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This is a bit long winded but I think it might be important. Most of you are far more expert than I am and will probably find holes in what follows. But I think I have a few points that may save some beginners, like myself, some expensive problems.
HELICOPTER MAD BEHAVIOUR:
My Tx was ON. I then plugged my V-3 in and… Zip! The rotors TWITCHED IN A THREATENING MANNER and then spun-up for a second or two and the SERVO’S STARTED-UP.
I immediately pulled the plug (no servo gears stripped thank heavens) … sat back and let my pulse slow-down. Phew! I had just ducked a bullet. As you can see, these are the same symptoms you get if you do NOT turn on your Tx before plugging your helicopter in. So what the hell happened?
THE SINS OF A NAKED ANTENNA – Pls bear with the explanatory notes:
I’ll go back a bit. It was windy and I decided to fly in my basement. Explanation. North American basements have the same floor area as the house and are in fact a below ground level. They have a concrete floor and lights etc and is where a lot of people have their workshop and house-heating furnace – so I have the room to fly.
The day in question I was down there in bare feet (this is related) as we Colonials take their shoes off indoors and I just happened to have my socks off.. So, bare feet on concrete floor... as I was plugging my helicopter in. During this process I happened to touch the naked antenna-wire of my helicopter thus grounding it so that as far as the helicopter was concerned it couldn’t, ‘hear,’ the Tx and behaved as if it was OFF! And she went nuts - no damage however as I unplugged very quickly indeed.
SAME CRIME – DIFFERENT METHOD:
Later (I was on a roll you understand) I happened to touch my helicopter’s un-insulated antenna with my Tx’s antenna and, yes you’ve got it, she went nuts again. Not sure why, but it did. But went, ‘sane,’ as soon as the contact between the antennas was broken.
CURE and RE-HASH OF OLD POST:
I’ve fixed this by making (as I mentioned in an earlier post) a wire coil of my antenna and then pushing down a drinking straw. I did this before but decided to remove the straw as I thought it looked better thus EXPOSING the NAKED (oh the sin of it!) antenna to my fumbling, sweaty, paws as I connected the battery.
Joking aside, I wonder how many of you guys, guys with a lot more experience and skill than I have, have had this happen?
GOING BACK TO OLD IDEA:
I’ve since fed the coiled (small coil diameter) back inside a clear drinking straw - and you know what? The problem’s disappeared and it looks pretty neat.
Going back to my original babblings about antenna’s; I use pure silver wire (cheap – from a craft’s store) because, it looks good and it’s a good conductor. I wind it around a very thin knitting needle because you get a good length of wire to receive the signal into a short space.
NEW IDEA FOR ADJUSTING 4in1's:
Here’s a tip if you need if you keep fiddling with your Gain and Proportional of your 4in1. Carefully make two holes in the side of you V-3 or 4’s canopy, that way you poke the screwdriver through and do not have to keep removing it all the time. For some reason I have to keep, ‘curing,’ my Tx’s inability to handle, ‘tail-twitch,’ and being unable to trim out the left or right turn (on axis), I was wearing the screw-thread holes out. I know the problem now, I was flying with (idiotic) repaired blades. I have learned better now.
Sorry this was so long but I think I had some valid points and thanks gouys for your patience. Have a great day and some good flying.
From Hairy in the Colonies.
HELICOPTER MAD BEHAVIOUR:
My Tx was ON. I then plugged my V-3 in and… Zip! The rotors TWITCHED IN A THREATENING MANNER and then spun-up for a second or two and the SERVO’S STARTED-UP.
I immediately pulled the plug (no servo gears stripped thank heavens) … sat back and let my pulse slow-down. Phew! I had just ducked a bullet. As you can see, these are the same symptoms you get if you do NOT turn on your Tx before plugging your helicopter in. So what the hell happened?
THE SINS OF A NAKED ANTENNA – Pls bear with the explanatory notes:
I’ll go back a bit. It was windy and I decided to fly in my basement. Explanation. North American basements have the same floor area as the house and are in fact a below ground level. They have a concrete floor and lights etc and is where a lot of people have their workshop and house-heating furnace – so I have the room to fly.
The day in question I was down there in bare feet (this is related) as we Colonials take their shoes off indoors and I just happened to have my socks off.. So, bare feet on concrete floor... as I was plugging my helicopter in. During this process I happened to touch the naked antenna-wire of my helicopter thus grounding it so that as far as the helicopter was concerned it couldn’t, ‘hear,’ the Tx and behaved as if it was OFF! And she went nuts - no damage however as I unplugged very quickly indeed.
SAME CRIME – DIFFERENT METHOD:
Later (I was on a roll you understand) I happened to touch my helicopter’s un-insulated antenna with my Tx’s antenna and, yes you’ve got it, she went nuts again. Not sure why, but it did. But went, ‘sane,’ as soon as the contact between the antennas was broken.
CURE and RE-HASH OF OLD POST:
I’ve fixed this by making (as I mentioned in an earlier post) a wire coil of my antenna and then pushing down a drinking straw. I did this before but decided to remove the straw as I thought it looked better thus EXPOSING the NAKED (oh the sin of it!) antenna to my fumbling, sweaty, paws as I connected the battery.
Joking aside, I wonder how many of you guys, guys with a lot more experience and skill than I have, have had this happen?
GOING BACK TO OLD IDEA:
I’ve since fed the coiled (small coil diameter) back inside a clear drinking straw - and you know what? The problem’s disappeared and it looks pretty neat.
Going back to my original babblings about antenna’s; I use pure silver wire (cheap – from a craft’s store) because, it looks good and it’s a good conductor. I wind it around a very thin knitting needle because you get a good length of wire to receive the signal into a short space.
NEW IDEA FOR ADJUSTING 4in1's:
Here’s a tip if you need if you keep fiddling with your Gain and Proportional of your 4in1. Carefully make two holes in the side of you V-3 or 4’s canopy, that way you poke the screwdriver through and do not have to keep removing it all the time. For some reason I have to keep, ‘curing,’ my Tx’s inability to handle, ‘tail-twitch,’ and being unable to trim out the left or right turn (on axis), I was wearing the screw-thread holes out. I know the problem now, I was flying with (idiotic) repaired blades. I have learned better now.
Sorry this was so long but I think I had some valid points and thanks gouys for your patience. Have a great day and some good flying.
From Hairy in the Colonies.
cheers
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