Replacement Lepton Tail Fin

[jlr]

I've been flying my Lepton for a while now and even with the stock tail rotor blades, I end up dinging the tail rotor every so often. I'm not coming down that hard so I'm thinking this is happening because the vertical fin is so flexible that it is allowing the tail rotor to contact the ground even on relatively soft landings.

I noticed that in the Lepton review in issue #7 the test bird appears to have an aftermarket vertical fin. Does anyone know who makes it and/or a source for this fin? Aaron, if you're reading, some comment on how this fin performed at keeping the tail rotor out of the dirt would also be appreciated.

By the way, Kyosho Caliber 400 tail blades make a nice replacement for the Hirobo blades. They are about the same length as stock (so they probably won't fix the tail issues for heavy 3D), but they are a little wider so they have a little more bite than the stock blades.

Thanks!

--Jeff

[AaronS]

I had the same problem during the review, which is why I replaced the tail fin with the one seen in the flight shots. I used an old extra long TREX fin, but they make ones for the Lepton now.
try readyheli http://www.readyheli.com/SearchResults.asp
or rchover http://rchover.com/mjp_parts___upgrades

[jlr]

Thanks Aaron. You 'da man! :)

--Jeff

[jlr]

Just to follow up, I got the fin set from ReadyHeli.com (by the way - they ROCK!) and I have been flying with it for about a week. It totally fixes this issue. The stock vertical fin sux - if you're building a Lepton, don't waste you're time even trying it. Just get one of the aftermarket carbon fins.

--Jeff

[Tech F1]

jlr is there any other issues that you have found with the Lepton or is everything else ok???

[jlr]

That's the only real issue I've had. It is a really sweet flying machine and I like the size. The only other things that come to mind are the tail belt seems to stretch and stretch and stretch, and replacement parts are a little on the pricey side.

I've been having to adjust the belt every 3-4 flights and I have about 20 flights on my Lepton. I'm thinking that will start to taper off now. I wouldn't really call it a problem, just something that needs to be watched a lot more closely than on my Trex.

As far as the parts cost, the Lepton is a first-class, high quality machine. If I'm going to experiment, I do it with my Trex 450SA. When I'm ready to try it with the Lepton, it's always easier :D

Just so you can gauge where I'm coming from, I've been flying helis since Jan 2007 (although I have many years of flying planes). I'm doing mild 3-D; working on getting flips and in-place rolls to stay in place and inverted flight.

--Jeff

[Tech F1]

Cheers :)