@ Keyrigger - Hope you don't mind but just wanted to share what my brother just got for his T-Rex 700e.

Looks good. Let him know to move the skids forward when time comes to secure them so that the rear tips maybe about 3/8 to 1/2" behind the skid. I see a large number of MD500's that have the skids placed back that far because the builders think they need it that far behind for balance. There's lots of skid behind the CG and if there is a real concern, a set of bearpaws added will get the additional surface behind the gear leg and add a really nice custom touch to it. ProHeli and Vario make those for skids of many sizes. He will really like the quality of the Century body. Take care.

Don

Originally Posted by Keyrigger

Looks good. Let him know to move the skids forward when time comes to secure them so that the rear tips maybe about 3/8 to 1/2" behind the skid. I see a large number of MD500's that have the skids placed back that far because the builders think they need it that far behind for balance. There's lots of skid behind the CG and if there is a real concern, a set of bearpaws added will get the additional surface behind the gear leg and add a really nice custom touch to it. ProHeli and Vario make those for skids of many sizes. He will really like the quality of the Century body. Take care.

Don

Hi there Keyrigger,

I'm the brother Freechip was talking about, and might I say your build is very impressive and of great craftsmanship and quality.
I have almost completed my Bell 222 build and am about to start this MD500e, and am finding out that this build will not be as simple as I thought it would be. I thought since is was mostly a direct bolt on for a Trex700 and with no retracts, it would have been a breeze compared to my 222 build, but I think this one will be just as challenging in its own way.

My question to you is what is the total offset from your front and rear gears to get the stance looking more scale. (Rear squat)???

I'm looking forward to more great ideas from your build, thank you once again.

The main problem with the gear is that they are actually too thin for scale and in the case of the extended gear on the actual heli, they are too wide. You don't see too many "E" model 500's with short stubby gear but it may be something to investigate. The tall gear are set to hold the boom fairly level and hence they hold the body level for passenger comfort (they don't care about the pilot as he is supposed to know what is going on, lol). PM me with this dimension: Ground to bottom of the body in the middle between the front landing gear. Then I can help work out what would be the proper height. Who knows, they maybe right on the money as they sit. Thanks for the compliments and let's see if this can be sorted out. Take care.

Don

So since I have the main portion of the interior structure built, I am in a small holding pattern for a couple of weeks as stuff is being processed and shipped in the next three weeks or so from Hong Kong. In the mean time, I hate this as I find "Stuff" to fill in the time and it is sometimes fun, sometimes tedious. This one was a bit of both as I had to figure out how to do this and keep light out of the main body area. I still need to put the sealant on the back of the led (Hysol to the rescue) and slot out the doghouse but I should get that done before heading out tomorrow night. I may discover more "Stuff" as I go over the pictures I have or go looking for more, as there MUST be more out there than I am finding. Oh well. Take care.

Don

I got the light installed this morning and reworked how the chassis goes in and out. First and foremost, if it went in one way with no issues and something is added, don't place it so that it becomes a hazard or makes it ten times more difficult to install after adding the object. I took it out to three different hobby shops and there was no doubt, it's a show stopper. Most could not get over the complexity of the entire heli and were blown away by the figures. I still can't get over being able to find them here. Wait until the guy I bought them from sees this bird. I was able to take some pictures, finally, of the entire heli as it sits right now. I don't have too much room but I did forget about using the sofa with a sheet on it as a temporary studio. Of all people, I should have remembered that, lol. Take care.

Don

This installation is not finished by any means, lol

Real nice my friend BUT no video?

Camera was out of battery power. I will be able to do some later tonight with all the bells and whistles in operation. Take care.

Don

As promised.

MD500 TOW Defender RC Helicopter Walkaround (1 min 51 sec)

Also some nicer pictures so far.

I had about an hour or so to kill so I found that I needed to make up a couple of door handles as the blobs there just don't cut it. I also changed the pitch rods to titanium turnbuckles for finer blade adjustment, if needed. Take care.

Don

Wow.

It's amazing how long it can take to make just one of the many items to install in the cockpit. I took a simple pre-made collective stick and found that it will work great for the Weapons Officer's position but it was nowhere near as complex as the Pilot's was. Even the angle still has to be changed for the switch cluster on the standard stick but that is nowhere near as tedious a job. The extra bits were made from plywood, carbon fibre rod, and a single strand of servo wire. I've been at it for hours, lol. Take care.

Don

More work completed. Making the console was a learing experience, that's for sure. The elves were busy but I can't read their writing, lol. Take care.

Don

Go to sit down for a coffee and look what happened. Someone beat the living daylights out of my new part, sigh. I started on the missile launchers when I first got the heli and that theme will continue on the rest of the heli, making it look like it has been in service for a few years or more. That's part of the fun I used to have building plastic models many years ago. Brand new was the day they left the factory but once out there, they are driven or flown through mud, rain, snow, salt, sand, and are sometimes handled like they are rented, afterall, you can't hurt a rental. I have a lot of work ahead on the main body as I will try to hold to approximate panel locations to create the marks of use. Take care.

Don

It still gets me how long it takes to do what appears to be a simple thing. That little box took me close to three hours to work out how to make it, what size, and how I could duplicate an electrical connection inside it. Bullets to the rescue, lol. The Weapons Officers collective was another matter as it took a very long time to get done. I had it pretty well set to go and I thought, "One more time through the manual", sigh..... I found a housing drawing for it and although I can't find any pictures of the collective of this heli, the factory unit for the "D" model will do as the bare collective stick just plopped on the spot would look really tacky. I tore it apart and proceeded to build a new enclosure but lucky me, I was able to save the two pieces that are on the front of it. I was starting to get ahead of myself as I had put the base coat on the collective but I had forgotten to break its neck and reset it. A little thinner and a few minutes with the CA and kicker and I was ready to finish it off. I went over what I used for paint and I have three different paints on that set of parts. Tamiya acrylic, Humbrol enamel, and a generic house paint. What a mess, lol. Here are the pics.

Don