newbie questions

[NVHLVNOP]

1. What is the purpose of idle up on my transmitter? I turn it on when I
fly so that when I bring the throttle down to lose some altitude, I don't
lose headspeed. Is that what it is for?

2.In forward flight, my tail swings around, but does not do that during
hover... what do I do to the gyro or whatever else in order to fix this?

3. What is a good headspeed for my Shuttle Z? I've heard 1,300, 1,500 and
1,800 rpm, but don't know which one to choose. What would be an estimated
max speed before rotor blades start flying off?

4. Should the heli be set up to hover at half stick when learning? Or more
like 3/4 stick?

Thanks!

-Jonathan-

[Mike]

>Subject: newbie questions
>From: "NVHLVNOP" gte239y@prism.gatech.edu
>Date: 16/11/03 22:25 GMT Standard Time
>Message-id: <bp8tgc$np7$1@news-int.gatech.edu>
>
>1. What is the purpose of idle up on my transmitter? I turn it on when I
>fly so that when I bring the throttle down to lose some altitude, I don't
>lose headspeed. Is that what it is for?

Yes. When you drop the throttle, the headspeed also dies off because it is no
longer being driven. Using idle up means you can program in a reasonable engine
speed at the bottom end, which will keep the drive going through the rotor
head, even when you need to lower the pitch.
On a calm day, try it without using idle up, and see if it makes your flying
nicer and/or smoother, and landings more gentle (depends how you fly in the
first place of course).

>2.In forward flight, my tail swings around, but does not do that during
>hover... what do I do to the gyro or whatever else in order to fix this?

It could mean your gyro gain needs turning up. Gyros don't need to work too
hard just hovering, but once the helicopter gets exposed to buffeting it does.
If the tail is always being pulled in the same direction, you may need to
consult your radio manual, as this tendency can be 'mixed out' by adding trim
as you increase throttle (for instance).
>3. What is a good headspeed for my Shuttle Z? I've heard 1,300, 1,500 and
>1,800 rpm, but don't know which one to choose. What would be an estimated
>max speed before rotor blades start flying off?

Well you don't want to fly at anywhere near that speed! Too slow will make the
heli sluggish, and may lack tail power, too fast and the heli will be twitchy
and you will get through loads of fuel very quickly.
If you are learning, I would say that 1500 is about the right speed to aim for.
In very windy conditions you may want to increase it a bit (say 1650 - 1700).
If you have a spare model memory, it is useful to set up another one with
different settings, so you can compare one to the other without changing your
settings all the time.

>Should the heli be set up to hover at half stick when learning? Or more
>like 3/4 stick?

Whatever feels comfortable to you really, but as most helicopters are set up so
that most linkages and things are at the central position when hovering, it
would seem logical to aim for half stick to hover at.
>
>Thanks!

you're welcome, although I expect other people have their own opinions... :-)

[david]

.. Using idle up means you can program in a reasonable engine
> speed at the bottom end, which will keep the drive going through the rotor
> head,

Surely the purpose of Idle Up is to enable one to separate the pitch and
throttle curves for autos etc? Specifically, setting such throttle as to
DISENGAGE the clutch?

I appreciate that IU *could* be used for what you say but it's intended role
is to disengage the clutch. Or am I wrong?

David. Confused.

[Mike]

>Subject: Re: newbie questions
>From: "david" david_perry@btconnect.com
>Date: 17/11/03 19:30 GMT Standard Time
>Message-id: <bpb7k6$ri6$1@titan.btinternet.com>
>
>. Using idle up means you can program in a reasonable engine
>> speed at the bottom end, which will keep the drive going through the rotor
>> head,
>
>Surely the purpose of Idle Up is to enable one to separate the pitch and
>throttle curves for autos etc? Specifically, setting such throttle as to
>DISENGAGE the clutch?
>
>I appreciate that IU *could* be used for what you say but it's intended role
>is to disengage the clutch. Or am I wrong?
>
>David. Confused.
>
>
Hi David,

I can understand your confusion, but I think you are thinking about throttle
hold, which holds the engine at a very low speed, while still allowing you to
have full control over the pitch.

As you say, for autos you need the engine speed to drop away and release the
rotor head so that it can 'do its own thing'.

[tippy]

On 17-Nov-2003, "david" <david_perry@btconnect.com> wrote:

>

NORMAL MODE: This is the mode most beginner's start with and alot of pilots that just like to fly around
continue to use this mode.
It's mix(curve) is "usually" set as follows:

0% stick - pitch is usually in and around 0 degrees pitch. Power is usually set at idle where the clutch is
barely engaged/disengaged.
50% stick - (HOVER) pitch is around what ever the manufacturer of the heli says (my Raptor is 6 degrees).
Power is set to what ever RPM is required to maintain a hover at (in my case) 6 degrees of pitch.
100% stick - power is full throttle. Pitch is set to what ever your heli can do with the power output of
your motor at full throttle. This various depending on the power output of your engine.

With a 5 point curve, you just add points at 25% & 75% to make a curve to your liking.
There is a curve for both pitch & power (throttle).

As you can see, flying around like a normal heli is the norm but continuous inverted flight is not possible in this mode (mix
condtions).

NOW ,,,,

IDLE UP is just a different flight mode than normal. You can mix pitch & power to your liking.
You can even mix it to be identical to NORMAL mode if you wanted. Some Transmitters are
capable of two or even three IDLE UP modes. It all depends on what you want your heli to do.
HOW it is usually mixed is like this:

0% stick - Power is set at full throttle. Pitch is set at the max NEGATIVE pitch your motor & heli can handle.

50% stick - Power is set to maintain a certain RPM. Pitch is set to 0 degrees. The load on the engine is
minimal at this point so the power (throttle) has to be reduce to keep from over rev' ing the engine but high
enough to provide authority for cyclic (clutch still engaged and turning the rotor).

100% stick - Usually the same as normal but can be whatever your heli can do or what your prefence is.

So why IDLE UP. As you can see, you can invert your heli and have enough pitch & power to maintain inverted
flight. This can't be done in normal mode. Also, there still needs to be a normal mode so that you can
start your heli. Imagine if you only had Idle Up. What would happen when you started it?
Makes for a very exciting (and dangerous) moment in time!!!!

THROTTLE HOLD mode: This mode is used to practice "autorotations".
Basically the setup is almost identical to IDLE UP except that the Pitch curve is generally
the maximum pitch range your heli can achieve and the Throttle is set to a single fixed point
usually just at or below the RPM required to engage the clutch but high enough to keep the engine
running. It's the same as having the 5-points of your throttle curve set to the same setting
(ie flat lined at IDLE).

This allows you to have complete control of pitch with the throttle stick without change the throttle.
(ie AutoRotation)

Hope this helps.
tippy

[NVHLVNOP]

Thanks everyone!

-Jonathan-

[Philip Henderson]

"tippy" <dtipton@UNSPAMTHIS.worldnet.att.net> wrote in message
news:bEcub.76997$Ec1.4029005@bgtnsc05-news.ops.worldnet.att.net...
>
> On 17-Nov-2003, "david" <david_perry@btconnect.com> wrote:
>
> NORMAL MODE: This is the mode most beginner's start with and alot of
pilots that just like to fly around
> continue to use this mode.
> It's mix(curve) is "usually" set as follows:
>
> 0% stick - pitch is usually in and around 0 degrees pitch. Power is
usually set at idle where the clutch is
> barely engaged/disengaged.

Haven't we all been saying not to have 0 degrees at bottom stick?

> 50% stick - (HOVER) pitch is around what ever the manufacturer of the heli
says (my Raptor is 6 degrees).
> Power is set to what ever RPM is required to maintain a hover at (in my
case) 6 degrees of pitch.
> 100% stick - power is full throttle. Pitch is set to what ever your heli
can do with the power output of
> your motor at full throttle. This various depending on the power output
of your engine.
>

<snip>

No complaints with the rest. :)

Phil.