Paul Tradelius’s Blog

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Ground effect: is it real?

Jun 09, 2014 5 Comments

When a helicopter is hovering at a height that’s approximately less than the diameter of one rotor disc, it really does encounter “ground effect.” This is because the downwash velocity created by the rotor blades can’t be fully developed because the helicopter is so close to the ground, so the helicopter rests on a “bubble” […]

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THROTTLE SERVO SETUP TIPS

May 27, 2014 1 Comment

Starting with the throttle, let’s first take a look at the servo. There are those pilots who believe the throttle servo should be just as fast and powerful as those used on the swashplate so rapid throttle changes can be made for 3D flying. However, I am not of this belief for the following reasons. […]

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Futaba T10J Radio

May 12, 2014 1 Comment

The T10J radio is the latest from Futaba and features a full 10 channels with 30 model memory, and is fully programmable and updateable by the user. Real time telemetry data for transmitter and onboard voltage, temperature, RPM and GPS location can be viewed on the backlit LCD screen, and audibly reported through headphones when […]

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The Nine Eagles Solo Pro 290 Lama Helicopter

May 09, 2014 3 Comments

The Nine Eagles Solo Pro 290 Lama from Tower Hobbies is a highly detailed, and ready to fly, replica of the Aérospatiale SA-315 Lama, a French utility helicopter for both civilian and military uses. Available in both a ready-to-fly and TR (Transmitter-Ready) version, great care was taken to recreate many of the full-scale features, such […]

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Gas O.S. Engine Revisited

Apr 23, 2014 1 Comment

Until now, gas engines have not been designed for RC helicopter use, and have therefore they have been almost impossible to mount in a helicopter. And they have not come with the needed muffler system to extract maximum power, and they produced a lot of vibration because they were unbalanced. The folks at O.S. have […]

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First-Flight Checklist

Apr 01, 2014 Comments Off on First-Flight Checklist

• Initial test flights should be limited to hovering and very mild maneuvering. During this time check for proper blade tracking and any signs of vibration. Minor changes to the control linkages will bring the blades in track. Foam in the fuel tank could be an indication of an engine misalignment, while vibration in the […]

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Pro Hovering Tips & Tricks

Feb 05, 2014 2 Comments

One of the problems very common in hovering (as well as when learning to fly formation in full-scale airplanes) is that the pilot does not notice the need for a correction until the helicopter has moved, and then an over-correction is required. As an example, let’s compare two identical helicopters in a hover: one flown […]

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Curtis Youngblood’s Aerobatic Stingray

Dec 12, 2013 Comments Off on Curtis Youngblood’s Aerobatic Stingray

Quad copters have always been known for their stability as an in-flight camera platform, but have lacked aerobatic capabilities because of their fixed pitch rotor system. However, Curtis Youngblood has changed all that with his new Stingray fully aerobatic Quad Copter with collective pitch. I was fortunate to see this fly at the Orlando Heli […]

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The Heli-Max Digital Pitch Gauge

Nov 14, 2013 Comments Off on The Heli-Max Digital Pitch Gauge

The Digital Pitch Gauge by Heli-Max is designed to measure the pitch angle of both the main and tail rotor blades. In fact I don’t know of any other pitch gauge on the market that can be used on the tail rotor blades. This is a first. And, as you can see in the photo, […]

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Installing a Rubber Canopy Grommet

Oct 09, 2013 1 Comment

Almost every helicopter uses rubber grommets to soft mount the canopy to the helicopter structure. Installing these rubber grommets to the canopy seems like a very straightforward task, but some techniques just work better than others. Over the years this is the technique that I have developed, and I hope it’s of help to you. […]

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The Nozarossi REX 57 Heli Engine

Sep 16, 2013 Comments Off on The Nozarossi REX 57 Heli Engine

Novarossi engines were developed in Italy in the early 60’s and are the leaders in almost all speed categories for airplanes, boats and cars. Although designed for max performance, their 3-needle carburetors provide an excellent idle and transition to a mid-range for hovering and normal flight. Shown here is their 57 Novarossi REX Helicopter Engine […]

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Flying Safety Is No Accident

Sep 14, 2013 2 Comments

Every helicopter comes with a warning that this is not a toy. That it can cause serious injury, or even death. Unfortunately this is exactly what happened a few months ago when a helicopter went out of control and struck the pilot. I don’t know the exact circumstances of this tragic accident,. but helicopter design […]

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pault

About the author

A regular contributor to Model Airplane News, he is also the columnist for our “Rotor Speed” helicopter column. Paul has been flying RC helicopters since the early ‘80s and now enjoys all types of rotary machines, including scale and aerobatics, and he continues to experiment with modifications to improve performance.

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