rdlohr
Key Veteran
Location: Pittsfield. MA USA
| These are the words I wish I would have read when I first got my XRB...
This assumes you are an inexperienced heli pilot.
Don't let anyone kid you, learning to fly a heli without crashing is not easy and takes many hours of practice (don't worry, you'll have a blast in the process). The XRB is a great heli to learn on.
Laminate your blades with 3M brown packing tape...NOW. You WILL crash regardless, and you WILL destroy your blades otherwise. After putting on the tape, it is incredible how many crashes you will simply pick up and go from with no real damage. I prefer the 3M brown over the white reinforced packing tape because it is much lighter, easier to work with, and does not shorten your flight times. You can even laminate a second time. I never tried a third time, but maybe...
Once you lift off, plan on constant small adjustments on both controls to sustain a hover. For every adjustment you make, you will most likely need a small opposite adjustment to compensate for it . Realize that turning does typically cause you to lose a little height so compensate for it by hitting the throttle. If you start to get disoriented, let go of the right control. If everything is adjusted properly, this should shift the heli back to a somewhat controlled hover for enough time for you to recover. If all else fails and you are going to crash the blades into something, power down quick so you don't beat them up too bad in the process. If the blades are laminated, they will survive.
When flying in the house in a relatively small area, say 12 X 12, your own rotor wash will push you around quite a bit. Get used to it, hands off hover for any length of time in a small area is not in the cards. In a larger area you should eventually have no problem doing a hands off hover for 10 or 20 seconds.
After you get decent at hovering in the house, (maybe 5 to 10 flights), fly outside as often as you can. You need the space to learn maneuvering. There must be practically no wind so just before dark is often a good time. If you can find a pinwheel, mount it outside so you can tell when there is no wind. My wife uses them in her garden to chase out squirrels. The one mounted up about six feet high is the one I count on. When its not spinning, its OK to fly.
Take off and land on a flat area like a patio, or piece of cardboard instead of grass. You get more consistent lift and grass often grabs the skids and tips you.
Since it is somewhat difficult just after you have learned to hover to control the heli when it's nose isn't oriented straight away from you, follow the heli around your yard always keeping it in front of you. This will help you get the hang of forward movement without the disorientation of lots of turns. As you do this you will end up doing some big sweeping turns but if you turn the wrong way you will see what is happening and be able to correct without the consequences of being at the edge of your yard right next to houses, bushes, fences and other things that like to jump out and grab a heli out of the sky.
The garage is also a great place to fly. It's big enough to learn control and there is no wind to contend with. Circles and figure eights are great ways to help you think like a heli.
If your tail breaks off (which it probably will), remove the front canopy and the heli will balance fine. Fly this stripped down heli until you become a heliman (30 to 40 flights or so).
Oil your heli every 10-15 flights, and make sure to do all the recommended adjustments in the manual. Consider buying heat sinks for the motors if you fly for more than about 10 minutes non-stop.
Buy a spare battery from Ricky Blaze and you will double your flight time.
After you have mastered flying this little guy, then go out and buy a new tail and build a pretty machine that looks nice while you are flying it.
Oh yea, and last but not least, read as many posts as you can on this and other heli forums. There is a wealth of knowledge from people who are really good at this, and very willing to help you out. Search for key words like “laminate” and “lube” for directions on how to do these things.
Hope this helps you out...
Warning: This hobby is highly addictive and hazardous to your wallet! This addiction is more than likely incurable and it is recommended that you consider quitting now while you still have a choice!
Update 1/31/06: Should have heeded my own warning. I've since bought two additional helis, a Blade CP and a TREX SE and there is no end in sight! On top of that I've infected my brother-in-law, the copterklutz, and now he is addicted with an XRB and a Corona. Get out now while you still have a chance! Once it gets you there is no way out!
Update 6/19/07: Both Copterklutz and I have added TREX 600s to our fleets. Bigger is better. Much more stable. Both the TREX 450 and 600 are a blast to learn on. The addiction continues!
Rick
-#-> Still Flyin, crashin and lovin it! |
