Richard Harris Posted April 26, 2022 Author Share Posted April 26, 2022 (edited) On another note SARIK hobbies will have a laser cut part kit available as of the 29th April. https://www.sarikhobbies.com/product/new-auto-gryo/ Also Coolwind have added alternative fibre glass blade reinforces to their Gyroo parts. https://www.coolwind.co.uk/Gyroo_Parts/cat2253307_238247.aspx Edited April 26, 2022 by Richard Harris 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barry tume Posted May 6, 2022 Share Posted May 6, 2022 Hi all My name is Barry This is the first time I have entered the foram with a question about balancing autogyro blades, I have read many articles covering this topic with interest, I am at this moment balancing gyroo blades, using the heavier blade No1 as the master, with blades 2 and 3 the lighter, To balance blades 2 and 3 to No1 blade I have been using pva glue, my problem is when I get the correct balance to the master blade as the glue drys the blade becomes lighter and so more pva has to be applied, this seems an laboursley endless procedure. My question is, could I just insert pins into the tips of the lighter blades to balance to the master blade or would this cause any problems??? As you can see I'm new to this and help would be great fully recieved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Harris Posted May 6, 2022 Author Share Posted May 6, 2022 Hi Barry, First off, welcome to the forum ? Good to hear you are having a crack at Gyroo Regarding your blades and the task of applying PVA, I just add a little more to take into account the slight weight loss once cured. There is no reason why you couldn't use pins to add mass to a blade, just be observant of the lengthwise and cordwise CG when doing so. In the past, if I have had a blade that has ended up being significantly heavier than the rest I have used short pieces of plumbers solder set into the blade around its cordwise CG. Using a piece of suitably sized piano wire you can scrape out quite a neat slot for the solder to sit into. Will be interested to know how you get on? Rich 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barry tume Posted May 6, 2022 Share Posted May 6, 2022 Hi Richard Thanks for your swift reply and your comments within, I will of course let you know of the outcome at a later date, thank you for your help ? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piers Bowlan Posted May 7, 2022 Share Posted May 7, 2022 (edited) Rather that using PVA could you not use epoxy which shouldn’t get lighter as it dries? Oh, and welcome to the forum Barry, from me ?. Edited May 7, 2022 by Piers Bowlan 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barry tume Posted May 7, 2022 Share Posted May 7, 2022 Thanks Piers, another perfectly good idea and one for future reference, I carried on and persevered with the PVA and completed the balancing of all the blades, now I just need to cover them, thanks again for your input ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barry tume Posted May 8, 2022 Share Posted May 8, 2022 Richard H. Hi, I've completed the balancing and covering of the blades. The covering isn't as bad as it really looks in the picture (honestly). I used a little gadget sourced from China to balance the blades would this be a correct way to achieve the balancing of "AUTO GYRO" blades, as it's supposed to be for helicopters, just a thought, your comments would be appreciated, thanks ? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace Posted May 8, 2022 Share Posted May 8, 2022 @Richard Harris On the plan the blades are 500mm (19.7") which means you can only get 2 from a 4" x 36" (910mm) x 1/4" sheet. If the blade length was reduced to 455mm (18") you could get 4. Question is, would blades just under 2" shorter still be acceptable or would you recommend sticking to the full 500mm length? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Outrunner Posted May 8, 2022 Share Posted May 8, 2022 47 minutes ago, Ace said: @Richard Harris On the plan the blades are 500mm (19.7") which means you can only get 2 from a 4" x 36" (910mm) x 1/4" sheet. If the blade length was reduced to 455mm (18") you could get 4. Question is, would blades just under 2" shorter still be acceptable or would you recommend sticking to the full 500mm length? Thanks If you cut the entire length of balsa in half, cut out two pieces 500 long, splice the two remaining lengths together and cut it 500 long. You now have 3 blades and a bit left over. When you glue the spruce to the balsa it will have plenty of strength if you are concerned with the splice. Phil 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Harris Posted May 8, 2022 Author Share Posted May 8, 2022 4 hours ago, barry tume said: Richard H. Hi, I've completed the balancing and covering of the blades. The covering isn't as bad as it really looks in the picture (honestly). I used a little gadget sourced from China to balance the blades would this be a correct way to achieve the balancing of "AUTO GYRO" blades, as it's supposed to be for helicopters, just a thought, your comments would be appreciated, thanks ? Barry, Neat tool you have there, I do mine in pretty much the same way but not so sophisticated. I bolt mine directly together through the mounting hole with a piece of M4 all thread and use this as the axle between the open jaws of my vice, these are orientated 90 degrees to what yours are. Looks like your not far off? Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Harris Posted May 8, 2022 Author Share Posted May 8, 2022 2 hours ago, Ace said: @Richard Harris On the plan the blades are 500mm (19.7") which means you can only get 2 from a 4" x 36" (910mm) x 1/4" sheet. If the blade length was reduced to 455mm (18") you could get 4. Question is, would blades just under 2" shorter still be acceptable or would you recommend sticking to the full 500mm length? Thanks Ace, As Phil suggests splicing works fine, however I make my blade blanks at full sheet length which has given me several smaller sets at 410mm span. I plan on designing something specifically for these shorter blades. That said, I am pretty sure the Gyroo would fly on 450mm length blades though the rotor loading will be higher. Steve Jones 2 is flying his on shorter blades, I don't remember the exact length, if he see's this I am sure he will advise. Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace Posted May 8, 2022 Share Posted May 8, 2022 Outrunner - top tip ? Richard - erm now do I set the shorter blades aside to be ahead of the game !!!!!! Hopefully @Steve Jones 2 can share his experience regarding blade length in helping an honorary Yorkshire man make an informed decision? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David P Williams Posted May 8, 2022 Share Posted May 8, 2022 SLEC sell balsa in 48”, 1220mm lengths, I buy that. Four blades easy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace Posted May 9, 2022 Share Posted May 9, 2022 Thanks for the reminder although I literally have everything in stock at 36" so was considering options to avoid an order/carriage. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trevor Posted May 9, 2022 Share Posted May 9, 2022 Oh, so it's you, not the wind turbine industry, that's behind the balsa shortage! ? 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Jones Posted May 9, 2022 Share Posted May 9, 2022 On 08/05/2022 at 21:48, Richard Harris said: Ace, As Phil suggests splicing works fine, however I make my blade blanks at full sheet length which has given me several smaller sets at 410mm span. I plan on designing something specifically for these shorter blades. That said, I am pretty sure the Gyroo would fly on 450mm length blades though the rotor loading will be higher. Steve Jones 2 is flying his on shorter blades, I don't remember the exact length, if he see's this I am sure he will advise. Rich Hi, Here is the 1st flight / Maiden of the Gyroo Which I used shorter blades And it was a windy day. Here you see me flying it around quite fast for two reasons 1, I know the blades are shorter than specified so keeping the speed up will insure I have enough lift from the blades. 2, Due to strong wind on the down wind leg the model will lose height so speeding up in that direction reduces sink. Also I am unsure how the model will handle so I play it safe. Also On most of my videos I will add a brief description and information about the model . This is the description taken from under my video not sure if you can see this information on the embedded video but you have access to it when watching on YouTube. This is the prototype Gyroo a Autogyro from Richard Harris. He has kindly given me the plan for his upcoming Autogyro due to be published a Magazine in the UK called RCM&E. This is it`s 1st flight on a windy day on shorter blades than Richard has specified. I will make some new blades at 500mm long to see how they compare. I am working from revision 6 of his Gyroo plan. I am using 450mm x 55mm blades E-Max BL2826/09 motor on a 12 x 5 prop 3s 2200maH 20-30 c Lipo 40 Amp Esc 2 x Corona 239 MG Thin wing servos 1 Corona 9g servo Big Thanks to Rob Tomlin for Videoing this for me . In this video I am flying much slower as their is very little wind and I want to try and video the streamers however the Manchester weather also means dark Gray skies. On my radio I also set-up a slider switch so that I can alter the angle of the head to give me more or less lift to suite the weather conditions. I think I will also set-up a mix so that the blades are tilted full forward when the motor is off / Throttle cut to help prevent it accidentally taking off if the wind picks up after landing. Steve. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace Posted May 10, 2022 Share Posted May 10, 2022 Steve Jones - much appreciated ? As an Autogyro novice 500mm blades seems the safest sensible decision - thanks all. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Harris Posted May 10, 2022 Author Share Posted May 10, 2022 I've been informed that the Gyroo 3D printed files are now available free to download from Coolwind models . These have been designed by renowned gyronut Tim Arnold. They are located in the download section and feature a modification to the UC giving you an option to add extra wire to the standard legs if you feel the need. At the moment a balsa tail is used as the first printed tail was a tad heavy, However, a few experts over on our FB group are modiying them to extract as much weight as possible. On another note I flew the prototype last weekend, I had broken the 11" prop trying my one blade experiments. All I could find was a 10x 4 drone prop ( the coloured thin type that hum when over rpm'd) I was pleasantly surprised that it still had plenty of oomph. Though I coudnt pull a loop as before but the duration was definitely extended some what. Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Harris Posted May 15, 2022 Author Share Posted May 15, 2022 Whilst flying my Gyroo saturday I had my motor drop off in flight, luckily the model floated down nicely with minor damage to the tail but it took 10 mins to find the motor. On inspection the motor mount was still in place on the bulkhead, clearly I hadn't tightened the countersunk bolts up enough so worth adding a spot of loctite on these. All repaired and I managed to fly it today at 12noon along side rc fixed wings, drones and competition FF gliders, I think around 40. Good fun and glad it got back in one piece as it was pretty busy up there. Rich 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big T Posted May 23, 2022 Share Posted May 23, 2022 (edited) On 26/04/2022 at 20:30, Richard Harris said: Shaun, To be fair it is a bit alien when blade balancing for the first time, just take your time and dont be afraid to ask as we have all been there. One of my Gyro friends has uploaded a video of his 3D printed Gyroo flying in 30 mph winds, thought I would share it. I am hoping he will make the files available here at some stage. The STL files are available for download at STL Download. I have printed in Prusament PLA and eSun PLA+ and as you can see the printed parts are robust. I have used Balsa sheet for the tail and Correx with bamboo and CF inserts to strengthen. I have used 0% and 5% infill to test the strength and both work well. Edited May 23, 2022 by Big T Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyB Posted May 24, 2022 Share Posted May 24, 2022 This must have been pretty popular, I searched for the RCM&E about a week after publication in the local newsagents that normally stock it an it was all gone! Now waiting to see if the new owners can provide back issues... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EarlyBird Posted May 24, 2022 Share Posted May 24, 2022 Sarik Gyroo - Autogyro - Sarik Hobbies - for the Model Builder at a price. Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Harris Posted May 24, 2022 Author Share Posted May 24, 2022 40 minutes ago, MattyB said: This must have been pretty popular, I searched for the RCM&E about a week after publication in the local newsagents that normally stock it an it was all gone! Now waiting to see if the new owners can provide back issues... Matty, I was only able to get the last copy from my local WHSmith's, if you get stuck give me a shout? Early indications are that it is popular, always good to hear folk are still building from scratch. EarlyBird, All kits seem to be pricey these days but it does suit some, I prefer to hack stuff out. Rich 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Jones Posted May 25, 2022 Share Posted May 25, 2022 On 24/05/2022 at 09:28, Richard Harris said: I prefer to hack stuff out. Rich Me too ? Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Billinge Posted July 7, 2022 Share Posted July 7, 2022 I am really tempted to give a Gyroo a go as my first autogyro, but the prices on Sarik Hobbies have really shocked me. Crazy expensive for a model which does not seem to need much wood at all. As a first time Gyronaut would you recommend the coolwinds parts for the rotor head etc? I have the RCM&E isssue with the free plans and maybe I'll just source my own materials? Cheers KB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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