Originally Posted by The Touch

Well if you find someone offering decent shipping rates to Aus let me know

My LHS charges $AU 249 for a 36MHz Lama V4... Fair enough in some ways because 36MHz is such a tiny part of the worldwide RC market...

Recently I got a 2.4G Lama V4 from HongKong for $AU155 including postage. IT would have gone up a touch because I paid for it in US dollars about a month a go... before the Aussie dropped or the Greenback rallied - whichever!

This new heli would be a bigger an heavier package (probably about a kilo more, packed) but I'd expect both miracle-mart.com and ehirobo.com to keep the postage to AUS under $US 40.

This sounds like a lot but I just sold off my spare V3 airframe and 35MHz Radio gear on eBay and the postage was over $20 to send it to another Queenslander! WA would have cost nearly $50!

Sorry to highjack with postage VS LHS gripes... promise I won't do it again!

Originally Posted by Hokum Jim

Just to dispell one misconceptions that I might have added to above it has a RX + 3-in-1 arrangement rather than using the Lama's 4-in-1. It's a bit annoying that they don't do a 2.4 G 6channel Rx Yet.

Esky have a 2.4ghz 6 ch receiver.



EK2-0424

Funnily enough, it's not on their website (doesn't come up in a search).

Here's a link to a US vendor, I'm sure they're available from the usual sources in Hong Kong.

BP Hobbies

Originally Posted by Hokum Jim

A thougtht for the Modders out there...

There are loads of 370 class brushless motors out there and the e-sky 4-in-1 is practically a RX + 3in1 once you take the cover off and pull the two boards apart (no soldering/desoldering required)... The thought of the doing a BL mod with the Walkera 53 wasn't a a pleasant one because the unknowns with the electronics and the control of the BL controllers (didn't stop me thinking of it though). On the surface it looks like a BL upgrade on this monster would be easier than a 340mm class Lama if not cheaper.

...and who can fault the promise of "...Happy Flight" !

The Walkera conversion is daunting. Basically, the only thing I am keeping is the shafts and head area (swash plates, holders and blades) and landing gear. Im fabricating a new motor plate to position the two motors side by side at the back and cutting servo plates to relocate the servos. Power will be from 2x C20 2100kv motors running off 2x 12A ESC. Throttle/Rudder Mixing will be done on the 2.4ghz radio with a Esky 704A gyro hooked to the upper motor. Will probably mold a lexan body for it or else fit it with a ArtTech MD500 body. The dual swash design will be the similar as on the CX2 thread.

Cheers deadduck thanks for the link... It's not on their website that's for sure.

Plus it was really handy to get that link to the 2.4G transmitter manual and the bind/unbind procedure that might com in handy in the future.

One more thing... didn't we cross paths on the forums YEARs ago when we both had a less than stellar experience with a SAPAC Ka-50?

Teammpp that sounds like the upgrade I was planning... Dual swash on a big heli with more power than you can poke a stick at .....Noooiiice (that's "nice" in an Aussie accent for the unitiated - but it means so much more...). I have to get my dual swash Lama flying first. But given the specs on this new bird (and the walkera 53) picture a HoneyBee FP with dual BL motors and twice the rotor disk area!

I'm thinking I'll be opening the throttle on a lot spare parts orders...

Originally Posted by Hokum Jim

One more thing... didn't we cross paths on the forums YEARs ago when we both had a less than stellar experience with a SAPAC Ka-50?

That's right. Ended up re-bodying a Lama V3 with bits of my KA 50.

Sorry guys, cant help but really looking forward to this conversation.
I also always try to find a way to make my coax an outdoor species.
So this OUTDOOR LAMA is worth to wait.
Btw, as the above post, could we upgrade the big lama using 4 channel 2.4Gz rx? Since its cheaper and available locally. I find the complete Esky tx and rx (2.4Gz) for only US$80.
From the pics, we knew that the big lama only using 4 channel instead of all 6.

Probably not...

I fly my Lama on 3 Cells (11.1V) using a standard 2.4G 4-in-1 so it can andle the higher voltage. But the 180 motors on the Lama only draw about 6 amps from the battery. I'm not familiar enough with the 370 motors to do anything more than guess but I would think that they draw a lot more current than that.

Still anyone willing to try? It's just a matter of attaching a pair of 370 motors to your Lama 4-in-1, hitting full throttle and seeing what happens...

Originally Posted by deadduck

That's right. Ended up re-bodying a Lama V3 with bits of my KA 50.

Nice one... I wish I still had that Ka-50 body shell... mine self amputated its tail as a final gesture of poor workmanship and bad electronics.

Originally Posted by Hokum Jim

My LHS charges $AU 249 for a 36MHz Lama V4... Fair enough in some ways because 36MHz is such a tiny part of the worldwide RC market...

Recently I got a 2.4G Lama V4 from HongKong for $AU155 including postage. IT would have gone up a touch because I paid for it in US dollars about a month a go... before the Aussie dropped or the Greenback rallied - whichever!

This new heli would be a bigger an heavier package (probably about a kilo more, packed) but I'd expect both miracle-mart.com and ehirobo.com to keep the postage to AUS under $US 40.

This sounds like a lot but I just sold off my spare V3 airframe and 35MHz Radio gear on eBay and the postage was over $20 to send it to another Queenslander! WA would have cost nearly $50!

Sorry to highjack with postage VS LHS gripes... promise I won't do it again!

Have you seen this heli which has an unbelievable price:
http://www.hobbyco.com.au/product/sh...p?plu=ninne107
Only AU$119 from Hobbyco in Sydney
Here is the review: http://www.nineeagle.com/pdf/EagleExplorerReview.pdf


I wouldn't mind one of those larger e-sky coaxes to handle the light breeze outside!

Originally Posted by Hokum Jim

Probably not...

I fly my Lama on 3 Cells (11.1V) using a standard 2.4G 4-in-1 so it can andle the higher voltage. But the 180 motors on the Lama only draw about 6 amps from the battery. I'm not familiar enough with the 370 motors to do anything more than guess but I would think that they draw a lot more current than that.

Still anyone willing to try? It's just a matter of attaching a pair of 370 motors to your Lama 4-in-1, hitting full throttle and seeing what happens...

Yeah. The 180SH motors are rated 6A max and the 370SH motors are rated as 9A max. I would guess that the 370 motors would draw around 6A under lift off load dropping to around 4A for stable hover at around half throttle. I have read that people have used the CX2 3-in-1 unit with 370 motors in the arttech MD500 but I cant confirm whether they flew until requiring full throttle to stay in the air. I would reckon that the CX2 3-in-1 unit should be rated good for more than 6A (probably 9/10A max) so as long as you dont fly at full throttle for long periods it should work but the unit wont last as long as it would in normal conditions.

I don't think converting the EK1H-020 to BL would be too tough. Having already converted a Lama v3 and a Blade CX2 to BL, they all follow the same setup. As a matter of fact, this is probably one of the first things I'll be doing to this baby as I can only imagine how powerful this beast would be with two 3800kv BL motors!

Anyone have any new info on release dates and / or stores?

-Rich

Originally Posted by rich95

I don't think converting the EK1H-020 to BL would be too tough. Having already converted a Lama v3 and a Blade CX2 to BL, they all follow the same setup. As a matter of fact, this is probably one of the first things I'll be doing to this baby as I can only imagine how powerful this beast would be with two 3800kv BL motors!

Anyone have any new info on release dates and / or stores?

-Rich

I have an email from my CHinese supplier, the new Esky's will be due in September (no date).
The big LAMA cost written as US$ 100 (shipping not included), but he warned me thats the price for minimum order of 80's; I rather doubt his statement thou, as the price look reasonable.

Btw, could you share how to convert coax into BL? And how to bypass the onboard esc? I try to search this forum with no luck...

Thank you in advance.

Originally Posted by ishady

I have an email from my CHinese supplier, the new Esky's will be due in September (no date).
The big LAMA cost written as US$ 100 (shipping not included), but he warned me thats the price for minimum order of 80's; I rather doubt his statement thou, as the price look reasonable.

Btw, could you share how to convert coax into BL? And how to bypass the onboard esc? I try to search this forum with no luck...

Thank you in advance.

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=447808

Hi
This is another good thread about BL conversion to brushless and it's specific to a Brushless Lama setup using a mildly hacked stock 4-in-1 setup...

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showt...shless+lama+v4

Basically there are two boards in the lama 4-in-1. One of the them is the receiver the other is the gyro, mixer and ESCs (and BEC) board. If you take the cover off the 4-in-1 you can simply pull the two boards apart and treat the RX board as if it was simply a 4 channel Rx by connecting in a gyro, a mixer (a basic V-tail Mixer will do the job) and two Brushless ESCs to contol your BL motors.

It sounds heavy but the BL motors are so much lighter (less than a third of the weight) that there overall setup is lighter.

The conversion for this new bird would be pretty much the same except you already have a separate Rx and 3-in-1 (already simpler) and e-sky (and a host of other motor manufacturers) make a range of "drop in replacement" motors for the 370 (370 is the standard motor on the HBFP, HBCP and HBK)... You probably wouldn't even have to drill new mounting holes. In fact they are so common that the BL upgrade motors for this bird will be cheaper than the ones for Lama upgrade despite being bigger and more powerful. The gyro and mixer will be the same as you would use for a Lama conversion, simply pick the cheapest/lightest/best that you can afford and the BESC will be bigger (25 amp E-skys are the obvious starter if you choose to use e-sky motors) but not necessarily any more expensive.

You can see I'm already getting the shopping list ready

Originally Posted by ishady

Sorry guys, cant help but really looking forward to this conversation.
I also always try to find a way to make my coax an outdoor species.
So this OUTDOOR LAMA is worth to wait.
Btw, as the above post, could we upgrade the big lama using 4 channel 2.4Gz rx? Since its cheaper and available locally. I find the complete Esky tx and rx (2.4Gz) for only US$80.
From the pics, we knew that the big lama only using 4 channel instead of all 6.

Sorry I misunderstood you post when I said "probably" not...

I thought you were taking about using a Lama 4-in-1 and the reasons why putting Lama 4-in-1 in a bird with 2x 370 might be a problem is what I went onto talk about...

But if you have a 4 Channel receiver that is compatible with you radio then the answer is Maybe... or even probably! The only reason left as to why this might not work is the fact that the stock receiver might do some PCM mixing between the elevator and aileron channels. I don't know enough about the Honeybees and their setups to give a definative "yes" on this on but I reckon it would work...