BladeRunner FAQ - Page 2

KDX · May 21, 2005, 01:29 PM

Sorry, wrong forum.

docphi · Jul 15, 2005, 06:07 PM

The best mod I did was replace the tail motor with a motor from a Zip Zap micro car. Now it moves forward and backward with authority!

stoogy · Aug 13, 2005, 12:43 PM

Hi ! can you please tell which motor did you use for the tail also where did you get it?
Thanks

Jeff Smart · Aug 19, 2005, 05:09 PM

Im looking to get a cheap heli, is this heli ok? can I manuvoer it or is this just a "toy"

Any help would be awsome
Thanks
Jeff

TueLe · Aug 20, 2005, 12:37 PM

yes i can be manuvered but it's mainly designed to be stable in hovering, easy to learn but still a lot of fun.

Steve Shepard · Aug 20, 2005, 09:48 PM

Yes you can maneuver it - up, down, yaw,( left and right). And yes it is just a toy - it's intended marketing target was 10-year-old kids. Read through this forum and the other two devoted to the BR. You will find the links to the other parts lower down on this page, in the "BR spinning" thread.

If you want some detailed descriptions of the BR, read Petter Muren's original patent application :

(copy and paste) :

http://appft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2 FPTO%2Fsearch-bool.html&r=2&f=G&l=50&co1=AND&d=PG01&s1=%22Muren% 2C+Petter%22.IN.&OS=IN/"Muren,+Petter"&RS=IN/"Muren,+Petter"

It's long and wordy, but you will learn a lot about why the BR is different from other (regular) helicopters.

Aloha, Steve

Jeff Smart · Aug 29, 2005, 11:13 AM

Thanks guys

TEKIN 11 · Sep 16, 2005, 06:21 PM

Will the BR's Electronics handle the 7.4V Kokam lipoly packs?

Steve Shepard · Sep 16, 2005, 06:50 PM

Yes, the electronics can handle the higher voltage, but motor life will be shortened considerably, and they are already overworked and have too short a lifespan, as it is. The motors had to be custom-made, just to barely make the BR fly.

The main reason for motor failure is burning of the brushes. The three little finger brushes are barely able to handle the voltage and current. Heat is a deadly enemy to the BR motors. Best idea is to make several short flights, rather than just flying till the battery can't deliver enough juice to lift off. Read through this forum to learn how to deal with matters of heat. Use the search feature to find references to heat sinks and black motor cans.

Aloha,
Steve

TEKIN 11 · Sep 20, 2005, 11:06 PM

Ok, I think my Lithium is dying. My BR will take a perfect charge, and have plenty of lift power, but it can no longer run the tail motor and the main rotors at the same time. If I'm hovering and put full forward, the heli cuts the power and falls to the floor. It is a painful sight, really, and I am getting a Kokam pack, so hopefully this will make it stop? Has anyone else had this trouble?

TEKIN 11 · Sep 20, 2005, 11:30 PM

Ok, now it is really getting wierd.....the throttle stick now runs the tail motor, but only sometimes, and it is only in the lower 1/100th of the throttle. The slightest movement will trigger the tail motor, and then it just goes and goes by itself, and there is no way to make it stop, besides turning the heli off. It won't take off anymore, it just sits there and stutters real bad, running the main rotors and tail motor wildly and very rough.

I tried numerous 9 volts for the radio, but still the heli is irratic and impossible to operate.

I have no idea what it could be

Steve Shepard · Sep 20, 2005, 11:34 PM

Your symptoms are typical for both toasted batteries and burned motor brushes. How much total flight time do you have on your BR? Some motors have been known to last only a couple of hours, while others have delivered as much as 20 hours.
One big problem some folks have is running the BR continuously for as long as the battery can make it fly. This is guaranteed to cause motor failure in short order. Mo' betteh you fly a couple of minutes, land, and allow things to cool down for a few minutes, then fly again. The battery will "recover" a little, and you can usually squeeze a couple of minutes total fly time out of each charge.

If you have quite a bit of time on your motors, a new battery won't really do you much good. Buy a new set of motors as well as a new Kokam, and you will be good to go for another few more hours.

"Greasing the machine" has also shown to be helpful in extending motor and battery life, by reducing the load on them. Anywhere there is movement between two parts, lube it (properly).

You could just adjust the CG a little further ahead, so the BR wants to drift forward, and just forget about the tail motor. Might help to try to get a bit of penetrating oil worked in around the motor shaft.

Good luck,
Steve

TEKIN 11 · Sep 21, 2005, 11:51 AM

I was getting about 5 minutes (Not counting cool down time) before, and it worked great. I am concerned there may be a short somewhere, as the throttle stick runs the tail motor, and then the tail motor will just run forever and not respond to any controls until I turn the heli off.

I will try new motors and a battery, and the batt is about $10 on average, but I am not sure on motors yet.

Steve Shepard · Sep 21, 2005, 03:22 PM

TEKIN : New (OEM) motors can be found here :

http://www.wrightbrothersrc.com/our_...laderunner.htm

and here :

http://parts.rctoys.com/rc-toys-hobb...Spare%20Parts/

for $15.00 and $20.oo, respectively

As for your unusual throttle/tail motor situation, two possibilities :

Wires shorted where they are mounted on the PCB (top, right-hand corner, right side) (very small, get out your spyglass,) or the proportional mixer for the tail motor is kaput. The odds are better for the former, but I have had the latter problem on a Megatech model, not long ago. (one of the ICs was unusually hot, after 5 minutes' running). If the PCB is shot, both sources above can set hook you up with a new one.

Come to think about it, yours is the only post for this problem out of the several thousand posts on this forum and the other two venues. Be sure to let us know what you figure out.

Aloha,
Steve

prints · May 15, 2006, 12:17 PM

How do i balance the rotors?

My heli seems to swing back and forth very violently even if i just try to hover, the symptom also builds itself up untill it causes the blades to clash and the heli to crash

i have been told balancing the rotors would help, but how do i go about this?

Aug 13, 2005, 12:43 PM	#18
stoogy Registered User Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 1	Tail motor replacement Hi ! can you please tell which motor did you use for the tail also where did you get it? Thanks

Sep 20, 2005, 11:06 PM	#25
TEKIN 11 FACTORY DRIVER Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Idaho Posts: 14	Lithium Dying? Ok, I think my Lithium is dying. My BR will take a perfect charge, and have plenty of lift power, but it can no longer run the tail motor and the main rotors at the same time. If I'm hovering and put full forward, the heli cuts the power and falls to the floor. It is a painful sight, really, and I am getting a Kokam pack, so hopefully this will make it stop? Has anyone else had this trouble?

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
ITC Bladerunner FAQ Summary	Gordon Johnson	Indoor and Micro Models	24	Sep 05, 2006 12:48 AM

May 21, 2005, 01:29 PM	#16
KDX Total Noob, but learning. Join Date: May 2005 Location: Saskatchewan, Canada Posts: 54	Sorry, wrong forum.

Jul 15, 2005, 06:07 PM	#17
docphi Stupid gravity! Join Date: Jul 1999 Location: Trinity, FL Posts: 1,416	The best mod I did was replace the tail motor with a motor from a Zip Zap micro car. Now it moves forward and backward with authority!

Aug 19, 2005, 05:09 PM	#19
Jeff Smart Registered User Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Chelmsford MA Posts: 53	Im looking to get a cheap heli, is this heli ok? can I manuvoer it or is this just a "toy" Any help would be awsome Thanks Jeff

Aug 20, 2005, 12:37 PM	#20
TueLe Registered User Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Texas, United States Posts: 1,828	yes i can be manuvered but it's mainly designed to be stable in hovering, easy to learn but still a lot of fun.

Aug 20, 2005, 09:48 PM	#21
Steve Shepard Infinitisqrd Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Hilo, Hawaii Posts: 1,210	Yes you can maneuver it - up, down, yaw,( left and right). And yes it is just a toy - it's intended marketing target was 10-year-old kids. Read through this forum and the other two devoted to the BR. You will find the links to the other parts lower down on this page, in the "BR spinning" thread. If you want some detailed descriptions of the BR, read Petter Muren's original patent application : (copy and paste) : http://appft1.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2 FPTO%2Fsearch-bool.html&r=2&f=G&l=50&co1=AND&d=PG01&s1=%22Muren% 2C+Petter%22.IN.&OS=IN/"Muren,+Petter"&RS=IN/"Muren,+Petter" It's long and wordy, but you will learn a lot about why the BR is different from other (regular) helicopters. Aloha, Steve

Aug 29, 2005, 11:13 AM	#22
Jeff Smart Registered User Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Chelmsford MA Posts: 53	Thanks guys

Sep 16, 2005, 06:21 PM	#23
TEKIN 11 FACTORY DRIVER Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Idaho Posts: 14	Will the BR's Electronics handle the 7.4V Kokam lipoly packs?

Sep 16, 2005, 06:50 PM	#24
Steve Shepard Infinitisqrd Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Hilo, Hawaii Posts: 1,210	Yes, the electronics can handle the higher voltage, but motor life will be shortened considerably, and they are already overworked and have too short a lifespan, as it is. The motors had to be custom-made, just to barely make the BR fly. The main reason for motor failure is burning of the brushes. The three little finger brushes are barely able to handle the voltage and current. Heat is a deadly enemy to the BR motors. Best idea is to make several short flights, rather than just flying till the battery can't deliver enough juice to lift off. Read through this forum to learn how to deal with matters of heat. Use the search feature to find references to heat sinks and black motor cans. Aloha, Steve

Sep 20, 2005, 11:30 PM	#26
TEKIN 11 FACTORY DRIVER Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Idaho Posts: 14	Ok, now it is really getting wierd.....the throttle stick now runs the tail motor, but only sometimes, and it is only in the lower 1/100th of the throttle. The slightest movement will trigger the tail motor, and then it just goes and goes by itself, and there is no way to make it stop, besides turning the heli off. It won't take off anymore, it just sits there and stutters real bad, running the main rotors and tail motor wildly and very rough. I tried numerous 9 volts for the radio, but still the heli is irratic and impossible to operate. I have no idea what it could be

Sep 20, 2005, 11:34 PM	#27
Steve Shepard Infinitisqrd Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Hilo, Hawaii Posts: 1,210	Your symptoms are typical for both toasted batteries and burned motor brushes. How much total flight time do you have on your BR? Some motors have been known to last only a couple of hours, while others have delivered as much as 20 hours. One big problem some folks have is running the BR continuously for as long as the battery can make it fly. This is guaranteed to cause motor failure in short order. Mo' betteh you fly a couple of minutes, land, and allow things to cool down for a few minutes, then fly again. The battery will "recover" a little, and you can usually squeeze a couple of minutes total fly time out of each charge. If you have quite a bit of time on your motors, a new battery won't really do you much good. Buy a new set of motors as well as a new Kokam, and you will be good to go for another few more hours. "Greasing the machine" has also shown to be helpful in extending motor and battery life, by reducing the load on them. Anywhere there is movement between two parts, lube it (properly). You could just adjust the CG a little further ahead, so the BR wants to drift forward, and just forget about the tail motor. Might help to try to get a bit of penetrating oil worked in around the motor shaft. Good luck, Steve

Sep 21, 2005, 11:51 AM	#28
TEKIN 11 FACTORY DRIVER Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Idaho Posts: 14	I was getting about 5 minutes (Not counting cool down time) before, and it worked great. I am concerned there may be a short somewhere, as the throttle stick runs the tail motor, and then the tail motor will just run forever and not respond to any controls until I turn the heli off. I will try new motors and a battery, and the batt is about $10 on average, but I am not sure on motors yet.

Sep 21, 2005, 03:22 PM	#29
Steve Shepard Infinitisqrd Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Hilo, Hawaii Posts: 1,210	TEKIN : New (OEM) motors can be found here : http://www.wrightbrothersrc.com/our_...laderunner.htm and here : http://parts.rctoys.com/rc-toys-hobb...Spare%20Parts/ for $15.00 and $20.oo, respectively As for your unusual throttle/tail motor situation, two possibilities : Wires shorted where they are mounted on the PCB (top, right-hand corner, right side) (very small, get out your spyglass,) or the proportional mixer for the tail motor is kaput. The odds are better for the former, but I have had the latter problem on a Megatech model, not long ago. (one of the ICs was unusually hot, after 5 minutes' running). If the PCB is shot, both sources above can set hook you up with a new one. Come to think about it, yours is the only post for this problem out of the several thousand posts on this forum and the other two venues. Be sure to let us know what you figure out. Aloha, Steve

May 15, 2006, 12:17 PM	#30
prints Registered User Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 2	How do i balance the rotors? My heli seems to swing back and forth very violently even if i just try to hover, the symptom also builds itself up untill it causes the blades to clash and the heli to crash i have been told balancing the rotors would help, but how do i go about this?