Blade CX2

[Simon Robinson]

Just wondering if anyone has seen the clip on you tube with the CX2 with working retracting undercarriage? Has anyone got any plans to create one? I might put pen to paper and see what I can create. The links are below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGp0S6O2X8o

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAYGTrepEZo&NR=1

[ian hugo]

i have a blade cx2 the problem is the rear of the body seems to vibrate a lot is this normal??all so have to use a lot of trim to stop it going forward,,and it doesn't hover very well near the ground   any help please   thanks

[chrisw]

hi ian

take a look at my previous thread it explains that you need to set the gain, this is done in very small increments.

chris

[ian hugo]

thanks chris....is it the gain that stops the tail vibration??

[chrisw]

hi ian

yes it is the gain, if you look in your manual it will tell you how to set it, if your tail is viabrating it is what they call a loose tail, i'm not sure off the top of my head but i think you need to put in less gain ie turn screw to left. the thing with the cx2 the gain & proportional pots are labeled wrong ie the gain pot is the pot nearest to the motors that says proportional, as i said this is infact the gain pot. go to the following URL for manual if you don't have 1.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/13586/Blade-CX2-Manual

[Mark Thomas]

 anyone out there help me?  have crashed the CX changed baldes that required it, upper and lower, but the thing now flies forward with out any help, where do I need to start. cant see anything else wrong!

Do I start with the flybar, although it seems straight! or just change the swash plate thingy!

[Nigel ALBRIGHT]

No, I would say the servo rods. The left one is for forward and back.  Carefully unclip the ball and eye union then turn the eye on the rod anti-clockwise a half or one turn, clip it back on and then see how it flies. If necessary adjust some more

[Nigel ALBRIGHT]

Sorry, that shoud have been clockwise, Mark, to reduce the length of the rod and so bring the swash-plate down at the back.

[Flanker .]

Hi guys what are ya'll doing with Blades ? You should get a Lama!

Joke- we dont seem to have Blades here in Spain but the models are basically the same. To help out the few with trimming issues. Firstly add a 4cm strip of clear tape on the leading edge of the blades starting at the tips and wrap it round to the lower face. This makes the blades MUCH stronger when they hit things. Secondly ANY damage to the blades, even invisible damage will affect the RUDDER trim due to blade tracking induced drag, ie one rotor set will drag more than the other affecting trim. This is usually within the tx's trim range but not always. After practice it is quite possible to "fly" the rudder to control the swing.

Secondly crashes DO affect the swash plate, or pitch and roll or whatever you want to call it.

To fix say a drift to the left, remove the canopy and using the tx add a little "blip" of the control that would correct the drift, ie a little right stick. This will show you what you need to do to the push rod, ie lengthen it or shorten it. Then pop the servo ball link off the swash plate and adjust the push rod in the required direction 1/2 turn at a time. Fly the heli and repeat as necessary.

After a few goes at this you will get the machine to hover hands free. I have found however that while learning it is comfortable to have a little forward trim in (fixed wing habits?)

While learning to fly nose in it helps to crab the nose a little to one side as this gives the orientation you need to go the right way in a tight spot. Always fly the nose not the tail.

I hope to post soon photos a RADICAL MOD to the Lama (or Blade) this being a carbon fiber boom that is dead easy to make and which (quite unexpectedly) gives a huge performance boost by saving weight and really snapping up the tail (rudder) and swash plate responses. It seems that the pants like hollow tail boom acts like a big fin slowing everything down

As to "Bling" bits word on the street is that Ally flybar holders are about the only bits worth buying, the rest add weight and in some cases worse control.

Go well all and get ready to want a collective machine !  F 

[Mark Thomas]

Thanks guys, helps me to get things right, almost there!

[Simon Robinson]

Cheers that helps me too. I think I will spend some time getting my blade trimmed and hovering hands free.

 Si

[Flanker .]

OOO I forgot to add that the four in box that contains the gyro should be level. They are (on the Lama) held by double sided tape and can "nod" forward, they should ne level to keep the tail centred. My Lama does indeed change it's ideas about tail trim between flights and I have just noticed that I periodically put it level again.  F

[Mark Thomas]

Chris, just to be clear, the picture in the manual needs to br transposed, aka your post dated 7/1/08/

Seems a major cock up on Eflites part?

[Flanker .]

Yep Firm level fixing of the four in one box leads to rock solid rudder/tail. Oh yes and when learning the nose in biz our old fixed wing "prop it up"  (move aileron stick to wards low wing) phrase still works, I just think to my self "prop it up away from the wall"!

[peter hall 2]

There is conflicting information regarding the two on-board controls.  Chrisw was the first I read who said that the labelling of the proportional and gain pots were reversed. I found that difficult to believe as I felt that such a basic error would have been more widely publicised.
Therefore I sent an email to Eflite asking them to comment and this was their reply.

"Peter,
   Thank you for you recent email. The label is molded into the case.
The gain is toward the nose of the heli. I hope this helps.

Randy
Horizon Hobby Product Support
4105 Fieldstone Rd
Champaign , Il. 61822
1-877-504-0233"

I checked regarding the moulded-on labels and they are as the manual. i.e gain is forward and proportional rearward.
I then did my own tests assuming labelling incorrect. Set rearward pot to half way, set forward pot anticlock. Powered up and raised throttle to about a third. Lower blades rotating fast, upper blades very slow. Powered down.
Rearward pot not moved. Forward pot set clockwise. Powered up and set throttle as before. Upper blades fast lower blades very slow.
Various settins for rearward pot did not appear to make any difference to the above tests.
Round one goes to Chrisw but there may be more info from super-techies.

[Mark Thomas]

nice one Peter,  will check things once I've put new blades on, upper and lower and changed the stabaliser bar, shoved it into a wall tonight, practising flying nose in! doh!

Another question, should you replace blades by the set, or just the one thats broken?

[Flanker .]

I change by the set if one is broken and the other rough saving the rough one. Or just the one if the other looks ok.

I don't no how the pots are labeled on the blade but the Lama has gain (gyro sensitivity) on the front and proportional to the rear. It is the prop pot that you can use to check yaw trim problems. NOTE both rotors will NOT start at the same time, you have to get a good metre up and in a good hover before you can tell how your rudder trim is. 

The gain pot controls the gyro's "hold" on the tail. If your tail has a fluttery, twitchy ,rapid left/right oscillation then turn the gain down. If it wags about turn the gain up. Sort your trim out first though, but with perfect blades that track properly. The adjustable link on the fly bar should be used to adjust blade tracking. Get this right before fiddling with the pots, and make sure that the gyro box is level and held firm.

Go well F 

[peter hall 2]

Look forward to your results Mark. I have given up nose in practice until I can get outside in the garden. Have broken too many blades in the garage as not enough space to rectify wrong direction before hitting a wall. I only change the damaged blades much the same as F.

[Mark Thomas]

just put the blades that were broken back together, balanced them out with tape, and somewhat pulled the stabalizer bar straight, cant wait for the shop to open to get the spares! and she doesnt fly too bad, can get a fairly stable hover, and minimal TBE, gives me a fix tonight and will trim her up properly tomorrow with straight bits!

[Flanker .]

Guys, for nose in push the stick towards the wall that you are going to hit.

Outside can be good but I have done the worst damage to my heli outside. It is odd, what feels like dead still often has quite a drift and to fight drift you have to nose into wind (and it won't want to with that fat tail boom) and give all the forward you've got! 

I have taken to dropping tiny bits of toilet roll, and wathching trees, ANY leaf movement is too much wind.

(can't wait for my belt cp but I'm going to have to!) 

I'll try to post my RADICAL tail mod soon!

F 

[Mark Thomas]

what is the next step, for a heli after this, limited budget, would ideally like to be able to use outside, want something complete, dont feel confident adding servos etc

[GARY COTTON]

Hi! I have just got mine this weekend, so did a friend. He tried it out in the shop first. It was his first time on heil's, he liked it so we both got one each with a free battery. I have since had to go to webbs for spear blades just like you. I must say i find it so good for a first time heily flight, other than on simulater. I'am haveing fun trying to hover it  with just one hand like at the shop. We got ours from East Lancs Models, Colne. They were verey helpfule.

[Flanker .]

Mark, they are covering this very subject in the mag right now.

I am looking hard at the Belt CP from E sky as I like their Lama so much, but I would like to know more. Like you. 

[Mark Thomas]

Flanker, this months RCME? new to this game, what issue no?

[Flanker .]

Ahhhh Mark ! The column is "Give it a whirl" Jan issue (not been deliverd of Feb yet) BUT see my post in Jan feed back! Feeling a bit let down.