Gaui X5 FES w/ uBeast Build, Mod, Repair log
Well here is the initial post for my Gaui X5 Build Log. I will update this post as well as the rest of this thread as i go.


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Index:

#1 - Index (this post)

#2 - Arrival & Unboxing of Gaui X5 and spare parts

#3 - X5 Airframe, Frame Stiffener & motor mount

#4 - Tail Boom Assembly, installation and servo mounting

#5 - FES Rotor Head & Swash Installation

#6 - Electronics Prep work

#7 - Electroninics Install Pre-TM1000 burn out

#8 - Electronics after TM1000 burn out

#9 - Programming the Gaui/Hobbywing 100A ESC

#10 - Painting the Carbon Fiber tail fins

#11 - Test Hover & final check before full Maiden flight (Video)

#12 - Maiden flight and then some! (Flight Video)

#13 - Fusuno Knighthead Brace & 84.5mm KBDD Tail Blades

#14 - Flight #10 - Time to push my limits (Flight video)

#15 - 3D Flight #14 - Tick Tocks and Piros - 11-10-12 (Flight Video)

#16 - Reinstall of New TM1000 Telemetry Module

#17 - Flight Video Update 12-02-12

#18 - TM1000 Warranty request update

#19 - Gaui X5 - Replacing First bevel torque tube gear.

#20 - Flight Video Update 02-23-2013

#21 - Flight video Update 03-30-13

#22 - Gaui X5 FES Tail Wag Issues

#23 - Scorpion Backup Guard

#24 - Flight Video Update 04-22-13

#25 - X5 Action shots

#26 - ABEC 5 upgrade on tail box


My Youtube, Gaui X5 Playlist link:
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list..._Sz8nHTeAdmhLV

My Youtube channel link:
http://www.youtube.com/user/IntegrityRC



The images and information found in this build log is that of my own experience. It should be used as a reference point only. You should check your work carefully and against other sources for accuracy. In other words do your own research. Also, you should always use proper safety procedures. I will not be responsible if you experience any damages or injury by following this information.

Arrival & Unboxing of Gaui X5 and spare parts


Enjoy the unboxing of my X5 FES Super Combo with the uBeast BeastX gyro.

X5 Airframe, Frame Stiffener & motor mount


Below is the photo documentation of my build of the main airframe. Additional frame stiffener and battery tray. Main shaft and gear assembly gets installed as well as the motor. I may update photo comments later. But i think there are enough build logs and videos on youtube that i shouldn't need to go into detail. Enjoy the view.

Tail Boom Assembly, installation and servo mounting

FES Rotor Head & Swash Installation

NOTE!, I only installed the rotor head here out of curiosity and to get some photos for this section. Otherwise, you will have to take it off later to level the swash and setup your servos.

The FES rotor head is very nice. The quality is among the best i've seen. It's definitely the nicest in my collection now. This helicopter's quality is top notch, but it's not perfect either. I was in a hurry and didn't get the soldering iron out, so i could not break the blade grip screws free and ended up breaking my hex driver as well as 2 hex keys that bent and broke. I also broke my 1.5mm hex driver tightening down the canopy pegs! OOPS!! i should have used a cheap key instead. Stupid me breaking the tip off a some what expensive steel driver. Oh well. I'll have to trust that the thread lock is good enough on there since i was not able to break it free. I'm kind of disappointed that i couldn't install the red spindle dampers. But it's fine. I'll get some new tools later and do the change out then. I'm not planning on doing much more than hovering and some figure 8s on my maiden. So what dampers i have in there won't matter. But i really want to check the thrust bearings, grease them and reinstall everything with the red dampers.

I will probably up date this post later with info or pictures when i do break the head down. For now I'm moving on to the electronics install and inital setup. I have a feeling i can trust this "as is" much more than Walkera. I'm just concerned my thrust bearings are in backwards, as some others have complained about. But i was unable to inspect the tail grips & bearings either. So i'm really hoping everything works out till i can replace and get some new tools i didn't realize i don't have.



Notice i have not installed the Anti-rotation bracket for the swash yet. I will do this after i install and setup the servo horns and linkages.

Electronics Prep work

Okay before installing the electronics some wire plugs and connectors have to be soldered on. I went ahead and installed the rpm sensor wire from the TM1000, telemetry module. As well as the bullet plugs for the motor wires on the ESC that came with the Scorpion motor. I decided to use EC5 battery plugs because they are superior to most other plugs on the market as far as electrical impedance is concerned. Keep in mind, anyone that tells you Deans are Okay, don't understand electrical theory. I'm no genius with it either. But i can tell you that the ESC is a 100A ESC and the constant flow of power is probably right around 70-80A (without measuring it myself, just guessing). So while the Deans or XT60 will work, they will not allow for power to do what it wants. Things will heat up. It's better to be safe. So i know the EC5 will be MORE than enough to handle my needs. This is where i would prefer to be. Running electronics right on their threshhold, is not advisable. In my opinion the varying circumstances that could create more heat (like summer weather) is not worth the possible added heat from resistance. Under such conditions, heating of components, plugs and wires would be exponential compared to when flying in cooler weather.

Here is some data on the plugs. (taken from their web page)



EC5 Battery Connector (2)

Key Features
Capable of more than 120A continuous current with 10-awg wire
Ergonomically pleasing and easy to grip
Protected to avoid shorting and reverse polarity
Superior technology suited to today's advanced applications
Designed with convenience and reliability in mind
Overview

E-flite's high-quality EC5 connectors should be a staple for every workbench. EC5 (E-flite Connector 5mm) connectors, leads with connectors, and accessories are perfect for electric power applications and work with any battery, charger, ESC, Power Meter, etc. They are ideal for high power applications.



Articles, Reviews, How-Tos & More
E-flite EC3 Connector Assembly Tips


UPDATE, 10/30/12 : After using these EC5 connectors for a few days now. They are by far the best feeling, easiest to connect/disconnect, highest power rated battery plugs i have used yet. I much prefer them to Deans and even my normal XT60s. I have to assume the EC3 plugs are just as nice and i am considering swapping to those for my 200 and 450 size heli.


I hooked up my AR8000 and TM1000 with the Microbeast the way the Microbeast manual suggested. I will go over it more later when i start to actually setup the servos and install the servo horns.

Electroninics Install Pre-TM1000 burn out


While doing the gyro setup and holding the heli in my hands it started smoking! Either the RPM sensor wire got shorted some how or something like that. I'm not sure, it was working okay. I had not even tried to bind the telemetry yet. I thought the ESC was cooking but it was the wire for the RPM sensor for the motor wires. It was too long so i had bundled it up and stuck it behind the CF in the center of the frame. The whole coil became a melted ball and the TM1000 is cooked. The 3 wire lead that goes from the TM1000 to the RX was also all nice and bubbly, mostly on the TM side. I was not happy, and I will be contacting Horizon for a replacement or something. I just can't see what could have happened, but i'm glad it didn't happen in the air.


Anyway here are some pictures from when i initially installed the electronics. The temp sensor wire is coiled over the top of the ESC neatly and the RPM sensor was soldered to "Any two of the three motor wires" like it says in the manual. I never installed the battery voltage sensor, but it is supposed to be on a splitter with the RPM sensor. I saw somewhere in a video, someone else fried their TM1000 by plugging the battery sensor into the RPM/Batt sensor port without using the splitter wire for the port. There is no indication in the manual, but perhaps the same thing that happened to that guy happened to me with the RPM sensor. The weird thing is that the motor was unplugged at the time.

Also, IMPORTANT NOTE! that the ESC/throttle wire is plugged into the wrong spot on in these pictures. These pictures are from when i first installed the electronics, before i ever tried to power it up. I never did try to power it up like this. I must have just had a 2702V brain fart thinking it plugged into the gyro. I think where i have it plugged in is the power port for if you use the uBeast as a stand alone gyro or with Spectrum remote receiver unit. The throttle/ESC wire should be plugged into the RX throttle port. If i don't get a replacement TM1000 i will probably move the uBeast and RX down or put it on the opposite side of the heli. Somewhere else so they are not likely to get hit with a boom strike or something from the blades in a crash.

So, I was very sad to see the TM1000 go, but VERY, VERY happy that it did not seem to transfer any of the burn through to my other devices. Now, with any luck Horizon will warranty it for me. But coming from Walkera, I'm not expecting much. We'll see what happens. Could have been my fault as much as theirs for not instructing to use the splitter wire always. /shrug time will tell. Here is what the X5 electronics were looking like before i fired it up for the first time.



I rewired the ESC/throttle wire to it's proper place. It's important to keep the throttle wire separate from the servo wires, as much as possible. Isolating the throttle will prevent oddities from cross talk on your servo wires and help prevent EMI from entering the RX. The farrite ring, if not already installed, should be as close to the RX as possible. This will hopefully eliminate any EMI before entering the RX. I used a VERY strong 3m mounting tape made by Scotch brand. It's called "Extreme Foam Mounting Tape". It has a 10 lb holding capacity if it bonds well. That is more than the whole heli weighs with the battery!! So i use a square of it here or there to secure wires or in this case my Ferrite ring next to the RX.

Well, there are many reasons to do a strap down test. You really must be careful and keep a safe distance. I was about 40 feet away, while the camera was much closer! Please, if you do this, do so at your own risk! Make sure the heli is securely strapped and don't over extend your pitch into the positive or try to lift the cinder or move the cyclic too much. All of this could cause damage and stress on the frame and fatigue or bend your main shaft. Typically for a strap down test you want to spool up and put the stick in the neutral position. Set 100% throttle and let the battery ride till it's time. But i wanted to stress the servos and ESC because i suspected possible damage might have made it's way though to the ESC when the TM1000 Telemetry module burned up. I don't know if you can tell, but I'm pretty excited. I will do a maiden flight as soon as possible. When time, the Sun and daylight comply.

Gaui X5 - First fire up and stap down stress test! (7 min 36 sec)

Programming the Gaui/Hobbywing 100A ESC


Okay, after my strap down test i was concerned that the RPM on the main rotor might be too high. I checked it later with an audio analysis of the strap down video. I was running 2568 rpm approx. @ 95% throttle. Something like that. So it's looking like the ESC's Advanced timing is good at 15°. But, there are settings on the ESC which should be changed. I asked around a few people and did a few google searches. MANY people are just using the default setup at 15° and 12khz PWM. I want to thank newbheliusr for his help with the setup of the X5, mainly the Microbeast programming and the consultation with the ESC, even though he is using a CC ICE on his. Without his help the uBeast and the over all servo horn configuration and install would have been much more stressful. So a major thanks to him for that! After talking it over with him. Between my experience with the Hobbywing 40A Platinum pro esc and his research and past experience over at HF reading those X5 threads. These are the settings I decided to use/change for the Hobbywing/ Gaui 100A ESC.


Start up: Very Soft
Advanced Timing: 15°
PWM Frequency: 8KHz
BEC Output: 6V


I always use my TX for ESC programming. I cut these little snips of the ESC manual so i can print them and bring them to the field like this. But now i just have the PDF on my smart phone. So i attached the PDF here too if you want to view/download it. Though at some point gaui/hobbywing may update the manual. It's very unlikely to change much.

Painting the Carbon Fiber tail fins


I wasn't happy with just plain CF black tail fins. I had to paint them. I didn't want to pay money for expensive replacement colored fins, that i honestly can't afford right now after buying this thing. So i took the handiwork way out, which is cheap and gives me the same effect. I prefer white on my heli fins because it matches any canopy i put on and it contrasts well at low altidude in front of trees. It's not to bad contrasting in the sky either depending on how cloudy and white the sky might be. But in Florida's bright blues or glaring grays, white stands out pretty well, for me anyway. I don't pay a lot of attention to the fins for my personal orientation use. But i figure it will look better on camera and just look nicer, period.

PLEASE, if you are going to sand, grind or cut CF EVER!! please wear a resperator or dust mask, and it helps to rinse the CF off under water in a sink while sanding. that stuff is kind of nasty and will get into everything. You should reguard it like Fiberglass, You don't want to breath it or get too much of it on you. It's not going to kill you or anything. It's just helthier to not be exposed to it. Neither are the paint fumes. But what is healthy anymore, right?

I started by lightly sanding the fins with some 220 grit sand paper. Especially the sharp edges. Then i rinsed clean and dried. I use Krylon Fusion for plastics, spray paint. It works good to paint my Walkera plastic canopies for the V450. It also works well with landing skids and the metal pipes. But you have to sand the glossy surfaces to create a nice bond. Once the painting is done. You should let it sit for at least 24 hours to cure. If you use too much paint, and it's thick. Those spots will be soft and not ready for use. finger prints can be pressed into it and it's easily peeled off. For optimum cure and hardening. To prevent peeling, chiping or scratching off of the paint. It really should sit for 7 days to cure. But i only waited 24 before mounting.


So far there are tree things that disappointed me about the tail. First was the plastic tail blade grips and blades. Second is the knightheads or tail stabilizer bars. I thought for sure they would have been the much lighter and stronger CF type. But, they are aluminum. They seem pretty flexible so i will be installing a Fusuno knighthead brace to secure them to each other on the mid span and make the tail more firm and responsive. like this:


The new Premium super combo heli comes with CF tail knightheads. It looks like they upgraded the heli once again!

Third thing about the tail that bothers me is the seemingly under sized horizontal stabilizer fin. Though these serve no purpose on a gyroed RC heli. They are good for visual aid and in a crash or roll over the horizontal fin might take the side ways slap on the ground instead of the tail rotor shaft, preventing damage hopefully. But the X5 fin is smaller than my V450 fin. (more photos attached below)




A future mod will be, probably, changing the battries angle when strapped to the heli. If the battery was lifted more at the nose it will give my canopies better clearance. As it is this Turnigy 4000 mAh pack hardly squeezes under the canopy. I can only get 3 out of the 4 mounting pins inserted when the battery is mounted. If i'm lucky. Oh well, it's still a beautiful heli. These are minor gripes really. The heli is REALLY nice. I will probably grab a set of X7 tail fins and fit the horizontal one on my X5.

Here is how it's looking now:

Test Hover & final check before full Maiden flight

I wanted to go ahead and fly. But by the time i got out the sun was going down. But i couldn't resist a quick hover and check up. I figured if anything is wrong or not tracking properly, something like that. I should find out now. There was absolutely no issues. I had to reverse my tail servo on my TX, but that showed right up on spool up. Everything is all set and ready for my maiden, which will probably take place on Friday when i don't have to work. It's just too hard to get out there after work with how early it gets dark. Plus this Sat. clocks get turned back an hour. My flight time will be limited by the available light in which to fly. If only I had some good night blades. I think that will be coming down the line one day. But until i can afford some KOK Magic blades, i don't think i'll be buying night blades. I don't even think KOK or anyone else for that matter, made them for the 520mm blade size.

Oh well, here it is. My quick test hover.

Gaui X5 - Couldn't Resist A Test Hover at Dusk (2 min 15 sec)

I was surprised at how easily it lifted off. I went home and weighed the heli, in case anyone cares. This is my all up weight with the Turnigy 4000 mAh 20-30C pack and the canomod canopy. Units are in pounds and ounces.

Dude, that is awesome. You are going to love that heli. It's just so effortless to fly, flip, and whatever you want. I just love it myself.

It was a pleasure talking with you, and helping you setup your heli. Another successful maiden of the Gaui X5. Just wait until you pitch pump it a few times.

Oh, I'd also like to say that you have made a very well written build and setup of the X5. This is going to be very valuable to others who need help on building this heli. Way to go man, way to go.

Maiden flight and then some!


Here is my maiden flight with the Gaui X5. Nothing fancy, still feeling it out.

Special thanks to newbheliusr for helping me get though some of the lesser to completely undocumented parts of the setup. Especially for helping with my learning curve into setting up the BeastX. THANKS! It probably would have taken longer if it were not for him! I definitely would have had more gray hair or less hair. Which ever came first.

Gaui X5 - Maiden Flight - 11-02-12 (8 min 15 sec)

I really started to get the feel for her half way through the first flight. But i was feeling a lot better by the second. I even did a few flips and a few seconds of inverted! SWEET heli and soo smooth and stable. IT didn't even notice the wind, but it still had ME on edge a little. I actually managed to get my one and only pack charged 3 times today. So i got in 3 flights. But the camera's batteries died. The next flight was a little faster and a lot more comfortable. I found a new place to fly, but the grass is super high. But i'm not looking to crash any time soon. I'm not AMA registered yet, but the local field is having a Fun Fly or whatever tomorrow. Some kind of event so i'm hoping i can get up there and fly. But chances are they will want me to be AMA registered so i'll end up going someplace that is not safe to fly this beast. As if that makes any sense. Tell me it's not about money, and i wouldn't believe you.

Here is my second flight. This one was pretty fun, and getting more comfortable with each flight!

Gaui X5 - Flight 02 - First Flips and inverted flight - 11-02-12 (7 min 40 sec)

Fusuno Knighthead Brace & 84.5mm KBDD Tail Blades

Well, my order of orange and neon yellow tail blades arrived. I'm not sure i like the orange color, but they match the Fusuno knighthead brace. The only braces HD had in stock were the orange ones. I may have spurred a few sales by endorsing them? /shrug. Either way, when i went to order them they were sold out of the black CF and only had the orange Cf available. So i got matching tail blades. The blades KIND of match the orange/yellow gradient in my canopy, so they don't look too bad. I think i will probably switch to the closer matched and brighter yellow tail fins. Even though i don't mind the black and don't pay them much attention. It stands out good on the camera and spectators can see better. I really like the colors on the main blades and how they look in the air with white tips and all. But i might put some reflective tape on there to add some striping on the rotor disk. More on that later.

The Fusuno knighthead or tail stabilizer braces are okay for the price. They weigh virtually nothing and will brace the sides of the bars. It keeps them firm so they don't buckle, allowing the tail to give a little with aggressive tail changes, causing fatigue. It should reduce stress on the boom where it meets the frame. Hopefully reducing fatigue in 3D. I also like how it feels when i grab the back, bottom side of the frame. The bars are more stable and less likely to twist from the weight if you hold the heli where they attach to the frame. Later i will be upgrading the tail grips to the CNC versions and probably installing some CF tail blades for better tail authority. The problem with a rigid tail is it does fatigue the tail boom. But the CNC grips, IMO, are a must. Though these seem fine too for my current needs and skill.