Well finally i purchase the Swift Rtf, but i found several points to work even they said is "ready"...

1) Belt to loose..(i mind very loose)..-Adjust
2) Some links are very tight..( normal issue)
3) Some bolts are loose too..
4) No loctite in the motors bolts.. (Bad)
5) Gear mesh to tight..-Adjust
6) Problem with the rod of the rudder (very tight fit).., need sand..
7) Head mechanic, bolts to tight, washout poor fit need sand a litle.(bronce bushing).
8) Need to balance the wood blades a litle(normal issue), and bond with epoxy..(see in manual).
9) Need to re-binding the Rx..
10) Bad tracking of the blades too (normal issue)..-Adjust
11) Bad quality of tx batteries, dont last 20 minutes.(get Alkalines or rechargeables).
12) the tip of the skies is very sharp (ouch)..
13) Re-adjust the angles of the blades with the pitch road.(more rpm)
14) No balancer, only charger supplied for the lipo batt.
15) The 2.4 radio have ratchet in the throttle ( open and remove the tiny metal part).

i think i'm finish

Overall is fliying good, you need someone with experience to help you (pre-flight check), it is not like the small hummingbird that is truly rtf..

Hope this help to anyone.. (if you buy the Rtf.)

I want a Turbine heli.. :)

Good advice, Thanks!

I'm a bit curious, century mention the radio is programmable but i didn't exactly notice a LCD screen, or maybe i missed it.

How's the programming? Good enough to setup for aerobatics?

Yes It's programable, but you need to buy the software and cable to program on your computer for aerobatics.

I want a Turbine heli.. :)

Although we try to make this kit 100% Ready-to-Fly, this becomes a lot more complicated due to the size and complexity of this helicopter. Like Betofazzo said, this is not like the Hummingbird anymore but we have tried to make this as easy on the beginner pilot as possible. Due to the size, complexity, and the fragility of a 100% Ready-to-Fly Swift, we have packaged it as well as possible but can't control what shipping couriers do with the packages once they leave our warehouses. If it made it all the way to Venezuela and Betofazzo only had to make some minor adjustments, then we'd say the packaging is sufficient.

1) Belt to loose..(i mind very loose)..-Adjust

Probable shipping issue, the mechanics could have shifted causing the tail to be pushed in. Hard to say what UPS, USPS or FedEx does with their packages once they leave our warehouses.

2) Some links are very tight..( normal issue) -

Probably would wear in over time, don't want these too loose from the beginning.

3) Some bolts are loose too..

Probable and should be checked prior to first flight. This is documented in the manual

4) No loctite in the motors bolts.. (Bad)

Is now fixed

5) Gear mesh to tight..-Adjust

Probable shipping issue. See above.

6) Problem with the rod of the rudder (very tight fit).., need sand..

Loosen the servo and re-align. Probable shipping issue.

7) Head mechanic, bolts to tight, washout poor fit need sand a litle.(bronce bushing).

Sanding this could cause oversizing which will inhibit too much play causing binding. Just add oil similar to tri-flo and it will wear in.

8) Need to balance the wood blades a litle(normal issue), and bond with epoxy..(see in manual).

The blades come pre-bonded with medium CA which is absorbed well into the wood

9) Need to re-binding the Rx.

We don't know why but it seems like you were able to fix it.

10) Bad tracking of the blades too (normal issue)..-Adjust ...

This is probable and could be due to wooden blades and moisture absorbtion.

11) Bad quality of tx batteries, dont last 20 minutes.(get Alkalines or rechargeables).

Batteries are provided for initial flights and to keep total costs down.

12) the tip of the skies is very sharp (ouch)..

All Swift models have always had these skids.

13) Re-adjust the angles of the blades with the pitch road.(more rpm)

Pitch is set to around -5, + 8 for beginner flight. It's personal preference if you want to adjust for lower pitch angles with higher RPM.

14) No balancer, only charger supplied for the lipo batt.

Adding a balancer would have increased total cost of the kit.

15) The 2.4 radio have ratchet in the throttle ( open and remove the tiny metal part).

This is a personal preference. Easy to modify if you choose not to have the ratchet enabled.

We hope you enjoy your kit.

Century Heli

These issues he stated above are nothing different from the other ARF Swift kits. There were many threads on the "assembly skills" of the factory workers with the ARF kits. The only difference is the electronics adjustments.
How can you say it was shipping causing some of those problems? It is possible but nowhere did he state that the box was damaged and if it was shifted during the trip, then the packaging was insufficient.
I think Century would do better trying to remedy all these issues on all of the future RTF kits rather than blame it on shipping....Ro
n

Logo 600 VBAR, and Mikado XXtreme!!!!

We've done trial shipments on these to see what happens during shipping. The one thing we can't remedy is how much the kits get thrown around by the couriers. We have opted to keep the helicopters fairly loose within the box so as to not cause any damage to the parts. The helicopter is cushioned but not tightly packed. If the helicopter was tightly packed it wouldn't be allowed to shift which would result in broken parts. If there was no room for the heli to shift within the outer container, pressure put on the box from the top or bottom would break the parts. We asked ourselves whether the consumer would rather have the possibility of having some loose screws and tail belt due to shipping or broken tail boxes and skids? The manual goes into detail on how to adjust belt tension and to recheck the screw tightness prior to flying. Box damage wouldn't be apparent to the outer box as card board can flex. If too much pressure was applied to the upper portion of the box, the skids would break. If too much pressure was applied from the side of the box, the tail gear box would get damaged. The other option was to have the kit partially assembled, essentially in a smaller box and more tightly packed but this wouldn't be called a true Ready-to-Fly helicopter.

With the introduction of these kits, they're not just coming from our factory and going directly into the hands of end users. We've opened up every one of these kits and rechecked the components at our warehouse in California. We're confident in the kits that leave our California warehouse as we're also personally flight testing every single one.

So why not take off the skids and blades and such so as to not get broken is transit?

Logo 600 VBAR, and Mikado XXtreme!!!!

I know making a Rtf kit this big have some minor bugs, but overall Century make a excellent work to offer a good heli, with nice price, and features, oriented to novice pilot and not so "novi" like me,,,right now i enjoy the kit.Regards

I want a Turbine heli.. :)

I haven't seen CenturyHeli in here for quite a while, their effort to support here is definitely a bonus for all the flyers.

Care to share more on the radio programming? No of flight modes, thr/pit curve points, expo, model memory, etc?

I'm trying to find more info on what is possible but it seems too new at the moment.

For one, I think programming on a laptop and loading the settings to the transmitter is a pretty good idea if it helps to keep radio cost down and yet allow full programmability.

Thanks Betofazzo for sharing.

I applaud CENTURY for their prompt input. It is indeed a new combo and will have minor details to attend.

Hopefully any and all issues are or will be addressed in the manual.

From the issued Tx batts (makes sense just like a TV remote comes with no name brand batts) to even the sharp skids can be addressed in the manual to sand down if wanted.

Last time I checked the manual was not available for downloading.

To date I still recommend the swift 16...as its a performer at a great price.

T.R.A.C. and FLFLFL Member

Yes thank you for sharing, it is nice to hear that this is a solid kit, I have been looking at it since Century started the offer. I will have to finish my Hawk Pro first though.

Normal/Idle Up flight modes
Mode 1 through 4 programmable
5 point throttle curve
5 point pitch curve
Infinite model memory (dependent on hard drive storage)

Here's a screenshot from the transmitter manual of the programming interface:

Does it happen to have a throttle hold switch/function also?

Yes, either of the two toggle switches can be programmed for throttle hold.

Thanks!

Question about tail servo..

Hello again people of Century,,. wanted to know if the tail servo included whit the kit (rtf) is digital or analog? speed?..thanks

I want a Turbine heli.. :)

They are all the same - very basic analogue servos. Once you get into harder flight, like any other trainer set-up, the first place to look to upgrade would be the radio and gyro gear.

Unlike smaller electric RTF helis, this heli, motor, ESC & battery are capable of moving right on up to some pretty demanding 3D...but of course the radio, servos and gyro supplied are more for keeping the cost of training down.

Videos anyone? manual?

CENTURY
Is the radio programming software pocket PC compatible? Blackberry?

IF no, will it be considered?

T.R.A.C. and FLFLFL Member

Can I bind it to my DX7 ?

very good deal $$$ so far

will Century provide a PNP version later ?