I need some help with fixing my Eachine mini F4U Corsair motor setup.

[Luis_Molina]

Hello everyone,

I am very new to the hobby, as well as to the Aloft Hobbies store and community. I purchased an Eachine mini F4U Corsair a few months ago and it flew great. It is a trainer RC plane, so it was a great way for me to be introduced to the hobby. The plane is very durable, but one too many nose crashes seemed to have caused a shaft in the power mechanism to bend a fare amount. When I pull the prop adapter forward (refer to the pictures), the motor spins and responds to the throttle that I command from the transmitter. However, when I stop the throttle, the motor seems to not respond anymore and it ceases to spin, even when I throttle up. And just like the first step, if I pull the prop adapter forward, the motor begins spinning again, as if it didn't have the previous failure. From this info, it seems like I should replace the shaft that is bent, but I can't remove the prop adapter and I don't want to pull too hard as I fear I will break the part. Does anyone have any suggestions? I have videos of what is occurring so if anyone would like to see them I can email them to you. Thank you!

Much appreciated,

Luis Molina

 

[Konrad]

Sounds like the bent shaft is causing the loss of any backlash (it is binding the motor and gear box). This results in the motor being stalled at start up. Sliding the shaft forward towards the front bearing frees up the motor shaft a bit allowing it to start spinning.

It looks like there is an "E" clip on the back side of the driven gear. Remove this E clip from the shaft, with a pick or small screw driver. DO THIS IN A CLEAR PLASTIC BAG. This is to keep the flying "E" clip from being lost as it pops off the shaft! Slide out the shaft. You will in all likelihood need to support the bearing block or driven gear as the driven gear should be installed on a spline that will require that the driven gear and shaft be pressed apart. (I suspect this will only need good thumb and finger pressure).

Straighten shaft by eye so that you don't see any wiggle more that the thickness of a human hair. Reassemble again in the plastic bag.
Admire your work and get back to flying!

 

[Luis_Molina]

Hello again,

Happy New Year everyone. Here's an update:

I removed the E clips which allowed me to remove the prop adapter. With the prop adapter off I could bend the shaft back more comfortably, and I think I did a fair realignment. I was not able to slide the shaft out, as the back end of the shaft has a knob which doesn't allow for the shaft to be removed from where it is on the setup. I took a chance and reassemble the system. Unfortunately, I still have the issue. I did notice that the shaft now moves laterally a bit more, so that could be affecting the system too. Should I try to remove the shaft again?

 

[Konrad]

If you have back lash between the gears all the way around then I fear the problem is in the motor. That small motor is susceptible to brush damage, even from a momentary stall (like a crash). It is looking like you will need to replace the motor and gear box.