450 What The.......

[Airbrush dude]

Hi everyone. I'm trying to get back into helis. I just came from another heli forum which turned out to be a big waste of time. I'll start with a similar post here and see how it goes.
The last time I flew a heli the Raptor 50, RD8000 and CSM gyros were hot. I'm trying to get back into it, so I got this little Trex 450 FBL
a Taranis plus, align 3gx and a frsky XM+.
I got the heli from a friend of mine. No disc or dongle for the 3GX.
After being berated about the 3GX I got a kbar because it kept popping up in all the searches I did. I guess I did not do enough research because after it arrived I learned I have to steal software to make it work. Then I got hassled for buying a "no name" FBL unit. I have two 60 size, sorry 700 size birds, three 600 size, all nitro.
I haven't flown any of them for about 8 years. I am not new to the hobby but I am new to all the new electronics and FBL stuff. To me this little 450 is like a foamie, something small to run down to the school yard and fly on a whim. I have NO intention on putting a thousand bucks into it. All that being said any one know how to get started with all this stuff? I thought I would be set up and flying in a couple hours, hasn't played out that way so far. Sorry about the attitude I'm just burned out from the other forum.

 

[Tony]

Welcome to the reason this forum was created back in 2011. I was treated just like you were treated on those "other" forums and I got tired of it and created Rc-Help.

If you are wanting to stick with the 3GX, I can help. If you want to stick with the kbar (vbar knockoff), there are others that know this gyro on here. Just let us know what gyro you want to go with and we will help you out.

 

[Airbrush dude]

Thanks Tony, the other forum reminded me why I got away from forums and the heli crowd in general.
Enough about that. I watched the 3GX vids on youtube but could not make it work. I think without the dongle
it is useless. I bought the Frsky rx with the sbus because I thought it would be a neater install and more new school, whatever that's worth. I hooked it all up to the 3GX but could not get it to power up. I have to admit the "other" guys got me a little afraid of the 3GX. I know this hobby is VERY opinionated so it may be a lot of nonsense but I am willing to give it a shot before I move on to the kbar. thanks again.

 

[Tony]

I will say this, the 3GX gets a bad wrap because of version 3, 4 and 5. Version 2.1 in my opinion was the last one that was actually good. But they were trying to pack in features that the gyro could not handle. If you want to set it up without the dongle, it can be done and I have a video on that. Check it out below. But you will want to put 2.1 on it, which will require the dongle.

If you want to get a gyro that is better for the Align 450's IMO, check out the link below. It is based on the BeastX and no computer is required to program it. I have this gyro, but I have not set it up yet but I need to. I am supposed to be doing a review video on it lol. But this one is the same size as the 3GX and will fit into the frame of a 450 heli in teh stock 3GX location.

TGZ380 3 Axis Gyro Flybarless System for Align T-REX RC Helicopter

Here is the 3GX video on programming it without a computer. You can't fine tune it, but it will get you in the air if you have some patience.

3GX initial setup

3GX program without computer

 

[Derek]

In all honesty...i ran a 3gx on my 450 dfc pro, with v5 firmware, and it was awesome....very stable. No, it wasnt a Bavarian Demon nor Vbar nor Ikon....it was a 3gx. After following Tony's 3gx series, that helicopter was awesome.

Post any questions you have. This forum will help you out and im sure no one will belittle you about anything.

 

[Airbrush dude]

Lets start at the beginning. I plugged a receiver batt. (4.8v) directly into the 3GX. No lights no nothing.
My XM+ sbus rx lights up and indicates that it is bound. Power is going through the 3Gx but not powering it up.
Should I assume the 3GX is toast?

 

[Tony]

Not necessarily. The 3GX needs a signal in order to power up. I have never put anything on it other than satellites so I'm not sure how yours should be connected. I thought I had a video on that, but all I have i the flashing lights on the 3GX.

Make sure your receiver is connected properly to the 3GX. Make sure your polarity is correct (signal towards the label). And make sure you have bound your Tx and Rx together. If all of this is done, then likely the 3GX has bit the dust. It's rare, but it does happen.

I'm sure you have seen it, but I'm going to post the first 3GX video in the series which shows wiring. Hope this helps.

 

[Airbrush dude]

just tried it again, Tx on, rx light is solid green(bound) and the 3GX has no lights. I guess it's toast.
OK on to the kbar I guess.

 

[Tony]

I'm starting to get the picture of what is going on now... It's early for me and the coffee is just now kicking in lol. What I have found (and posted in another thread) is that the 3GX may only be compatible with Futaba's sbus and not frsky. But, lets try some things first.

First, take a picture that is in focus and post it up on here. With this Sbus issue, the 3gx may still be good. I can't stand the kbar and know nothing about it and my help will stop here on that gyro. No offense, I just don't know it.

Second, lets make sure your polarity is correct. The wire coming from the receiver to the 3GX will have 3 wires. One of them is signal, the other two are power and ground. Power needs to be in the middle, ground and signal on the outside of the plug. This plug should be plugged into the lower right port of the 3GX and the signal wire should be facing the right if you are facing the pins. Again, posting a picture will make this easier.

 

[Smoggie]

I'd use the kbar I've used then on several helis with no problems. They are a lot easier to set up than the 3GX and don't have any of the 'issues' the 3GX has. The kbar will also work fine with the Sbus output from your receiver.
If you need software for the kbar just say.

 

[Tony]

I guess my help stops here. Enjoy the kbar.

 

[Airbrush dude]

OK the 3g powered up twice but could not get it to power up again. Tried plugging it in numerous times. Then I tried putting a switch inline so I could turn it on and off a bunch of times, no good. Rx is happy every time.