converting RAF2000 to the superior Sport Copter rotor system

[eddie]

first flight with SC Rotors.

first flight with SC Rotors.

I noticed several different flight charactisitics

1. Prerotation is faster.
2. takeoff roll to 200 RRPM is a lot faster
3.rotors slow down faster.
4.rotor rpm @ flight speed is 330.
5. Landings seem to float more, rotors hold gyro up longer.
6.larger variation in rotor RPM in flight.rotor RPM is more sensitive.

On my first takeoff I had my hands full, the pitch trim was set for the RAF rotors in cruise I had to really pull hard to stay off of the ground and move
the cyclic to the left, right at lift off, after lift off the cyclic was moved back
to center,I used almost all of the up trim on the stabaliator to achieve level
flight..I am going to add a spring to the rear stabaliator arm to neutralize
the wing to a near level position in cruise.

Checking things over after the inital installation,the chord wise centering was
only off by 0.001,I havent check the track yet,I want to get the trim resolved
first.The overall stick/cabin shake is not so bad right now I believe just a few
small adjustments will dial it right in.
I cruise @3,900 RPM and noticed the airspeed to be overall faster exactly how
much is yet to be detirmined,I was seeing about 80 MPH on average,the air
was gusty and really shoving me around.

So that leaves me with just a couple of squawks,Trim spring, and minor shaking.

The overall quality of the hubbar and rotors is second to none,the only complaint is to undo the set screw to adjust the chordwise setting you will
have to remove the spreader adjuster and then reinstall to check the new settings I am going to try to make a allen wrench that will fit under the
adjuster.



Best regards,

 

[Kolibri]

eddie, glad to read that you're flying SC rotors, and your general comments about rrpm, float, etc. mirror my experience.

My preliminary data shows that the SC rotors give me an 8mph increase at 4600rpm cruise. This extends my endurance as if I had 1.5 gal more usable.

Regards, Kolibri

 

[Kolibri]

Yesterday I flew x/c for a total of 4.4 hours and 260 miles, my longest/farthest gyro day yet. Landed at a new airport for the gyro and took a friend out to lunch. Feels great to go somewhere.

Since I've the stick shake reduced to about 20% of its greatest former intensity, I hardly notice it at all. One last bit of tracking using the dial indicator should do it.

Regards, Kolibir

 

[eddie]

Thats about where I'am at with regards to shake,I have noticed that the vibration thats

there feels different and is not so objectionable compared to the RAF blades. Sounds like

you are starting to get to the end of the long bumpy road, and enjoy your efforts.

So hows about a ATTA BOY KOLIBRI...




Best regards,

 

[Kolibri]

Thanks, eddie, it's been fun and interesting.
I'm always keen to learn more about my own gyro.

____
I'm almost ready to take up pax, and will first test with right side ballast in order to hone my dual takeoff procedure with this air-trim.

Regards, Kolibri

 

[Kolibri]

now about 30 hours with the SC upgrade

now about 30 hours with the SC upgrade

Have been doing much more flying since the conversion, and thoroughly enjoying my new rotor system. Am now pretty used to the takeoffs, and even flew in/out of a lumpy grass strip with x-wind (can you say "stay in ground effect until Vx"?).

SC teeter bushings require Aeroshell 14 grease, which is not common, so expect to order it.

Regards, Kolibri

 

[Kolibri]

Kolibri's tips on adding Sport Copter rotors to the RAF2000
https://www.rotaryforum.com/forum/k...-on-adding-sport-copter-rotors-to-the-raf2000

 

[dunc]

No Title

PNEUMATIC SOLENOID INSTALLATION, WIRING AND PLUMBING

I have not quite completed my SC conversion, but though I'd add my recent findings to Kolibri's excellent document.

I mounted my solenoids on a piece of .060 aluminum along with a 12 position barrier connection strip. The aluminum plate has Velcro "hook" strip super-glued to its backside for mounting on the carpeted wall. Easy to remove, and no new cabin holes! First picture shows initial wiring, and the next shows the chosen joystick grip. I wired one spare button to the transponder IDENT button. The barrier strip provides connections to the solenoid low power with 1 amp CB on main instrument panel. FYI SC provided CBs in my kit.

I found it is much easier to get a fully "locked" connection with the air lines if you pre-lube the ends with your favorite spray lube. Disconnection is more problematic as an even pressure is required around the full locking ring. I built this simple tool from a scrap of aluminum line with two simple bandsaw cuts, "T" shaped, to closely go around the tubing and apply even pressure to the spring loaded collar. The next image shows this use with the fully installed wiring and tubing on the subassembly.

I feel unsafe flying anything without a battery disconnect solenoid, especially something where the main battery bus wire is routed right under the fuel tank! So I installed a solenoid under the battery shelf, along with the trim system air pump. At this point it made no sense to run a 15 amp wire to the instrument panel and back, so I simply added a waterproof fuse holder right there. You can see it connect to red wires on the inboard edge of the battery shelf. The air system reservoir is seen attached to rear spar, behind the battery assembly.

Since I upgraded the Walbro fuel pumps for future intended turbo use, I also upgraded the main battery bus wire and fuel pump wiring to take the additional amperage, and added appropriate circuit breaker switches.

 

[Ricky]

Howdy all,

I've received my Sport Copter RAF2000 upgrade of upper mast plates, rotorhead, hub bar, blades, and 4-way air trim. I've not spun it up yet, nor installed the trim, but the rest has been installed. Here are my comments so far. I welcome comments from those who already have the SC upgrade on their own RAF.

crating: For the reasonable $100 crating fee, the custom wooden freight packaging was excellent. Everything was secured inside, and all arrived without damage.

parts quality: Just superb. The difference between RAF and SC is like putting a Yugo next to a Mercedes-Benz. I'll post a photo of the two hub bars side-by-side. The blades are not bare aluminum, but white coated and if waxed should be easy to keep clean.

installation instructions: A bit sparse, IMO. I'd asked for any instructional material in digital format to be sent to me while my order was being fabricated, to give me a heads up on the installation. I received a few pages, but wasn't informed of the below video until the order had shipped.

Before you begin to assemble the blades, you must watch SC's video "Tracking". Since it was so entitled, I thought that it dealt only with tracking, and didn't know that it included some vital assembly instructions. I recommend that the title be changed to "Assembling and tracking your new Sport Copter blades". I also recommend that some illustrated printed material be included on the tracking procedure, vs. only a video.

I prefer to actually download YT videos vs. rewatch them from an Internet connection. Here is a free program to install:

https://www.youtubedownloader.com/

The "Tracking" video can then be saved to a handy tablet. Mine contains all RAF Product Notices and Construction Manual (in PDF and videos), certain RWF posts, photos, maintenance logbook entries, etc. Whenever I work on my gyro, the tablet is nearby in case I need some info or video. (Just to clarify, the DVD was enclosed with the parts, however, my point was that I'd wanted to read/view anything available regarding installation before my order arrived, so that I could use the waiting period to get the most "heads up" on my project. I downloaded their YT video to my tablet for in-shop convenience, not because their DVD was missing from the order.)


assembly:
The rotorhead came assembled and mounted to the mast plates, along with the 4-way air trim. That was a relief. (The EXPERIMENTAL decals I'd ordered locally fit perfectly, and look smart. More below on them.) The assembly easily bolts onto the lower mast. I torqued the bushing bolt to 30 ft/lbs, and the lower bolt to 50 ft/lbs.

Next, I connected the upper control tubes to the steel gimbal activation arm, taking care to readjust the rod end heights to give the arm its 2° left as RAF requires. To my surprise, the gimbal arm rod ends are sensitive to their standoff location within the ears, else they will (on my RAF, at least) bind up on full aft stick. (NOTE: high misalignment rod ends are needed, such as Aurora CM-6.)

The rotors are marked "A" and "B" (though this is not very obvious), and must be installed in their respective sides. It's a bit of a chore to line up the blade within 2 plates and 2 straps, but take your time and do not hammer in the bolts.

The hub bar/rotors drop easily into the teeter towers.

_____________
stuff you'll have to take care of yourself:

EXPERIMENTAL decals for SC's upper mast plates. Instead of crudely sticking on individual letters, go to a signage shop and order two black decals, 2.4"x27". I chose the font DIN-Black for its good symmetry of letters - specify letter height of 2" with color of choice. For just $25, the result is very professional, and your SC upgrade deserves it.​

​

RAF rotor brake cable linkage: The SC rotorhead comes with its own shoe brake, but you'll have to adapt the RAF linkage to it. This was unexpected. ​

​

RAF rotor RPM sensor: No SC bracket or instructions were included for this, which also was unexpected and caused delay. ​

​

RAF prerotator drive cable: just slightly too large for SC's Bendix drive socket, and a bit of material must be removed. See below remarks. ​

​

4-way air trim: This was more involved than I expected, and will need about 6 hours of work (i.e., another day). The instructions, however, seem pretty thorough with many color photographs. I'll post how this went when I finish it. ​

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gimbal arm rod ends with 0.406" housing width are too wide for SC arm: See a below post discussing this. ​

some recommendations so far:
I've been very satisfied with my Sport Copter order, albeit with a few suggestions.

a thorough website FAQ to anticipate and head off customer concerns and questions. A few times I had to call Jim Vanek (who's been always available, patient, and helpful), when probably half my questions could have been addressed in an FAQ. ​

​

a comprehensive ordering checklist for the customer, including everything SC needs to know in advance (e.g., angle of upper mast plates to rigid mast, how many joystick trim controls to include, photos of RAF if necessary, etc.). This would avoid any need for individual emails about such items. (For example, I was early on asked about the "angle of your mast position for the cheek plates" which seemed to regard which mast # setting I was using since each of the 4 cg positions create their own angle. However, what they need are the cheek plates actually measured against the lower mast, which will show an angle of 0-10°. Mine was 4°. We got the misunderstanding sorted out.)​

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all areas of remaining custom fabrication clearly explained, which is my biggest sticking point. Not all owners have a machine shop, or are very mechanically inclined. Either the entire package drops-in/bolts-on, or what does not is very specifically described so that the customer has no surprises and delays.​

​

getting your rotorhead/mast plates/air-trim before the blades, in order to use that time installing such while your blades are being made. I feel rather "behind the curve" due to sub-assembly surprises for the rotorhead, and would have preferred to hit the ground running with all that completed before the hub bar and blades arrived. ​

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replacing all OEM $2 control rod ends with Heims or Auroras before adding the SC rotor system.​

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going to Jim Mayfield's idea of 5/16" shanked Aurora rod ends for the pitch authority control rod. The SC rotor upgrade is significantly heavier through the stick, and I really cannot imagine somebody relying upon RAF's OEM ¼" rod ends there. ​

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upgrading to RAF's Product Notice 40 control system parts, which are more robust. I've not done so yet, and I think Sport Copter would be wise to include such in their RAF conversion package. Customers would be wise to pay the bit extra for this added insurance. ​

I'm in no hurry to complete the installation, and will take my time. Although it can be tested/flown with the RAF trim, due to the much heavier stick pressure I think I will wait until I've installed SC's air trim.

Regards, Kolibri

Good morning kolibri all the descriptions of your install on the trim systems on RAF TYPE mast was very helpful for me as I purchase their trim from sports copter as my rotor head is from gyro tech and blades too I'am sure it would add a lot more safety too flying at this time have over 400 hrs on two seater and single seat RAF THE ONE that built is very much modified single seat

 

[Tyger]

I haven't seen Kolibri here in a couple of years now...

 

[Ricky]

I haven't seen Kolibri here in a couple of years now...

Sorry too hear that there sure was a lot of very good info have a great day
Rick