Hey Vince, where ya been bro?
Been taking a break for a while from RC. I haven't been able to get the 450 to hover, even though its setup was by the book. 3 weeks ago I tried to get her dialed in, caught a gust, set her down hard, the velcro batt strap let go (it was a hover test, so no canopy on), batt pops up and is struck by the main blades.
Then I go pick up the battery by the wire to look at it, and it blows up. At this point, I figured it was a blade strike. Main blades shattered, main shaft bent for sure, tail boom and TT assy seem fine. I had to wait to order parts, money and work are scarce up here. I got the parts 2 days ago. Blades, mainshaft, feathering shaft, thrust bearings, thrust dampeners, links, bearings, front TT gears and rotor gear set. Hopefully it won't take all those parts.
So I've been pretty bummed, and heck if all I do is crash, I'm not contributing. When I can fly, I'll feel more useful. Some hobbies make me into an achievement whore. I know I can fly, but I still can't get the damn thing setup to fly. In my opinion, if you can't do that, you're not a pilot.