newbie wanting advice

[bigoggy]

hi im john. first a bit about me im 31 iv'e been racing and bashing rc cars for 20 years but only recantly got into helis after years of thinking about one. i only have a 3 channel lama that i got from maplins. i am selling a few of my cars so i can buy a new heli, but i need some advice. first will any of the skills the lama has taught me be of any help when i learn to fly a proper heli? do i go electric or nitro? in cars we are loosing a lot of tracks for nitros becouse of the noise, do you have the same problem with helis? one last question, can you recomend any clubs in the midlands, preferably within 20 miles of mansfield. thanks. p.s. i do have one more question, how do i change my date of birth as i accidently clicked i was under 13. i cant find where to edit it. again thanks

[Disc]

hi im john. first a bit about me im 31 iv'e been racing and bashing rc cars for 20 years but only recantly got into helis after years of thinking about one. i only have a 3 channel lama that i got from maplins. i am selling a few of my cars so i can buy a new heli, but i need some advice. first will any of the skills the lama has taught me be of any help when i learn to fly a proper heli? do i go electric or nitro? in cars we are loosing a lot of tracks for nitros becouse of the noise, do you have the same problem with helis? one last question, can you recomend any clubs in the midlands, preferably within 20 miles of mansfield. thanks. p.s. i do have one more question, how do i change my date of birth as i accidently clicked i was under 13. i cant find where to edit it. again thanks

Okay find a Club 1st the BMFA website is here www.bmfa.org and goto the Club listing, Also in Hucknel I think there is a shop called millenium model services he does some helicopters and teach's as well. Plus he can point you to a local club i'd expect as well.

But i'd say find a heli friendly club then look nitro or electric your choice really one is nice and quiet and not oilly. The other nitro well if you have cars you know what to expect really oilly and bit mucky plus noise and smoke.

Helicopter wise I'd say go Raptor titan/T-rex 600/ Knight / Vibe 50 are all good helicopters and ideal machines to start out on. All have their plus and minus points but you won't go far wrong with one of them.

Engines OS 50 Hyper engine and Hatori 522 or MP 5 will be a good match engine and muffler.

Radio gear Spektrum DX7 or Futaba 7cap on 2.4ghz and use the servos that come with transmitters.

Gyro go for a futaba 401 gyro and 9254 tail servo are the best beginner gyro/servo combo.

but you can expect to spend about 800-1000 setting up a helicopter electric or nitro.

[machasm]

Hi Bigoggy and welcome to the forum.
I wish I was 13 again!

Yes some skills will transfer onto a 'proper' heli such as nose-in and side-on hovering skills. You will need to learn new ones too such as banking over using Aeliron and collective management.

Regards which heli well thats a matter of taste but I would say that larger helis, although more intimidating and expensive, provide a more stable platform to work from.
That said smaller ones such as the trex 450, when mastered, make flying larger helis seem a lot easier.

I would recommend that you invest in a good flight sim (Phoenix) and get yourself either a Trex 450 or Blade 400 for a small heli or a Trex 500 for something a little larger.

These are all electric as the nitros only really start from around the 30 size (equivalent to the Trex 500).

Good luck.
Adrian.

[Heli8or]

Welcome bigoggy. It all depends on your budget and what you see yourself flying in the future. A Titan 50 with 620 blades is a great heli. (I have one.) This would be a good starting point if you fancy getting into scale later. If you fancy 3D then the smaller electrics like Trex 450 or a Twister 3D storm is good value. Have a read through the other newbie posts if you have`nt already. I also think 2.4 Gig is the way to go these days. No interference or crashing because someone turned on their transmitter a couple of miles away. A sim might seem an unnecessary expense, but believe me. it`ll be worth every penny. I have reflex but thinking about getting phoenix for the internet interaction ie. flying with your buddies on a rainy day. You do need quite a good spec computer tho. Graphics card might need upgrading if your computer is getting on a bit.

[Disc]

I don't recommend anything like a 450 size to learn on be it a T-rex 450 or other small helicopter. There to twitchy and unstable and don't like the wind. i won't even entertain the Twister models there not the best to learn on. Spend your money once and do it right don't buy cheap stuff then spend more money in 6 months time thats pointless.

T-rex 500 size is okay as they can handle the wind and no where as twitchy.

I'd say T-rex 500 for electric or T-rex 600e as a start out for electric.


electric or nitro expect to spend 800-1000 pounds for a decent set up that will last you.

[bigoggy]

thanks guys. i think i prefer electric to nitro all but one of my cars are electric and all my boats are electric so i have more chance of been able to spot and fix problems with them. i know a few of you have made sugestions as to what to buy but any more would be welcome. would you recommend a secondhand heli or a new one as a first timer? again thanks

[moyesboy]

There a club flying close to the m1 junction east of Cheasterfield. I can find out more if you need to.

There is the north notts club a bit further north in the wetlands area north of Retford. They have a fly-in soon I think.

I think there is more than one heli club in the chesterfield/manfield area and its almost certainly worth going to a specialist heli club unless you want to fly planks as well.

Some clubs suffer from being moved about and restricted flying hours with nitro heli, and others so far don't have such problems. It depends where you are and what the neighbours are like. Because of the crap way things work in the UK someone can move in and then complain and the fact you were there for 20 years before and nobody complained doesn't matter.
sometimes the flying times are less restricted for electrics - sometimes not. There is a still a lot of blade noise from a big electric heli.

electrics are economic up to 500 size, but for a 600 size you are talking a fair amount of money for batteries and chargers and portable lead acid to charge it with (it will kill you car battery). You need quite a few packs as the charge time is an hour - whereas with nitro you just refuel and go immediately. But if you fly a lot, then good quality lipo eventually works out cheaper if you don't kill your packs in crashes!

[bigoggy]

im hoping to check out the club you are on about near palterton as i only work 2 miles from there.

[FFOWEN]

go nitro, you can get a good 15-20mins then land fill up and your back in the air, when learning you need as much air time as poss

[bigoggy]

thanks for all the advice so far. i have been offered a cheap century swift. are these any good for a newbie with some hovering experiance?

[LaurenceGough]

Best to learn on a trex 450 I think, not so twitchy, I can hover mine better than most people who learnt on 50's even in high wind, even when set up for max 3D, parts are cheap if you do go in, a little bit cheaper to buy than the bigger ones, and you can get parts everywhere.

No need to go nitro, you'll never get 15-20 mins unless you set it up real slow.

Best to stay electric as you wanted.

(I run both)

[Tim Procter]

Can't go wrong with a T-Rex 500 which is electric and hovers very stable indeed and other than lipo prices equal money to buy as a 450.

One thing to remember, The smaller the heli the more twitchy it will be to fly.

Bigger heli = more stable.

[FFOWEN]

No need to go nitro, you'll never get 15-20 mins unless you set it up real slow.

you want it real slow to start out!

[Disc]

thanks for all the advice so far. i have been offered a cheap century swift. are these any good for a newbie with some hovering experiance?

Swift.. stay clear

Their not the best is all I can say really....

[LaurenceGough]

No need to go nitro, you'll never get 15-20 mins unless you set it up real slow.

you want it real slow to start out!

No you don't you want it set up in a medium setting. 0 at mid stick, high headspeed just enough expo etc.

No point adjusting to it easy and chasing it around when you're only going to have to change at a later date and get used to it all over again.