Radio Control Helicopters - 2009/11

November 2009 121
THANK YOU fOR visiting the helicopter column this month. I
am writing this before heading out the door for the biggest
helicopter adventure in all the land. That sounds like some kind of
fairy tail, doesn’t it? Well, it’s more than that; it’s real and it’s the
IRCHA Jamboree at AMA’s International Aeromodeling Center.
IRCHA stands for the International Radio Controlled
Helicopter Association, and the Jamboree is the annual event held
in Muncie, Indiana. I’ll have more about this spectacular event in
the next issue.
Meanwhile, outdoor flying is winding down for Northerners,
while things are
heating up in
anticipation of a big
indoor season.
Designers have
been hard at work,
figuring out ways to
extract more
Helicopter events in Hoosier country
[[email protected]]
Radio Control Helicopters Mark Fadely
Also included in this column:
• Skydiving from a helicopter
• Airtronics SD-10G at the field
Jim Stark gives a seminar on how to hold an umbrella while eating
a cheeseburger. This was the first time for rain during the day at
the Hoosier Heli Rumble.
Tyler Lovell (Chicago IL) hovers his Next
D Rave 450, using the new feature-laden
Airtronics SD-10G. The radio is available
at an attractive price.
Mika Woodward’s scale, gasoline-powered Bell 47 looks like it’s in a scene from
M*A*S*H. Its scale details are fabulous. The wounded infantrymen even have torn,
bloody bandages flapping in the wind as the helicopter returns to base.
The Indy Helis crew (L-R): Wayne Mason (Louisville KY), Mike
Woodward (Plainfield IN), Kerry Muncy (Mooresville IN). They
had competed in the Nats only hours before this shot.
performance from our models.
This has been an incredible year of progress for our sport.
Excellent new products and devices have come to market,
mirroring the previous years’ advancements. More emphasis than
ever is being placed on the smaller machines. The 250-size
electric helicopters appeal to many fliers, so a few companies are
diving into that market.
Good things are happening in many areas of our hobby. Only a
short time ago, 2.4 GHz technology was introduced for our radio
systems. Now when you go to the flying field, very few 72 MHz
units are in use.
The helicopter pilots move fast on new technology. And to put
some icing on an already delicious offering of electronics, the
prices of popular transmitters have been dropping.
Hoosier Heli Rumble: The weekend of July 10-12, 2009, I
attended the Hoosier Heli Rumble fun-fly in Lafayette, Indiana.
This is one of the most relaxed gatherings of the season. Erik
11sig4.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 9/24/09 4:50 PM Page 121
Anderson and Corben Meyer organized it
this year.
Many Midwestern pilots look forward
to this get-together all year. The flying
field is excellent and the focus is on fun.
We had a bit of rain on Saturday, but those
present found ways to enjoy.
Jared Granzow, an XFC (Extreme
Flight Championships) veteran, brought a
cool little RC skydiver that he named
“Charlie.” We all took turns dropping
Charlie from altitude.
One pilot “flies” the skydiver after it is
released from the helicopter. Charlie’s
arms (for steering) and chute deployment
are controllable via RC. It was fun to see
how long you could let the figure drop
before pulling the “rip cord.” One time,
Jared had just gotten the chute open when
Charlie piled into the paved runway.
Another highlight of the Rumble was
the military scale presence. The guys from
Indy Helis showed up in force, to entertain
the crowd with their large-scale warbirds.
Kerry Muncy and Wayne Mason
brought AH-64 Apaches, and Mika
Woodward had a beautiful Bell 47. They
were fresh off of competing at the Nats in
Muncie.
I have written about how scale RC
helicopters have been increasing in
popularity in the last few years. There are
many options if you want to outfit your
pod-and-boom machine with a nice scale
fuselage.
The Indy boys bring out some highdollar,
heavy hardware, but anyone can get
into the scale scene with a minimal
budget. It is
amazing how many
scale bodies there
are for even 450-
size electric
helicopters today.
Mike King
rode with Jared
Granzow to the
Rumble and put on
quite a show with
Sorry, Charlie! Jared Granzow’s radio-controlled RC skydiver at
the Hoosier Heli Rumble. Arms and chute deployment can be
controlled by a designated transmitter.
Mike King (Columbus OH) showed Rumble attendees what the TRex
700 can do. His technical 3-D maneuvers were the envy of
many pilots.
Anderson and Corben Meyer organized it
this year.
Many Midwestern pilots look forward
to this get-together all year. The flying
field is excellent and the focus is on fun.
We had a bit of rain on Saturday, but those
present found ways to enjoy.
Jared Granzow, an XFC (Extreme
Flight Championships) veteran, brought a
cool little RC skydiver that he named
“Charlie.” We all took turns dropping
Charlie from altitude.
One pilot “flies” the skydiver after it is
released from the helicopter. Charlie’s
arms (for steering) and chute deployment
are controllable via RC. It was fun to see
how long you could let the figure drop
before pulling the “rip cord.” One time,
his nitro-powered T-Rex 700. Mike has
been flying helicopters for several years
but has not been able to attend many
shows because of his busy family
schedule. He has two young children and a
wife that are more important than
helicopters. At least that is what he tells
us. Ha! Ha!
Balancing your job, family, and dearest
helicopters can be stressful at times. Mike
obviously has it figured out, though. He
flew some incredible routines that
included pirouetting funnels, pogos, low
tic-tocs while pirouetting, and a host of
other high-level maneuvers. I was
surprised by how much he had advanced
since I last saw him fly.
Mike explained that he is an avid
simulator user. You can’t underestimate
the benefits of disciplined simulator use.
Mike also helped Jared Granzow, by
launching the skydiver from his helicopter.
Tyler Lovell was at the fun-fly too. He
lives in Chicago, Illinois, where he does
much of his flying in cold and windy
weather.
Tyler was excited to show me the new
radio he has been using. He brought the
transmitter to me and was flipping
switches and pushing buttons like a space
shuttle pilot. I asked him to write down the
features of this new radio. He gave me the
following.
“Airtronics/Sanwa have released the
new SD-10G radio, which is distributed by
Global Hobby. With a street price of $499
this fully featured 10-channel radio and
FHSS3 receiver bring a new level of value
to the market.
“Following the footsteps of the
legendary Stylus, the SD-10G offers
tremendous programming flexibility, yet it
is very intuitive and simple to program.
The menu system itself is customizable by
the end user.
“This is the first Airtronics radio that
will be software upgradeable by the
customer via USB interface. Currently, the
onboard software allows stick calibration,
stick mode selection, channel mapping,
assignability for every switch, button,
knob, and rotary trim.
“Every switch is a three position
switch. Any function can be assigned to
any switch, and switch functions can be
assigned to the ball bearing supported
gimbal sticks, such as starting a timer with
the throttle stick and pausing the timer
with throttle hold.
“The SD-10G can store 20 models
using internal memory and another 20 via
optional external memory. Three favorite
models can be assigned to the instant
access buttons on the face of the radio to
simplify selecting these aircraft. All data
can also be transferred to a computer.
“For helicopter pilots, the SD-10G
provides advanced eCCPM programming
and servo control. A dedicated gyro and
governor function allow three separate
gain settings for each of the five available
flight modes. Flight modes can be named
and copied to speed up programming. Most
importantly, helicopter pilots will appreciate
the unmatched speed of the true frequency
hopping spread spectrum, FHSS3 system.
“Every channel is updated on every
single frame, thus reducing eCCPM
interaction, averaging only 11.83 ms for all
10 channels simultaneously. The SD-10G is
a dedicated 2.4 GHz system with no
modules.
“The antenna is retractable and foldable
to provide long range and easy storage, and
the radio balances perfectly on a neck strap
without an adapter. A high capacity NiMh
battery is included, yet the SD-10G is ready
to accept a 2-cell Li-Poly battery.
“Airtronics offers a complete line up of
affordable receivers with six, seven, eight,
and 10 channel versions. The receivers will
operate at low voltages so brownouts cannot
occur. No upgrades are needed to operate
with carbon airframes or fuselages.”
Thanks for explaining that, Tyler! It does
look like many features for the money.
Futaba has lowered prices on some of its
popular radios and offers a cool trade-up
program. JR and Spektrum have been
stepping up their lines with revisions and
competitively priced radios for specific
helicopter markets. As I have written in
previous columns, it is a great time to be
flying helicopters.
Thanks for reading this month. Check
back in the next issue. MA
Sources:
IRCHA
www.ircha.org
Indy Helis
(317) 831-1665
www.indyhelis.com
Airtronics
(714) 963-0329
www.airtronics.net