Basics of Remote Control Helicopters

Basics of Remote Control Helicopters

Remote control helicopters are available in a wide range of sizes, from micro electric toy models that fit on the palm of your hand, to large copies of the genuine thing, which are generally gas or liquid fuel powered and can cost many thousands of dollars.

Most beginners will start on an electric, or battery powered RC helicopter. These are quiet, small, and easy to start up - you just switch on and go. (Other engine types must be primed and can be quite temperamental) Electric are the safest type to start off with, and also the easiest to fly.

Electric powered remote control helicopters have a rechargeable battery to power the engine. Modern LiPo batteries are based on cell phone technology, and have enabled a whole new branch of RC flying to take off - micro electric helicopters.

All radio control helicopters, electric or otherwise, have a radio transmitter which the pilot (that's you!) operates.

Transmitters have two or more channels, although if you want to do anything other than fly in straight lines, you will need at least three. Each of these channels tells the receiver to give a signal to another component on the craft.

Evidently, the more channels a helicopter has, the more it can do. On a simple 3 channel RC one channel controls the throttle i.e. engine power) whilst the other two operate "servos" - mechanical components that move to change the stability of the helicopter so it can change direction.

There are 2 servos connected to a swashplate beneath the main rotor. Any RC helicopter with cyclic control has a swashplate, and this in turn controls movement of the fly bar (that funny little thing sticking out at right angles to the rotor blade) These servos are called the "cyclics" and both work from one control. One allows forward and back movement of the helicopter (cyclic pitch) and the other allows side-to-side (cyclic roll) Another servo on the tail acts as a rudder, allowing the helicopter to turn as well as remain level in the air.

When a rotor turns, the body of the helicopter wants to rotate the other way - this is called torque. To stop this happening, radio control helicopters must have two rotors counter-rotating to each other. On simple 3 channel craft these are located in the center, one above the other. This type of heli is called a coaxial. There is no tail rotor, although there is always a rudder of some kind.

If there is only one central rotor, there must be another mounted vertically on the tail, to counterbalance it. This is called a tail rotor (naturally!) but is also called the rudder. Thus, non-coaxial helicopters are always referred to as "single rotor." This means there is only one rotor on the central axis.

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