After several gallons of fuel have been run through my T-Rex 600N, I started to notice an intermittent, metallic rattling noise which seemed to be coming from the Align pipe. Some research on the forums led me to believe that the baffles were prone to failure in this pipe so I began to look into alternatives.

I had considered purchasing a Hatori pipe, since others have reported good luck with them. Still, I wanted to keep some options open, and I knew that Outrage RC, manufacturers of the G5 and the upcoming Outrage 550 electric helicopters, and the Outrage series of Lithium Polymer battery packs, had just released a new pipe designed for .50 size nitro helis.

Called the Hyper Rage 50, the pipe is designed as a direct bolt-on replacement for the Align pipe and as such, it made sense for me to consider this pipe for my heli. After dropping the folks at Outrage RC an email and asking a few questions, I was contacted by Steve from Outrage RC, who patiently answered my questions and gave me a little insight into the Hyper Rage 50 pipe.

They (Outrage) are aware of the issues some folks are having with the Align pipe’s baffles blowing out, and Steve mentioned that in the early stages of its development, the Hyper Rage 50 had similar issues. I was told that after a few redesigns, Outrage has managed to solve the issue. Steve also mentioned that the Hyper Rage was quieter than the Align pipe while managing to produce more power. Steve also agreed to send me one for review.

Initial impressions, / What’s In The Box

After a few days, the pipe arrived, having been drop-shipped from Outrage’s U.S. distributor, HeliDirect. Contained within the box was the pipe itself, wrapped in a thin layer of foam sheeting and placed in a plastic bag, to keep the chrome finish from being nicked or otherwise damaged. Also included was a small bag containing the mounting bolts, split-ring lock washers, brass pressure tap fitting, silicone exhaust deflector (AKA barf tube), and a zip tie to fasten the redirector to the pipe.

No gasket was included with the muffler, and I personally prefer to run one between my pipe and my engine, but some guys do not, preferring instead to either have no gasket or to use a thin layer of RTV silicone. For this reason I understand why they didn’t include one. Luckily, I had an extra gasket that came with my engine. Just a quick note, if you choose to use RTV for an exhaust gasket, be careful not to use too much, since small bits can break off inside the motor and get sucked into the combustion chamber, where it can then foul the glow plug, rendering it useless.

The other main component included was the exhaust deflector. The last time I had seen this design was at IRCHA, where I believe they were introduced. Molded from fairly thick silicone, the included deflector is unique in that it incorporates a built-in plug, which can be conveniently folded back and secured to a molded-in standoff for flight. A very useful and unique idea, in my opinion. These are molded in several different colors and are also available separately from HeliDirect. I was sent a yellow one, and though I would have normally chosen black, it doesn’t look too bad on my heli, and even fits in with the yellow color scheme of the canopy.

Assembly / Installation / Testing

I took care of the rudimentary assembly of the pipe, which consisted of installing the exhaust redirector and the pressure tap into the hole on the top of the muffler. You must be careful when installing these brass fittings, They are VERY easy to overtighten and break off. I’ve done this before, and luckily was able to remove the broken stump that was left in the muffler, but I can’t count on being lucky every time. A little extra caution here never hurts.

At this point, assembly is pretty much finished. I did take the mounting bolts and thread them into the threaded holes in the pipe to chase them, and it was a good thing that I did. One of the holes was fine, but the other was a bit clogged with a gritty, black,  dirt-like substance which I’m assuming is dried up plating liquid left over from the plating process. It was really no big deal to remove though, as a toothpick and a coupe of bursts of canned air cleaned the hole out neatly. Perhaps a pipe cleaner probably would have worked better, but I didn’t have one (a PIPE cleaner…..get it?…. um, …. nevermind).

With only one thing left to do, I started packing up my stuff to head to the field. No, I didn’t mount it to the heli yet, because I was planning on testing Steve’s assertion that the Hyper Rage 50 was quieter than the stock Align pipe. To do this, I would need to take a reading with my club’s decibel meter to get an idea of the sound level of the Align pipe first.

Next: Testing And Flying