RE: e-flite cx is great not junkie any longer
Springwater, When you cannot hover over a foot off the ground with full throttle you need to land otherwise you can discharge your lipo too far causing it to fail. One thing to keep in mind is the motors and esc get hot, whats the temp like outside where you fly, whats the humidity like. These can shorten your flight as when the motor gets hot it creates heat which makes it harder to spin the motor at all. Next trip to the hobby shop too you may want to pickup trinity bearing oil for about 5 bucks. You can then (carefully) oil your motors on the top and down to the endbell because it fits the holes in the bottom. I have mine on my futaba radio that has a timer, before any metal upgrades I was getting 11:30 per flight, after the innershaft and heat sink + weight to balance out the heat sink I get 9:30 per flight however it's less wear on the motors and the inner shaft has yet to have any issues. So about 10 mins a flight is the right ballpark. These flight times are with the throttle above 1/4 stick and landing once in ground effect (can't hover more than a foot with full throttle)
Posted on: 6/26/2006 5:58 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "E-Flite Helicopters"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4433766

RE: e-flite cx is great not junkie any longer
As far as repairing, make your son a part of it. My dad did this when I was younger with electronics and to date I can still rip most things apart/repair/re-assemble it. Course I can recall a few toys from my youth that I took apart and ummm never could figure out how to put it back together. I miss my Gi-Joe motorized tank [:(]
Posted on: 6/23/2006 12:06 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "E-Flite Helicopters"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4422152

RE: e-flite cx is great not junkie any longer
Sounds like it's time to order a new servo, these servo's are cery small and the plastic gears are prone to getting messed up if you happen to crash. Perhaps you got dirt into it though with the outdoor flying and it's jamming the gear? I do believe you can just order a gear set for these servo's as most you can and generally gears are like 3-4 bucks a set so pretty cheap. Make sure when you change the gears you properlly lube them. You could always opt to replace the servo at about $12 depending on where you get it.
Posted on: 6/22/2006 1:44 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "E-Flite Helicopters"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4418542

RE: e-flite cx is great not junkie any longer
You can charge the batteries faster with a proper lipo charger and a balance charger lead. I have a dynamite vision plus charger which I connect to the pack via the jst connector, then I plug my blinky balance charger onto the balance lead and charge away. The e-flight charger goes at a moderate rate of .5 amps, the safe charge rate for this pack is 1/10 it's capacity or .8 amps. Charges faster and works well but between the 2 you will spend around 100 bucks total. If you plan on staying with flying it's a great investment.
Posted on: 6/21/2006 12:23 AM by Author "wired203" in the forum "E-Flite Helicopters"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4413337

RE: What channel ?
erm how about I help you, Walkera receivers take a initialization to activate them for use, any standard transmitter wouldn't transmit this to the receiver. You need a different receiver or 4-in-1 depending on which heli you have if you wish to use your own transmitter.
Posted on: 6/20/2006 11:19 AM by Author "wired203" in the forum "Walkera Helis - Dragonfly, etc.."
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4410055

RE: cx battery not charging??
Here is how it is, within the pack is a voltage cutoff diode, it cuts at 4.2 volts so as not to overcharge the pack. It calls to cutoff charging when the first cell hits 4.2 volts. This causes the other pack to not get it's full charge even though it is a "balance charger" There are a few people who have had to discharge one cell to match the other to get a full charge. The blinky balancer handles packs that were (overcharged, under charged, or to charge), I have read reports of people bringing thier lipos back to life from it. I get a perfectly balanced pack with each charge on it. It's a steal at 25 bucks and you just use it with your standard lipo charger through the jst connector.
Posted on: 6/19/2006 10:03 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "E-Flite Helicopters"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4408388

RE: cx battery not charging??
If you have a voltmeter please check the voltage on each cell, sometimes one cell charges higher than the other, tricking the charger into not charging the pack because it shows charged. When this happens you need to discharge the higher cell to the others voltage and re-charge, a blinky battery balancer would do this automatically for you, it also checks the voltage at connection to see if a cell is below the proper voltage and blinks a certain way.
Posted on: 6/19/2006 1:24 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "E-Flite Helicopters"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4406688

RE: blade cx
Zelatio, Problem with that is the amperage rating, You couldn't charge say you rc cars packs on it or some of the larger lipo's due to amp draw. What me and choppers are referring to is most of the high end Lipo chargers only have a DC input, Which either requires a 5-10 amp dc power supply ($50-$70 bucks) or a external battery to use to charge with.
Posted on: 6/9/2006 3:18 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "E-Flite Helicopters"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4372080

RE: Anyone Flying Esky V3 Lama?
J-Cube I don't recall where I had seen the video but when I was researching the lama heli I found a video of the reviewer hovering the heli with just the throttle stick, and he even placed the transmitter down for a moment and it hung in the sky. I have a Blade CX and the co-axils are extremly stable in flight. I'm sure if you search for lama reviews you could come by the video.
Posted on: 6/8/2006 2:07 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "Esky Helicopters"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4368172

RE: blade cx
Astro Flight for the blinky, Don't recall which of the 3 current magazines did their article this month but between Model Airplane News, Fly RC, and Backyard Parkflyer one of them had a article this month. It has been getting articles for about 3-4 months now and was just released. Here is the like to it. http://www.astroflight.com/e/env/0001i7FfaZ1MJFwScc335G2/store/store-Chargers.html?link=/store/store-type-tem.html&item=products:af-106 You still require a charger that is designed for Lipo Batteries, this just makes sure they are balanced. Has some circuitry in it too which is supposed to help if you overcharge a pack it takes it to 4.2 volts and if you over discharge using it connected at a 1/10th charge rate till it hits a certain voltage is supposed to refresh the pack to usable. I can't tell you about the overcharge and overdischarged functions as I have done neither to the different Lipo packs I own. For a charger I use the dynamite lipo charger as it was the only one at the local hobby store that had a AC/DC plugin so I could use it anywhere without needing a extra power supply to charge at home. http://www.dynamiterc.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdID=DYN4053 I think I paid about 80 bucks for it at a hobbytown usa.
Posted on: 6/8/2006 12:08 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "E-Flite Helicopters"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4367824

RE: blade cx
heh meant charging at the .8 amp rate. I have a blinky balance charger that balances the cells through the charge jack, you then charge the pack through the discharge pack. There are a lot of reviews out on it now and it does pretty damn perfect balancing for 25 bucks as long as you have a lipo charger. I have had it a month or so now and it has performed great for me every time.
Posted on: 6/7/2006 12:35 AM by Author "wired203" in the forum "E-Flite Helicopters"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4362247

RE: blade cx
Actually the charge rate on the stock charger is .5 amp and since it's lipo you can charge at a 1c rate which is .8 amp, I have done this with my balance lipo charger many times and the pack doesn't even get warm.
Posted on: 6/6/2006 11:25 AM by Author "wired203" in the forum "E-Flite Helicopters"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4359316

RE: Eflite Blade CX
Fossoman They are making the upper bearing holder out of aluminum it is due out mid this month. If you check horizons website and look for CX upgrades they have it there. 4-6 bucks with bearing so cheap. Have mine on backorder which was placed like a month and a half ago so I should be one of the first to get it. I have 3 different ones and none of them spun true for me always some wobble from it.
Posted on: 6/5/2006 6:29 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "E-Flite Helicopters"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4356519

RE: Need Advice please help
Possibly a faulty ground on one of the 2 allowing for static buildup and the crystal touch discharged it to the one with a good ground. This can easily be tested if it occurs again by touching the crystal and bare metal of your PC case to discharge the static.
Posted on: 6/2/2006 11:29 AM by Author "wired203" in the forum "E-Flite Helicopters"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4344647

RE: Walkera #4 Fixed Pitch Helicopter Forum
One thing everyone using lipo's can do as well is pick up any inexpensive standard LiPo charger, Create a connector for it that matches the JST connector(the red power connector that goes to the heli itself) then you purchase a "Blinky" lipo balancer which has bare pins coming out of it. I have the Blinky balancer and can attest to it's accurate balancing of exact voltage every time I have used it, You simply connect it to the balance connector and charge through the discharge connector and all is fine. One thing it also does is a voltage check at the first connection to see if you discharged sub 3.0v per cell. If over discharged it gives recomidations on how to properly recover the pack (blinky connected and charge at 1/10th the rate till you are at a certain voltage). for $25 bucks I never have to break out my volt meter again, currently I have Great Planes and Blade CX lipo's and it's a perfect fit for both and will balance up to 6 cell packs.
Posted on: 6/1/2006 2:25 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "Walkera Helis - Dragonfly, etc.."
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4340984

RE: Blade CP ARF
Blades are negative shift which is Futaba where JR is Positive shift so your transmitter will not work with the 4 in 1 receiver.
Posted on: 5/31/2006 4:44 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "E-Flite Helicopters"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4337167

RE: Eflite Blade CX
rver43, I just got my astro flight blinky charger yesterday and after some extensive testing, best $25 bucks you can spend and since it's open pins no special connectors required. Fit my great planes lipo and my blade cx batteries and is easy to use. Even helps you repair over discharged cells as well as overcharged cells.
Posted on: 5/16/2006 11:35 AM by Author "wired203" in the forum "E-Flite Helicopters"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4284086

RE: Walkera #4 Fixed Pitch Helicopter Forum
Avla, until you learn the "feel" for proper meshing just take a small piece of standard notebook paper and crunch it tightly between the 2 gears, then turn the gears to get the paper out and your mesh is good.
Posted on: 5/16/2006 11:28 AM by Author "wired203" in the forum "Walkera Helis - Dragonfly, etc.."
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4284077

RE: Eflite Blade CX
First to answer the aluminum bearing holder question, this would be the part that the ef1212 part sits on the plastic bearing cup that never seems to sit just perfect. Now that we got a metal one we should be great to go. For the batteries issues, if you have a charger that is capable of charging lipo's you can order the Astroflight Blinky Balancer http://www.dynamoelectrics.com/detail.aspx?ID=951 (note I never ordered from that company before however I wanted to show a decent product page) The balancer is really kinda neat, you connect it to the balance leads of the pack, then charge through the discharge connector and the balancer will balance them while charging by discharging the higher voltage pack. For severe out of balance packs connect it to the pack and don't charge and it will level them out before the charge. Extremly simple usage and incredible design if you ask me. I have one on backorder and will use my lipo charger with this and toss the esky charger into the bin of useless stuff.
Posted on: 5/3/2006 12:34 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "E-Flite Helicopters"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=4236082

RE: dragonfly #5-4 v2
Klrwhizkid, Never discharge a LIPO past 3v per cell or 6v for those packs, as you can cause damage to it and if the discharge is fast enough it has the possibility to catch fire. NiCad and NiMh are the batteries that can get a memory and need to be discharged fully, NiMh actually only get a slight effect with the memory as well but NiCad batteries easily get a memory. Letting the battery cool before re-charging is a good practice though to help extend the life of the battery.
Posted on: 2/23/2006 11:07 AM by Author "wired203" in the forum "Walkera Helis - Dragonfly, etc.."
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=3949221

RE: Walkera #4 Fixed Pitch Helicopter Forum
Yeah I love the google conversion, I even use it as a makeshift spellchecker all the time too.
Posted on: 2/7/2006 3:50 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "Walkera Helis - Dragonfly, etc.."
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=3881145

RE: Walkera #4 Fixed Pitch Helicopter Forum
Superskids are on and they look great, as far as the antenna tube is concerned I drilled the mount slightly larger and used a shortened rc car antenna tube, so much easier to feed the antenna through. WI last flew my bird 2 weeks ago the tail motor was cracked and I was getting glitching of the tail motor. Replaced the boom and still getting it so I guess it's time to upgrade to a GWS direct drive kit. I have lost quite a bit of lift though kit is a little heavier so I may just get the 6v speed 300 motor that others have suggested. Then new servo's and I should be pretty good as far as the bird goes. Question however, where the head connects to the shaft, the flybar goes through there and I have some cyclic slop in there by a few degree's. Is this normal or is it from crashing, I took the head apart and didn't see anything broken or showing signs of stress. May need to track down some micro washers and try to shim it up. I was starting to get some tail wagging as well as the glitch, I noticed the 4 in 1 was not super secure to the frame and fixed this with a rubber band wound a few times over.
Posted on: 2/3/2006 11:55 AM by Author "wired203" in the forum "Walkera Helis - Dragonfly, etc.."
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=3863376

RE: Walkera #4 Fixed Pitch Helicopter Forum
The work day needs to end, My Super-Skids are in my car waiting to get put on the heli. They came in super quick too, received on Tuesday and I paid early Monday morning with pay-pal. Can't wait for the little bird to feel more rigid and see if it's more stable. I also tightened the blades the other evening however have not tried to fly with it as of yet, They were set loose so they would collapse in case of a crash but I think that effected the stability as well.
Posted on: 2/2/2006 4:20 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "Walkera Helis - Dragonfly, etc.."
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=3859774

RE: Walkera #4 Fixed Pitch Helicopter Forum
I would check the head assembly for the wagging issues, possibly a fly paddle not aligned proper or out of balance, loose blades out of balance could do the same as well. How is the tracking on the new blades that you put in? Basically it sounds like a vibration or oscillation issue.
Posted on: 2/2/2006 9:50 AM by Author "wired203" in the forum "Walkera Helis - Dragonfly, etc.."
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=3858371

RE: Walkera #4 Fixed Pitch Helicopter Forum
This is the charger I use, I got it for about $90 at my local Hobby Town USA. It's a peak charger for nimh nicad and lipo with adjustable charge rates. It's rated for 2c or 3c cells. The reason I bought it over a triton or other charger is it is AC/DC meaning I can just plug the charger directly into the wall or hook it to my car at the field. Currently I don't own any LIPO packs but I do plan on going to them in the future. The NiMH stock packs have charged quite well with this charger as well, I do however charge at a lower rate than max rate for NiMH to squeeze every last ounce of power into the pack. At a .60 charge rate in about 45 minutes a fully discharged pack charges to full. This is not a pack cycling charger however, if you wish to use this charger I would suggest you do like I have and purchase a seperate discharger unit. Can't think of the brand I bought but it's a capacity checker and it gives me the packs capacity as I discharge it. http://www.dynamiterc.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdID=DYN4053
Posted on: 1/30/2006 3:14 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "Walkera Helis - Dragonfly, etc.."
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=3845296

RE: Walkera 22E Lets Talk
Be carefull on putting the pack outside as if you get busy and forget you could freeze the cells, this will reduce the life of the pack faster than you could ever want since the chemicals in the battery will crystalize. The deal with cooling off a pack before you charge it is if you heat the pack up and charge it the chemicals get into a liquid form and can crystalize as well from the heat and voltage increase. The fridge is generally set to 40f or so but above the freezing temp for the packs so if you forget about your pack it will not cause any issues.
Posted on: 1/27/2006 1:24 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "Walkera Helis - Dragonfly, etc.."
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=3832020

RE: Walkera 22E Lets Talk
The cool down part is correct, I read information years ago about proper RC car battery handling which is the same as for these birds (besides lipo) and once you are done running the pack throw it in the fridge for 10 minutes to cool it off so you can re-charge it. Have packs that are years old that still run great because of this.
Posted on: 1/27/2006 12:31 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "Walkera Helis - Dragonfly, etc.."
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=3831844

RE: Walkera Dragonfly #36
Well simply enough if you wanted a faster tail all you needed to do was reduce the pitch curve so it takes a higher throttle to take off and hover. Don't really see how owning a trex could change the physics of heli's
Posted on: 1/26/2006 11:41 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "Walkera Helis - Dragonfly, etc.."
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=3830218

RE: Walkera Dragonfly #36
I wouldn't doubt if it was hardened aluminum then, For tha malable factor look at most engine blocks where steel was replaced. Aluminum though never is the same strength but it would fair decent. BTW the simplest steel test ever, pop a magnet on it and see if it sticks.
Posted on: 1/26/2006 11:01 AM by Author "wired203" in the forum "Walkera Helis - Dragonfly, etc.."
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=3827182

RE: Walkera #4 Fixed Pitch Helicopter Forum
Staying away from floresent lights, tv's, and computer monitors with any RC is a must. Each one of these creates massive voltage within them to do what they need to do. Floresent lights need I beleive 50k volts to light up, monitors depending on size can go upwards to 150k volts on the flyback as well as tv's just have major voltages to them. The EMF (electro magnetic field) creates a hayday to any radio equiptment. Still would of been a great video to watch too though hehe.
Posted on: 1/25/2006 3:08 PM by Author "wired203" in the forum "Walkera Helis - Dragonfly, etc.."
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=3823747