Enstrom Corner

[born2fly_au]

if you are interested in doing an endorsement then i would consider contacting Fox-Air http://www.foxair.com.au/ near Geelong. They are the Australian distributor for Enstrom. He is a qualified instructor who maybe able to help you or put in touch with someone who can. The Enstrom looks like a strong alternative to the Schweizer 300 and i am interested in finding out more about them. The trouble is there is only a small number in this country compared to other types.
Born2fly

[zimb]

Thanks. I think they do training up at Kootamundra, I know they have a 280 f model there. It was in the film "Three Dollar".

[indrek]

Question about C&G, has anyone problems with it on Enstrom 480B? (Pilot 200lbs, 2 passengers about 200 lbs and more) and as much fuel as we can take within limits.

[indrek]

Empty weight is 1925 lbs, i have problem with zero fuel weight, C&G is going little bit forward - outside the limits.

[HillerBee]

I can't imagine you flying with zero fuel!

[EN48]

Enstrom LTE question

Perhaps a dumb question, but while having decades of plank experience, I have only recently completed a PPL rating in an Enstrom 480B. I have a new 480B on order, and, in part, my purchase decison was influenced by the excellent safety record of the 480 in particular and Enstroms in general. The POH for the 480B states that the helicopter has been demonstrated to be easily controllable in winds to 40 kts. My research could find no accident reports for Enstroms for which LTE was a stated factor. A very high time commercial Enstrom pilot (and insurance accident investigator) friend states that he is unaware of any Enstrom LTE events, ever, due to the high tail rotor authority of the Enstrom design. He recently demonstrated to me running Nr down to 80% in wind conditions of 12G23 and maintained control easily while hovering/turning downwind. While I know better than to assume that it could never happen, is the Enstrom design as immune to LTE as my current information would indicate?

Thanks for any informed opinions.

RB

[Gaseous]

Rick, Your aircraft and those with the wide chord blades are as immune from LTE as any. I wouldnt assume it absolutely impossible.

It is certainly possible to get in a mess with the narrow chord tail rotor of the 28A and 280 if the RPM is low. If anyone is interested I can bore you with the details.

At Normal RPM the narrow chord blades are more than adequate.
Aircraft built 1975 on, have the wider chord blades which solved the problem at low RPM. Enstrom must have realised there was a problem and solved it.

[EN48]

LTE question

Gaseous,

Thanks - the more I learn about the 480, the more impressed I am!

RB

[rick1128]

Rick,

You might consider being careful where you land. A few months ago I was discussing the 480 with the DPE that was conducting my Instrument checkride. He is a high time Enstrom pilot and dealer. His concern was with the placement of the exhaust ports. Instead of going out near the top, they were placed at the bottom of the helicopter. So there was a chance of starting fires when on the ground.

[hypcop]

gas for enstrom 280 fx 1985

Is it normal tu burn 20 Gal an hour for this type of helicopter

Thank you

Pierre

[EN48]

rick1128,

Thanks for the tip. I learned this the hard way a few months ago. I have been trying to keep my helicopter activities concealed from my spouse. (No point in causing a domestic disturbance before its necessary.) I landed in our yard while she was out of town and the next day, the grass in this spot was brown! No fire, as it is short, green grass, but my cover was almost blown! (In case you are wondering, I will eventually let her in on my secret. I figure that if this is the only thing I hide from her, how big a deal can it be?)

RB

[Gaseous]

Hycop,
20 Gallons per hour is not normal. Get it checked over and learn how to lean it. You should easily get it down to 16 - less if you try hard.

rick1128,
It is not just the turbines that can start grass fires. The warning equally applies to the piston models that exhaust from the bottom. (280, F28A and Robinsons)

Long dry grass has destroyed quite a few aircraft over the years.

[hypcop]

Component times list for enstrom 280

would any body have a Component times remaining list for enstrom 280c 1977 please. If so is it possible to email-it to me please
[email protected]


many thanks

[zimb]

Enstrom 280c blade tracking

Would any body be able to give us some advice on tracking and balancing a 280c MR. We seem to have a horzizontal vibration almost like a wobble that gives alot of feed back through the cyclic making hovering very uncomfortable. We have recently put the blades back on after transporting it, they were all numbered and went back to there original grips. Does any body have any useful tips on balancing or tracking? Thanks.

[Chopper Doc Junior]

There is a possiblity that the outboard trim tabs have been moved during transportation. contact the enstrom factory and ask them for details of the original tab sttings.

Also there could be something wrong with the swashplate.

What equipment are you using to carry out the track and balance?

[lartsa]

that sounds like damper trouble to me

[Gaseous]

Balancing is done with a Chadwick or similar machine. If you have simply had the blades off and it was flying OK before its not likely to be balance - plus it has to be quite a bit out to make that much difference.
Most likely, as CD says is an outboard tab bent. The factory may well not have the right settings. I dont think the numerous times mine have been tweaked and blades have been swapped have been reported back to the factory.

If its been knocked out of trim, in my experience it is quicker to start from scratch by zeroing and resetting all the outboard tabs. The procedure for setting the tabs is in the book. Section 12 if I recall right. Dont touch the inboard ones unless you are prepared to get out the chadwick.

Could be a lamiflex gone bad but not that likely.

Unlikely to be air in damper as that usually manifests as big vibrations on cyclic changes. Siezed damper makes it rough all the time. The dampers are easy to check and I'm sure you do it as part of your pre-flight anyway.
I wouldnt bother with the chadwick unless checking flat pitch with reflectors and eliminating cyclic stir with outboard tabs doesnt put things right.

Best of luck.

[zimb]

Thank you all for your input and helpful suggestions. I will work through them. We have not started with the balancing yet as I thought the problem may be Lameflex related, they have one year left to run. The engineer said he did not get much spring back from two of them on his inspection. I will also check the trim tabs. Thank you all once again.
Best regards.

[Chopper Doc Junior]

If there is any doubt about the lamiflex bearings and they are the source of the problem you will not be able to track the blades successfully. This has caused untold amounts of grief in the past. You might also want the engineer to remove the lamiflex bearings and see if there is any surface corrosion between the nut and the bearing. This has been know to happen in the past and cause the bearing to stick. Just remove the corrosion and refit and retest. Only do this if the corrosion is minor and has been assessed by a qualified engineer.

Good luck!

[Gaseous]

If it does turn out to be a lamiflex gone bad, please let us know. Mine just had its annual and I noticed that my four year old lamiflexes have started to bleed a lot of rubber. Bad batch maybe. Mines flying OK at present though.

I'd still be putting money on a tab bent though as it was flying OK before the blades came off..