Rotor Head Ball Joint Repair
A small encounter with the fence smashed my HoneyBee CP2 R/C Helicopter up. Good news is it wasn't a bad break - only a ball joint in the rotor head, bad news is its out of stock so could be waiting a while for a replacement.
So I attempted to fashion my own, with unexpected ease and success. This will explain what I did and how to do it so hopefully you can carry out similar repairs.
Equpiment
- Screwdriver
- Super glue
- Polymorph plastic
- Dremel (or just sandpaper)
The only expensive part you need is a small amount of polymorph. Its a thermoplastic that can be melted to a plasticine like state with hot water but is strong enough for heli repairs. Its £5 from ebay for a huge bag that will last a lifetime. Plus its really lightweight - I would recommend investing in some. Although there alternatives - someone did suggest using a rolled up ball of araldite for more strength.
The Process
Begin by removing the broken part from your heli, in my case this involved removing one screw from the side of the rotor head assembly.
Now you need to make a replacement ball, I did this by first melting one grain of polymorph in hot water ( should take 2 seconds) moulding it into a ball with my fingers and then comparing with another ball joint from the heli. Undoubtedly it was too big so I squashed the ball into a flat disk and cut off a corner before melting it again. This process took a few attempts to get accurate but its worth doing well
Finally, once the ball is in place and the glue has dried check the fit around the ball - if too tight just shave a bit off the edges. It should be able to move freely but not just fall off without any force.
I wouldn't think that would hold under much pressure...