How do i loop a Helicopter

[scott finnie]

Ok i'm going to try a positive thread without bad luck. Ive a few nice helicopters and a few cheaper CP heli's too. I really enjoy scale flying though recently been tempted with a loop or roll though i fear it will end in disaster. Do i need idle up , a bit of speed then down elevator as if to say then over it goes or can i just pull back without idle up? as you can see from my terms i really dont have a scooby when it comes to helicopter aerobatics though all i want is a loop!

Thanks

Scott

[Vecchio Austriaco]

You have to go idle up as you need the possibility to give negative pitch while you are inverted. If not the device will pull to mother earth quite fast....
You can do a loop even without high speed. Just pull the nick backwards and while the thing turns change the pitch to negative - in a way you have negative pitch when inverted and while the heli turns back to normal you have to change the pitch back to where you were before the move. It is more difficult to describe it than to do it. But: Please try it on a simulator first. This is less costly.

VA

[gliggsy]

Hi Scott, it is possible to loop without being in I/up, what you need is forward speed and plenty of height, if your heli is set up correctly you give it some fast forward speed and pull back on the cyclic, right stick mode 2, when the heli hits the top of the loop your throttle/pitch needs to be at about 40% which will give you slight negative pitch with the blades still spinning but what you mustn't do is drop the throttle any less otherwise the heli will fall out of the sky and you would be very lucky to retrieve. This supposes that you have a decent understanding of pitch and throttle curves etc. Practice on a sim is priceless and I/up is a lot easier as the heli will virtually roll or flip on its own axis, good luck if you decide to go for it and don't forget, the higher the better.......G

[John Privett]

Posted by gliggsy on 13/01/2015 20:39:07:

Hi Scott, it is possible to loop without being in I/up, .... but what you mustn't do is drop the throttle any less otherwise the heli will fall out of the sky and you would be very lucky to retrieve.

Scott, take note of what gliggsy said, just don't ask me how I know he's right.

[Cuban8]

I would strongly suggest that you practice loops on a simulator first and also make sure that you understand the required throttle and pitch curve requirements over and above what is required for gentle (scale type) flying. I performed my first real loop without too much trouble, but I reckon I'd have planted it without the sim time first. I found that I was pulling too much up towards the end of the loop and actually having the heli stop dead - sometimes starting to fly backwards, which would have been disastrous for real (fixed wing bad habit) A fixed wing model will fly itself round a loop with little input from the pilot, but a heli needs to be flown as it passes through each quarter of the circle with the appropriate stick inputs- it's not difficult but at the same time it doesn't come natural first time. Might be worth flying some wing-overs first of all, gradually making them steeper as you get used to seeing the machine in an unfamiliar attitude

I'd certainly recommend an idle up curve as well and a higher head speed to improve the models response - also think carefully about positioning, if you start to screw out as you go round, you may end up with the model overhead or even behind you which is frightening when you don't expect it.

[simon burch]

Some good advice, not sure if anyone has mentioned that you want to be heading into wind. Shouldn't be too much trouble to get her to go over without an idle up curve, but as said, leave the throttle stick alone.

Just like with fixed wing, plenty of speed and feed in the back cyclic gently. Maybe go for a few stall turns first to get the feel of pulling the model up to a vertical position. You will see how much speed gets burnt off quite quickly.

Doing good loops on a fixed wing is all about feel. If you just yank it back, the model will loop, but the top will be more like a stall and a flop......you don't want your heli doing this !!

Personally, I think it is a really easy move to get into some simple aeros. Takes a lot of bottle to go over, but once you have done it you will wonder what all the fuss is about.

When I was helping a mate get into loops last year, there were a few key points we sorted at the start.

1) Model needs a good amount of forward speed

2) Leave the throttle alone, just concentrate on the back cyclic

3) Don't yank the stick

4) The most important part.......................height is your friend !!!!

If your model comes down with ice on it after your first loop, that's probably about the right height to start. If it goes wrong, you WILL come out a lot lower than when you went in !!

Don't know where you are based, I'm in West Sussex and more than happy to help set up an idle up curve. Not needed to begin with, but it does help if you want to stretch the loop or if you get into trouble inverted.

I can still remember my first loop with a heli and that's is nearly 23 years ago.........that is how memorable it will be I'm sure.

Good luck

Simon

ps. the bigger the model, the easier it will be as the weight will carry the speed around.

[Steve Hargreaves - Moderator]

I flew Helis a very long time ago & found a loop surprisingly easy to do.....plenty of forward speed & a bit of back cyclic & round it went nice as anything....very much like looping a fixed wing model in fact......a loop is generally a positive "g" maneuver so negative pitch isn't really needed.

A roll is different however.....again plenty of forward speed left (or right) cyclic & a good dose of negative pitch as the model goes inverted.....