Australian RC Forums banner

Gasser Heli selection advice

30K views 68 replies 6 participants last post by  r2160 
#1 ·
Hi Folks, :)

I'm interested in purchasing and building a gasser heli as my next machine and would appreciate any advice on selection.
From what I have read on the web the Spectra-G and the Century Predator seem to be most talked about.
What are your opinions based on ownership of gasser helis regarding setup cost, availabiliity and cost of parts, heli maintenance, Australian distributors and of course stability and flying?

I have also had a look at the range of Zenoah Hanson Modified engines and the (3) available don't seem to have alot of difference in cost, would the 3D-Max Heli be an over-kill for sport flying, or is it best to have the power and performance in hand?
Is the Century Gas Torpedo V3 Tuned Muffler a good match for this engine?

Any constructive advice would be appreciated from gasser owners.

Regards
Wing_Nut1960 :thumb:
 
#2 ·
Hey WN,

Welcome to AUSRC.COM.

The Spectra G is the only choice in my opinion. Wait for Peter to come online and I am sure he will be happy to help. He has three "G"s at last count.

I will be hooking into a "G" shortly. They are an incredibly capable machine, that flys beautifully. They 3D pretty well too.

Miniature Aircraft is a superb manufacturer, so it is hard to go wrong.

Regards,
Chris.
 
#3 · (Edited)
As Chris has said , Hi and welcome..

I'm sorta a tad biased towards Miniature Aircraft products ; I've been flying them since 1988 , with some other brands in my fleet at times, but now all I have is MA helis.....

If you can get to QRCHA's Gold Coast field this Friday or Sunday , and you fly Mode 1, you can try a couple of my Spectra G's out ,( once I'm assured you can fly OK !! ) I have a Hanson 26 in one , a TRM231 in one , and a std Zenoah 231 in another .. the 26 def has more poke , but all fly great!

I have Century mufflers on mine , but might try a Zimmerman next......

They cost , to buy/setup , about the same as a high quality 90 size heli , but fuel costs are miniscule! 20+ minutes from a 500ml tank, at around $1.20 a litre .. My 90 nitro Stratus's get around 11mins , at $9 a litre...:(

Kits , and parts , are available from Glenn at RCHeliworld in Sydney, he has most parts in stock .

The Predator also flys very well , indeed , it's the only brand I'd swap too , should MA ever stop making helis!!. theres a 2nd hand one here for sale atm , its a great deal too .. It might be here on Sunday if you're interested .. They are supported out of Sydney too ....

BTW , there's also a Miniature Aircraft 1005 Gasser for sale in Brisbane with one of our members; makes a great sports flyer , has a 26 ( almost new ) in it too ....

Either way , a gasser is a great choice :):)


Hope to see you Sunday ..
 
#4 ·
Thanks for your opinions,
I was swaying towards the MA Spectra-G, but I wanted to see what others were flying to make sure I could at least get some local help if required.
I just got a response back from Al Chianelli from B.H. Hanson Products in regards to the 3D-Max Heli engine, Century Gas Torpedo V3 Tuned Muffler and postage to OZ, (THE EXCHANGE RATE IS KILLING ME) :(:( .
AUD $1022.00, I might need to wait a bit keep saving and see if the $ recovers some.

Thanks for the invite to the QRCHA's Gold Coast field, I will definately take you up on it in the future, probably on a Sunday which is the day I normally get to fly.
BTW where is your field situated?

Thanks again!!:)
Regards
Kelvin
 
#5 ·
hi Kelvin , the field is on the Nerang-Murwillumbah rd, about 600m past the Springbrook turnoff, on the right.. Theres a QRCHA sign there. A google earth piccy thingo is on our website at www.qrcha.com ...

Call me on 0428717629 for any more info..

BTW , do you fly a heli atm ? what have you got , and what sort of pilot are you ? And if you know Brian Stenhouse , tell him he's way overdue for a visit here too !

You'll be welcome any sunday , but the plankers have the field on Feb 8th though ...
 
#6 · (Edited)
Thanks Peter for your welcome and willingness to provide advice and information. If you are anything to go by it must be a great club and a must to get there and meet yourself and others.

I currently have (5) helicopters, both nitro and electric
  • T-Rex 250
  • T-Rex 450 SE V2
  • NextD Rave 450
  • T-Rex 600 Electric
  • Raptor 90SE
I am a sports flyer and mostly fly the T-Rex 450 & 600. The Raptor has given me engine tuning problems which has been frustrating. I currently have someone trying to tune it for me so I can get some air time on it before I put on a Hughes 500MD Scale Fuselage which I'm looking forward to. The NextD Rave is new and with the standard Scorpion 6 motor it is balistic and for my requirements needs to be tamed down so I'm going to change the motor to the Scorpion 8 and hope this makes it much more comfortable for my flying level and ability.

I try to fly every Sunday 6-8 flights unless it's raining or blowing a gail. As far as my flying ability, I'm a sports flyer and never intend to do 3D flying, I am very comfortable flying circuits and figure 8's either direction, stall turns, nose in hovering and all other upright orientations. I have introduced negative pitch to my heli's so that I can start to practice autos and work towards rolls and loops. It would be great to have assistance to tackle a roll and loop for the first time especially for radio setup and maybe buddybox.

I am self taught being a former fixed wing flyer which I still keep my hand in along with the use of a flight simulator. I am currently practicing inverted hovering on the flight sim and doing much better than I expected I would, probably because of the many hours I spent in hover practice before I got up the guts to go into forward flight which was one of my highlights in heli flying.

I fly Mode 1 (throttle/aileron - right, elevator/rudder - left) taken from fixed wing days. Most of my helis are flown using 2.4GhZ with the JR 9303 with the exception of the Raptor, I use the JR X3810.

I currently belong to our local club at GlenEagles in Beaudesert being a founding member, the club has been running now a little over 1 year with about 13 current members and we fly on a turf farm.

That pretty much sums me up.
 
#7 ·
We'd love to see you anytime at the jungle , as QRCHA's Gold Coast field is known , the sooner the better would be great!! Should be able to sort the Rappy 90 out for you too.

I'm a JR person too , as are the majority of the flyers here ;well Jr and Spektrum anyway , a few pootaba's surface at times!

No probs coaching you through a few basic aeros etc , and I love autoes; prob do 20 autos for every powered landing. I'm a MAAA heli , and fixed wing , Instructor too , so bronze/gold wings tests/coaching happens a lot here ...

CYA this Sunday ??? :thumb::thumb:
 
#8 ·
Hi Peter, I will get to the so called jungle soon, I'm planning on coming along the Sunday after next (15th Feb) as I have already committed myself for the next (2) Sundays. I checked it out on Google Earth and Whereis and it's approximately 1 hr travel time from my place.

I spoke to the guy that is trying to tune the Rappy 90 today and he hasn't had any luck yet. Tommorrow he is going to by-pass the pump and see if this helps the situation, the motor is the OS91 SZH w/pump. It has been trouble right from the start and makes me appreciate electric helis more and more each time I think about the trouble its been.

I might bring a flying friend along and I'll see you in a couple of weeks.

Cheers ! ! :)
Kelvin
 
#9 ·
Sounds good to me! friends are welcome too..:thumb:


I've got a couple of SZH ps motors, and a couple of unpumped ones too, can't remember the needle settings , but I know they are nothing like the OS instructions state!!
If he bypasses the pump , he'll have to remove the pressure reg as well, it does all sorts of funnies with low ( muffler only) pressure!!


Looking forward to catching up ..

now just need to get Chris , AUSRC , to get his act together.........;);)
 
#10 ·
Yep there sure is always plenty of help on hand at the jungle.
If you make the effort to come down you wont regret it. Me and Daz make the trip north about once a month. Takes us about 1hr 15min from here.

If you still want to get a gasser I would get the centry. There is already way to many MA machines around these parts already:D:D

Hope to see you at the jungle soon.
 
#11 ·
Hey Glen, Given that 1 Miniature Aircraft heli = 12,345,765 Tiawanese junk machines in terms of goodness, I can't see why you persevere with those machines you have..:bang: Although maybe some of the goodness from Daz's Stratus attaches itself to the Queen while they are in the car together on the way up here regularly!!!!:D

Again , as is almost the norm , MA helis outnumbered the rest at the jungle today!!!!!

;);)
 
#12 ·
Hmmm..... I would love to have a come back for that Pete but I think you might be right.

The Queen has a new cluch in her now so will have to see how she goes on the weekend befor I make any stupid desions like selling her for an MA machine.
 
#14 ·
Hi Guys, I don't want to incite heli brand rage...:bang:, luckily it just seems to be innocent tongue in cheek fun.

I'm sure they're all good helis, its just some are better than others :D:D!

Peter I haven't had an update on the engine tunning yet, but I'll pass on your suggestion about the pressure reg. No engine should be this hard to tune, maybe its faulty. It always starts without problems, idols well, but the transition through mid stick to hover it turns to s**t.

The Rappy 90 is a robust chopper and I wish the engine could be sorted out so that I could appreciate it and enjoy some stick time with it. Maybe I could convert it to a Gasser if all else fails with the engine :thumb:

Cheers
Kelvin
 
#15 ·
It is all in fun .. Wait till you visit and listen to the banter!!!!


Try screwing the mid range needle ; the short one ; all the way in , then open it 2 clicks , and try that ....Mine are set that way , as are most others ; think my main needles are at around 1.5 turns open .. Thats with 20%N , 20% oil , fuel , enya 3 plug ....


There is a gasser conversion kit for the R90, but it ends up a very heavy heli!!!
 
#16 ·
Nah its all in good fun Kevin. As Pete said the BS can fly fairly fast at the j
Jungle some times:tongue1:

I too have had a lot of trouble getting my 91 pumped runnig right but with Pete's help I think we have solved the tuning problems. Just need to fix the Tiawanese problems now.

When you come down to the Jungle for a fly Im sure Pete and the guys will be able to get you sorted in no time.

Cheers
 
#17 ·
Thanks guys for your suggestions and offers of support in trying to solve the tuning problems. I'll definately bring it along to the jungle when I come if the issue hasn't been resolved and I have the heli back.
From the sounds of it there is alot of expertise at hand to assist. At our club there are only (2) heli flyers and we have basically taken the journey together and supported and helped each other out. It would be great to have access to a broader range of people at various levels of skill and experience.

Looking forward to getting to the field :thumb::thumb:

Cheers
Kelvin
 
#18 ·
Hey wingnut

I would be very surprised if it was a pump problem. When OS went to the SZ motors, they used the same kind of pump that the pattern guys have been using forever. I would suggest that it is more a glow plug/tuning problem than the pump.

Maybe go for a wander down the jungle and see what happens. Maybe even try some different fuel.

cheers
Glenn
 
#19 ·
Thanks Glenn,
I've left it to some experts who have been trying all kinds of combinations with fuel, plugs and tuning, so as a last resort its bypass the pump and regulator to see if this solves the issue. Hopefully I should know very soon as they have ordered a part for the carby after the regulator was removed and are now waiting for delivery, so fingers crossed. :thumb:

Cheers
Kelvin
 
#20 ·
Gasser Engine selection.

Hi Guys :),
What are the recommendations for engines for the Spectra-G?
My flying style would be classed as "Sports flying" so 3D will not be part of my repetoire.
I spoke with Glenn from R/C Heliworld and he suggested that the standard Zenoah would be satisfactory for my intended use.

This is a link to a Zenoah G260PUH G26 Heli Engine on ebay from Dave's Discount Motors. Is this the standard Zenoah Heli Engine?

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=230287501562&ssPageName=ADME:B:WNASIF:AU:1123

I thought if I purchased a modified Zenoah it might be a smoother running motor and give better overall performance.

Looking forward to what you all think.

Cheers :thumb::thumb:,
Kelvin
 
#21 ·
Raptor is back

Hi Guys,
I finally got the Raptor 90 back and in running condition, so all I need is time on the sticks to get used to the larger machine.
I can now run a full tank of gas through it without the engine cutting out and the transition into hover is now satisfactory.

The engine is still very rich as oil drips from the exhaust and there is still alot of smoke, so further tuning will be required. I have adjusted the needles a bit to lean it out but it seems to be in a stable spot and adjustments seem to upset it.

I just managed to buy some enya No3 plugs from ModelFlight as they weren't available locally, I was told by a LHS that Enya were not going to continue to produce glow plugs so if this can be confirmed you may want to stock up.
I haven't tried the new plug yet as the weather hasn't been king enough to get to a field.
I think I will bring it down to the jungle to some of you experienced guys and seek some help to get it right.

Cheers,
Kelvin
 
#22 ·
Spectra-G Head Selection

Hi Guys,
What are the current opinions on the (2) different heads for the Spectra-G, Tempest or Extreme?
I haven't managed to find much information on these heads to determine what is the real difference between the two.

Any advice or opinions would be appreciated.

Cheers,
Kelvin
 
#23 · (Edited)
the std 26 , as in that link , can be a bit shakey ; the std 231puh , also listed at DDM , is much smoother , and will have more than enough power for what you want..

Easy fix for the vibes in a 26 is to remove some weight off the piston to make it the same weight as the 231 piston ..


I'll have 2 of my G's at the jungle tomorrow, rain or not!!! a std 231 and a TRM 231... Extreme head on one , Tempest on the other ....
 
#24 ·
Hi Peter,
Thanks for your response, unfortunatey I went out yesterday arvo and didn't get home til late so I didn't see your response about being at the jungle today with your G's, dam :bang:.

Will there be flying on "Good Friday", if so will you be there again and would the G's be present?

I had sucess today with the Rappy using the Enya#3 plug, what a difference, I was able to tune the mid range down to (6) clicks out over (4) tanks before I ran out of fuel. All I need now is a bit of fine tuning to get the best performance and setup the radio and heli for scale flying.

Hope to get to the jungle again real soon.

Regards,
Kelvin
 
#25 ·
We surely will be there this Friday, I could probably force myself to have the G's in attendance too ...

Pleased you got the Rappy sorted , what was the problem ?


Hope to catch up Friday , or Sunday at Ripley will be a hoot too ....
 
#26 ·
Hi Peter,
I tried to order the 231 PUH from MF but they were OUT OF STOCK :bang:. I'm now awaiting new stock availability, there was stock there yesterday so someone must have beaten me to the last one.

RAPPY Problem;
The bolt that is situated at the base of the idle adjustment cam had come out previously and I had replaced it with a new one (original part). Apparently I had installed it incorrectly, I was supposed to place the washer under the base of the cam then insert the bolt through, but I had put the washer under the head of the bolt like you normally would WRONG.
This caused (2) problems, it moved the carby barrel in a fraction thereby slightly obstructing the mixture needle hole and also caused binding of the barrel by the stop screw.

Even though this had been fixed I still couldn't lean the mid range mixture screw less than 1 1/8 turns out with the 0S#8 plug otherwise the motor would die in the transition to hover. Once I replaced it with the Enya#3 the tuning problems seemed to have gone and I'm currently at (6) clicks out at mid range, just under 1 1/2 turns on high end on 15% nitro which is my intended fuel %.

I'll bring it to the jungle on Friday and maybe I can get some expert fine tuning to get the best performance.

Looking forward to catching up again.:thumb:
Regards,
Kelvin
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top