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Raptor
50 review |
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<<<Updates at bottom>>> |
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 7-22-1 So far I
have 17 flights on my Raptor 50. I like it and I think
after I get the gyro just right and tune myself to the
flight characteristics then this will be my favorite
helicopter. The only thing bad about this machine is it
sucks fuel. I was only getting 6 minutes, but as the
engine settled in and I could lean it just a little I
then got a full 7 minutes. Still did not like that so I
added a 2 oz header tank. I could then fly until the main
tank was completely empty so that got me 8.5 minutes.
Then after more tweaking with the throttle curve and
cyclic mixing I now get 9.5 minutes. This however does
vary depending on how much time I spend doing 3D. I
usually spend the majority of the tank upstairs then
spend the last few minutes doing ground tricks. My times
have varied from 8 to 9.5 minutes. Still can't wait until
the larger TT PV0119 tank is available.Ok, enough about flight time... I like the way it flys. My configuration is: TT3807 conversion kit, OS 50SX-H engine, Gr8Lakes Custom 46 muffler, MS 600mm blades, and using the 8.5 gear ratio. The longer blades give it a more smooth flight. They also have a lot of authority in the air, the flip rate is quicker. It has a built-in expo feel to it. It's also quite because the engine runs at a lower speed. Operating in this section of the power curve took a little bit of getting used to for me. Until everything is setup just right there is a lot of variance in engine rpm that I'm not used to. While to some degree I can estimate the rotor rpm by sight, I tend to mostly listen to the engine to determine the rpm. In this case I greatly depended on the MA optical tachometer to help me get accustomed to the new rpm. It's odd to have the engine sound like it's at hover when it's really turning the rotor at 1800. I spend a lot of time on my helis tuning them for a constant rotor rpm. When setting the throttle curve, the concept is not to increase/decrease speed, but instead the goal is to increase/decrease torque to match the load demand. With my engine/gear ratio it made setting the throttle and cyclic mix a little more critical because of the section of the power curve I'm operating in. I tried a rotor rpm of 1900, 1800, and 1700 for flight mode 1. I settled on 1700 for the type of flying I do. I like smooth precision type flying and the 1900 made the cyclic control too sensitive. 1700 with cyclic to throttle mixing of 30% provided the right feel for me, plus it makes the flight time a little bit longer. Using an optical tach I was able to achieve zero rpm change from level flight to sideways rolls. For normal flight mode I settled on 1640. I haven't fully decided if I will stick with that. I might bring it down 20 or 30 rpm. |
| 7-28-1 I got to fly 10 tanks today. Finally got the gyro more under contol, still not great - the hugh torque from the OS 50 swings the tail. My gyro currently sux, I really need to get a Futaba GY401. Even just flying straight and level if I give left aileron, the nose torques to the left (I use cyclic to throttle mix). The nice thing about the OS 50 in this combination was being able to do any tricks I wanted without having to concentrate on whether or not I had enough power :) I could go from one trick to another without having to let the rpm catch back up. I was still in the 'dailing in' stage so there might be some stuff I would like to have more power, but as is I can do continuous flips, sideways rolls, backwards loops, all without running out of power. In the 30 configuration I could also do this, but if at any point during the trick I had too much pitch then it would bog a little and then not have enough power to go again. I did find that I had to decrease the cyclic to throttle mixing down to 24% otherwise the excess energy would raise the rpm. The idea is to keep a constant rpm during all maneuvers. I also found that when inverted that my rpm was too high. I tried decreasing the throttle at bottom and 1/4 stick but then my inverted climbout was not enough, so I had to get more pitch. I was already at 0 in the radio so I had to take adjust the long links on the rotor head to take away one degree from the top to give to the bottom. My pitch range went from +12/-9 to +11/-10. This provided the right feel for me. My current configuration shares some of the flight characteristics of the 60 (smooth controlled type of feel) but does not consume as much fuel and does not smoke like my 60 does. It does not have near as much power as my Raptor 60 with a Weston pipe, but it really seems more like a perfect balance, not under-powered, and not so powerful that it's wasting energy either :) I also really liked the quieter operation, this is another plus in my book. I'll fly a lot more Sunday and report back. |
7-29-1 The tail was still bothering me. I
experimented with different servo arm lengths today. I
ended up keeping the same length (12mm from center) and
found that my tail pitch arm needed about a 1/3 turn on
the slider to take out the small slop. To my surprise the
small slop in the tail was the cause of not giving a good
lock on the gyro. I know slop is bad but this was just a
small amount... Anyway the tail was now solid (well still
not as good as a Futaba GY401 but maybe I will spend the
money on one later, right now I got this one running good
enough). The tail problem was the only thing I had left
that I needed to fix to get a 'dailed in' feel to this
helicopter. By the 4th tank I had it going great. A storm
came up (with lightning) so I had to leave the field for
an hour and came back after we got some nice blue sky and
flew four more tanks and helped a couple of new pilots
also. Those last four tanks were great!!! I really got to
get back into my routine. This helicopter is really what
I want for the type of flying I do. I like to keep things
smooth and I need consistency so I can combine one trick
to another. The tracked-in feel really is nice and adds
to the total smoothness of this helicopter. The extra
power is nice, I really liked the hugh backwards loops :)
The 2oz header tank I use gives me a consistant flight
time of 8.5 minutes (this is flying until the header tank
is half full). Still can't wait for the larger main tank
(one more minute would be good), but for now it is fine.
A special note about the OS 50SX, you have to  cut a small
section in the main frames for the carb to clear. Click
on the picture to the right and you can see the frame is
cut by the low speed needle. An exacto knife will work
great for this. I really like the OS 50, the carb is
great, idle is so good you can leave it sitting for a
whole tank, and the mid-range and high end run great (note:
this is my experience when used with the Gr8Lakes Custom
46 muffler, other exhaust systems will be different). I
did have a rich spot at about 1/3 throttle until I
retuned the engine for the 90% carb limit that I descibe
below (on the 6-13-2 note). One thing to be aware of is
the throttle arm on the carb stuck twice on me. I had
landed and went to take off and had no throttle response.
I found that if you put in or out pressure on the carb
throttle arm when you rotate it, then it can get stuck
sometimes. I held the engine on it's side and put tri-flow
between the seem of the throttle arm and carb case and
worked the arm back/forth several times. I eventually
found this carb requires a  push-pull
throttle linkage setup.As for rpm, I run 1850 for idle
up and a little under 1600 for normal mode. For my final
throttle and pitch settings look at the bottom of this
page.
Check out my webpage on Raptor 30/50/60 comparison. |
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| 8-4-1 I changed the 1st and 2nd point in the normal throttle curve and the 2nd point in the idle up pitch curve and changed the chart above to have the new values. Finally got some wind this weekend. It handles good. I need some more time to get a better feel for how it compares, but so far it doesn't seem to get pushed around much. Not as good as the Raptor 60, but good. Everything about this helicopter seems to put it right in the middle of the Raptor 30 and 60. This is my favorite configuration... at least until my 60 puts out less smoke and is quieter :) I've probably mentioned it too many times already, but I just can't get over how good the OS 50sx runs. No more rich idle's and great mid and top end, this is with the Gr8Lakes muffler. My OS 61 on my Raptor 60 I had to have the idle rich to get the mid and top end right just like on my Leo 37 with Weston pipe, but after I put a 60 Weston on it, the engine really became smooth with great reliable idle and tons of power on the top end. So in case you don't know by now, the muffler/pipe you choose has a lot to do with how well the engine runs. My good friend Bob Botnick suggested to me that the throttle arm may need a push/pull setup to stop sticking. That is a good idea, in fact that is how the OS 50 instructions show to hook it up. I have checked and a 2nd rod can be added, but the bundle of servo wires I have would have to be moved. I'm not sure if I will add this since I did not have any problems today, I figure it just needed to get worn in a little. I got an email from Jeff Torsrud saying he uses the 3oz round KSJ header tank to get a little more flight time. The one I have now is a 2oz, the extra ounce would be nice, especially in combination with the larger TT main tank. This is an 11oz tank and I just found out HeliHut has them now. |
| 8-5-1 Ok, I said 'final' throttle pitch settings before, but I changed them a little again. Just some minor adjustments. I put the new values in the chart above.and in the configuration page for Raptor #1. There was a 15mph wind with gust of about 25mph at the field today. It really handled better then the 30 configuration. Not sure if it's because of the little extra weight or the longer blades. Didn't have any pitchy characteristics. If I haven't said it enough times already, this is my favorite helicopter :) |
 8-9-1 Well when I
say 'final' throttle/pitch settings I really mean the
settings at the end of the day :) hahaha I'm trying
diffent values and it will probably be another gallon
before I get to a set of values that I don't change (or
at least hardly change :). I'm trying different rpms and
curves to get the best feel in calm/windy/hot conditions
so it will be a little while before I get settled-in. I
did install the new TT PV0119 11oz (330cc) tank. With it,
I get the same flight time as with my 2oz header tank.The
tank sticks out the back a lot further. It makes it
really easy to tell the fuel level. |
| 8-10-1 Got to fly 4 tanks after work today. I've really got my throttle/pitch curve just the way I want it. The larger tank gives me between 9 and 9.5 minutes. I'm guessing I have an ounce left in the tank when I land so that would mean I use 10 ounces per flight so that would give me about 1.1oz per minute. |
8-11-1 Flew 8 tanks today. I started a 9th tank, but
a few minutes into the flight I saw a lightning streak
from the upcoming storm so I landed. I was having a lot
of fun and didn't really want to stop especially since
the helicopter was running so good. I changed the 3/4
point in the idle up pitch curve from 65 to 68 and
increased the aileron to throttle mix by 4 points. The
new settings are listed below and I have changed them in
the above table and in the Configuration page for this
helicopter. Also I'm running a head speed in idle up of
about 1800 to 1850. I'll have to wait until someone else
shows up at the field to get them to tach it. It's been
so hot the past many weeks that nobody has shown up to
the field... well except me :)
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8-12-1 Got 9 flights in today, I've been noticing
some inconsistancy in my engine settings. I'm suspecting
that there is not enough air flow from the fan, but I
have not ruled out bad settings (engine/radio). I re-installed
the header tank in case the clunk was getting bounced
around and picking up air but that did not change
anything. I went ahead and left the header tank on
because I like the extra flight time (11 minutes). I'm
having trouble keeping the rpm down to 1750, more speed
then that and the gyro does not like it. The gyro lets
the tail move when going from negative to positive pitch.
When the engine is running too fast it seems like there
is too much torque for the gyro to keep up. I will figure
this out and keep this page updated.
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| 8-13-1 Engine was consistant today, but my gyro is not staying locked in. When I'm descending backwards and down then go to the positive pitch range as I enter a backwards loop, then tail will move a few degrees and not be in center. So if I don't add a small amount of right rudder as I move the stick from negative pitch to positive pitch then the loop will be all crooked. I'm going to work on taking out any slack in the tail control, 627 flights seems to have worn out something :) |
| 8-25-1 My Raptor 50 is running great! Especially with
the SAB 600mm fiberglass blades. If you're not using
these blades then you must not have tried them. Once you
put a set on you won't take them off :) The MS carbon
blades I had were great but these SAB's fly better and
auto a lot better then the MS blades. They have a more 60
feel to them and while the MS blades are smooth, these
are smooth and are very authoritive. As an example when
you are setting up for a stall turn, the forward flight
is very smooth and tracks great, but when you pull back
on the elevator the helicopter gets to the vertical part
quickly (yet smoothly) instead of 'slipping' through the
air as it transitions into the vertical part. The result
is that you have a higher climb in the vertical because
you didn't waste much of the motion in the transistion.
The MS blades are very quiet, the SAB's have a swishhhh
sound to them. Although the black carbon MS blades look
very kewel, the slick white finish have the advantage
that they can actually be seen in the air. And did I
mention the price, the MS blades cost me $85 USD while
the SAB's cost $56 USD from YNT uDesign. Fly
better, auto much better, and cost less.... SAB's = best
buy! BTW: I had not flown my Raptor 30 in a month. I got it out earlier this week and flew it a few times. I used to think it flew great, but compared to my 50 it lacks a little. The 50 has more power, is more stable in flight and windy conditions, engine runs much better, and the 50 (with 600mm blades) autos a lot better. I'm hooked on my Raptor 50 <grin> I've done some slight changes to the throttle/pitch curves, here are the current settings. I have refined this enough that these will probably be my final settings if not very close to them.
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9-5-1 I really like my Raptor 50, here are the
current settings.
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| 9-8-1 After the 6th flight, the noise from a bad bearing in the OS 50 got a little louder. I took the engine out and will send it off Monday to be repair. I would replace the bearings myself, but this engine is only a little over a month old (about 152 flights). I'm really going to miss flying my Raptor 50 :-(... |
9-20-1 I really like this new gy401/9253
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10-10-1 Latest settings. I have not changed the
settings in many flights so this will probably be the
final setting... as least as final as it gets :) hahaha
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12-20-1 Latest settings. Either due to the engine
being fully broke in or the winter weather, the engine is
producing a lot of power (more then before) and is
running very smoothly. I have had to make some small
changes to the throttle curve and to the cyclic mixing.
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2-20-2 Latest settings. This engine is really
producing good power. I have decreased my throttle again
to keep the rpms down. I try to run about 1850 for 3D
flying and 1600 for normal mode. The trend with r/c heli
engines is to use larger engines (50's in a 30 size heli
and 90's in a 60 size heli) running lower rpms. I work
off the torque properties of my engine instead of the
speed. The torque of an engine is more important for
keeping constant rotor rpm especially with some of the
high load maneuvers these days.
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| 6-13-2 About a month ago I made a change that now has my throttle curve using 100% as opposed to the 90% configuration before. Note: What follows is my experience with my specific OS 50 engine. I do not know of other OS 50 engines have the same characteristic as mine.
My engine had been running fairly good before however
I never felt like I had it as good as I did my Leo 37
engine on a Weston pipe. Not talking power wise, just
talking about consistency (matching power versus load).
Anyway a few weeks ago I decided to investigate a
behavior that my observation over the past few months
allowed me to see. I had found back when I got the
engine, that 90% at the top of my throttle curve was what
I had to use to keep it from overspeeding. I just thought
of this as being a sign of a very strong engine. In the
meantime many others reported they also ran 90%. What I
observed is a little complex to describe in words, but
the end result seems to be a flaw* in the carb design. If
you adjust the top end correctly then you end up with a
lean spot at 3/4 carb opening. It's not a lot but it is
enough to keep me from maintaining a perfect constant
head speed. My trick was to richen the top end to match
up the 3/4 all the way down. This caused the top 10% to
be too rich, just the very top 10% which is a little
unusual. So with cyclic to throttle mixing, instead of it
giving more power I would end up with less power. To fix
this I adjusted the linkage/atv's so the arm never went
past 90% carb opening.So now I run 100% on top throttle
curve and the cyclic mixing has no problem. |
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