Blade 120 SR - Tips and Tricks - Beginner's Guide Part 4

[AznGamerz12]

can this heli (120 sr) , msr x and mqx have idle up mode??? plz help!!!

[designstorm]

Thanks for all your tips I'm new to helis and looking for all the info I can get! Peace.

[chuckleohboy]

do you think it matters to have the tail fin on. Does it make a difference, as i lost mine somewhere

[BigRHSfan1]

Great video's ! Thanks for the help & info on these little birds !

[cordawg17]

Great tips, helped the stability of my 120 for sure.

[papaGhurka]

Disliked. Subjects discussed should've been in beginner's guide part 1. I thought I was jumping too far ahead in starting with part 4. Apparently not.

[Crob56]

@htbranson if i mash the throttle it would hit the ceiling in no time flat, it scared me the first time i had it

[Crob56]

@CrazyHeliDude You should do a video on some flight tricks to do with a 45 degree flybar and how to do them, or any important mods that will help improve flight. Just some ideas!

[nintendofanboy45]

Arnt you missing a tail roter bearing? nice video tho very helpful

[ciscobon]

Hi Thank you for the video.Ecxellent.

Do you know how to charge in a faster way the heli's batteries!

Usually it takes 50 min to one hour, even more, and i find it to much!

Is there any way, that you can charge the batteries faster?

Thank you.

[htbranson]

not the best heli it is very weak and not sturdy for ok flyers my opinion is that is not that great

[GastrkDude]

What kind of camera are you filming with? The clarity is excellent!

[CrazyHeliDude]

@GastrkDude - It's a Sony HD cam. They come in a few different flavors.

[robbie2737]

Awesome Demo Thanks for sharing...I think I'm gonna buy one...Would you be able to estimate the flight time a single charge? Thanks again

[CrazyHeliDude]

@robbie2737 - Around 6-8 minutes.

[stot2614]

Hey Rob... was wondering if you had any experience with faulty 5-in-1 control boards for this model. My problem is that the esc portion of the board has gone bad and therefore I cannot fly her without losing all throttle control (she goes hyper-heli and doesn't want to shut off ruining more than just the helicopter). Do you know the location of the esc on this bird? I know a guy that is into electronics and I just thought you might be able to help out in background info. Thanks!

[Rtimberdog]

When I tighten my main rotor blades at all, even if just to the point it becomes less than floppy, the heli becomes unbalanced. As soon as I let off and have them flop, it seems fine.

[CrazyHeliDude]

@Rtimberdog - How much are you tightening them? For me it's the opposite, I find better control when they're not free to flop.

[Rtimberdog]

@CrazyHeliDude - Not much at all. I have tried to tighten them to the point where they re tighter but will still easily drop when put on its side as well as tighter where they won't drop. I'll try it again and let you know. Before when I did it, there was more vibration than without.

[Cantdr55]

Hi Great videos. I've used them more than once when it came to putting my 120 Sr back together. Could you tell me, which copter is the next up from these? Basically I'm ready to step up to the next size but what I'd like to get is one that has the better parts already on it instead of swapping out all the plastic parts to the CNC aluminum like I did on the 120.

Thanks in advance.

Rob

[CrazyHeliDude]

@Cantdr55 - Most of the Blade helicopters come with mostly plastics parts. If you want to have all solid CNC parts from the start it sounds like you might want to do your own build ... maybe Align or HK. Otherwise the Blade SR/400/450 would be the next logical step up from here.

[Cantdr55]

@CrazyHeliDude Thanks again. I may upgrade to a 400/450 in the next year. One last question, batteries for the 120 sr. I got 4 when I got the bird back in Aug. Maybe had time to run them all about 15-20 flights. I hadn't flown in about 2 weeks and now none of them hold a charge long enough to fly at all. Any tips on better batteries?

Thanks

Rob

[CrazyHeliDude]

@Cantdr55 - It seems very strange that the batts would become unusable or not hold a good charge after only 15-20 flights each. Are you stopping the heli as SOON as the red light starts to flash and it begins to descend? If you run them too far past this point you risk going below 3.0 Volts and irreversibly damaging them. How do you store the batts when not in use? Are you charging them with the stock charger and at what amperage?

[Cantdr55]

@CrazyHeliDude Stock charger always used. MOST of the time when it loses power and comes down I just swap it out right away, but, there have been a few times I rode it a bit longer, also might be ignorance on my part, other time I'd just holding the ship and would let the batteries run down as I thought with all batteries it was good to run them down all the way before recharge. Cameras that I use at work we always used to run the batteries down all the way before charging. Thanks.

[CrazyHeliDude]

@Cantdr55 - NiCad and NiMH batteries need to be run all the way down every now and then. With LiPOs it's exactly the opposite. You never want a LiPO cell to drop below 3.0 volts absolute minimum, doing so will either diminish the cell's capacity greatly or in some cases destroy it all together. If you were running your batts all the way into the ground so they no longer ran the heli, chances are good this is what destroyed them so quickly.

[Cantdr55]

@CrazyHeliDude sounds just like what my problem is. I just ordered 4 new ones. I now no better. Thanks so much for all the help.

[TheArfdog]

@Cantdr55 Try ebay for 1200 mAH, more than 2x the capacity of the stock batteries. You'll just have to charge longer and find a way to fit a bigger battery. I velcroed mine to the bottom of the canopy.

[cbradam1]

@Cantdr55 I would recommend skipping the SR and going straight to the blade 450. I ended up wasting my money on a few SR's. The tail motor kept going out. When the 450 came out, I purchased one. It's a HUGE improvement. If you're proficient with a 120SR, you should do fine with the 450. Due to the larger size/weight, it flies like a dream.

[CrazyHeliDude]

@cbradam1 - Although I've never had any of these problems with the SR, I think I could concur with this. As when transitioning from and lower performance FP to any higher performance CP, I think think the main rule of thumb is to take is SLOW and easy. Having to recharge a pack many times to get things down cost little to nothing. Crashes due to hurrying yourself cost a lot.

[quickguesswho]

SHOULD THIS BE DONE WITH THE MSR???

[CrazyHeliDude]

@quickguesswho - Having the spare parts on hand couldn't hurt. Most of what applies here can apply to the mSR. You don't really need to tighten the blades and battery placement isn't an issue.

[littlehammer05]

Thank you for the tips! I love this little heli! =)

[782Brandon]

Very helpful video man, ill keep your vids in mind, thanks.

[CrazyHeliDude]

@782Brandon - thanks, glad it helped.

[invertmininick]

hey i just got this and when i fly it the body leans to one side. do you know whats wrong and how i can fix it?

[fishinggeek1234]

can you do a video on what setups you need to look at after a crash or after a major repair? that'd help alot of us newer guys out! thx

[rob2049]

There is a hairy beast on the left side of the screen!

[sgi1972]

I notice you are missing the black part that fits between the tail rotor and the tail rotor. I lost mine as well. Do you find it makes any difference that it's gone? I found that after I lost it the heli would do nothing but spin around as if I had no tail control, but next flight it was fine.

[CrazyHeliDude]

@sgi1972 - What black part?

[escsniper]

@CrazyHeliDude : E-flight recently added a small bearing to prevent the tail rotor from binding too tightly up against the motor. It pops off easily when the tail rotor comes off. Guys at my hobby shop said there's no detriment if you fly without it (obviously, since the 120 was sold without it for so long) as long as you don't push the tail rotor onto the shaft too hard...

[roadrash2187]

@CrazyHeliDude

There is a bearing there now at least. I can't figure out why.

[CrazyHeliDude]

@roadrash2187 - I believe you're referring to the tail shaft bearing?

[roadrash2187]

@CrazyHeliDude

I suppose, It is a bearing, but I think it acts more like a spacer.

[futurehelipilot]

@sgi1972 i lost that washer too i had to buy a new tail boom because without the washer it starts to wear down your tail rotors motor

[alarova]

How fragile are the blades? i currently have a NE solo pro 2 and had major crashes in gates walls trees and never broke a main blade. How would they compare in resistance?

[CrazyHeliDude]

@alarova - The blades are pretty tough on the 120. Mine have taken numerous hits without breaking.

[RTHounds]

I've never flown a heli before but I don't want to get one that I'll master and be bored of within a week. Would the 120SR be suitable do you think for someone to learn with and then progress? Thanks.

[biggswift]

how do i fix my controller so it will be perfect on ther balance and everything like that..plz help..beginner

[ohd519]

Where is the spacer/bearing on the tail rotor?

[susanancliffe]

Hi guys,

I just want to know if you leave the batterie charging and it's finished, but you don't come back for let's say 1 hour so it's still trying to charge will that damage the batterie?

[PeaceAndAmmo]

Nice video, Rob. Thanks for the post. I have never broken the fly bar. Am I not getting after it enough? Kidding. I love the recommendation to tighten the main rotor blades. My question to you is this; if you are going outside to fly, what do you look for in a breeze for your go/no go?

[SRFirefox]

A useful trick I have found with the 120SR batteries is that, with the supplied adapter, they will charge from the mSR's 4-port charger. While the 4-port only does the CC part of the charge at 300mA, it's far better than having to wait an hour to start charging your next battery, and I've found it takes around 2 hours to charge with that charger. I have four batteries, and so it only takes 2 hours to get back outside instead of four. If you don't have the mSR BNF, it's a great value at 100.

[susanancliffe]

Hey i'm a beginner but i have one problame.

Do you no the flight time and it's recharge time? please

[CrazyHeliDude]

@susanancliffe - Around 6-8 minutes of flight time and about 35+ minutes to charge at 700ma.

[susanancliffe]

Thanks

[MrCrossbiker]

Thanks for this video,many informations for me,because I am a beginner in RC-Heli-flying !

[CrazyHeliDude]

@MrCrossbiker - You're welcome. Glad I can help and happy flying.

[MrMooseheadbeer]

for fuck sakes.. i read the directions twice, ive been sititng here for almost 2 hours waiting for the fucking thing to charge... only to discover you have to hit the Start/Charge button twice, untill the LED flashes..

Theres my tip.. hope its usefull, buddy at the hobby shop says it takes a half hour to charge.. and i can get about 10 minuets of play time.

Thanks for the videos.

[CrazyHeliDude]

@MrMooseheadbeer - Yeah I discover that too with the stock charger. Do you plug in your charger before or after the batt is connected? I find I only have to press the charge button once but it has to be a firm press to make sure it starts.

[MrMooseheadbeer]

@CrazyHeliDude i plugged the battery in after the charger, i got it all working now..

busted the tail rotoer tho, ha ha..

gotta wait till i can make it to the hobby shop again,

Cheers, thanks for the videos.

[murankar]

After fling this heli for almost week I discovered something. I upgraded to the 120 sr from the mcx big difference for me.  My 120 took a nasty hit on a wall due to poor choice for practicing basic stuff. I discovered one thing that my help reduce some repair cost, and that is to slide the canopy retaining rods through the frame a few times. This will allow the rods to move easier during a side impact and prevent damage to those rods.

[Lexesbenz]

Actually you want your rotor blades to be loose, otherwise they cause your heli to wobble. We have experimented many times. You need them looser so they can flew upward easier.

[DaHUDMAN]

@Lexesbenz I thought the same thing, but I tightened mine & sure enough, it handles a little better. Before, it had a tail-wobble while hovbering, now it's smooth hovering. I'll keep experimenting, but IMHO, on the 120SR, that CrazyHeliDude is onto something.

[CrazyHeliDude]

@Lexesbenz - I always encourage everyone to experiment. I find it flies a little better (for me) when I have the blades just barely tight ... just to the point that they don't flop.

[richkeitz]

The info concerning battery installation is incorrect. The yellow label as well as the black notch should be facing downward as shown on page 6 of the user manual.

[DaHUDMAN]

@richkeitz I agree, the users manual shows it different, and I went through about 10 batteries, following the users manual. After watching the video, I turned it around & left more aft of the heli - I tried the flybar balance, and sure enough it's balanced when installed incorrectly, and unbalanced when installed correctly. So, I just went through 2 more batteries, with the batteries installed per the video, going against the manual, and I have to tell ya... THE MANUAL IS WRONG!

[DaHUDMAN]

@richkeitz When the battery is installed per the manual, the heli "drifts" all over the place, which actually makes for good practice once you learn to fly it, but if you're just starting out or upgrading from a coaxial, you want it to hover, not drift. Install the battery as the video suggests & you'll minimize the drift. Try it, you'll see what I'm talking about!

[terriwang]

hi.Can you make a video show us what is the seting on your dx6i with blade 120 sr.thx

[CrazyHeliDude]

@terriwang - I know there are some other vids on YT concerning that. I have some specific settings in my DX6i but only so I can do slower pirouettes in one spot. The base heli setting of the DX6i should work pretty good for general flying when you first bind it. I don't believe I had to change anything. Course you can always tweak it to your liking later.

[Casualsalesman]

G'Day Rob, you've had this heli for a little while now. How are you finding the Longevity of this machine?

[CrazyHeliDude]

@Casualsalesman - So far I've run at least 40 or 50 packs through it and both the main and tail motor are still going just as strong as when I got it.

[dannylightbulb]

nice vid, but do we really want to see your knees in shot? :)

[CrazyHeliDude]

@dannylightbulb Lol, not really. The camera was a little wider than I first realized.

[mjm7305]

hi i have a question my blade 120 sr vibrates not a lot but more then normal is there a way i can stop it from vibrating as much? please respond

[CrazyHeliDude]

@mjm7305 - What is the rate/frequency of the vibration. Are we talking tickle-me-elmos type shaking here, or actual vibration?

[Holton0289]

THANKS! Im glad people like you make these vids. You helped me out a great deal. My heli was wanting to drift, when I saw your vids I noticed my battery was pushed in all the way. Please keep posting.

[CrazyHeliDude]

@Holton0289 - Thank you for your comment :)

[airbornemike380]

Hi,

Thanks for the great videos on this heli. I just bought one recently and what I found is that when I fly it it's always tilted a few degrees clockwise looking at it from the back of the tail. I'm also having problems flying it straight forward as the heli tends to curve towards the right despite my pushing the stick straight forward. Is that normal and is it caused by the tilted heli during the flight?? How do I compensate it. I'll appreciate your feedback, Thanx!!

[mjm7305]

@airbornemike380 hey whats up mine does the same thing and i dont know how to fix it either i think our heli's just aren't balanced out fully yet

[boston455]

@mjm7305 im havin the same issue dont kno how to trim tho

[CrazyHeliDude]

@boston455 - It's because of the tail rotor. Since the tail rotor is slightly below the main rotor and "blowing" to the right thereby? thrusting the tail and heli body to the left, the heli has a tendency to "lean" slightly to the right. You'll see this happen on real helicopters as well. One skid/wheel always lifts off/touches down first because of this.

[boston455]

@mjm7305 im havin the same issue

[CrazyHeliDude]

@mjm7305 - It's because of the tail rotor. Since the tail rotor is slightly below the main rotor and "blowing" to the right thereby? thrusting the tail and heli body to the left, the heli has a tendency to "lean" slightly to the right. You'll see this happen on real helicopters as well. One skid/wheel always lifts off/touches down first because of this.

[CrazyHeliDude]

@airbornemike380 - It's because of the tail rotor. Since the tail rotor is slightly below the main rotor and "blowing" to the right thereby? thrusting the tail and heli body to the left, the heli has a tendency to "lean" slightly to the right. You'll see this happen on real helicopters as well. One skid/wheel always lifts off/touches down first because of this. If you have a DX6i radio (or better) you can program in a mix to get rid of / cancel out the right-ward drift in forward flight.

[millerhill]

Excellent video. Thanks!

[CrazyHeliDude]

@millerhill - Thanks for the comment :)

[mjm7305]

how do you balance the blade 120 sr

[CrazyHeliDude]

@mjm7305 - Balance what, the main blades or the body?

[whatif3387]

my tx refuses to bind to the heli.. my heli just keeps flashing red no matter what i do does anyone have any advice

[CrazyHeliDude]

@whatif3387 - I've been away for a while. Did you get the problem solved?

[fmjunix]

Great an informative video! Thanks! I'm just getting into RC heli and already bought a few. Can't get enough of them. Always wanted them as a kid without the cash but now an adult I can get em! Keep up the good work, and thanks again for a terrific video.

[CrazyHeliDude]

@fmjunix - Thanks for the comment :)

[shanvick1]

G'day mate my question is;- I have alloy shark but i want to convert that coaxial heli into fixed pitched SR120. So can you plz give me some ideas. wht do i have to do for modification. Thanks

Cheers

Shan

[GuyofManyHobbies]

Bought the anticrash kit for my 120 sr but it seems to have made it ridiculously hard to fly, is this heli robust enough for me to just not even bother with the anti crash kit?

[CrazyHeliDude]

@GuyofManyHobbies - In my opinion the anticrash kit isn't really necessary with 120 SR. The 120 is pretty tough and can handle minor crashes without breaking. If you do crash, before you pick up the heli and walk away, look around the crash sight to see if any of the little links came off. They have a tendency to do that with the 120.

[GuyofManyHobbies]

@CrazyHeliDude Thanks I did that and if flys much better! No major damage yet it def can take quite a beating.  I've must've crashed about 50 times already and it still flys like its right out of the box. The skids got bent but nothing i can't fix.

[CrazyHeliDude]

@GuyofManyHobbies - It can also be a good idea to fly over a softer area such as grass. If you can fly outdoors on a very calm day, fly over grass, the softer and taller (within reason) the better. Never go more than about 4 or 5 feet high (at first). Get used to immediately cutting the throttle if the heli hits anything or crashes. - This way your heli at least won't be hitting floors, walls, furniture, concrete driveways etc.

[tedeverhart]

@CrazyHeliDude Fantastic advice. Thanks!

[vanluk73]

OK I'll try that yeah I bought the BNF blade 120 sr because it said any DSM2 radio works with it and the one that came in my Blade SR is the 6 channel and it says its a DSM2 so it should work, Thanks for all your help..

[vanluk73]

Ok Thanks alot Im new to E-Flite products and that will help alot. If I can bother you again for one more question--where is the new model slot in the radio.Thanks again for the help

[CrazyHeliDude]

@vanluk73 - Ok. I thought you were using a different radio, I understand now you're using the SR radio. The process should be the same. Plug in the heli first. The light on the receiver should be flashing rapidly. While holding the trainer switch, turn on the radio. When the radio binds with the heli receiver, the light should turn solid.

[vanluk73]

Hello,

How do you bind the 6 ch. radio from the Blade SR to the Blade 120 SR.

Thanks

[CrazyHeliDude]

@vanluk73 - You'll want to start by using a new model slot in the radio. Just plug in the heli then turn on the radio while holding the trainer switch. It should bind within several seconds and the light on the heli with turn solid.

[ccbusa05]

Thanks so very much, great video! I have two 120 SRs and noticed an annoying vertical tail bobbing characteristic during FF that got worse as the number of flights increased! Then "BINGO"..........I remembered this video about the flexing the tail rotor blade outward occasionally. It completely got rid of the bobbing! I tried battery both ways, your suggestion works for me in that I get the proper COG with yellow side down on both my 120s! Thanks again bro!!

[CrazyHeliDude]

@ccbusa05 - Thanks for the feedback on that. Glad it helped :)

[RexxWayne]

You are missing a part ... a tail motor protective sleeve ... # BLH3125 ... $3.49

What happen to yours ?

And yes, the manual does show the proper way to install the battery, is with the ridge on the plastic of the battery, pointed down .... which is the blue side DOWN..  (see page 6 )

But it's your helicopter, you can do it anyway you want... but there is a proper way to do it. But still, thanks for the helpful videos.

[trex600flyerr]

@RexxWayne manuals can be wrong, i put my battery in yellow side down and it balances better like he said. i dont think crazyheli would give the advise if he didnt know what he was talking about

[robpogi69]

thats a good tips, but how about the settings if you want to use dx 6i can u tell us a good settings for 120 sr tnx!

[CrazyHeliDude]

@robpogi69 - It depends on how you want the 120 to fly. For beginner flying particularly indoors, I would recommend setting up a Dual Rate: 75% for all servos with about 30% Expo for a low setting, and 100% for all servos with with INH Expo for normal/high setting. Also, your Gyro switch, by default, will switch between your 120's default High and Low rate modes (position 0 and 1), but even the default Low rate may be a little too much for indoors if space is limited.

[irasamuelcohen]

Manual says, Blue Side DOWN, for battery....

[CrazyHeliDude]

@irasamuelcohen - It's not what color is up or down, it's where you're CG is. Mine flies a little better when balanced as shown, which happens to be blue side up and only inserted to the point shown. Try it both ways.

[NexusHelis]

@irasamuelcohen mine fly better with blue side up

[flightfromhell]

very good video thank you

[CrazyHeliDude]

@flightfromhell - Thank you.

[AlainAnhTruong]

thank you so much for the really helpful, practical tips. I can't wait to try them out. they totally make sense.

[CrazyHeliDude]

@AlainAnhTruong - Thank you, hope they work well for you.

[catfishmudflap]

Great advice. Good luck with your SR. It looks cool.

[CrazyHeliDude]

@catfishmudflap - Thank you

[earthling1984]

I like my battery blue side in all the way down, balances perfect for me during flight and flies great. Maybe I'll try your suggestion though and see what differences it makes, but I think that will cause me to need to trim a lot further back.

[CrazyHeliDude]

@earthling1984 - Could be. Helis typically tend to fly best and trim best when they're perfectly balance about the main rotor shaft, but there can always be exceptions to the rule. Try it both ways and see what works best for you.

[jazzartphotography]

Great Video!!! Thanks for all of the information, looking forward to your next video.

[CrazyHeliDude]

@jazzartphotography - Thank you

[chippi09]

Hi ! How hard is this heli fo fly compare to those Walkera CB180Z, 180D and the cb180Q? I need your input on this,THANKS!!!!

[CrazyHeliDude]

@chippi09 - I've only messed with the 180D which belonged to my friend. In my opinion they're about the same but the 120 seems a bit more agile. Notice that it uses paddles on the 45º flybar as opposed to just tip weights.

[wkialyleiam]

How much is this heli, and is there a bnf version?

[CrazyHeliDude]

@wkialyleiam - $149 for a BNF version.