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Model Forum / Radio Controlled / Helicopters / November 2008EFlite mCX
I have no experience with model helicopters. I am considering purchasing a EFlite mCx. I would appreciate any comments concerning this model. Thanks Fast Freddy > I have no experience with model helicopters. I am considering purchasing a > EFlite mCx. I would appreciate any comments concerning this model. > > Thanks > > Fast Freddy It is extremely stable; when it is properly trimmed, it will hover with no hands on the controller at all. My 8 year old grandson and even my wife (who has never flown *anything*) were able to fly it reasonably the first time out. After a bit, they were both able to fly it around the room and land reasonably. It is so light that even if it does crash, the likelihood is that nothing will break; I have had mine a couple of months and haven't replaced anything yet, not even a rotor blade. You really need to consider buying additional batteries. With only one battery, which comes with the mCX, you just start getting into it when you have to stop and re-charge. That is 6-8 minutes of flight time followed by 20-30 minutes charging. With multiple batteries, which cost about $11 each, you can switch off and have a lot more fun. Bottom line is that helicopters are much different than regular RC planes. They move in too darn many direction. However, the mCX is so stable that you will be able to deal with that issue and learn basic control movements in all directions. ** Posted from http://www.teranews.com ** Many thanks for the reply, Larry. Much appreciated. Fast Freddy >> I have no experience with model helicopters. I am considering purchasing a >> EFlite mCx. I would appreciate any comments concerning this model. [quoted text clipped - 22 lines] >control movements in all directions. >** Posted from http://www.teranews.com ** >I have no experience with model helicopters. I am considering purchasing a >EFlite mCx. I would appreciate any comments concerning this model. Love mine. I got the Bind 'n Fly version so I can use my existing transmitter (JR X9303) with it. Super easy to fly and will hover in the same general spot for ages - even if you put the transmitter down. Definitely pick up at least one spare battery tho. Thanks, "Other Kevin" for the reply Fast Freddie I am leaning toward buying this also but I would really like a real chopper with functional tail rotor and collective pitch but I can not find anything other than coaxial types in this size. Is there anything out there that I am missing? I want to fly in the house. js > I am leaning toward buying this also but I would really like a real > chopper with functional tail rotor and collective pitch but I can not > find anything other than coaxial types in this size. SRB Quark has tail, but is FP. But all people I know that have one, just love it. Other than that: The mCX is the most stable thing I ever flew. CU, Andy On Oct 31, 7:15 pm, Andreas Beck <becka-news- nospam-2008...@bedatec.de> wrote: > > I am leaning toward buying this also but I would really like a real > > chopper with functional tail rotor and collective pitch but I can not > > find anything other than coaxial types in this size. > > SRB Quark has tail, but is FP. What is "FP"? and while I am at it, ESC? However, looking at the Quark, it's bigger than the one I have which is a Blade Runner. I ended it up with the BR because of name confusion. I was told Blade was good stuff and thought the BR was it. What do people think of the BR? I think it's a bit over priced for what it does which is just flyable. Not much finesse. js > On Oct 31, 7:15 pm, Andreas Beck <becka-news- > nospam-2008...@bedatec.de> wrote: [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] >> SRB Quark has tail, but is FP. > What is "FP"? Fixed pitch. That is the main blades have a fixed angle of attack and gaining or loosing height is done by changing the rotational speed of the rotor. This usually means they are slower to react to user input and that you cannot do full 3D with them, as that would require negative angle of attack which cannot be done with a FP design (unless you run the motor backwards, which would mean having to stop it first ...). Usually KoAx Helicopters use that design. > and while I am at it, ESC? Electronic Speed Controller - the piece of electronics that drives the motor. > However, looking at the Quark, it's bigger than the one I have which > is a Blade Runner. Yeah. Depends on the size of your indoor space. CU, ANdy On Nov 1, 6:22 am, Andreas Beck <becka-news-nospam-2008...@bedatec.de> wrote: > Fixed pitch. That is the main blades have a fixed angle of attack and > gaining or loosing height is done by changing the rotational speed of > the rotor. Roger. > This usually means they are slower to react to user input and that you > cannot do full 3D with them.... That was going to be my next question... 3D? However, I now suspect that it means it can not fly sideways? The Blade Runner must be pointed into the direction of flight. Would this also be true of the mcx? > Electronic Speed Controller - the piece of electronics that drives the > motor. I presume they all have this by definition. Why is it listed as a feature on some spec sheets? js -- PHOTO OF THE WEEK: http://schmidling.com/pow.htm Astronomy, Beer, Cheese, Fiber,Gems, Sausage,Silver http://schmidling.com [snip] >> This usually means they are slower to react to user input and that you >> cannot do full 3D with them.... [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > > Would this also be true of the mcx? 3D basically means ability to fly in all directions in all orientations, including inverted. Not really possible with fixed pitch helis. The mCX comes with a 4 channel transmitter, or functions on 4 channels if you use your own transmitter. That means it can fly sideways; left stick is throttle (back and forth) and rotation (left and right) while the right stick is backward and forward flight (back and forth) and sideways flight (left and right). ** Posted from http://www.teranews.com ** > The mCX comes with a 4 channel transmitter, or functions on 4 channels > if you use your own transmitter. That means it can fly sideways; left > stick is throttle (back and forth) and rotation (left and right) while > the right stick is backward and forward flight (back and forth) and > sideways flight (left and right). How does is fly sideways if the rotors can't tilt? And are you saying that it can't do this with the transmitter supplied? js -- PHOTO OF THE WEEK: http://schmidling.com/pow.htm Astronomy, Beer, Cheese, Fiber,Gems, Sausage,Silver http://schmidling.com >> The mCX comes with a 4 channel transmitter, or functions on 4 channels >> if you use your own transmitter. That means it can fly sideways; left [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > PHOTO OF THE WEEK: http://schmidling.com/pow.htm > Astronomy, Beer, Cheese, Fiber,Gems, Sausage,Silver http://schmidling.com the rotor has to tilt to make the helicopter fly in any direction fixed pitch does not mean it cannot tilt, and it can fly sidewards with any transmitter  SignatureKevin R Reply address works >> The mCX comes with a 4 channel transmitter, or functions on 4 channels >> if you use your own transmitter. That means it can fly sideways; left [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > PHOTO OF THE WEEK: http://schmidling.com/pow.htm > Astronomy, Beer, Cheese, Fiber,Gems, Sausage,Silver http://schmidling.com Four channels are four channels, no matter what transmitter is used (as long as the transmitter is capable of four channels, as is the transmitter provided with the mCX Ready To Fly [see my message above]). The mCX can fly sideways, as I indicated above. SignatureLarry D. Farrell, Ph.D. Professor Emeritus of Microbiology Idaho State University ** Posted from http://www.teranews.com ** > I am leaning toward buying this also but I would really like a real > chopper with functional tail rotor and collective pitch but I can not [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > js I don't think there is a collective pitch heli in this small size. I have never seen any in all the Net reading I have done. There *are* non-coaxials in this size; Air Hogs has one that seems to be pretty much the standard for micro-helis, although there are scads of copies of various levels of capability (mostly worse, as far as I can tell). ** Posted from http://www.teranews.com ** > I am leaning toward buying this also but I would really like a real > chopper with functional tail rotor and collective pitch but I can not [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > js I'm a new at heli's too. I have a helimax axe cpl that I fly in the house. I just hover in the living room. If I had it to do over again I would of bought the falcon 3d, Because it comes with BL motor and it has bely drive tail rotor. o well >I am leaning toward buying this also but I would really like a real >chopper with functional tail rotor and collective pitch but I can not [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > >js The new Walkera 4#3 will be collective pitch and micro. The fixed pitch version is out right now. Not sure when the collective pitch version will be hitting the shelves. Just got my mcx and have a few questions. First of all, what is the rectangular button under the led on the transmitter? The manual stinks but what's new about that? The idea of using batteries to charge batteries can only appeal to the people who sell batteries. It seems obvious that I could wire a 6V wall wart to the battery terminals but with all the horror words about recharging lipos, I thought I would check first. Assuming I still have battery life but need a break, can I just set it down for an hour and come back and run it? Unplugging the battery all the time is a real pain. Can I turn off the transmitter and just turn it on again? The battery charger seems to have rather sophisticated electronics so why can't I just leave the battery in until I need it or at least for a few hours? On two occasions, the rotors would not turn and re-binding seemed to solve the problem. Is this typical? js -- PHOTO OF THE WEEK: http://schmidling.com/pow.htm Astronomy, Beer, Cheese, Fiber,Gems, Sausage,Silver http://schmidling.com > First of all, what is the rectangular button under the led on the > transmitter? Hmm - I fly it with my DX6i, so I can just guess, but it might be the binding button. Hold and turn on to bind the transmitter to a new receiver which is in bind mode. > The idea of using batteries to charge batteries can only appeal to the > people who sell batteries. > It seems obvious that I could wire a 6V wall wart to the battery > terminals but with all the horror words about recharging lipos, I > thought I would check first. Some people have done so and seem to be alive. However it is not as trivial as it may seem, as the charging LED gets its power from the second cell, so in addition to adding wiring a 6V source to the end terminals you have to add in some diodes in series to bridge the first cell. I personally will first analyze the electronics within it before attempting to do so, though. Some "chargers" use the internal resistance of the power source as charging current limiter, which is why the manuals even advise not to use NiCd or NiMH cells (as they have a very low internal resistance). > Assuming I still have battery life but need a break, can I just set it > down for an hour and come back and run it? Unplugging the battery all > the time is a real pain. I suppose it would eat quite a bit of battery. The LED alone will eat significant amounts of the mere 100mAh of the small LiPo. > Can I turn off the transmitter and just turn it on again? Should work. However one should not get into that habit with helicopters. 2.4GHz systems should safely go into failsafe. If you do that with 35MHz systems, you might find your model doing interesting aerobatics, as someone a mile away scanned the band and found "his" frequency free ... Or just because the receiver picked up some static ... > The battery charger seems to have rather sophisticated electronics so > why can't I just leave the battery in until I need it or at least for > a few hours? I think you can. At least I did. I suppose it will drain batteries a bit, though. > On two occasions, the rotors would not turn and re-binding seemed to > solve the problem. Is this typical? Maybe you did not leave the transmitter enough time to settle onto the two frequencies it picks on startup, so the heli goes into bind mode after 15s of not finding "his" transmitter. Same can happen if transmitter does not find proper frequencies or cannot radiate properly. People tell me you should hold up the transmitter for about 5-10 seconds after turning it on to give it a proper chance to scan the band. CU, Andy On Nov 7, 6:04 am, Andreas Beck <becka-news-nospam-2008...@bedatec.de> wrote: > Some people have done so and seem to be alive. However it is not as > trivial as it may seem, as the charging LED gets its power from the > second cell, so in addition to adding wiring a 6V source to the end > terminals you have to add in some diodes in series to bridge the > first cell. Glad I asked. The guy at Hobbyzone said no problem. I noticed the business about the second battery when putzing with it. I also notice the charging light goes on with no batteries as soon as I plug in the flight battery. This is most puzzling. > Some "chargers" use the internal resistance of the power source as > charging current limiter, which is why the manuals even advise not to > use NiCd or NiMH cells (as they have a very low internal resistance). The manual only says not use a NiCd or NiMH charger and says nothing about using them in the charger. This could be intentional or just Chinese English. One other thing I discovered last night is that after flying for what seems about the expected battery time, the led starts blinking in the heli. This could be a low voltage warning but the manual says nothing about it. Thanks for your help. js <SNIP> >One other thing I discovered last night is that after flying for what >seems about the expected battery time, the led starts blinking in the >heli. This could be a low voltage warning but the manual says nothing >about it. Hi Mine also does that - and at the same time, power to the motors is reduced as described in the manual, so the blinking is almost certainly a low voltage warning; possibly a modification added after the manual was printed?? Regards KGB >Just got my mcx and have a few questions. > >First of all, what is the rectangular button under the led on the >transmitter? I have the Bind 'n Fly version so I didn't get the Tx with mine, but my guess is it's the bind button. >The manual stinks but what's new about that? > [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >terminals but with all the horror words about recharging lipos, I >thought I would check first. There's a thread on helifreak.com with photos and detail on how to wire up a wall wart to the charger. >Assuming I still have battery life but need a break, can I just set it >down for an hour and come back and run it? Unplugging the battery all >the time is a real pain. >Can I turn off the transmitter and just turn it on again? Not a good idea to leave the heli energized and shut off the Tx regardless of whether it's a mCX or a Trex 600. ALWAYS power down the heli, then shut off the Tx. >The battery charger seems to have rather sophisticated electronics so >why can't I just leave the battery in until I need it or at least for >a few hours? Dunno. It only takes 20 mins to charge the batt.. I usually just haul the charger around with me until the light goes out. >On two occasions, the rotors would not turn and re-binding seemed to >solve the problem. Is this typical? Shoulnd't be. The manual does say to make sure the Tx is on for several seconds prior to powering up the heli and to not disturb the heli after the bett is plugged in. I turn on my Tx, count to 10 then connect the batt to the heli. After everything's initialized, I slip the battery in place and fly. |
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