Prop Balancing 2 Blades

[Gaza07]

I found this video on You Tube it is very good and he even shows how to balance the hub

http://youtu.be/N02NHYrpA0g

And another

http://youtu.be/OXuNnYQO2s4

[rob]

Thanks, really useful videos, will have a crack at that when my stuff turns up!

[Smeagol]

The second video was excellent at explaining the hub section, which is where I was a little uncertain, also the importance of balancing.

Thanks for sharing them.

[shaktar]

Cool find, just bought a balancer so will come in really handy

Thanks.

[Smeagol]

What balancer did you get, After recommendation in this forum I bought the same balancer that is used in the second vid.

[dani_r]

I';m on the hunt for a prop balancer too! What is the one people recommend?

[Smeagol]

I';m on the hunt for a prop balancer too! What is the one people recommend?

The one used in the second video is made by DU-BRO, and was recommended to me by the guys on here, gets a great write up everywhere I read.

[dani_r]

The one used in the second video is made by DU-BRO, and was recommended to me by the guys on here, gets a great write up everywhere I read.

I saw that but everywhere wants £30+ for it!

[teslahed]

That';s why i bought a cheaper one instead. Then another cheaper one when the first cheaper one turned out to be rubbish. Then i bought the DU-BRO balancer when the second one turned out to be rubbish too. Total cost to me = £60 approx. I wish I';d bought the DU-BRO to start with

Having said that i am sure there are good quality cheaper balancers out there. If you find one please let us know!

The first one i bought was this one;

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=7702

which was manufactured wonky, so totally useless.

The second one was a ';finger prop balancer'; that didn';t seem to help much either.

[dani_r]

That';s why i bought a cheaper one instead. Then another cheaper one when the first cheaper one turned out to be rubbish. Then i bought the DU-BRO balancer when the second one turned out to be rubbish too. Total cost to me = £60 approx. I wish I';d bought the DU-BRO to start with

Having said that i am sure there are good quality cheaper balancers out there. If you find one please let us know!

The first one i bought was this one;

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=7702

which was manufactured wonky, so totally useless.

The second one was a ';finger prop balancer'; that didn';t seem to help much either.

So what you';re saying is buy the DU-PRO? :p

Who knows the cheapest place to get hold of one? Cash is king these days!

[teslahed]

So what you';re saying is buy the DU-PRO? :p

Who knows the cheapest place to get hold of one? Cash is king these days!

It';s definitely the safest bet - but ask around if you can, you may get a cheaper recommendation elsewhere if you are lucky.

I bought mine from the local model shop - cost about £30.

[shaktar]

I went to get some connecters from my local shop,  he had this one in so decided to get it there and then.

http://compare.ebay.co.uk/like/181004426427?var=lv&ltyp=AllFixedPriceItemTypes&var=sbar&cbt=y

[dani_r]

I went to get some connecters from my local shop,  he had this one in so decided to get it there and then.

http://compare.ebay.co.uk/like/181004426427?var=lv&ltyp=AllFixedPriceItemTypes&var=sbar&cbt=y

That';s the other one that comes up and also looks quite good. It is held by magnets which seems like the best way.

Have you had a chance to try it out yet?

[XH558]

Just FYI - I saw this thread and bought this one ...

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=7702

It has the magnet thing and other possibilities such as cradle and other stuff - And I have been very pleased with it - works a treat - the magnet thing is brilliant as there';s absolutely no friction resistance.

I';d recommend it 

[dani_r]

I have bit the bullet and ordered the DU-PRO. Strangely enough, my helicopter parts guy had it in! Cheapest I';ve found too:

http://www.align-trex.co.uk/db499-tru-spin-blade-balancer-5513499-p-2224.html

Thanks for all the input chaps :)

[teslahed]

Just FYI - I saw this thread and bought this one ...

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=7702

That';s the one i got and had terrible problems with. If you read the comments on the hobbyking website they seem really mixed. Presumably the quality control at the factory isn';t great.

When i got mine the prop balancer itself was out of balance so all my props ended up being balanced ';wrong'; until i thought to check. I was quite annoyed.

[XH558]

When i got mine the prop balancer itself was out of balance

Just expand on that a bit - how do you mean??

There is a metal rod with screw on cones that sits between magnets - which bit of that was out of balance??

[dani_r]

Just expand on that a bit - how do you mean??

There is a metal rod with screw on cones that sits between magnets - which bit of that was out of balance??

I think there';s a few reports of some being bent from the factory.

[teslahed]

Just expand on that a bit - how do you mean??

There is a metal rod with screw on cones that sits between magnets - which bit of that was out of balance??

Yeah - i should have checked first thing but i didn';t, I just assumed my expensive magnetic balancer would do the trick.

If you set the prop balancer up with all the parts attached but without a prop you';ll see that one side seems heavier. Unless you are one of the lucky ones.

[XH558]

Nope still don';t get it .... what on earth can be out of balance without a prop .... there';s a metal threaded rod and 2 cones 

Mine balances 2 bladed props fine 

And how is £10 expensive ... I thought that was cheap 

[Gaza07]

Put some dots on your cones and see if you can set them in any position with out them rolling to the same spot all the time, the cones can be out of balance but im not sure if thats what he means 

[teslahed]

Yeah the cones could be out of balance, or the axle could be bent slightly, or the points on the ends of the axle that the magnets contact could be machined very slightly off perfectly centre of each axle.

I am not sure exactly which of these apply in my case - but it';s definitely out of balance. As gary says if you put a dot or a mark on one of the cones you can see it always wants to rest with one side down.

And how is £10 expensive ... I thought that was cheap 

I paid more than £10 as i got it locally.

[rsmith21]

Great videos, prop balancer added to the shopping list :)

[steve fh]

I believe the magnetic balancers can have issues as even if nothing is bent there is no guarantee the shaft sits level as it can float in the magnetic field giving un reliable results

The Du-BRO TRU-SPIN (which is the unit being used in the second video at the start of this thread) is highly regarded and when I got one showed up props i thought were balanced to still need work. My quad is now silky smooth.

It also has no restriction on prop size allowing full hub balancing on all prop sizes.

Best Uk price I found for the Du Bro was here http://www.4-max.co.uk/prop-balancers.htm

There are some cheaper units out there but when you look at the time (and money) people are putting into trying to solve vibration issues on flight controllers and jello on expensive cameras a few extra £ on a the prop balancer can save a lot of hassle, time and give good improvements on film quality.

[DarrenG]

I';ve been searching for one of these for a few weeks now, I was following one on eBay but it';s going for more than the cost of a new one and the auction doesn';t end until later today!

Every place that lists them seems to be out of stock, they must be very good.  Finally tracked one down at a small model shop and have bought it.  Will be a while before I';m proficient enough in flying to want to bother balancing though!

[Fletch]

So this is the cheap balancer I bought ....

The reason I came here is the same reason others have posted in this topic ... The balancer itself isn';t balanced

[guest2350]

So this is the cheap balancer I bought ....

The reason I came here is the same reason others have posted in this topic ... The balancer itself isn';t balanced

Same one as I got... It';s was in better shape than my dubro actually.

[ashutchy]

So this is the cheap balancer I bought ....

The reason I came here is the same reason others have posted in this topic ... The balancer itself isn';t balanced

Same one I';m looking at Ewan and was all ready to hit ';buy it now'; on. Seems I should look elsewhere perhaps. 

[ashutchy]

Mixed reviews and reports of both the ';ebay'; balancer and the DuBro model leave me stumped at which one to go for. Has anybody here made their own with any success?

[guest2350]

Mixed reviews and reports of both the ';ebay'; balancer and the DuBro model leave me stumped at which one to go for. Has anybody here made their own with any success?

I still think the dubro is a good balancer, just mine was a bad one!