T-Rex 600 - RC-Motion G10 VX Frames
| Reviewer | Ashley Davis |
|---|---|
| Review Date | 16th April 2007 |
| Manufacturer | rc-motion.com |
| Model | G10 VX main frames |
| Unit Cost | $79 ($39.50 per side) |
The following is a review of the G10 replacement frames available from RC motion. These frames are a different layout to the standard frames. The motor is inverted in order to give a higher centre of gravity. In order to achieve this the servos have also been reversed such that the elevator servo is at the front and the two aileron servos are behind the swashplate at the rear.
The G10 is 2 mm thick and the frames are easily as stiff if not stiffer than the standard carbon frames. The frames come supplied with a little bag of parts for mounting the servos as well as a small G10 mount which goes at the front of the frames and is designed to hold the ESC.
The frames are very nicely finished and all of the holes and cutouts look like they have been laser cut. The frames have also been fitted with bearings for the shaft that the aileron control horns sit on.
Left frame
Right frame
Servo fitting parts and ESC mount
Build Review
Building the frames was extremely straightforward. There are no instructions with the frames and therefore I needed to access the RC motion website to look at some pictures of the built-up frames. This was all that was necessary in order to build the frames successfully. Once you get started it all logically fits together.
Due to the servos being moved around it is necessary to reposition all of the servo horns. This didn't prove to be a time-consuming process and very quickly everything was in place.
Once built-up the frames are definitely more rigid than the standard carbon frames and the whole thing feels much more solid and strong. However, having recently crashed standard Align carbon frames I did feel that the lower vertical bars on the frames could potentially be a bit wider (width rather than thickness of the G10).
One of the main features of this frame is that the motor has been inverted in order to raise the centre of gravity of the machine. This change affects the balance of the machine overall as two servos are now behind the swashplate instead of in front of it. I verified that the model was now slightly tail heavy (once fitted with a pack). This is certainly true when running 6S but if you were running 10S I'm sure the machine would balance perfectly. Further discussion with RC motion revealed that if I was using the standard plastic tail gearbox (rather than the upgrade) the machine should balance ok.
As can be seen from the pictures if you have a fairly long motor like the 600XL or in my case the NEU 1515 you will need to trim some material out of the top of the canopy to accommodate the motor. Motors such as the ORK 1912, Zpower Z30 and the Actro will not require the canopy to be trimmed and will have approximately 5 to 10 mm clearance. These frames do not include the adjustable battery tray that you can adjust the angle of to suit your needs. You have two choices when fitting a pack, it can either be vertical or horizontal. If you choose horizontal then it is possible for the pack to be inserted between the frames and back into the space that used to be occupied by the motor on the standard frames. In fact while I was testing centre of gravity I realised that only by laying the pack down was it possible to get the machine balanced. Unfortunately this also means that a fair length of your pack will be sticking out beyond the battery tray and vulnerable to being damaged in event of a crash. I went for a vertical pack mount as the centre of gravity was not far out and although I would probably notice it in inverted flight it is easily corrected. I'd be very suprised if a sport flyer or beginner noticed the CofG difference at all in-flight.
Aside from these fairly minor niggles the frame went together extremely well and I now had huge amounts of space for fitting my radio equipment. I did use the ESC mount as it acts as a frame stiffener as well as a mount point.
Of course fitting these frames is almost a complete rebuild of the main body of the helicopter. Fortunately I had only just crashed and destroyed my main frames prior to receiving these new frames and so it was a necessary chore rather than a strip down of a perfectly good machine.
Right side 
Front
Left rear 
New servo arrangement 
Right side 
ESC mount 
Servo layout 
Servo layout
Flight Review
In-flight the slightly heavy tail is noticeable but it does not make the helicopter difficult to fly, just some slight noseing up when flying forwards inverted. Once in the air the frames provide a crisp and accurate machine. I was not prepared to lay my pack down and risk flying with it poking out of the front of the helicopter so the CofG problem will be fixed in other ways (see coming reviews). I did notice a small amount of elevator sensitivity in fast forward flight but this is more paddles than frames. The helicopter as a whole does not fly significantly differently to the standard frames. The main changes being a more axial roll. I have been flying this frame for a few weeks now and overall I am extremely happy with it. My only complaint being that they could have made the frames wider in some places rather than trying to produce the lightest machine possible.
| Pros |
|---|
| Thick G10 material, stiffer than stock Align carbon frames |
| Good quality |
| Value for money |
| Good flight performance |
| Higher centre of gravity, roles are more axial |
| Cons |
|---|
| Lateral centre of gravity is tail heavy and would require some adjustment of the pack to get it spot on |
| Canopy needs to be cut to accommodate the motor |
Conclusion
Overall I have found these frames to easily be as good if not better than the standard carbon frames. The only issue being a slightly tail heavy centre of gravity due to one servo having moved behind the swashplate instead of in front of it. The frames fly extremely well, the higher centre of gravity obvious in rolling manoeuvres. I would also venture that these frames are stronger than stock frames. Assuming you don't mind doing some adjustments around centre of gravity this frame set comes highly recommended as it is strong and good value for money.
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