V-22 Osprey VTOL from BlitzRCWorks

[Tabasco2931]

So, Not a scratch build but I'm using it as a starting platform to customize it and get some expert opinions on making it more stable. http://www.bananahobby.com/5-ch-blitzrcworks-vtol-v-22-osprey-rc-warbird-airplane-arf.html

I took it for it's maiden voyage today and managed not to crash it (but also just stayed in helicopter mode) and found out some unusual features. First off I had to figure out the right combo of Reverse/Normal switches and it turned out the Throttle, Elev and Ail are all reversed with the Rudder being Normal modes. kinda weird common from the factory like that.

We had a pretty steady wind around 12knots which took the full forward ability of the A/C while in helicopter mode to just maintain position. I was happy with the stabilization as far as not tipping over and the speed at which it rotated without making a huge dip to one side or the other but quickly realized it's not a PnP drone. It provides no altitude hold or GPS hold.

I'm looking for help in what it would take to add these two feathers while in helicopter mode. It currently has a 6 channel Rx/Tx with a toggle switch to transition between helicopter/airplane modes. Ideally I would like that toggle switch to turn off Alt/GPS hold and the unused 6th channel to move the nacelle angles allowing me full control from full forward to full up.

Any tips/suggestions is much appreciated.

- Bryan

 

[JimCR120]

Hello Tabasco,

Wow, interesting post. Nice details but... around here we have this saying. Video or it never happened. You can't wet our appetite like that without delivering. As unique as the Osprey is, there will certainly be interest.

I take it you bought the ARF version. So what then are you using for a radio?

In the meantime, would you be so kind as to tell us more about yourself and your interest in the hobby.

Welcome to the forum.
—Jim

 

[Tabasco2931]

Intro

Thanks for the warm welcome Jim,

I actually got the RTF version as I didn't have a proper remote yet anyways. I'm kinda new to the RC world. First toy was the F-22 EDF because that's totally what everyone wants to fly and it was beautiful... Second RC (about 5 minutes after the 22's first flight) was the hobby cub trainer because that's totally what everyone needs to start off on. Lost it up in a tree after a few weeks of toying around and decided to go into the FPV Drone world with Hubsan's 501s and enjoyed that for about 2 years. After breaking it several times, replacing almost every component in the darn thing, carbon fiber reinforcing the skin, breaking it again, fixing it, then finally catching an ESC on fire, it has retired to the Davis-Monthan display shelf.

About me? Sheesh, this isn't match.com and no one wants to hear my saga... lol.
29 yr old from Iowa where I started my private pilots license and finished it in Cali. Now living in Tx for a few more month. I enlisted in the Marines out of high school and did Avionics for 7 years, Embassy Security for 3, got my commissioning and now in flight school for advanced Osprey training. I got the pure enjoyment of the T-6B, the shear horror trying to hover in the TH-57 and now in the T-44 (fun adjective still in beta stage).

I've enjoyed the Flight Test youtube channel for many-of-year and hope to get some help from the experts that troll the forms in search of newbie.

- Bryan

 

[Tabasco2931]

All about dem stats

here's the on-going list of stats as they are discovered.

Motor: 2 main motors D3510-Kv800 one D2627-KV2600 for the tail
Props: 3 separate 3 9/16" (pitch unknown) props. Hoping to use/find a 3 blade 11" with a lower pitch to make it more authentic if you have any suggestions...
Servos: Two 17g metal gear + Three 9g
ESC: Two 30A and One 20A brushless
OEM Battery: 40C 14.8V 2200 mah

 

[F106DeltaDart]

Awesome breakdown of everything so far! An Osprey has been on my "someday" list for a while. I was looking at running larger props as well. Scale diameter (20") is out of the question, but Master Airscew makes some nice big 16" 3 blade prop in both pusher and tractor versions.. Either of theses motor should work for turning MAS 16x10 3 blades on 4S..
http://rctimer.com/product-1191.html
http://www.hobbypartz.com/02p-motor-...510-kv360.html
And both should easily work with a 25-30A ESC.

 

[earthsciteach]

Ahhhh.... I see what they did there. The ducted fan in the tail was not visible in BH's product demo video. I was wondering how it was so stable in hover mode.

Welcome to the forum! So, you're an Osprey pilot? You win coolest job of the day (week, year, ever?)!

The reversed controls is not at all uncommon. Control direction is dependent on physical orientation of the servos, so ALWAYS check control direction. Check control direction every time you fly, too. Good habit that will save airplanes.

I'll let others give advice on the gps equipment, but I suspect that will have you putting in a different flight controller. Not a big deal.

I would recommend that you upgrade to a programmable controller at some point. The radios that come with the RTFs work, but you might be surprised at how much better things fly on a more capable radio. The Taranis QX-7 is a good radio for a really good price.

Glad to have you aboard!

 

[Tabasco2931]

Thanks for the advice, If I get it all working or at least a game plan for the new boards i'll def check a new TX out.

And soon I'll be. In school #4 of 5 required for the big ol boy.

 

[F106DeltaDart]

Thanks for the advice, If I get it all working or at least a game plan for the new boards i'll def check a new TX out.

And soon I'll be. In school #4 of 5 required for the big ol boy.

Congrats on getting the Osprey slot man, that is awesome!! I don't know where you are in TX, but if you are close to the DFW area, you are free to use my equipment if you want to try messing with a programmable radio (DX9), and are welcome to try out our club RC field. I am just starting out as an Flight Test Engineer at Bell, and only recently got to see the V-22 up close and personal. Such a massive and incredible machine! I just have a helicopter ppl, so I can't even imagine flying something that cool!

 

[Tabasco2931]

I'm looking at https://www.motionrc.com/collections/3-blade-propellers/products/freewing-pandora-11x6-propeller
for a first trial run of the 11"s. Hoping a lower 6 pitch would help out with the huge size change from the current ones without adding a ton more stress on the motors & ESCs. If it does get too hot I'll be forced to get new motors because I can't stand the little things instead of the iconic MASSIVE blades she does have.

The current props are individual ones that are mounted on a plate so when they hit something they fold back. Any opinions about this kind of set up vice a traditional prop system with all 3 mounted together? Probably less weight for the uni-body prop too.

As i take the photo, I kinda like having the 3 separate so that they can fold like the real deal also. They have a CF 11-8 that would be pretty aggressive but pretty cool https://www.banggood.com/GAMFAN-118...eller-For-RC-Airplane-p-977964.html?rmmds=buy

Thoughts?

 

[F106DeltaDart]

For the props, your biggest issue is going to be finding the same size in both rotation directions. Master airscrew has 3 blade 11x7s in both normal: https://www.masterairscrew.com/collections/3-blade/products/3-blade-11x7-propeller and pusher rotations: https://www.masterairscrew.com/collections/3-blade/products/3-blade-11x7-propeller-rev-pusher.

For folding vs. one-piece props, it is going to be a question of finding them. For a 3 blade folding prop, you would need a new hub to take the stresses of a larger blade, and there are very few options out there. Most also tend to fold backwards instead of the in-plane hinging of the stock system, which would be problematic. I'd personally be more comfortable with the single piece props, but if you can find folding props that work, you certainly go for it. I did a couple of searches, and didn't see anything readily available in that size though.

 

[earthsciteach]

What is the diameter of the current props? 9"? And, any idea what the motor KV is? I see the stock motors are 3510's, but knowing the KV would really help with prop selection.

I suspect the current motors would handle an 11" prop pretty easily.

 

[F106DeltaDart]

What is the diameter of the current props? 9"? And, any idea what the motor KV is? I see the stock motors are 3510's, but knowing the KV would really help with prop selection.

I suspect the current motors would handle an 11" prop pretty easily.

He posted this a bit earlier, 9" props with an 800 kv motor. I would agree that an upgrade to 11" should be doable without issue.

here's the on-going list of stats as they are discovered.

Motor: 2 main motors D3510-Kv800 one D2627-KV2600 for the tail
Props: 3 separate 3 9/16" (pitch unknown) props. Hoping to use/find a 3 blade 11" with a lower pitch to make it more authentic if you have any suggestions...

 

[earthsciteach]

He posted this a bit earlier, 9" props with an 800 kv motor. I would agree that an upgrade to 11" should be doable without issue.

Thanks, I looked twice before posting and didn't see the kv. LOL!

 

[Tabasco2931]

800 KV and the blades are 3 9/16" for a full diameter of ~10" I'm trying to more then double that with each blade at 11" total ~22"

I see MasterScrew has a 16x10 with both norm and rev. https://www.masterairscrew.com/coll...s/products/3-blade-16x10-propeller-rev-pusher

It's also on a 4s Battery - Would going down to a 3s (lower RPM for the motors) hurt the onboard electronics? Or is upgrading the motors my best bet?

 

[F106DeltaDart]

3S likely still wouldn't be enough to get the Amps low enough fro a 16", a motor upgrade would likely be required. Either of theses motor should work for turning MAS 16x10 3 blades on 4S..
http://rctimer.com/product-1191.html
http://www.hobbypartz.com/02p-motor-...510-kv360.html
And both should easily work with the stock ESC.

 

[earthsciteach]

Oooohhhhh.... Yeah, you are looking at upgrading motors more than likely. That is a huge jump in prop size. You are going to end up with CRAZY more power than you have now.

I wonder... What about a gear drive option? You could gear down a motor so that it can spin those big props without burning up and still not have enough power to rip the wings off.

 

[Tabasco2931]

enough power to rip the wings off.

Thats a .... bad?... thing right? 0_o

 

[earthsciteach]

Thats a .... bad?... thing right? 0_o

Normally, I would be all for it. But, two motors spinning 22" dia props on something that small and light is just.... I don't even have words for it!

Just think about the gyroscopic forces alone when those lawn mower blades transition from vertical to horizontal!

 

[Tabasco2931]

Final Motor/Props

Looking at http://rctimer.com/product-1434.html pushing the https://www.masterairscrew.com/collections/3-blade/products/3-blade-16x10-propeller-rev-pusher and his brother. I'll play around on that for a while and stress the extra few inches when I break it and need to rebuild it bigger and better in a year or two.

Next issue is the nacelle turning. It's pretty shaky and I think it's got something to do with the distance from the servo to the point of rotation (and probably just the quality of the servo too) . I've added the first youtube video showing how bumpy and imprecise the entire movement is. https://youtu.be/D7uD0u2AQY4

hover video to come soon

-Bryan

 

[earthsciteach]

Please keep is updated! Figuring out how to get a reasonably powered brushless motor for this aircraft to swing a 22" diameter prop is really a cool project!