stability effect of shorter flybar

[Metoleous]

I'm sure I read a thread about a shorter bar on the blade 400 will help tame it. I used one from my trex 450 which is definitely shorter. but I can't find the thread.... can anyone steer me to it? or describe why if this is indeed the case...

take care

[mchristyuk]

Paul,

The shorter flybar won't make the model any more "stable". What it will do is reduce the following rate of the controls. In other words the machines full roll or elevator rotation rate will be lower. It will be much like turning the control rates down on your transmitter. The machine intself won't be any more stable.

If you want to make the model more stable the best thing you can do is make the flybar heavier. This will reduce the rotation rate like adding a shorter flybar, but it will also make the model softer in response to external and requested commands owing to the increase in rotating mass.

I'm not that familiar with the blade 400.. but it has a 2mm flybar and I know the Curtis Radix 2mm paddles come with weights for the flybar.. so maybe somebody has some of the weights going spare on here they can let you have?

Cheers

Mark

[heliTV]

I'm sure someone will jump in but I would have thought that a longer (and/or heavier) flybar would tame things more as it would have more inertia and therefore damp the responses more.

Boggy's advice on adding wheel colletts to the flybar effectively increases the mass and this tames it down nicely...

[jboweruk]

TBH so will the controls on the TX, you can tame the Blade beautifully through the tx. A little bit of expo if you want it (slower to respond) and use the D/R to take the controls down to less throw. The main way to tame the Blade though is by taming the headspeed and pitch curves down, you want a pitch that goes from around 35% to mayby 85% of max, and a throttle curve between 0 and 75% to 80% to learn with, then as you get the hang of it gradually ease the curves out a couple of points at a time.

I must admit (sorry Ron) I didn't notice a lot of difference between the wheel collets and not having them. They only stayed on for one flight, my subsequent flights (my first solos in fact) saw them gone.
Once you learn how to fly her she will reward you with a lot of pleasure. But those first tentative steps can be nerve wracking. Try to have somebody with you who can fly to help you learn, and make sure you keep the tail towards you till it becomes second nature.

[Boggy]

one flight!!! try them now and you will feel a differencealthough you probably wont need them!!!!!

metoleous standard trex paddles are heavier and larger and work well also

[Metoleous]

Maybe I used the wrong word "stable" in the header. I have the flybar weight that Boggy suggests, and the newbie settings. I just thought I had read somewhere that a shorter flybar would soften up the controls too. Isn't the "twitchiness" due to the speed the heli's avionics response time to the xmitter input. So that, dampening the signal through the D/R&expo, tames the twichiness.

I've read multiple places on the net, where two similar heli's are compared, It's said, one is more stable than the other because it is heavier. Or when learning, get a larger heli because it's more stable because it's weight. which makes sense to me, when I leave my xmitter settings alone and fly with my training gear on vs off, there is clearly a difference of how hover.
Oh and it's a clear day here blue skies and -18*C and dead calm..and I just had to go outside and fly I got two batteries through her..before I couldn't feel my thumbs!!
take care

[Metoleous]

Hi Boggy, how everything in your neck of the woods??

[scallybert]

If you want to make the model more stable the best thing you can do is make the flybar heavier. This will reduce the rotation rate like adding a shorter flybar, but it will also make the model softer in response to external and requested commands owing to the increase in rotating mass.

I've done this on a Hurricane 200 (used the 'stability weights' that came with an EP100 SE Pro), and it works really well.

I think there's two effects.

As you say, it slows down the response of the flybar in respect of the cyclic input (but has no effect on the 'Bell' input straight from the swash to main grips ?).

I'd also guess that it reduces the effect of any friction in the flybar linkages. Which I'd expect to improve stability.

Minimising any friction in those linkages, would seem a good idea.

[Boggy]

good paul! hope all is the same with you

[Metoleous]

Ron,
everything is great here, snow on the ground,the My grandson is helping me adjust my Heli(he's 3, so I'll be redoing it when he takes his nap..haha)
Take care!!