Raptor 30 very newbie with VERY VERY basic pre 1st flight questions

[imtaylor]

Shortly before Christmas, I bought one of these indoor helis for my nephew and ended up buying one for myself as it was so much fun! Soon after, convinced myself that I was ready for a petrol one, after all, how difficult could it be!? – I’ve got great hand / eye co-ordination and I’ve got a PPL – easy, thinks me(!)! So, jumped on ebay not knowing a thing about helis and bid on a Raptor 30 which I picked up a few days later.

Unfortunately, it was advertised as “comes with everything needed to fly” and the guy who’d built it had clearly done so with a blindfold on and tongue in cheek. Since then, its been into the local model shop who told me (after they stopped laughing) that “the only way THAT would fly, would be by dropping off a very tall building”! Great! To cut a long story short, they set it up for me and I bought everything else that I needed to get it running / flying, including a starter, glow plug, glow plug charger, fuel etc. and am now in the process of claiming money back against the guy who I bought it from.

Anyway, so I’ve now got everything that I need to get it started – I think – but thought I would ask some very, very basic questions here before I plough it into the nearest passing dogwalker on a pleasant Sunday morning stroll:-

• So, it’s a Raptor 30 I’ve found out. What does the 30 indicate?
• The rotar blades are wooden and are clearly easy to attach to the head – do I just line them up as straight as possible ie. by eye or do I need my protractor and straight edge?
• How long does it take (should it take) to charge the batteries for the transmitter and the receiver and how do I know when they are charged?
• I know I need a battery for the starter – do I just use a car battery?
• I’ve got a glow plug charger – how do I use it? There doesn’t seem to be a way of actually plugging it in?
• When (if) I manage to get it flying, how do I know when its running out of fuel / charge – is it simply when it starts coughing and spluttering?
• Do I need insurance / licence for flying it and can I just fly it anywhere sensible?
• Does anyone live nearby to me (I’m in Whitley Bay) that could I could meet to help me get it off the ground – and perhaps have a laugh in the meantime?

Much appreciated all – wish I’d known about this forum before I bought it!

[Chippy]

Hi and welcome,There is only ONE answer to all your questions,
Join A Club

[TinyChopper]

You need to make contact with your local club ASAP. Don't consider flying it until you have the answers to all of your questions - you WILL crash it otherwise!

[Disc]

As they say join a Club

BMFA has the club list:

www.bmfa.org

[TinyChopper]

So, it’s a Raptor 30 I’ve found out. What does the 30 indicate?
30 is the engine size 0.3 cu inches I believe.
The rotar blades are wooden and are clearly easy to attach to the head – do I just line them up as straight as possible ie. by eye or do I need my protractor and straight edge?
as long as they can swing reanonable freely they will self align when the head spins.
How long does it take (should it take) to charge the batteries for the transmitter and the receiver and how do I know when they are charged?
Depends on what you are carging them with - get a propeak prodigy 2.
I know I need a battery for the starter – do I just use a car battery?
You can but a small 7ah lead acid is a bit more useful
I’ve got a glow plug charger – how do I use it? There doesn’t seem to be a way of actually plugging it in?
Use the pro peak!
When (if) I manage to get it flying, how do I know when its running out of fuel / charge – is it simply when it starts coughing and spluttering?
You can see the fuel level in the tank, land before its empty!
Do I need insurance / licence for flying it and can I just fly it anywhere sensible?
Join the BMFA ,this will give you insurance (only at registered clubs)
Does anyone live nearby to me (I’m in Whitley Bay) that could I could meet to help me get it off the ground – and perhaps have a laugh in the meantime?
No, bloody miles away!

[David Drew]

As an ex-newbie - and now a semi-proficient flyer (emphisis on semi)

DO NOT FLY. PERIOD.

A 30 heli - I too have a Raptor - has an enormous amount of energy in it. It could kill you or others. Don't even attempt to start it. There is a way do do these things and you need to have that as second nature.

Join a club, get insurance and advice.

Keep reading this forum. It is totally great advice.

Enjoy your money whilst it lasts!!!!!

David

[TinyChopper]

Enjoy your money whilst it lasts!!!!!

David

Ain't that the truth!

[moyesboy]

while you are trying to find someone nearby in a club who can help you get flying take the time to have a good read at www.raptortechnique.com
this invaluable voluntary resource will tell you everything you need to know about the TT raptor.

The glow plug charger probably has a wire with a thing that looks like the top of a glow plug on it. You fit the glow stick to it as if it was fitting to the glow plug, so it connects to the battery and charges it. Usually its an overnight.

Probably you have a 3xAA size flat battery pack in your heli. This will be good for only 3 flights worth (to begin with that will be enough for you!). You probably have a plug top charger that will charge both tx and rx and they need to be left on overnight. Be also aware that these batteries leak charge so you need to top them up is its a while before you will fly. The charger is so slow that leaving them connected for a few hours extra doesn't matter but don't leave them on for days.

Usually we fit bigger receiver battery for more flights and then you need a higher charge rate charger to charge it in a reasonable time. Thats why they suggest a propeak prodigy or whatever. 45-50 quid charger that can be set to charge all sorts of batteries and will run of 12v at the field. mines a jamara pro peak plus.

Do find a club.The model shop might have done a good job, but some shops make a bad job so best to get someone to check it out and fly it. I recently flew a raptor30 that had been set up by a shop and it was a pretty good beginner set up.


There are guys on here up in the north east - if you need to drive a bit to find help with the first flights do it, it will be worth it.

The BMFA provides 3rd party insurance. Usually when you join a BMFA club the fee includes the BMFA membership. You can also join the BMFA to get insurance as a "country member" without a club. The insurance will cover you provided you have landowner permission to fly and you follow BMFA safety procedures. so once you are competant at flying in the club you could find somewhere to fly with a mate outside the club - but I do not recommend flying on your own.

The raptor30 is std equipment as a first heli, so don't worry you have pretty much the right kit.

You might like to tell us what all the bits are, make of motor, servos, gyro etc.

This forum has some of the keenest heli fliers in the country on it, so you will get help with everything you ask.

Various bits of the heli must be screwed together with loctite as if they come lose its a disaster and dangerous - hopefully the shop sorted that for you. On my second hand raptor the screws that hold the blade grips onto the spindle shaft were not loctited. I found one about to come off after a few flights. Then I stripped it down and rebuilt it all to be sure.

[imtaylor]

Trimming

Thanks to all. Have now been out with it half a dozen times and can now hover, move forwards and backwards, sideways etc. reasonably proficiently!

However, I've tried to trim it, using just the trim controls on the transmitter and it just doesn't to make enough difference to keep it from drifting when in the hover.

So, I assume to trim it, I just need to adjust the ball sockets, in order to make the control arms longer or shorter? Is there a particular order i should trim in? ie. yaw (rudder) first, forward and back, side to side?

cheers.

[Boggy]

if your trims cant sort out any drifting you have then it sounds like your mechanical setup is way out!
have you had somebody look over it since you built it?

trim is all relevant to weather conditions also if your flying in a stong wind from the right for example. as soon as you turn the heli your trim will no longer apply to that wind direction.an extreme example would be hovering head on into strong wind using full forward trim, turn the heli nose in and it'll come at you like a bullet!!!
i have set my heli up as near to hands free in no wind as i can get it and never use the trim tabs.

[imtaylor]

I didn't build it - I bought it 90% complete so didn't set it up myself. I did take it to my local model shop who did a few bits and pieces.

That was my question really, if it is the mechanical set up of it (and agreed, I need to do it in no wind for the reasons you mentioned), is there any particular order I should start with? Do I start with say, 2 or 3 turns on the ball socket or is there no right or wrong?

[ApachePilotUK]

i am also from newcastle bud theres a good club in washington which the owner of this website belongs to, pop down for a look and they will sort you out

[Boggy]

That was my question really, if it is the mechanical set up of it (and agreed, I need to do it in no wind for the reasons you mentioned), is there any particular order I should start with? Do I start with say, 2 or 3 turns on the ball socket or is there no right or wrong?

it doesn't matter what order you do it in mate ,but its not simply a matter of adjusting ball joints. all the servo's need to be centered with the arms straight. the swash needs to be level the blades at 0 degree's pitch. with the pitch arm level and showing 0 on the built in gauge. then you can start fitting rods and links. it really is far to complicated to mess with unless you have some knowledge.
moyesboy put up a link to raptor technique earlier in the thread read and follow what you can, but most of all get to a club and speak to someone! we keep bangin on about this but it makes a world of difference if your shown!

[moyesboy]

The rudder shouldn't need trim if you are using a heading hold gyro.
Need to know what sort of gyro you have to advise on that.

The raptor should have a fairly neutral trim, in that if you tilt it over and then centre the stick it stays tilted over - so only minor trim changes are required to get it to hover in a head/tail/cross wind.

with all the sticks and trims in the middle the swashplate should be horizontal and all the servo arms should be 90 degrees to the push rods (in the middle of the travel). Then only minor trim changes should get it so it hovers stable. When you lift off it will always set off going left becuase the tail rotor is pushing that way - it has to hover tilted right a little.

Depending on the model shop, the setup they did for you may be good, just good enough, or not good at all. Raptortechnique is a big help if you want to do it all yourself. I had fixed wing experience from 20 years ago, flew a small electric myself and then joined a club when I bought a used raptor .50. I had help looking over the setup but it was pretty much right and didn't need any adjustments at all (it had all the servos already in it but my different tx and rx).

All the "join a club" advice is very good advice, as if you are keen and lacking knowledge an accident could be quite nasty - not just the heli smashed!

There are quite a few active heli clubs in the NE. Try looking at the BMFA.org.uk for the club listings.

[imtaylor]

Thanks for the replies - but as it turns out, it does seem to fly ok - it was just that it was a particularly windy day!