TRex 250 Out of the box

[CSpaced]

I picked up a TRex 250 at the recent Joe Nall event and had to share photos of this cool little heli. The box is tiny as you can see in the reference photo next to an E-Flite transmitter. Opening the box makes you feel like you are opening something bought from an Apple store, like an iPod or iPhone, and everything is packed securely. As far as the packaging goes I think the photos speak for themselves. All the parts seem to be made very well, and the pre painted canopy is a work of art.

The package I picked up contained 3 align DS410 digital servos with real nice aluminum bodies, as well as a brushless motor and esc. I haven't decided on the gyro and tail servo yet, and I'll be running it on a Spektrum 6100 receiver.

I'll post more pics as I get it assembled, in the meantime enjoy the following pics as I took it out of the box!

[ericb]

Looks good. I told the guy at my LHS they should put it in a bigger box so it looks like you are getting more.

[CSpaced]

It really doesn't take long to put together, the most tedious part of the assembly is going over the pre-assembled parts to make sure its all tight. The kit comes with two sets of main and tail blades, with one of the sets being tapered. I'm not exactly sure what the significance is between the two sets, but I'm going to try them both out and see what happens.

I have a couple of things left to figure out, what batteries to use and what servo to use for the tail.....

[kevinbourland]

Have ya flown her yet?

Just got mine in the air last weekend! What a great little heli!!!

[CSpaced]

Not yet, still trying to figure out what battery to use. I think I may just go with the align battery. I picked up a DS290G servo for the tail rotor though, so thats one less thing. I'm also still figuring out where I'm going to mount everything and how to manage all the wires.

[Sleepyc]

Me likie!

[classclown]

CSpaced, my girlfriend has that heli. She's using the Outrage 860mah 25c. It's much better than the Align pack, which is 850mah at 20c. That is one cool little machine! You are gonna have some fun. She went with the Spartan with a JR DS290 on the tail, and the align servos for cyclic, nice setup. Aside from the Align 205d carbon main and tail blades, everything else is stock.

[CSpaced]

Cool, I'll check out the Outrage packs then.

[CSpaced]

I ordered a couple of the outrage packs, hopefully they'll get here by the weekend so I can get it in the air.

[CSpaced]

Its alive! I only got a few minutes this weekend to fly, and flew three packs through my 450. So when I finally made it home I finished up the 250 and hovered it around my kitchen :) Wire management was a pain because the 250 is so small, but overall I'm happy with the way it came out. I'm going to try it outside tomorrow and start fine tuning it.

[Sleepyc]

You have the same microwave as I do.
:D

Hey.. if I build one of these, or a new 450, can I bring it to IRCHA and have you set up my radio? That is where I always fail.
But the last time Toro set up my radio, I rocked for 2 months before a devastating crash destroyed my ability to make the rig airborne again.

PS. Sorry to say, we hate our Microwave. We had Stainless Steel appliances in our old pad, but now it's all white appliances.
:(

[CSpaced]

I hear ya about the Microwave - Our problem is that if we have our computer on at the same time as the microwave it will trip the breaker and plunge us into darkness! :D

Sure thing on the radio setup, how bad was your crash - unrepairable?

[aaronredbaron]

nice pics Chris, that little 250 is silly fun, hu?
Sleepy, Between Cspaced and myself, we will get you rocking again! Anything I can do to help, consider it done...

[CSpaced]

nice pics Chris, that little 250 is silly fun, hu?


I hope so! I've haven't flown it outside yet, I'm hoping I'll catch a break some time over the next few days so I can get outside and fly it :)

[rcfanactic]

Can th trex 250 fly inverted?

[DVS]

Can th trex 250 fly inverted?
Yes.:clap:

[3D-N-shankbone]

awesome Heli bro, I want one bad for myself.....all in good time huh.
wheres the video man

[CSpaced]

Video is coming, I just have to get a nice day to actually take it outside and fly. So far its been nothing but severe storms and rain :(

[frankbma13]

I have wanted to add one of these to the fleet bad! Maybe christmas will come early this year. Looks like a great kit.

[Sleepyc]

I

Sure thing on the radio setup, how bad was your crash - unrepairable?

No the rig is fixed, but I deleted my program, = I have no idea how to set it up.

[Sky_Dancer]

I can hardly keep a 450 in a stable hover about half the time, that thing is way out of my league.
Really cool though!! Ahhh well, maybe someday...

[CSpaced]

I haven't tweaked on it too much just yet, and it is surprisingly stable. I was a little apprehensive at first because someone at Joe Nall told me that it needed a lot of tweaking to get it to fly good, but so far I haven't had a problem with the setup.

[CSpaced]

Ok, time for an update. Since my last post I had to shelve the 250 for a little while as the cheap 401 knock off gyro I had just wasn't working out (I know - you get what you pay for!).

So, today I was able to go out and pick up the new GY520 - and I have to say it is much coolness! :clap:
The setup of the gyro was pretty straight forward, and I had it ready to go in no time.

Now the problem that I have is that there is a small wag, and a little bounce back after a hard piro. I'm using a JR DS290G servo, and even though its rated for 6V I've read that other people with the same problem have set their ESC's to 5.5v and that seemed to solve the problem. So, I reprogrammed the ESC to 5.5V and I'm waiting on the batt's to charge up so I can give it a try.

In the meantime, check out the tiny gyro!

[Sleepyc]

Very cool.

[CSpaced]

So that didn't fix the bounce. Now I'm wondering if the wire pushrod is bending when the gyro tries to stop a fast piro. I'm going to make up a carbon fiber pushrod for it and see if that helps it.

[CSpaced]

I made the CF pushrod, now I just need to wait for the storm to pass before I can try it.

[gonzales]

Let us know how the CF pushrod works out. Still saving up for one of these. I hear that the 250 v2 will be out soon?

-MG

[JamesV]

CSpaced- try running h25095A and h25062-1. These are the counter weighted tail grips and a londer pitch arm for the tail slider. I put bot these on my 250 and it holds like a champ. Before I was having some issues with the tail either not holding or wagging. there was a fine line that was hard to dial in. Also my like 290 servo used to get very hot. Not any more with the counter weighted grips. This fixed my tail issues amybe it will help you out as well

[CSpaced]

Thanks for the tip James - as cool as my CF pushrod looks, it didn't solve the problem. I'll check out those parts and get back to ya'all.

Where's a good place to get these parts from?...

[CSpaced]

I've done a little more research and found some very useful videos on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9WmzpeQY6YA&feature=channel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Y1UBDJaNVo&feature=channel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gP2OYVEjU0Y&feature=channel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IOXbuMOJfU&feature=channel

I'm going to do everything shown in the videos, and I found the guy who made the videos over on Helifreak - so I've sent him a message about getting some tail weights from him. I'll post all the results once I'm done...

[CSpaced]

I took my tail apart today and found everything to be silky smooth already. I was surprised however to find that I only had a single bearing in the tail grips, as opposed to the dual bearings shown in the above videos. Not sure what the deal with that is, some more investigating is in order....

[CSpaced]

I've found out that the very early versions of this kit had the dual bearings with a washer in the tail rotor hub. The later versions (like the one I have) were changed to a single bearing. Apparently there were some problems with the dual bearing setup, which is why they switched it out.

[CSpaced]

Got the tail weights ordered, and they're on their way. I also picked up a set of the 205D CF blades today as well, I'm looking forward to trying them out - they're supposed to be much crisper than the almost mushy feeling stock blades.

Attached are some pics from flying last weekend.

[jasmine2501]

Yeah, the double-bearing grips are the old and broken style. IMO, you need to just tolerate the bounce... I've done every possible change on mine and it still bounces, but it so fast it's not a big deal. And yeah, the stock plastic blades are mushy as heck. Up here in Colorado, even the CF blades are a little mushy - but they are much better than the stock ones. Overall, this helicopter flies very nicely and completely defies its own size. And the cheap parts mean you can risk harder flying with it!

[CSpaced]

Yeah, the double-bearing grips are the old and broken style. IMO, you need to just tolerate the bounce... I've done every possible change on mine and it still bounces, but it so fast it's not a big deal. And yeah, the stock plastic blades are mushy as heck. Up here in Colorado, even the CF blades are a little mushy - but they are much better than the stock ones. Overall, this helicopter flies very nicely and completely defies its own size. And the cheap parts mean you can risk harder flying with it!

Which gyro are you using? I have the 520 with the gain all the way down to 18%. The problem with the bounce is that every now and then if I do a hard piro and stop, the tail will start to bounce and go into a bouncing chain reaction from left to right...

[3D-Seth]

We need video!

[jasmine2501]

Which gyro are you using? I have the 520 with the gain all the way down to 18%. The problem with the bounce is that every now and then if I do a hard piro and stop, the tail will start to bounce and go into a bouncing chain reaction from left to right...

I use the GP750 that came with the combo kit. Something about the geometry of this helicopter - it likes to have low gain. It is pretty important to have a short servo arm - no more than 5mm from center to the ball. I had this problem for a while - was getting wags and drift and then when I would do a stall turn or other pitch-flipping moves like a loop, it would start wagging and never stop. Solution was, CF pushrod, metal bell crank, small tail blades, CF boom, metal servo holders, and DS290G - and turn off the governor mode on ESC (I use a Phoenix 25). I still get the occasional wiggle, but not the violent wagging or drift.

I think Readyheli also has all these parts: metal servo holders, metal tail pulley, metal tail shaft, metal bearing blocks, metal bell crank, and CF boom. I got some from them and some from LHS. I got one of the first 250s to be released to the public, and I had the old screwed up tail grips, but all newer kits should have the fixed ones (with the single bearing). Readyheli might also have the tail grips with the built-in weights - they look like the 450 Pro ones.

[jasmine2501]

We need video!

If you look in this video, you can see the little wiggles which I think are ok, which you can never get rid of, but should be tolerable.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6Pe2AaYPyg

[CSpaced]

Solution was, CF pushrod, metal bell crank, small tail blades, CF boom, metal servo holders, and DS290G -


Sounds like a common problem, and yet I've seen people who haven't had the problem at all :confused:

I made up a carbon pushrod for the t/r and I run the DS290G already, when you say small tail blades - smaller than the two sets that come with the kit?

The metal servo holder for the t/r servo makes sense, is the metal bell crank longer than the stock plastic one?

[CSpaced]

Another thing I've found is that none of my blade balancers work with the tiny carbon fiber blades for the 250 :D

[CSpaced]

We need video!

As soon as I get the bugs worked out! :D

[jasmine2501]

Sounds like a common problem, and yet I've seen people who haven't had the problem at all :confused:

I made up a carbon pushrod for the t/r and I run the DS290G already, when you say small tail blades - smaller than the two sets that come with the kit?

The metal servo holder for the t/r servo makes sense, is the metal bell crank longer than the stock plastic one?

I've seen people claim that they don't have the tail wiggle problem, and I've seen people say it doesn't bother them... which it shouldn't. I've also seen people manage to fly pretty well with helicopters that are messed up - they just correct for the bad behaviors and keep going.

I mean I use the little tail blades from the kit - the big square ones were a bit odd.

I don't know about the metal bell crank... it seems to have the same shape as the other one, but it can go on there with less play, and seems to fit the little ball a little better. One of the issues on this heli is the ball on the pitch slider - there's a little bit of play there. There's various fixes for that, but I haven't tried it.

[CSpaced]

I'm on a mission now, I have to figure it out :D

I received the chinese tail weights today (very quick!), and just installed them on the helicopter. While I'm sure they've reduced the load on the t/r servo, they didn't completely cure my tail wag problem.

I'm going to examine the ball on the tail pitch slider and bell crank, to see if there is play and then try to eliminate it.

After that the last thing I'm going to try are the aluminum servo holder and bell crank as per jasmine's suggestion. These are the only two places left that I can see where some play may be causing the problem.....

Stay tuned!

[jrockstuart]

Any slop in the pitch slider? Microheli makes a nice dual arm pitch slider for the 250 which I was thinking of trying.

[CSpaced]

Just wanted to update the thread on the 250. I'm very happy with the way its performing. The GY520 is a fantastic gyro and holds the tail just perfect. The 250 has an incredible amount of collective power, but it can bog down easily with the pitch range I have set up, so collective management is a must for a good flight. It flies every bit as good as its bigger brothers, and because of its smaller size it seems to get more air time than any of my other helis. :D I did switch to the carbon main blades, and the whole setup feels more "crisp" now.... hard to explain.

Bottom line is that it was a little trickier for me to set up than a bigger bird, but once dialed in its an awesome flier.

[CSpaced]

We got a few nice days here so I dusted off the 250 and have been flying through battery packs all day. The more I fly this little heli the more I love it. One thing I've learned with this heli, and I think its due to its size, is the more attention and effort you put into the initial set up the better it will perform. Now I know that statement is true on all heli's, but what I'm talking about here is going that extra mile on the set up as any small imbalance will be greatly exagerated on the 250.

I've paid special attention to the pitch range on the main blades, ensuring that each blade is matched perfectly at mid stick/0 degrees, and both have a total even (linear) travel of 22 degrees exactly. The same thing goes for the flybar paddles, make sure they are aligned perfectly. As a result it has a super smooth feel, with very axial rolls and flips.

Its a great heli and I'm having a ton of fun with it :cool:

[HilliHeli]

I made up a carbon pushrod for the t/r and I run the DS290G already, when you say small tail blades - smaller than the two sets that come with the kit ?

Think the kit came with 40's & 42's (1-set: bat-wing, 1-set: square(s)/flat),
I picked-up a set of 37mm. bat-wings and they work GREAT !! Pretty-much same set-up that you're running (Spartan ds760 on mine), are you running the 15T. pinion with 100% Flat-curve (?)

[Projectx]

Do you mind posting your pitch and throttle curves? I know no 2 radios/setups are alike but would like to compare them to my own.

I have the tail wag problem, its somewhat annoying but i just try not to focus on it, i have put the 37mm tail blades on it, they have helped. I just need to do some research and see what other people have done to tame it.

Thanks in advance

[CSpaced]

Do you mind posting your pitch and throttle curves? I know no 2 radios/setups are alike but would like to compare them to my own.

I have the tail wag problem, its somewhat annoying but i just try not to focus on it, i have put the 37mm tail blades on it, they have helped. I just need to do some research and see what other people have done to tame it.

Thanks in advance

Good luck getting the wag out, I had the same issue as chronicled earlier in this thread. I've managed to get enough of the wag out where I don't even notice it anymore.

My pitch settings are linear, -11 low stick, 0 mid stick, and +11 high stick, with the radio set to 0,20,50,75,100. My normal throttle mode is set to 0,25,70,80,100, and my idle up throttle is set to 100% across the board.

[Projectx]

Great thanks,
that is pretty close to what i have, which pinion are you running?

When i first flew it I was amazed at how smooth it was, a great little heli for buzzing around in front of the house or in the back yard for sure

[CSpaced]

Yeah it is surprisingly smooth, I'm using the stock 15t pinion.

[HilliHeli]

CSpaced,
I'm interested in how you have your GY520 assigned, sounds like you're using endpoints for your RATE and HH Modes (?)
I'm just gonna' throw this out there as I've found that this works better than endpoints with my Spartan;
DX7 GEAR CH. > GYRO (in Model menu), this will activate GYRO SENSE feature, there I run;
0: 63% (HH Mode)
1: 0% (RATE Mode)
SW: 12 RUDD. D/R
I've found that the greater seperation (between %-setting for each Mode) works better (with the Spartan) for me. I was waaay-down to around +12, +13 (HH, even-down to +9 at one-point) using endpoints and was constantly battling to get the Tail to stay-put, using the Gyro Sense feature with a little-tweeking in the Spartan-programming made a huge-difference for my Rex 250.
I ran-across a few-guys that were running a 16T. pinion on the Align set-up (Motor/ESC), the increase in HS helps from what I read so, that's my next-step (will use Scorpion 2206-3900kv./15T. w/set-screw (first, then maybe the 16T./MJ 20 ESC).

[CSpaced]

You are correct about me using endpoints to set my GY520. Thats a good tip for the DX7, but I am using a T6EX on this particular model. I've definately noticed that increasing the head speed improves performance on the 250.

[HilliHeli]

Ahhh,
Still a Great Set-up, I don't have all the specifics on the GY520 but I believe there's some Configuration Software in there that can be tweeked as well (I gotta' get one of these and give-it a try :) )
Hope you get a chance to give that set-up a shot sometime (Gyro Sense) think you'd be happy with the results.

[exit44rc]

Video is coming, I just have to get a nice day to actually take it outside and fly. So far its been nothing but severe storms and rain :(

Count me in for the list of people who want to see the video. I have this on my list. I love these little 250's! Congratulations! :clap:

[CSpaced]

Count me in for the list of people who want to see the video. I have this on my list. I love these little 250's! Congratulations! :clap:

Totally forgot about the vid, too busy having fun with it :D Will try to get something next time I take it out.

[CSpaced]

I've put a lot of amps through my TRex over the last week or so and have started wondering if I would see a difference if I replaced the stock tail blades with C/F tail blades...

I think I will also have to get some new batteries soon, these ones are starting to wear out :D

It's also proving a little difficult to get some video, because I basically fly the TRex everywhere I go and don't always have someone standing by that can film it. Maybe at Joe Nall someone can point the camera at it :D

[exit44rc]

I understand. I've been trying to get a video and some pics of mine for a while now and have not been able to do it. Hopefully soon.

[HilliHeli]

Well, I went and did-it :D
Finally found the time to install the Scorpion 2206-3900kv. along with an Extreme Products 15T. pinion (grub/worm-screw type) and to compliment it all, a Mini-Jazz 20 ESC.
Running at 80% Flat-curve and She's a Real-Beast, Climb-outs are extremely-fast and very-impressive (even my Flyin' Buddy who's runnin' a new FBL E-Aurora was shocked).
I did lose around :40 of flight-times (4:50 down-to 4:10) but, well-worth the added-PUNCH (IMO)
The Outrage 25C's are gettin' a little-tired, looking forward to trying something in the 40C-45C range soon :D

[CSpaced]

Nice! I really like that canopy too!

[HilliHeli]

Cool surprise on the CanoMod Mountain Can.,
I didn't even notice this from the H-D site pic.'s but, the windscreen has a cool skull airbrushed into it :)

[dog chaser]

hey, first post on crackroll. did any of you guys have any trouble getting the 250 frame out of that plastic holder? it took me like half an hour just to get the stinkin thing out of the box. i eventually had to just snap that little clip holding it in there off. did you guys have any problems with it?

[CSpaced]

hey, first post on crackroll. did any of you guys have any trouble getting the 250 frame out of that plastic holder? it took me like half an hour just to get the stinkin thing out of the box. i eventually had to just snap that little clip holding it in there off. did you guys have any problems with it?

Welcome to CrackRoll!

I don't remember having too much trouble getting it out of the box, but its been over a year now (where did that year go??).

[mr. thingdoer]

Where did you get that canopy from?

Well, I went and did-it :D
Finally found the time to install the Scorpion 2206-3900kv. along with an Extreme Products 15T. pinion (grub/worm-screw type) and to compliment it all, a Mini-Jazz 20 ESC.
Running at 80% Flat-curve and She's a Real-Beast, Climb-outs are extremely-fast and very-impressive (even my Flyin' Buddy who's runnin' a new FBL E-Aurora was shocked).
I did lose around :40 of flight-times (4:50 down-to 4:10) but, well-worth the added-PUNCH (IMO)
The Outrage 25C's are gettin' a little-tired, looking forward to trying something in the 40C-45C range soon :D

[HilliHeli]

Where did you get that canopy from?

Heli-Direct.com (apologize for late-reply)