The main enemy in any model heli is vibration; this can be split into two types; high frequency and low frequency.

High frequency vibration usually stems from the engine, fan or clutch area and cannot easily be seen until cracks appear in the side frames or servos and other radio parts start to fail. All you can do is balance fan and clutch and all should be okay.

Low frequency vibration stems from the rotor head and normally shows as vibration of the tail boom and sometimes on the landing gear. Blade tracking is the first thing to check. Stick a strip of tape to the end of each blade, a different colour each end is required, as you bring the head speed up and looking at one side of the rotor disc you will be able to see if one of the blades is higher than the other (out of track) the different colour tape will tell you which one is high or low so it can be raised or lowered by adjusting the pitch control link.

The blades that came with your heli are probably wooden and will need balancing, how to do this is normally explained in the manual, however, I would try to use quality carbon/glass blades, I know they are more expensive but they do come ready balanced and their performance is far beyond that of wooden blades. I have used SAB, TG and NHP blades and have never had a set out of balance. I have not used any other make so I can't comment.

Other sources of vibration can be the flybar, paddles and feathering spindle. Damper rubbers should be lubricated with silicone grease when fitting and the flybar must be centered with paddles of equal weight.

If your model has been crashed then the main shaft, feathering spindle and sometimes the tail rotor shaft will probably be bent and must be replaced. The feathering spindle can sometimes be straightened but for how much it costs it's just not worth it. The main shaft must always be replaced as it could be weakened if straightened.

The rotor head speed on a model heli can vary from 1100 rpm to 2000 rpm at the extremes. Generally speaking the higher head speeds help stability, but things will wear more quickly, on the other hand if your head speed is to low the model will be unstable and sometimes the nose will nod up and down. The manufacturer should be able to tell you the maximum head speed permitted but good quality blades are recommended at higher head speeds. In my experience head speeds tend to vary from club to club as everyone sets up their model to sound like other models in the club, resulting in every member having a similar head speed wither its high or low. I run my Raptor 30 at about 1450 rpm in the hover, 1650 rpm in flight mode one, and 1800 in 3D mode.

So run a head speed no higher than you need to and don't fly with any vibration and your model should perform well for a many hours.

Jeff Barrington