Radikal Maidened Today

[Asid]

Update

Flights

05-05-10

Had 5 Flights

Flight report:

weather = 14deg cent + 5 mph winds

Flights were loops + flips + circuits + piros.

Still finalising engine tuning. Model does not display any vibes. Practiced slow and low today. This model suits this style very well. The extra weight adds to the stability. In all the flights i have done (approx 20) the tail has proven to be very strong. Even in strong wind. This is due to the 5:1 ratio. I am only running cheap 85mm plastic blades. 92mm recommended.

The exhaust is not the quietest but its on par with the Align pipes

My plans are:
test the new Stator Gator
Test Rotortech 620 blades (again)
Test Flybarless on this machine

Enjoyed the flights today

More to follow...

[Mark Chaplin]

Just returned from the flying field after fitting the GV1 and Stator Gator. Flying very well at the moment. Just a couple of more things to do; change auto unit to a sprag type and either change my head to a Trex 600 or put metal balde grips on my LT head. Oh and a nice fibreglass canopy
I have now had 17 tanks through this and let me tell you that is quite a bit of flying...... 17 minutes per tank now that I am flying it around.

My spec is;

Amsoil 100 to 1. Although I mix at 90 to 1. 60ml oil per 5 litres of petrol from day one.
Zimmerman exhaust ( very quiet
Maniac 623
Carbontech 95mm tails
GV1 and Stator Gator (1800 /1900)
Carbon boom supports in the lower position.
Rappy 90 u/c
Pull start
14/90 6:42 gear ratio
Align 600/700 plastic tail grip assembly
4 x 610
1 x 650
760 Spartan
Perfect Regulator 2s 3000mah
1 s lipo 3100 ignition.


Mark.

[Asid]

Is the stator gator the one for the radikal?

[trillian]

Where do you buy your Amsoil from? There is one online shop that has the Amsoil Saber but they charge a pretty hefty delivery charge, like over £7.00, which makes a single bottle quite expensive.

[Asid]

I will be updating my flight report later tonight.

Theres a friend of mine that has just signed up to this forum

the names Chitlin.

Chitlin has over 200 flights on the Radikal so we will be getting more input

[Mark Chaplin]

Is the stator gator the one for the radikal?

Yes it is the Stator Gator for the electronic ignitions. I ordered it a week ago Saturday. Seven days door to door.

Regards,

Mark.

[Mark Chaplin]

Where do you buy your Amsoil from? There is one online shop that has the Amsoil Saber but they charge a pretty hefty delivery charge, like over £7.00, which makes a single bottle quite expensive.

Yes the guy is in Oxford. I do mail order it but tend to split the cost with a friend. I order four quarts of which I have two and then £1.75 per bottle postage is not too bad.
It will last you a long while and is probably the finest oil around. I used to run it in a Vario R22 where the cooling is not particulary good. The Zenoah 26 in there never missed a beat.

Mark.

[Asid]

Update

Flights

10-05-10

Had 4 Flights

Flight report:

weather = 18deg cent + 20 mph winds

Flights were loops + flips + circuits + piros.

Engine 4 stroking at times. Investigated and pipe is still leaking. Running very well. Collective management getting better

Post flight inspection
One way auto locked up. Freed it off cleaned with carb cleaner and lubed with light oil.

[Asid]

Update

Swapped out the Spektrum sensor for the Stator Gator

Removed Gasket from Exhaust

Flights

21-05-10

Had 2 Flights

Flight report:

weather = 23 deg cent + 5 mph winds

Flights were loops + flips + circuits + piros. + inverted

Had 1 flight with the Spektrum sensor but i experienced coughing/stroking once in a while. I changed to the Stator gator and i only had 1 flight with it. However it seems more responsive. The stumbling seems to have vanished.

I landed and tightened up the exhaust while hot

The auto bearing has locked up again though But i was enjoying it so much i kept flying.

This helicopter is really improving my collective management.

I am running 1870 in Idle up 2. I would like 1950 but i am running woodies . I am not properly in the power band but i will get there

Today i enjoyed hard fast big flying then low slow smooth. The heli suits both roles perfectly


More to follow...

__________________

[pgkevet]

I know Raja has criticised the autohub on these and worn 2 out. To quote myself the problem with Gassers is that the newly built experience tends to be reduced rapidly when flying them a lot by all the niggling parts wearing out and engine tuning/leak hunting issues. You juts get tat sorted and find that servos are suffering from shortened lifespans for the same reasons and you end up in a merry round of swapping those out for service returns...

Both my gassers have/had more bench time than air time. It's now more than 6 weeks waiting for the relined clutch and new shoes...but finally the gasket sets and bearings have turned up and the serviced servos have been sitting waiting for 5 weeks for re-install

[Asid]

Hey Pgkevet

I hear what you say buddy. Thats why i am doing this flight log. I am using the model as an everyday hack and want to see if it will fulfill that role. If it doesn't i will tell you.

I haven't received any freebies from Century and i paid for this model myself. If its crap i will let you know

[Mark Chaplin]

Hi Asid,

If you are running a GV1 do not forget to alter the GV1 in the hidden menu as it is set up for a nitro. This will also help the gasser engine. I have done mine. Do a quick web search.
As for parts wearing out quicker than nitro i do not agree. I had flown my Vario R22 for some hours without one failer. One point I will make is that the running time clocked on a gasser seems to creep up a lot quicker than a nitro. My Radikal flies for around seventeen minutes per tank. Just my 2 pence worth. Also no failers yet with the Radikal. I did suffer an exhaust leak but re tightening the exhaust whilst it was at running tempreture cured that.
I now have a Trex 600 head on my Radikal a can report it works well. My flying buddy is testing a 700 auto unit as we speak and is going well. Mine will be in within the next two weeks. It's not a five minute job and does require some specialist work. The Align bearing insert is VERY hard and needs to spark eroded for the new holes.
I will report back asap.

Hope this helps?

Mark.

[Asid]

Hi Asid,

If you are running a GV1 do not forget to alter the GV1 in the hidden menu

Yep used that mod already Mark

Here it is for those that don't know:

To get into the hidden menu: Hold + & - (the left two buttons) while you power up the system.

The two values to change are LMHV & Glimit
The defaults are :

LMHV = 20% change this to 0%
Glimit = 35% change this to 25%

If you make a mistake and want to master reset then the reset can be found also in the hidden menu.

Also raising the idle limit can help

[Asid]

Update

Flights

22-05-10

Had 2 Flights

Flight report:

weather = 25 deg cent +25 mph winds + strong gusts

Flights were loops + flips + circuits + piros. + inverted

Not much to report but had a great time with the Radikal today handled so well in the wind. . No pitching in fff.

Tail still proves to be strong in the wind in both directions.

More to follow...

[Chitlin]

Woke up early today and went to a private field to fly my radikal and ended up putting an entire gallon through it!!! For all you guys and gals out there that are new to gassers (myself included)I have found a few things that might be helpful. I'm sure there are a lot of veteran gassers out there that are going to read this and say "DUH NO KIDDING" but maybe this will help someone else.

I'm not going to go through the whole break-in process because all I did was exactly what was posted on the Radikal FYI post. You can also go to www.insideheli.com as well. Sparks has done a excellent write up on this machine and how to tune it.

So what do I have to offer thats new on this topic?? NOTHING!

These are just a few observations that I have made during my time with this engine and airframe.


First. Do you need an aluminum insulator block for the carb? No you don't, but do yourself a favor and get one. I fooled with the stock one a few times with some success, but since I installed the aluminum one I never touched it again.

Second. Do you need an air filter? YES you do. Will it work without it? Yes it will. Helicopters are basically lawnmowers without decks and we all know how much dirt,grass,and crap they stir up. Besides the air filter will make tuning a little easier as well.

Third. We all know that no two anythings are the same, especially engines. However after fooling with a few of these STOCK G20's I can say that the recommended needle settings will get you very close to where you need to be for a reliable running engine.

Fourth. When you do make a needle adjustment, high or low, make sure your engine is up to operating temp. And MOST IMPORTANTLY make very very minute adjustments and I mean the width or even sometimes half the width of the screwdriver blade! It is very easy to go right by the "sweet spot" if you go to fast. Check your high speed progress with good hard climb outs and let em climb for a good bit, a short 20 foot blast doesn't tell you much.

Fifth. This engine has a little miss or "four stroke" when it is not loaded (such as hovering) DO NOT TRY TO TUNE THIS OUT!!! It is a characteristic of this particular engine that will diminish significantly as the motor breaks in. Remember this is not a nitro engine some of these engines will still be breaking in with 4 or 5 gallons through them. If your low is properly tuned you will get a little miss or "four stroke" every 4 or 5 seconds.

IF YOU TUNE THIS OUT YOUR LOW END WILL BE TO LEAN AND YOU
WILL BURN THE ENGINE UP IF YOU CONTINUE TO RUN IT THIS WAY!

Sixth. Get the recommended blades(620 wide chords) you pick the manufacturer. You won't believe the difference they make.

Seventh. Reduce the pitch!!! I know I know..... everyone wants plus or minus 15 degrees!! Don't do it. This machine puts out a ton of thrust at plus or minus 10 degrees. Don't forget this is not a nitro, they make power very differently! Put the right blades on and reduce you pitch. Trust me you will like it!


Eighth. We all know there was a blade grip warning and I'm not going get into all that because it has all ready been addressed so once you have your new grips installed and your favorite carbon fiber blades on, your gonna want to run at least 1900-1950 head speed with the 6.4 gear ratio. This will ensure that you keep the engine in its powerband. A lot of folks think that this engine is down on power because they're running it at 1750-1850. Next time your at a stop light put your car in third gear and dump the clutch, that is basically what your doing if you lug this engine down. 1750-1850 is fine for scale flying but if you want it to boogie, you gotta turn up the music!

Ninth. Your oil mix, for break in you want a petroleum based ashless two-stroke oil such as Lawn boy after that a good quality synthetic oil will do the trick. 32:1 is a good ratio. But check the oil manufacturers recommendations on the mix ratio.


Thats what I have for now and like I said..... Nothing new just my experiences.


Oh yeah and HAVE FUN!!!!!!!!!