450 HK450GT (SE V2) Damage Report After Crash

Tony · Feb 5, 2017

For those of you that don't know, I have a helicopter that started life as an HK450GT and has been upgraded with EVERYTHING except the frame to Align. It was years in the making and there are a few members that made it possible. But once it was done, it was awesome!

I flew this thing around quite a bit and had a blast with it. And once I upgraded the servos, this thing was on rails. So much so I was doing things with it that I would never do with any other helicopter that I own. And that is what bit me in the ass. I tried something new, didn't have enough height and I plowed this thing into the ground. Hard.

Of course the usual bent shafts, broken blades and such which I knew, but I just tossed it back up on the wall where it has sat since that crash (quite a few months have passed).

Last Friday, I received a package that just so happened to have a Goblin 380 in it. My first wonder was if the motor from a 450 would fit in the 380 so I pulled the SE V2 off the wall and I pulled the motor out of it which is a pain in the ass on the SE V2. That is when I noticed it. The frame is cracked, the lower plate is busted and my motor plate is broke for the SE V2. IMO, this helicopter is a complete write-off. I just do not have it in me to spend that kind of money to restore it and replace what needs to be replaced.

And for those wondering, a standard 450 motor will NOT fit in a Goblin 380, it's just too small on the bolt holes and likely not near enough power. That now has me wondering if a 500 size motor will fit... I do have a 730MX motor in the 550... lmao

So I hate to say it, but I feel the poor little HK450GT has met the end of its life. I'm really going to miss this helicopter!

callsign4223 · Feb 6, 2017

It lived a good life. We should give it a viking send off with puffed lipos as the fuel.

Tony · Feb 6, 2017

Um, you do remember what happened last time I released the magic smoke in lipo's, right?

Tony · Mar 4, 2017

Due to the severe nature of the injuries sustained in the crash, we were unable to save the SE V2 unfortunately. Thankfully, it had an organ donor card and we will be transplanting some of its electronics into another build that is coming soon to a youtube page near you. Stay tuned for more.

Tony · Apr 17, 2017

So the organs that were going to be transplanted never made it to the new kit (which is the Goblin 380 if you hadn't guessed yet). Thanks to Fran here on the site, he ordered brand new cyclic servos for the Goblin and the only thing from the SE V2 that went to the Gobby is the tail servo. Never fear though, I had another DS520 laying around, but I think this one is the one that I had to tear apart because it had a dirty pot and would just quit working. I believe I have resolved this issue and that is where todays post begins.

I like the idea of having a flybar helicopter sitting here ready to fly. Even if I have modified the crap out of the battery tray to get a Pro canopy to fit on it because the stock one stuck out too far lmao. This was my first real kit after the E-Razor 450 which was a craptastic pile of scat! But in its defense, it did do what I needed it to do. It helped teach me how to fly. But this kit now has been with me since 2011. It is the helicopter that I used in many videos as well as the how to fly series. I just can't let it go.

So today, I went on a scavenger hunt. I needed to find a main shaft, I needed to find a feathering shaft, thanks to Tungsten I have new blades here ready to go on it (have not checked the fit in the grips yet though, this could be a fail lol), I needed to find the cyclic servos that I had on it, I needed to find a new main gear (and a pinion if I had to use one of the many straight cut gears I have) and I had to find that other tail servo that I took off of the Pro when I replaced it with the Savox servo (thanks URI for that one!)

So out to the studio where you can pretty much swim there because of the humidity to look for parts. I remember having a bag full of parts from china (don't care, just want it in the air) that had main shafts and I thought feathering shafts in it. Nope, just main shafts. I did find an Align shaft though so I stuck that in the bag with the other chinese shafts. I then reached in the box where I had the cyclic servos that I was going to put on the gobby and grabbed those and stuck them in my pocket. One of the arms is broke, but that is no big deal, I have more thanks to Geena, and I found another set of Align arms. But I still don't have a feathering shaft, and without that, it will not fly anywhere near stable.

So I head out to the garage where the Rc tool box is and look in there. Maybe that is where I put them. Nope, the only feathering shaft I have in there is one for a 500, which is a size I do not have.... Go figure....

FINE!!!

Back out to the studio because I know I have some extra heads somewhere out there and one of them has to be complete! So I dig around in more boxes (I have more damn boxes full of Rc stuff than any single person should have...) and I find the head that used to be on the SE V2, the Tarot head. Not happy about putting a soft feathering shaft in the head, but I need one and this one is so far the only one that I could find, so I stuck the head in my pocket.

While digging around in that box I just happened to find a brand new Align helical cut main gear that is black, a brand new(ish) auto gear and an Align one way bearing all put together. This put a smile on my face because this means I do not have to put a loud ass straight cut gear on my helicopter!!! So that went in my pocket.

I'm sure you remember that I tore this helicopter apart. It is in many pieces. Servos removed, frame tore apart, tail boom somewhere in there away from the frame, it's in pieces... So I get to put all of that back together with the old parts to make it look like it did after the crash (sans the blades because I already tossed them in the trash). Why am I doing this you ask? Because I think it would be fun to do a video on exactly what I look for after a crash.

What do you guys think about that idea? Something like "So you just had a crash, Here is what to look for and how to rebuild" or something like that. Let me know what you think.

Tony · Apr 17, 2017

Well this may have just been put on hold for a while. I have absolutely on idea where the motor and motor mount is for this helicopter. And you need the motor mount to put the frame together... Not good. Crap...

Tony · Apr 17, 2017

Just too much damage for this old bird. Bottom frame in two pieces, one frame quarter broke, motor mount broke, just lost the shim for the main gear, everything is bent, tail shaft bearings not spinning, two servo backing plates missing, one servo screw missing....... I could go on.

The HK450GT will now go into a plastic bag as you see it in the pic above. Will I ever get it back out again.... only time will tell. More than likely it will be to look for parts for another helicopter. This one is going to need a new kit. So if you have a lot, se v2 or a pro with flybar and belt, let me know.

murankar · Apr 22, 2017

Target bag award maybe, lol.