Flight Trimming

[mrsteven]

Not to sound arrogant, but I've never built one from a kit. But I bought a kit for Wright Stuff last year, which taught me a lot toward building indoor duration models. Kit's do help, however students should take the experience and build their own helicopters.

nah thats not arrogant, this is my first year doing building events so Im learning as im going. I started out on a kit from the SO site (and no, not prebuilt lol) and now I designed my own that works reasonably well (idk how good until state to see me compared to others)

[thewinner]

I built my first helicopter from a kit. IMO, I think it's actually better to start with a kit, especially if you have no prior experience with indoor flight. First of all, building a kit teaches you how to work with balsa, which is arguably very important. Also, it teaches you the basic mechanics behind how the thing flies and basically protects you from the fail whale.
However, I dislike kits being used at competition. I think I said this in the Designs and Kits thread, but most of the medaling helicopters in NJ States were kits.

[illusionist]

Yup, I basically agree with everything above. I wish there was some way for Event Supervisors to know if it was a kit or custom-built....
BTW, what's a 'fail whale"?

[mrsteven]

Yup, I basically agree with everything above. I wish there was some way for Event Supervisors to know if it was a kit or custom-built....
BTW, what's a 'fail whale"?

^^ Agree, but I think you can use kits, just not ones that are basically entirely premade.
and fail whale? that was actually pretty epic

[thewinner]

I'm sorry. 'Fail whale' was unnecessary.
And I also wish supervisors knew whether a helicopter was built from a kit. I know that's excessive, since supervisors don't actually have a lot of time, but I can still dream, can't I?

[mrsteven]

haha yeah. So not to be a total hipocrat (well by asking I kinda am), is anyone willing to share heli times?

[thewinner]

My top times are around 2 minutes, give or take about ten seconds. My absolute best was 2:08 with a custom helicopter, but that was in a tennis place with a perfectly smooth, 50ft ceiling, and I doubt most people get that at competition.

[lllazar]

We're testing tommorow and im estimating 2 minutes or so. Man i hope i medal.

[mrsteven]

We're testing tommorow and im estimating 2 minutes or so. Man i hope i medal.

Same. When this is all over we should talk, I kinda wanna know what team you're on and your design and stuff. You seem to be a good person to throw ideas off of