How to Perfectly Balance & Track My RC Heli
It is important to balance and track an RC (radio-controlled) heli before the model helicopter's first flight. Out-of-balance blades can cause vibration of the helicopter and lead to drift during flight. A perfectly balanced heli will waste less energy and fly longer. You can balance an RC heli with some blade-balancing tape or electrical tape.
Instructions
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Use an Allen key to remove the bolt that holds the RC blade. Place the RC heli rotor blade on a sharp line such as the edge of a pocket knife blade. Maneuver the heli blade until it is balanced on the edge of the knife. This is the way to find the center of gravity, or CG. Once the center of gravity is found, mark it with a pen or tiny piece of tape. Repeat this process to find and mark the CG for the second rotor blade.
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Place the rotor blades on top of each other and run a screw or bolt through the main holes. If the CG marks align, they are matched perfectly. If they are not matched, place a small piece of tape on the blade that has its CG the farthest away from the blade's bolt hole. Place the tape under the blade and close to the bolt hole. This adds weight to the blade to move the center of gravity. Check to see if the CGs line up and repeat the process of applying tape until they align.
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Check to see if the blades are tracking after they have been balanced. Using two different colors of tape, place a tiny piece of tap on one edge of a rotor blade. Place the same amount of tape but a different color in the same spot on the other rotor blade. Check to see if the blades are tracking properly by flying the heli and watching the rotors spin at eye level. The colors on the blades will blur if they are tracking properly. If they are not tracking properly, they will look like they are spinning on top of each other and the colored tape will show up. Check your RC heli manual if the blades are not tracking properly. The manual will contain the steps to adjust the blades for each particular helicopter.
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References
- Photo Credit Thomas Northcut/Photodisc/Getty Images
