitters...auto detects shift and is full range...Might do some Falcon 3D and P-51 flying Thursday. Hope all of you are having a wonderful Christmas Day with all your family and friends, Ralph
Posted on: 12/25/2007 10:38 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6804685

RE: New Mini Electric is here the Falcon 3D!!
Hey Roger... Happy Holidays to you and your wife in Beirut. Ralph
Posted on: 12/25/2007 8:26 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6804144

RE: New Mini Electric is here the Falcon 3D!!
Ken Sorry about the Crash...the thing about the CNC aluminum upgraded parts is YES they are stronger but sometimes its better to have a "SOFT SPOT" to absorb the stresses of a crash...Wooden Blades and plastic parts on the Head establish a "Soft Spot" which is a good thing for a beginner while learning...upgrading to aluminum would result in no breakage of Head Parts but the stresses would be transferred to other parts down the line which might result in higher repair costs. Just a thought... Merry Christmas, Ralph
Posted on: 12/24/2007 4:57 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6799982

RE: New Mini Electric is here the Falcon 3D!!
Captain GREAT and glad your experience with flying with the CPD4 was successful...see, we told you so...too easy right...very happy reading your post...you will be doing high hovers and forward flight with little effort...heck, you may already have done that on your first flight...cant wait to see the video... Merry Christmas, Ralph
Posted on: 12/24/2007 4:53 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6799967

RE: New Mini Electric is here the Falcon 3D!!
FUSION spray paint from WallMart works really good...works super on plastic, fiberglass and kevlar parts. My Yellow Canopy came out great...masked the clear part over and then sprayed it...of course I totalled that canopy in my one crash out of 100 flights...I am going to do another...kinda like the white...might do a purple one...sometimes if you fly your heli up high 200 or 300 feet away, you need a darker color to help with your orientation. Merry Christmas all... Ralph
Posted on: 12/24/2007 4:49 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6799947

RE: My brains full
Cactus Hopper, I just got one of those OEMRC programming cards that plug into a HobbyWing ESC...to check the programming, its easy to hookup. The ESC plugs into the right upper top connector, then you hookup the LIPO to the ESC and the programming card will light up and show the current settings. You will want the BRAKE OFF and the TIMING SET to HARD for that Outrunner Motor. Others settings you can easily figure out. Merry Christmas Ralph
Posted on: 12/24/2007 4:43 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6799921

RE: set up
The EFlight Blade CP is one of the most difficult heli's to hover if you are a beginner moving up from a coaxial heli. However once you are able to hover a Blade CP, you can hover any of the other heli's on the market. Spend some time on a simulator and complete the RADDS School flying your heli on the ground without actually liffing off until you finish that training. Merry Christmas. Ralph
Posted on: 12/24/2007 4:37 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6799896

RE: Havox Heli
Each one channel is preset and you cannot change it on the heli. It does not come apart. If you are looking at them in the store each heli frequency is determined by the color of the heli decals. Red equals whatever Yellow equals whatever and Blue equals whatever. You would have to try and find one at a Local Wallmart maybe. Even if you didnt buy it there, take it there and try and exchange it. Flying on the same IR Freq will not work unless one is in a different room in the house. Good Luck and Merry Christmas. Ralph
Posted on: 12/24/2007 4:28 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6799849

RE: ping pong
Good Luck Makanda...go easy on flying it...you will be having some fun...check back on this forum and tell us how you are doing. Ralph
Posted on: 12/21/2007 10:36 AM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6786668

RE: Help for newbie with Havoc Heli
I had a Havok that I flew for a month and the main motor died. I took it back to Wallmart and they let me exchange it for another one. Didnt even have the receipt so I would do that before too much time passes. Might as well exchange it or get store credit for something you need. Good luck and check out KA-PLANES.COM for some christmas deals on heli's. Mike stands behind everything he sells and can be helpful assisting you on what to buy. Good guy all the way around. Ralph
Posted on: 12/21/2007 10:30 AM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6786634

RE: ping pong
Hey Makanda Welcome to the world of flying heli's...those training ping pong setups will help you...What kind of heli did you get? Just curious...Have some fun...Happy Days,,,Ralph
Posted on: 12/20/2007 8:21 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6784336

RE: wont lift
I agree with Druss...could be your battery...draining them down below 3 volts and you cannot recharge them...expensive lesson to learn...on the other hand, when you spin up the blades, is the rotor spinning up fast speed at mid to high throttle...the main gear is meshing with the motor OK, right? Gotta be careful not to stall the blades. If this has a 4 in 1 unit Receiver, ESC, Gyro etc stalling the rotors will destroy the all in one unit or the ESC as it is not fused. Good luck...still time to buy a Havoc at Wallmart if you cant get it going this weekend...keep asking questions and you will get lots of help here... Ralph
Posted on: 12/20/2007 8:18 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6784321

RE: New Mini Electric is here the Falcon 3D!!
Hi Leo and others... Yea I have flown the 6 dollar 3DX 400 blades and they work nice on the Falcon 3D. Very strong. You wont be breaking them. The Guy with the DX6...were u the guy I forwarded DarkSides website URL..he has good settings there for the DX7 and you can probably use his data to setup your DX6...Do you the the new DX6i which is now FULL RANGE TRANSMITTER? That seems like a nice unit. also has 5 point throttle and pitch curves now...only diff I think is its 6 channels and the dx7 is 7 chans...maybe it has less model memories. I dunno...Good Luck... Captain, Let us know how your CPD4 works out...I hope your experience is a good one...if everything has checked out you will be doing high hovers... Ralph
Posted on: 12/20/2007 8:11 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6784294

RE: How badly would this suck.?
Wonder if his BEC shut down? There have been occasional crashes due to thermal shut downs of the internal BEC on some ESCs. The internal BECs are rated for only 1 amp on many stock ESCs. Flying a heli like he was flying surely he would have been using an external BEC (UBEC). For safety and piece of mind, I am now using UBECs (External BECs) on both my heli's now. What got me scared was the day I lost all control to my heli. It was about 200 ft up and NO CONTROL at all. Unable to shut down the throttle. It finally came down after climbing to over 300 ft. Luckily had minimal damage cause it came straight down on its skids after the rotor spun down. I was lucky. Its real easy to hook up the UBEC. What you do is disable the center RED WIRE on your ESC plug that goes into your receiver. Then you run the UBEC right off your LIPO pack and plug it into any spare or Y channel of your receiver. Now it will power your receiver, servos, gyro etc with a continuous rating of 3 amps or surge of 5 amps with selectable 5 or 6 volts DC output. The UBEC ways only a few grams so the added weight is nothing. UnitedHobbies.COM sells them for $8.88 for the one I have with like 3 bucks shipping. I got the OEMRC one that has a noise surpressor on the output lead. Pretty good insurance and keep your ESC separate just running the motor. Ralph
Posted on: 12/19/2007 6:32 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6779456

RE: Need help with DX6 Setup
Bill, I have a DX7. My gyro on my Falcon 3Ds are stock and probably different than yours. I have the gyro set to the gear swictch and the Sensitivity on one Falcon set to 73 and the other falcon set to 67. Any percentage above 50 puts the gyro in Heading Lock Mode and thats what you want. I am going to refer you to one of my buddies websites which he has setup info for the DX7 instead of me trying to repeat and type it here. Take a look and I hope it will help you. Bear in mind these are the settings for the Falcon 3D but it should steer you in the right direction. Good Luck, Ralph follow this link http://fantasiesonwheels.com/Web%20Pages/Falcon.htm
Posted on: 12/19/2007 6:20 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6779413

RE: Co Pilot?
Airman Bob I am keeping mine and if and when I ever upgrade to a CCPM heli I will get one for that too...I have the DX7 on both my Falcons with CPD4s. I would definately be interested in the 2.4 version if I ever go to CCPM like a TREX 450 V2. I dont know if you know but Art Tech manufacturer of the Falcon 3D, couple months ago I saw where they have a Chinese Clone of the CPD4. Looks so much like it and works on same principals...probably works the same...It gets me when some guys bad mouth the CPD4. I will take technology and use it as I have only a single crash after 100 flights. Lots of spare parts I bought but have not used yet. The CPD4 is one device that proves it worth in GOLD meaning NO CRASHES, NO HEARTACHE and NO REBUILDING your broken heli. Its hard enough to just keep all the set screws tight and everything in order just so the CPD4 can do its job. No need for crashing and being bummed. You know all the beginners want to do is get a little flight time and that you will get if you get the CPD4. Wish I had a dollar for everyone I told about the CPD4. Lots of happy fliers out there. I have only seen one case of a guy having real problems getting his going and I wished I could have personally helped him One bad experience should not stop others from expereriencing flying without the worry of crashing. I have noticed even turning the sensitivity down to 50 per cent, it still will keep it level. I am going to take mine down lower to about 30 per cent next time out and see what it does there. I already had it completely OFF once and I could still hover for 6 or 7 minutes but its a whole lot easier with it on. You can let it do its job and never tip over, do some high hovers and take a few videos or stills if you have an onboard camera. OK Airman Bob, have happy holidays MERRY CHRISTMAS. Ralph
Posted on: 12/19/2007 6:12 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6779365

RE: Forum layout Black Hawk and Falcon
The Falcon thread with the most posts is the main Falcon thread. Thats where most posts are made and questions answered regarding the Falcon 3D. However several Falcon owners have bought BlackHawks so Blackhawk posts also show up there. The Falcon users are very friendly and helpful to anyone needing a question answered whether they have a Falcon or not so posting a question there will get someones attention. Good Luck and Happy Holidays, Ralph
Posted on: 12/19/2007 5:57 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6779300

RE: Blade cx2 problems
Robert Stroup gave her good advice on what to check... The servo arms or horns sit on top of each servo. There is a small screw that holds them on. There is a small adjustable wire (linkage) that goes between the servo arm and the swashplate. With the trasmitter right stick trim levers both centered, verify that the swashplate appears to be level when you are looking at it. If it is not, then adjust the length of the wire linkage so that it is level. You may need to lengthen or shorted the linkage to one servo or the other. With the swashplate LEVEL, now run up the left stick throttle until the heli gets light on the skids, but do not lift off yet. If the heli wants to move forward, back or from side to side now make small adjustments to the trim levers side and bottom of right stick. Set it so the heli is stable in one place. Now, if the tail is rotating in a circle, adjust the trim lever at the bottom of the left stick until the heli tail is in one place. The left stick trim lever on the inboard side should be all the way DOWN all the time. Now gently increase the throttle and see if you can hover a few inches off the floor. Its normal on this heli if the heli tail seems to move a little...fine tune again the left stick bottom lever for stability. In flight you must fly the heli and further tail stability will come in practice while controlling both the right and left sticks to maintain as perfect a hover you can master. Do not attempt forward flight of any kind until you can maintain an indoor perfect hover about 4 feet off the floor. I remember doing all this with my Blade CX and once you are successful in hovering, you will be happy at least. This will become boring and you will have been bitten by the bug and will be thinking about your next helicopter. Good luck and Merry Christmas. Ralph PS If you have to replace your main shaft, get the upgraded aluminum head. It will not break like the stock plastic head and you will be happy you upgraded.
Posted on: 12/19/2007 5:53 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6779284

RE: New Mini Electric is here the Falcon 3D!!
Hi LEo and Captain Good luck this weekend on your first flights with the CPD4. That final step HOLDING FULL RIGHT STICK and release after setting the heli down, before lifting off LOOK at the swashplate IT SHOULD BE DEAD STILL without any stick inputs...IF for some reason the swash is moving in a cyclic pattern, means the LEVEL save to the CPD4 DID NOT TAKE and DO NOT TRY TO LIFT OFF...you will CHICKEN DANCE till your blades are saw dust...If the swash is dead still, its OK to lift off...You will do fine...cant wait to hear about your first flight...have to remember to set the heli down gently before landing...I found myself stalling the tail rotor on couple my first flights so use the training balls and do a nice slow stable hover before setting the heli down... Ralph
Posted on: 12/19/2007 1:36 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6778346

RE: How badly would this suck.?
He was having a good time till Murphys Law got him! When you are doing tricks that close to the ground, one small mistake on the sticks can ruin your day!
Posted on: 12/19/2007 1:26 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6778318

RE: Co Pilot?
The CPD4 works for me in both my Falcon 3Ds. In the beginning leave it turned all the way up and you will never crash...well unless you somehow dont let it hover your heli for you...very little inputs required from you to keep it flying. You spend more time on the throttle and the rudder keeping the heli pointed. Very easy to fly. As you become more familiar with your heli, crank down the gain some until you dont need it anymore...I leave mine on for insurance cause I like to fly out high so if you lose orientation its there to save my butt...In the beginning alot of new pilots try to fly and they crash and get pretty bummed...well its good to know what you did wrong and also good to learn something about your heli from crashing by rebuilding it...I have been very happy flying with the CPD4...it will give you false confidence from the get go so you don't want to get too cocky over your instant success. Have some fun with flying and not crashing and then slowly crank it down and just use the CPD4 as insurance, I see nothing wrong with using one. Out of over 100 flights since March of 2007, I managed to crash once and that was due to the internal BEC in the ESC shutting down inflight...If you are looking for a ready to fly heli all setup and test flown with a CPD4, contact Mike at KA-PLANES.COM Should be able to get a Falcon 3D with installed CPD4 for about 300 bucks nowadays due to all the upgraded new Falcons that have come out. The original Falcon 3Ds are cheap right now. I highly recommend the CPD4. The CPD4 is compatible with CP helis and there is another model the FS-8 which is a combination 72 mhz receiver and copilot for the CCPM heli's. Good Luck and Happy Holidays, Ralph
Posted on: 12/19/2007 1:18 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6778292

RE: Good Quality RC electric Helicopter...New
I have 2 Falcon 3Ds equipped with CPD4 Copilots...100 flights and one crash...this combo works...cheap replacement parts if you ever need them...Mike at KA-PLANES.COM can make you a deal on a Falcon 3D and CPD4 built and test flown. Talk to him...The BlackHawks are very nice but CCPM and you cannot use the CPD4. There is another copilot model the FS-8 which will work with it...just another opinion to ponder...The stock Falcon 3D and CPD4 is very easy to fly...I have been flying heli since March and only previous experience flying electric planes and large open class sailplanes...Heli flying is very rewarding and addictive...welcome to the club...Happy Holidays, Ralph PS Go to YOUTUBE.COM and check out some of my flying with the Falcon and CPD4 SEARCH FALCON 3D and CPD4...
Posted on: 12/18/2007 1:44 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6773738

RE: CCPM transmitter
While the heli is on the ground, as you slowly run up the main rotor, the heli will get light on its skids...this is when you adjust the trim levers as follows./// right stick side trim lever will balance the heli from fore to aft right stick bottom trim lever will balance the heli from left to right left stick side trim lever is for your throttle...keep it all the way down left stick bottom trim lever is for your rudder...if the tail spins then make an adjustment till its as stable as possible do these trim adjustments before you try to hover the heli... If this is the Blade CP Pro, its not an easy heli to hover...take your time and don't rush things...hovering a Blade CP Pro is going to be a handfull if you are a beginner...You should try and get some practice on a simulator and complete the RADDS training on the ground without actually taking to the air...Good Luck... Ralph
Posted on: 12/18/2007 12:26 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6773446

RE: New Mini Electric is here the Falcon 3D!!
Ken Glad to hear things are going good for you. Regarding the shortning of blades, if you lay an original blade over the longer blade, you can trace where the length is suppose to be and then just use a dremel tool to roung off the end to the template line. Mine came out perfect and the balance was right on. I didn't have to add any tape to achieve balance...so thats one way you can do it...damn its cold, windy and rainy here in northern california...crummy day...good day for working on projects indoor or maybe fly a Havoc or Blade CX...haha Ralph
Posted on: 12/18/2007 12:12 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6773394

RE: 1st Battery
A cheap and easy way to balance your main blades is to take them off and screw them together in the center using the screw you normally use to attach one side to the blade greip. Now simply balance the blades on a round pencil or dowel rod. Add small pieces of electrical tape to the lighter side till you achieve balance. I have noticed even if its off a little, that can create vibration on spooling up your rotors. You have the right idea of using the trim lever to counter the heli moving right left fore and aft to get a nice stable hover on the ground as the heli gets light on its skids. Thats the way to do it. Balance your blades and try again. Also how is your tail stability on spooling up the rotors? If the tail wants to spin, make some trim adjustments with the lever for the rudder left stick bottom lever. Good luck... Ralph
Posted on: 12/18/2007 12:05 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6773361

RE: Elevator & Aileron Stick very sensitive - advice needed
Try adding 40 per cent NEGATIVE exponential and see if that tames it down enough...if not, add 60 per cent...make sure its NEGATIVE...It should make your control much less sensitive for the Cyclic forward, aft, right and left inputs to your heli... Ralph
Posted on: 12/18/2007 11:53 AM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6773331

RE: New Mini Electric is here the Falcon 3D!!
OK, well if you have any questions shoot me a PM or question here...Critterz Leo or I will help...Ralph
Posted on: 12/17/2007 1:18 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6768898

RE: Problem with Helix rotors
I would take it back to Wallmart no matter how long you have had it...explain it is faulty and they will give you another one or if not in stock maybe get him a havoc to play with. I had a hovoc for a month and then the motor stopped. They exchanged it no questions and I didnt even have the receipt. These little wallmart helis just dont have good parts support. Next time maybe have a look at the helis from KA-PLANES.COM in Florida. Mike can steer you in the right direction. They have alot of cheaper helis and parts support. Ralph
Posted on: 12/17/2007 12:48 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6768788

RE: Problems: ESC, Brushless Motor, Battery, RX?
I do not have this heli but I would setup in Normal mode with switch in that position. With the throttle stick DOWN, set the pitch on your rotor blade to 0 or -1. Then put the throttle HIGH and set pitch to +9. DO THESE ADJUSTMENTS WITH THE MOTOR DISABLED. I usually do these adjustment by unplugging the ESC from the receiver. USE A 4 CELL RECEIVER BATTERY PACK plugged into your receiver and leave the flight pack LIPO unplugged. All this for safety so you dont get hurt. If you can achieve these settings LOW throttle -1 and high throttle +9, your heli should lift off. If now it does not lift off, you might have a bad LIPO battery. Ralph
Posted on: 12/17/2007 12:23 PM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6768699

RE: New Mini Electric is here the Falcon 3D!!
Your Picture 2 in the middle, thats where I have my sensors aft of the servo on the horizotal stab and picture 3 is where mine is mounted right to the front of the gyro...Picture 1 some guys are putting them there in case there is a blade strike, it wont take out your sensors so the choice is up to you...regarding the pitch, since you are using the stock transmitter, you will have to play around with those knobs and you should shoot for -1 at low stick and +9 at high stick. 10 and 2 oclock on the knobs is what others say work but it really depends on what your pitch gauge says, so try to get it to -1 or zero for LOW throttle and +9 with the throttle high and remember this is is Normal flight mode not even thinking about setting 3D mode. Let me know how you are able to achieve these settings... Ralph
Posted on: 12/17/2007 11:44 AM by Author "thermal7" in the forum "RC Helicopter Beginners Forum"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=6768562