I knew it would happen 1 day..

[Holst]

Interesting that you found the improvement using a governor just doing basic manouvers. I have just got a Raptor 30 which is my first nitro heli and I was intending to fly without a governor to start with. I do have a 7 ch radio now but just for reasons of cost and learning about a good nitro set up I was going to learn to fly it without and then I would understand the benefits when using one whilst the basic setup, that is somewhat glossed over by a govenor, would be good..

cheers

If your throttle curve is setup correctly then you shouldnt need a governor

[TC1]

Hi TC1

I'm impresssed, I guess you are one of the few out there that can fly a heli around happily, but ain't managed to get it to hover...............

I guess your take off technique is to just get it light on the skids, then add a fistfull of throttle and go straight off into FFF then ? That is doable, but I am intrigued with your landing technique.

How do you get it down without geting to a hover first exactly ?
Ian

Not quite, I give enough throttle to get it to lift straight off (75%) clear the ground by what looks like 3ft, then tilt forward so it's running along in a straight line then increase throttle and pull back to get the altitude, then use a combination of throttle, rudder etc. to fly around......

Landing is simple, I just have it come in, decreasing the throttle, until it's again about 3ft off the ground, then tilt the heli backwards and drop throttle.....perfect landing..I think...

I haven't tried setting the wind speed or direction yet, just getting a feel of what control does what!! That will be my next experiment, no point in taking it above anything more than a breeze because I wouldn't go out anyway.....

[steve c]

If your throttle curve is setup correctly then you shouldnt need a governor

You do raise a good point! which is one i thought of and tryed but the engine sounded like it was screaming it's nut's off!?? i can't get to a club so everything is self taught (trial and error) so i find myself puting the settings back to the way they were because thats what i know worked. But since putting the rev lock on the head speed is up not sceaming and it's just more stable... So maybe thats where the problem was with the head speed only i just didn't know it???......

Cheers Steve c......

[Holst]

You do raise a good point! which is one i thought of and tryed but the engine sounded like it was screaming it's nut's off!?? i can't get to a club so everything is self taught (trial and error) so i find myself puting the settings back to the way they were because thats what i know worked. But since putting the rev lock on the head speed is up not sceaming and it's just more stable... So maybe thats where the problem was with the head speed only i just didn't know it???......

Cheers Steve c......

Ballancing the throttle and pitch curves is quite difficult for a beginner.

I dont fly nitro myself so I cant help directly but this is one of the most common problems beginners with nitro models have at our club. The nice thing about being at the club is that there is always somebody who can help.

By fitting your govenor you have handed this part of the setup over to the electronics.

[SteveH39]

Ballancing the throttle and pitch curves is quite difficult for a beginner.

I dont fly nitro myself so I cant help directly but this is one of the most common problems beginners with nitro models have at our club. The nice thing about being at the club is that there is always somebody who can help.

By fitting your govenor you have handed this part of the setup over to the electronics.

Best to get your curves set first just incase you have a gov failure, but having run a gov for the last year would not be without one now, i would say it's a must have item on any nitro regardless of how good you are with your curves, its just one less thing to worry about when flying. Don't let it hide a poor mechanical setup though.

[Mike W]

My heli's dont run a gov , just a well set up throttle curve ... I have seen someone doing mild 3D with my heli , which goes to show you dont actually "need" a gov on them till you well into 3D .I am just a sports flier and will always be just that as thats all I ever wanted to be in the hobby so no gov is just fine for me ... Might change in the future lol....

[Stuart]

The governor like a gryo is another tool to the mix that we have. It's original purpose was to give the 3D skillset's the ability to maintain a fixed headspeed whilst doing choas's etc. The advantage to beginners is in that lift is directly proporationate to headspeed (stating the obvious), but if your in a hover and just turn 90 decrease left or right you will find that your heli will rise or fall with no throttle input.

The reduction/increase in the torque will allow the head to speed up or down slightly and thus effect height. To overcome this you would put some small mix from rudder to throttle to compensate.

Now if just turning 90 degree's can effect height then imagine how figure of eight circuit with forward speed, slight banking and rudder input's can effect headspeed.

It all boils down to pitch management mixed with a well tuned engine that's curve has been well built to aim to achieve a consistent headspeed and you'll not need a governor.

The alternative is to tune your engine on a good pitch and throttle curves then bang in a governor and make life a bit easier.

Personally - I'd rather spend less time tweaking at the field and more time in the air and if means a tool will help my journey then make your own choice and enjoy the experience.

[TC1]

Well I hadn't even heard of a govenor until now...so I looked into it and seems that it does what I want.

I need to be able to hold a hover 15-20 feet, sometimes more, off the ground to use the onboard video camera.

Maybe this little gem will take one control from me and allow me to concentrate on holding her steady....

I did look at another gadget, which I can't remember the name of, that takes full control and holds it in a hover for you....but I do remember the price, £540+....a bit too much for me....would like to have it though.... I'll be first in the queue if it came down to £200...,lolol

[Holst]

The governor like a gryo is another tool to the mix that we have. It's original purpose was to give the 3D skillset's the ability to maintain a fixed headspeed whilst doing choas's etc. The advantage to beginners is in that lift is directly proporationate to headspeed (stating the obvious), but if your in a hover and just turn 90 decrease left or right you will find that your heli will rise or fall with no throttle input.

The reduction/increase in the torque will allow the head to speed up or down slightly and thus effect height. To overcome this you would put some small mix from rudder to throttle to compensate.

Now if just turning 90 degree's can effect height then imagine how figure of eight circuit with forward speed, slight banking and rudder input's can effect headspeed.

It all boils down to pitch management mixed with a well tuned engine that's curve has been well built to aim to achieve a consistent headspeed and you'll not need a governor.

The alternative is to tune your engine on a good pitch and throttle curves then bang in a governor and make life a bit easier.

Personally - I'd rather spend less time tweaking at the field and more time in the air and if means a tool will help my journey then make your own choice and enjoy the experience.

I think its worth setting you curves up even if you are running a govenor.
If a magnet falls off and the govenor stops working then you will want a set curve that is "sort of" correct so you wont crash

[chopperaddict]

Hi
I have to agree with Holst here.

I could be wrong here, but I don't believe it matters whether you are flying a nitro or an electric powered heli and using a governor, the rules are roughly the same.

I use governor mode on two of my Belt CP's, and a DX6i, and of course for the electric helis, you have to set the idle up curve to a flat line that is set to give you the head speed you want the governor to maintain.

As Holst says, if for whatever reason, your governor fails in flight, having that same flat line in the idle up throttle curve will act as a great backup, rather than suddenly loosing control altogether because the throttle curve is totally different ?

[TC1]

I am fortunate in that I had an expert set everything for me, so I am sure that the idle up and throttle curve will be spot on......it's only me that needs it because I got twitchy fingers...lolol

[SRH990]

You can set up throttle curves for 3D flight without a governor and flt with reasonable success, biggest problem is overspeeding on fast descents and the like, a governor takes care of this and will maintain a headspeed more closely than throttle curves.

These days I wouldn't fly without a governor on nitro heli's, same as I will always use a heading hold gyro, I haven't used rate mode on a gyro for years, whether in 3D aerobatic flight or scale.

[SteveH39]

i only run a gov on my nitro, my protos and 450 just have straightline throttle set in idle up with a basic curve in normal mode.

[steve c]

OUCH!! My head....... i think untill i'm with some1 who can show me the pro's ad con's to curves and governor's then i'll understand lol.....

cheers Steve c......

[GravityKills]

I've had a number of boom strikes when practising autos ... so what.
If possible, ask some more experienced flyer to show you how it's done.
And remember, you can practise autos high (don't drop the headspeed too low) and switch the motor back on.
PS and tighten the main blade bolts