Twister Bell 47

[The Broker]

Hi All, :D
This is my Twister Bell 47 co-axial it has been painted and I also made a float kit for it. With the float kit on it is a whole different bird. http://www.smallrotors.co.uk/floats.htm
I regularly fly it outside but if you are new to flying then it is not a good idea as the wind can lift small heli's and they can get out of sight quickly, if you can't see it you can't fly it and a crash is the inevitable consequence.





Sue

[Rick]

oh, now that's cool. How does it sit in water?

Would smaller floats work better, or are ones that big needed to actually keep a small heli afloat?

[The Broker]

Hi Rick, :D
The floats are the correct size for the heli, I am not sure what it would perform like with a smaller set.
The handling is a lot different because of the weight and the airflow obstruction this means the battery needs to be in very good condition or the flight times will be very short.
Although the floats are watertight I have not taken off or landed on water as I have been told it is an experience not to be repeated, the heli apparently spins as it cannot get any purchase on the water but just for you I will try it today and post what happened.
What some people don't realise is that floats can be used as aids instead of training gear, the inflatable ones are excellent for this purpose but again the handling will be different than with training legs.
I am going to buy a set of inflatable floats for my kyosho as I think they will look good on a scale model but that will be one heli I won't risk landing on water :lol:

[Ozzyeureka]

Sue,
taking off with floats is about the same as when you take off with the skids just about taking no load. The ground effects are a pain, so do the normal. 'jump' to about a foot ro two asap and all is normal from there.

[The Broker]

Hi All :)
Just got round to testing my twister bell on take off and landing on water.
I used a small plastic container to land on because I did'nt like the idea of fishing it out of a pond.
The landing was ok but the take off was hampered by not having positive tail control, the bell needed to jump into the air or it would just twist about and a powered tail would have been a great advantage.

Landing ok
http://www.smallrotors.co.uk/sueforum/land.jpg

Take off with a twist
http://www.smallrotors.co.uk/sueforum/takeoff.jpg

Sue

[Rick]

awesome!

With some OD green you'd have a perfect little M.A.S.H. unit there:)

[The Broker]

HI Rick,
Glad you like my co-axial, I am going to get a twister bell 47 medivac to add to my fleet it comes in airforce or army colors so I won't have to paint it :wink:
Am going to get a set of floats for my larger heli's as I really like the look of them.
Sue

[Phenom]

That looks sweet. Nice floats!!

[Ozzyeureka]

Hey , a tip. If you want the tail rotor to spin, just heat the tips of the tail rotor blades and pich a little cup at 90 deg to the blade. Harder to describe than do. The idea is that the downwash from the main rotors hits the cups and spins the blades. Iit does not affect the stability, power or anything, just looks a little more convncing, especially for photo shots.