Which heli next?

[myxiplx]

There are so many good choices, the Oxy3 looks great, as does the Blade 360CFX, and I love my Gaui X3.

While I think the Oxy3 is shaping up to be extremely good quality, I'd recommend a 360mm blade machine, they just fly so smoothy and feel like a proper large helicopter. Plus there are guys with a 6S Gaui X3 setup who just throw a 4S pack in there for lower headspeeds, and get 9 minutes of sport flying out of it!

That's crazy flight times on a machine that also does amazing 3D. And I would expect the 360CFX to perform pretty similarly.

[Peteski]

The 360CFX is starting to look like a bit of a bargain. Just been looking at the total build cost for an Oxy 3 and it's looking very pricey compared to the Blade or anything else for that matter. Looks like it would end up close to £600 all in with the same electronics as the 360CFX! Might have trouble justifying that to my other half or even myself to be honest. I knew they weren't cheap but I didn't realise they were THAT expensive. For some reason I thought they would be much more comparable on price, especially as the Oxy is a build kit.

Maybe I should just pull the trigger on the Blade 360, save a few hundred quid and get on with some actual flying!

[james_2k]

got my 450l for 270! bargain machine

[Peteski]

Yes Align prices are very competitive, no doubt about that. I presume that's the 6S Super Combo from RC Heliguru with the older 3GX flybarless unit? So once you add in a receiver and possibly swap out the 3GX for something "newer/better" it's soon going to end up at a similar price to the discounted Blade 360 CFX. Arguably slightly better overall quality, but you still have to build it from scratch vs BNF. Anyway, the 450L simply doesn't appeal to me enough in this case.

[philipjdall]

Has anyone actually bought/flown a 360cfx?

I'd be keen to hear from other owners before taking the leap.

The align 450L may not appeal; but it is a fantastic learning platform. Which is what you're going to need this heli to be.

FWIW if money is an issue; pick up a kbar (vbar clone) for about $20 and drop it in. It'll fly better than the beastx will.

[james_2k]

Yes Align prices are very competitive, no doubt about that. I presume that's the 6S Super Combo from RC Heliguru with the older 3GX flybarless unit? So once you add in a receiver and possibly swap out the 3GX for something "newer/better" it's soon going to end up at a similar price to the discounted Blade 360 CFX. Arguably slightly better overall quality, but you still have to build it from scratch vs BNF. Anyway, the 450L simply doesn't appeal to me enough in this case.

what are you doing in your flying? because im willing to bet you wont notice a difference between a 3gx and a £400 (originally) 3sx. im keeping the 3gx for a while as my flying really doesnt need anything fancier. i only have the demon on the goblin for the recovery. ive also had a 450L before and its a great quality machine.

[tomatwalden]

Newer Gpro version is pretty good too .. on a par pretty much price wise with the 360CFX (£334)

T-REX450L (6S) (GPRO version) DOMINATOR Super Combo RH45E17XT Model Helicopters

FWIW, I would personally avoid the 3GX having had one in the past. Sure, it flew, but it's a quirky bugger to setup It never really "took off" (excuse the pun) hence why resale prices were bargain bucket ...

PS. Other differences with the really cheap 3S 3GX version is 325mm versus 360mm blades, and obviously the 3S motor/ESC combo.

I guess it comes down to whether you want to do a build or not. Personally I would plumb for the Blade purely because I couldn't be arsed to build a 450 ... Otherwise I'd go for a Gaui X3.

[james_2k]

Newer Gpro version is pretty good too .. on a par pretty much price wise with the 360CFX (£334)

T-REX450L (6S) (GPRO version) DOMINATOR Super Combo RH45E17XT Model Helicopters

FWIW, I would personally avoid the 3GX having had one in the past. Sure, it flew, but it's a quirky bugger to setup It never really "took off" (excuse the pun) hence why resale prices were bargain bucket ...

PS. Other differences with the really cheap 3S 3GX version is 325mm versus 360mm blades, and obviously the 3S motor/ESC combo.

I guess it comes down to whether you want to do a build or not. Personally I would plumb for the Blade purely because I couldn't be arsed to build a 450 ... Otherwise I'd go for a Gaui X3.

actually, i got the 6s 3gx version cheaper than the 3s 3gx version. but yeah i wouldn't get the 3s 3gx, it is shorter, shorter blades, even the servos aren't as good. but its harder to find the original 6s 3gx version now (hence why they were cheap to get rid of the stock) 3s 3gx seems to be a current model still.

[Peteski]

I may well get hold of a 450L as a learner/beater at some point when I have more time to fly regularly, but this is not really what I'm looking for right here. If I have to build it from scratch I want something a bit different/interesting like a Mini-Protos, Gaui X3, Oxy 3 etc or something ultra-convenient but still with decent quality like the Blade 360. Ultimate flight performance is never going to be an issue for me, but I do want it to fly smoothly and accurately as best I can expect for this size/class of heli. I don't think I need to be a 3D expert to appreciate these qualities. It's often said how much easier larger helis are to fly simply because they are smoother in flight and more stable. So that's what I'm looking for except in a smaller package. Now I'm sure the 450L would achieve those specific aims too, but it doesn't quite do it for me in the other respects. If it was available BNF like the Blade it would perhaps be a different story.

[Peteski]

I guess it comes down to whether you want to do a build or not.

That's the nail hit right on the head and basically why I'm still debating what to buy. I do quite like the idea of building (I'm a mechanical engineer) and the experience would be invaluable, but time to actually do it is pretty tight. If I do build then I'm going to sacrifice flying time for sure and I'm already short enough on that front. Think the Blade 360CFX is edging toward the winning post here!

[Peteski]

FWIW if money is an issue; pick up a kbar (vbar clone) for about $20 and drop it in. It'll fly better than the beastx will.

For an Oxy 3 build I was looking at the BeastX with integral receiver for £155. I presume the kbar would require a separate receiver? Still probably save around £100 on the build cost, but still it's a £500 small heli! Does look great though

[james_2k]

Well it's your choice. Bear in mind that when you crash it. It will be much easier to rebuild if you built it in the first place.

[honwal]

just something to consider, I believe 450x is being discontinued so should be bargains to be had, as I can testify with no experience at all with repairing heli's, it is easy to fix and dare I say easy to fly, (at my level), use as a trainer and get your dream machine later, with the thought you wont crash much with experience gained on 450x,

[Peteski]

I did consider the 450X too, but right now the price difference is only about £50, so I may as well just get the 360 anyway. I'm sure 450X prices will drop further once it is officially discontinued, but for now they are both current models.

[Peteski]

Well it's your choice. Bear in mind that when you crash it. It will be much easier to rebuild if you built it in the first place.

True enough, the build would be very useful experience in many ways. But I'm sure I would manage to rebuild the Blade when the time eventually came, it appears easy enough to work on. I doubt I will actually crash it very much, mainly on account of not flying that often (once a week if I'm lucky) while spending heaps of time on the sim. Haven't even crashed my mCPX or 130X yet!