Apogee Components - Heli-Roc {Kit}

Apogee Components Heli-Roc

Apogee Components - Heli-Roc {Kit}

Contributed by Alan Rognlie

Manufacturer:

(Contributed - by Alan Rognlie)

[Rocket Pic] I purchased this kit in the summer of 1997, intending to build it for the C HD (Helicopter Duration) event at MWRC-97. Unfortunately, this model is designed for 10.5mm or 13mm motors, so it wasn't appropriate at the time and I set it aside. We're holding a B HD event at 14AL-98 and Apogee makes 10.5mm B motors, so I decided to put this together to have a reasonably competitive entry. I'll use my converted Turbo-Copter for a back-up, if needed. I was initially afraid of how complex the model might be, but I was very pleasantly surprised by how quickly and easily the kit went together. I started working on the kit on a Sunday evening and, even with the limited time I had available to work on it, I was done by the following Friday. This is a very good introduction to competition Helicopter recovery models. I'm looking forward to the AL14-98 competition.

Construction

26 April, 1998 Started construction - The first evening, I built the motor mount, cut the ejection bypass ports in the body tube, sanded the rotor blades and fins, and glued on the fins, nose cone and BT reinforcements. I also trimmed the (Klett?) blade hinges and attached them to the rotor blades.

27 April, 1998 Fillets - This evening I did fillets for the fins and BT reinforcements before I went off to Chorus rehearsal.

28 April, 1998 Attached rotor blades - Using thick CA, I tacked down the hinge ends of the rotor blades. I used the kit supplied string as whipping over the hinges and thin CA to set things solid. I cut three pieces off the supplied music wire and bent them to form the 'J' hooks that attach to the rotors, glued them into the rotor angle stand-off pieces and attached the angle stand-offs to the rotor blades.

29 April, 1998 More fillets - I added fillets to the rotor angle stand-offs when I got back from choir practice.

30 April, 1998 Finished stand-offs - I cut and bent the remaining music wire to form the 'J' hooks that form the front attachment points (in the nose cone) for the rubber bands that extend the rotor blades. I also cut the launch lugs and glued in the bottom lug. One of the supplied pieces of launch lug tubing was cut to form supports on the rotor angle stand-offs (to support the rubber bands at an angle to help assure rotor deployment) and the pieces were glued in place. When I attached the orthodontic bands to test the rotor, the hinges started to bend (not at the hinge line) so I whipped the hinges down with more sewing thread and soaked the whipping with thin CA. After this, the rotors activated cleanly. After checking the rotors, I drilled the holes for the burn-string into the body tube.

Other Reviews

Apogee Components Heli-Roc By Chan Stevens
Brief: A basic Rota-roc style helicopter (fixed blade), this is a reliable design and definite crowd pleaser. There's just something cool about a true helicopter recovery rocket. Construction: The kit arrived within 3 days of placing my order online and all components were complete and good quality. Parts list includes: BT-5 body tube 10.5mm motor tube and centering ...

Flights

Comments:

M.G. (January 1, 2001)

In constructing this model I found out that the nose cone covered the ejection exaust vents, I then trimmed the nose cone to clear the vent holes. I also found that the body tube was 13" long and not the 12" that the kit plans call for. Unfortunately this was right at the rotor attach step, and I wondered why the rotors were not as long as the ones in the pictures. They were, it's just that the body was longer! As a result my Heli-Roc rotor blades do not reach the bottom of the body tube. This hasn't effected the flight characteristics of the model at all. It still is a great flier on the Estes "Mini" motors.

DBM (February 13, 2006)

I ordered a Heli-Roc kit as a re-intro to helicopter recovery after 25 years on hiatus (I had good success in the 70's using my own design based on Dave Griffiths' "Griffithcopter"). This is an easy to build kit and flies really well, however it is heavy for a 13mm rocket. The cast resin NC is the main culprit; I lightened mine significantly. Using 0.125" to 0.3" drills, I hollowed the NC down to about 3/32" max wall thickness (watch out for the wires embedded in the NC - and DO NOT do this with a hand drill, use a drill press and soft jawed drill vise!). You could also use a Dremel with a round cutting bit but but again, be very careful when getting near the 'roots' of the embedded wire hooks. I also used CA and Kevlar® thread (for the hinge wrapping) and thinned nitrate dope to seal the bare wood. Using colored tissue on the bottom side of the rotors would be a good idea! It flies great on everything from 1/4A's to full A's. I have not timed mine yet but I am getting consistently good flights, the only prang was a rotor hang-up that was my fault; no damage. After the first couple flights you'll see some burn marks on the rotors. I applied 3/8" squares of metal foil tape (real "duct" tape) on the scorched spots and it has prevented any further damage. You could probably use some tin foil and CA or epoxy to do the same thing. It also builds quickly, mine was done in only a few hours. I have found that pre-stretching the rubber bands helps in installing them and reduces the tension enough so that the rotors do not bow too much in the closed position. I take them off between flights and when in storage, they'll last longer that way. I drilled the thread holes in the BT out to 3/32" as it allows the burn thread to be installed much easier. I've also found that elastic thread burns through quicker and is much easier to use. All in all a fun build and great flyer; my success with it has inspired me to work on a 48" rotor diameter, 24mm version.

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