When should i stop tuning my tail?

[Anthony Oxlade]

Hi Guys,

I've been trying to tune the tail/governor settings on my vbar for a while and i think i've got it pretty good. However the perfectionist in me just doesn't know when to stop. My question is how solid can a tail hold be when set up perfectly?

I don't have any obvious issues but i have wondered why full collective pitch reversals always cause the tail to kick a few degrees at each change of direction. Is this is typical characteristic? I think my tail pre-comps are well adjusted and the tail movement on a single direction punch out is very small. Turning the rpm governor off does not make the tail hold better.

My e7 is setup with vbar 5.2 Pro, +/-13 degrees collective pitch, Hacker Turnado A50, 13T pinion, 2050 rpm vbar governed, 116 tail blades, kevlar belt.

If it is time to stop tuning and get back to flying please let me know

[RyanW]

First thing- where are you located? Maybe someone is in your area to give it a once over.

Next- any full pitch maneuvers will most likely bog the head, slow the tail and make it less effective. Reversing pirouettes is especially demanding of the tail, as you are basically fully loading it and unloading it. Belts do not like this. You will see many videos with people claiming tremendous tail authority with the rudder cranked over to the left. That is actually very easy on the system. Do it to the right and fly upwind at speed. That loads up the tail.

Finally- If you want perfection on the tail, I believe it comes from the torque tube. I have been a torque tube guy from my very first helicopter and although there are some good belt drive systems out there, I always go for the torque tube. More fragile? Sure, but I will take that any day over the rubber band effect some belt driven tails have. 

My two cents.

[Anthony Oxlade]

Thanks for the reply Ryan. I'm in the UK, so there are not many e7's around to compare with. Even if there was, i find it hard to discern these characteristics unless i'm flying the heli myself and can feel the difference between input and the heli's response. I've had a more experienced pilot fly it and he said it felt great overall, although he thought the tail felt a little loose compared to his setups (goblin, 700DFCv3).

The governor is working pretty well and the system is not bogging during a full single pitch pump. I have a TT conversion kit already but i'm still running the belt because i like how smooth and quiet it is. At the moment I don't have any other heli's to compare tail performance with. My previous machine was a 600EFL Pro and i seem to remember a similar tail characteristic despite the TT.

Is your tail completely stationary during this type of move, or does it kick very slightly like mine?

[stevehof]

<snip>
Finally- If you want perfection on the tail, I believe it comes from the torque tube. I have been a torque tube guy from my very first helicopter and although there are some good belt drive systems out there, I always go for the torque tube. More fragile? Sure, but I will take that any day over the rubber band effect some belt driven tails have. 

My two cents.

+1  The stock belt is a bit rubbery. If you want to run a belt system, order the Mikado 600 SE Kevlar belt. It's a drop in fit and is much more rigid. The E7 Torque tube setup is pretty quiet too!

[Anthony Oxlade]

I'm currently using the logo 600se kevlar belt

[RyanW]

I did the iterations, stock, larger tail blades, Mikado belt, torque-tube. Longer tail blades helped as did the Logo belt, but the torque tube worked so well that I am back down to 106mm tail blades and it is much more effective.

[Matt Botos]

Even the Kevlar belt will show some bounce in the tail. Belts can be great for simplicity and durability but have their negative points as well.

Thanks,

Matt