No problem...you had plenty of clearance on the power poles!

Congrats on the purchase! Take it from me, an old rotor head....you'll NEVER regret learning, flying, and in most instances, owning your own helo!

Looked like a "no wind" day...so, you could have easily left peddle-turned it onto that grass strip...would have made an easier departure than to have to back out or depart over the house...

Can you elaborate on how the departure went?

I cleared a landing zone at my house. I got her back from an annual Friday with a great check up.

Awesome.

That’ll never work, it’s blocking the driveway.

“Honey move the dang helicopter !”

I think my neighbors would freak out if I landed a helicopter in my front yard.

I'm wondering how much the guy eats; he has four full size trash toters!

Same cost to have 1 or 4!

The 12 year is a pretty good idea if the helicopter has been in a corrosive environment. About two years ago I was spraying for a company in a early 2000s Raven 1. About 50’ above some trees in the Mississippi delta I heard a loud bang, followed by some serious vibration, shuddering etc... the aft engine mount separated, and the whole back side of the drive assembly was hanging by the upper driveshaft where it contacted the frame. I side stepped the river bank I was working on and simultaneously slammed the collective down then ripped it back up at about 15’. The engine mount was internally rusted and fairly thin wall to begin with.

Not an R44 but I thought this was a pretty interesting view.

[youtube]https://youtu.be/Pu48f7s5Ru8[/youtube]

Wow that was a great video, seeing the changes in angle of attack during rotation gives me an exponentially higher level of admiration for the engineering of these amazing machines. One of the most under-appreciated modern marvels of our time.

Also can’t imagine the size of the cojones of the person that strapped the camera in, imagine the damage it could do if it became dislodged.

John, Thanks for posting this great video. It is one thing to understand Dissymmetry of Lift and how a fully articulated rotor system corrects for it, but it is a whole new level of understanding when you see it in action.

The camera mounting really was not all that dangerous. It is mounted very near the the center of rotation so there was not a lot of rotational force applied, just the wind forces from forward flight.

You are a braver than I am. I saw that video several years ago and while I would love to get footage like that, there is NO way I would attach a camera to anything that rotates on my helicopter.

You are a braver than I am. I saw that video several years ago and while I would love to get footage like that, there is NO way I would attach a camera to anything that rotates on my helicopter.

There is a much older, very similar video out there. I think it's a Huey blade (odds are it's a Huey blade...). The one you posted is a much higher quality though, that's the benefit of a modern, miniature digital camera.

Both of them are really helpful to make the proverbial light go on in your head when trying to learn helicopter aerodynamics.

Bought an R66 in June. Loving every minute. What a great helicopter. R44 on Steroids...