New Heli

[Guest]

Hi all, first time on this site, i'm going to buy a coaxial heli purely for recreational use and need some advice please.
Here we go, i've played about with a couple in the past (with no great success), now i'de like to get going again.
I've got around £60 to spend on a coaxial job for outdoor flying in clam conditions.
Here's my wishlist......
Size ....anything from 18" to 30" a 3 or 4 channel job that's easy to hover, iv'e scoured you tube for reviews and vids of such helis and i'm still not sure what to got for.
The MJX T-23 seems a good buy to me, Then there's the double horse 9053 but i've read that the tail rotor system isn't all that good.
I would be very grateful for any opinions of these and any other helicopters that you would recommend.

Thanks in advance for your replies.
Neil.

[Peteski]

The Blade mCX is the obvious choice, although none of the coax helis are very good outdoors. It has to be seriously calm otherwise the wind will just take it away. A Blade 200 SRX would be a lot better for the use you describe (fixed pitch single rotor), but well over your £60 budget I'm afraid!

[Grumpy]

Neil,
For £60 you are only going to get a 'toy grade' heli. Those toy grade co-axials are really not suitable for flying outdoors in any conditions other than the very rare 'dead calm' days that come along only a few times a year.

A cheap quadcopter might be a better bet. They have much better control authority and higher forward speed so fly better outdoors.

[Euclid]

£60, if only. It might be £60 today but in a few weeks time it'll be an RTF fixed pitch Blade something (just to see what it's like). Then comes the Dx6 transmitter cos that'll make it easier to fly. Once that's mastered it'll be a little CP. Wow that's a little harder and now there's repair costs to factor in. Then something a little bigger; I'm just about to enter the 450 stage. Oh, throw in the odd quad or 2, sample the delights of FPV then a little plank just to see how easy that is. And of course you'll never want to go larger than 450 but those adverts for 500s & 600s in sales are so enticing, once you've mastered the language. All the time this is happening you're collecting batteries, software, tools, cases to put everything in. BMFA membership, petrol to take you to shows and an ever increasing pile of spares.

Welcome Buckshot, you've 2 options. Run like the wind or swallow hard, jump right in and have a ball.

i haven't a clue what this little lot has cost me over the last 2 years and more to the point I don't want Mrs Euclid to know either.

[myxiplx]

I'm going to suggest something totally different. The problem with coaxial helicopters is that they really don't have any kind of power for outdoor flight, so the slightest breeze will take them away. And buying a bigger model really doesn't help, they have the same underlying problem.

There are a couple of really good options out there for small, but capable models that are great fun to fly:

WLToys v911. This is a small fixed pitch helicopter, but it's very stable, easy to fly just like a coax, but it has an option to make it more agile which turns it into a much faster model that's quite happy outdoors in a light breeze. The design has been around for years and it's tough as nails, with spare parts readily available on eBay. Best of all, it'll set you back £35 or so, including the controller.

Hubsan X4. This is a small quadcopter, but is just fine as a cheap option for indoor flight, or outdoor flight on a calm day.

Blade nQX. A quadcopter again, but at a higher price point, the main advantage though is that this one has beginner and advanced modes. The beginner modes are easy to fly just like a coax, but as your skills improve you can increase the difficulty and the higher rates are much faster and handle more like a full CP helicopter.

If I were you, I'd take a good look at the WLToys v911, it was how I started in RC helicopters and it's a ton of fun at a great price. One of the more capable little models out there, and I pretty much guarantee it'll fly rings around both of the coax models you listed.

[bigpops]

The best pilot I know started with a WLtoy V911.

Don't even bother with coaxials unless flying indoors, and even then, you'll be bored in no time.

[Guest]

Thanks guys, i really appreciate your replies.....well it's back to ebay and you tube after tea armed with some new info....ohhhh it's a mine field me thinks.

[Peteski]

Don't even bother with coaxials unless flying indoors, and even then, you'll be bored in no time.

I started with an mCX2 indoors and it's actually quite a fun little heli and I still fly it occasionally now, but yeah it's a bit limited in its dynamics for sure! But it taught me a fair bit about orientation and in particular rudder control. I also bought an nQX quad at the same time, which is fantastic fun!

[bigpops]

I started with an mCX2 indoors and it's actually quite a fun little heli and I still fly it occasionally now, but yeah it's a bit limited in its dynamics for sure! But it taught me a fair bit about orientation and in particular rudder control. I also bought an nQX quad at the same time, which is fantastic fun!

I started on coaxials too. An Esky Lama 3, and then an mCX S300 (the Schweitzer one). But I think a fixed pitch with 45 degree fly bar or a mini quad are a better option these days.

[Peteski]

Then there's the double horse 9053 but i've read that the tail rotor system isn't all that good.

Yes, straight away you should rule out any coaxial heli with a horizontal tail fan and no swashplate i.e. the Double Horse you mention above. They give very poor flight control. As a bare minimum you need a heli with a swashplate and 4 channel control.

[Guest]

I hear what you say regarding the tail rotor, maybe a coax with a swash plate is what i'm after. To be honest with you guys, i guess i'm a bit apprehensive of buying a single rotor jobbie for fear of making a pig's ear of it and trashing it.
I have access to a big empty barn to practice in so a coaxial heli would, i hope, hone my skills and build up some confidence.
Am i making any sense or just bottling it? LOL.

Cheers
Neil.

[myxiplx]

Trust me, pick up a v911, you'll be fine. The only time I managed to break mine was flying it full pelt into a fork-lift truck. Even that only snapped a blade, and the darn thing ships with two spare blades anyhow.

You can fly a v911 in a living room, in a barn you're laughing :-D

[tomatwalden]

I hear what you say regarding the tail rotor, maybe a coax with a swash plate is what i'm after. To be honest with you guys, i guess i'm a bit apprehensive of buying a single rotor jobbie for fear of making a pig's ear of it and trashing it.
I have access to a big empty barn to practice in so a coaxial heli would, i hope, hone my skills and build up some confidence.
Am i making any sense or just bottling it? LOL.

Cheers
Neil.

Trust me - everyone is telling the truth about those co-axials with horizontal tail rotors and no swashplate. If you want a co-axial that's any good at all, go for the Blade mCX2. It's a co-axial, so very stable, but has a swash plate, so

a) The controls on the transmitter are correct (the toy co-axials have different controls)
b) It has decent manouverability

E-Flite Blade MCX2 Ready To Fly Combo EFLH2400UK2

That said, single-rotor helis with a 45-degree flybar are also very stable - pretty much as stable as a co-axial. The WL V911 is one example. The Blade 120SR is another.

The best beginner heli though IMO is the Blade 200SRX. It is electronically stabilised with three modes - beginner, intermediate and expert. Plus a "panic" button. BLH2000UK2 | Blade 200 SR X RTF UK Mode 2 (BLH2000UKC2)

Vid explains it better ...

[feathering]

To be honest with you guys, i guess i'm a bit apprehensive of buying a single rotor jobbie for fear of making a pig's ear of it and trashing it.

I find that quads strike a good balance between inexpensive stress-free learning and performance. I bought a JJRC1000 for my kids to introduce them to 4 channels and by adjusting the rates it can go from a gentle indoor flier to a relatively aggressive outdoor bird. What you may miss with a quad though is introducing yourself to basic helicopter maintenance as well as dealing with the asymmetries that characterise helicopter dynamics. The v911 can teach you both of these aspects well.

[Peteski]

Some great advice in those last few posts above. I listened to these guys when I started 6 months ago (myxiplx and Tom in particular) and their advice really helped me along the road. I was also a bit scared of going straight to a single rotor heli and decided to start with a Blade mCX2 coaxial. It's a nice little heli for sure and will help with your confidence at first, but in hindsight perhaps just a bit too easy! As you've got a nice big barn, the 120 SR would be a great choice or the 200 SRX if you can stretch your budget a bit. And as several people have said, don't rule out a small quad for learning with. They are great fun too.