What do I need other Than the heli?

[LondonBen]

Calling all you experienced heli addicts,

I'm set that I'd like to buy a Buzzflyer Sub-micro heli. (I've lurked on lots of the other forums to review the pros and cons).

I realise that I'm going to crash it (not deliberately).

What do I need other than the heli, I've read stuff about blade balancers etc.

I'd prefer to invest in all the tools, spares etc at the same time to prevent excessive down time while I wait for new bits and pieces. I've been a modeller for some years and have some delicate tools but I'm not sure what I need.

All help gratefully received.

Thanks

Ben

[tourerjim]

First check Maplin stores 4 channel heli for is about sixty quid

[LondonBen]

I did have a look, think nose pressed against the glass near oxford street, but I wasn't sure about spares.

BuzzFlyer seems good as it seems like spares would be available and from feedback the after service seems to be recommended.

I bought a previous off the shelf heli, which is now on the shelf as I can't source spares.

Do I need any specialist tools to be able to carry out repairs on a micro heli beyond micro screwdrivers?

What breaks most with beginners, flybars, motors, rotors, all of the above?

[brin]

welcome to the forum mate,what you need for the buzzfly is lots of patients ,all of the above and a micro soldering iron and good luck

[heliTV]

One point - I asume the buzzflyer you're looking at is the single rotor heli and therefore much more difficult than a twin rotor coaxial one. There's a video somewhere of Ade Law (one of the best 3D heli pilots in the country) trying to land his Buzzflyer on a Pringles tub. Even for him, this took a while...

Most on the forum at the moment reckon that a contra rotator is the best start and, although there is a buzzflyer CX, most recommend the Blade mCX. I've got one and would say they're great fun, easy to fly as a beginner and can be flown virtually anywhere indoors.

Of the few helis I have, its the only one that hasn't needed ANY repairs or spare parts (except a few extra batteries).

Hope this helps

Graham

[cambs flyer]

Welcome to the forum mate.

Listen it's your wallet & party, but if you go for something like the 4#3b class of heli it'll end in disappointment trust me.

There's no short cuts in this hobby like RC Buggy driving, you can still drive badly and still not crash if enough space is at hand.

Helicopters however.......

If you'd like my pennies worth, go for a contra machine, you'll have heaps of fun and I'd say the Blade MCX all in around £80ish would be a great start, and you'll have far more air time then down time.

Another unfortunate expect to this hobby in the short cut dept is it isn't cheap, to take on "single rota" machines requires sim time, that also requires a decent TX, two birds can be killed with one stone here with the excellent Blade 400 RTF system, which has the DX6i which is perfect for Sim practicing and heli flying.

Not to mention the mountain of knowledge you learn and need along the way.

OK break it down like this, example.

Your starting machine

Blade MCX RTF System £85ish

Next step up

Phoenix Flight Sim £85ish

Blade 400 inc DX6i RTF system £260 upward

Or Sim & DX6i inc AR6200 RX £185ish, then either build or buy something like the Twister Storm 3D heli'. or build a 450 or what ever you wish to start with.

[Made2Fade]

Im with Wayne spot on mate. Go that route and after buying the TX/RX combo then just purchase whichever helicopter you want but build it yourself. Alot of this stuff is down to personal preference, but there is some helis that have alot more problems than others (always good to ask about on here first). There is no one helicopter that totally performs better than every other in all ways... theres pros and cons with them all really. Simulators a must, and the earlier you get it the better, preferably before you buy a descent helicopter.

Cheers
Lee

[scallybert]

[...]
Next step up

Phoenix Flight Sim £85ish

Blade 400 inc DX6i RTF system £260 upward

Or Sim & DX6i inc AR6200 RX £185ish, then either build or buy something like the Twister Storm 3D heli'. or build a 450 or what ever you wish to start with.

Im with Wayne spot on mate. Go that route and after buying the TX/RX combo then just purchase whichever helicopter you want but build it yourself. Alot of this stuff is down to personal preference, but there is some helis that have alot more problems than others (always good to ask about on here first). There is no one helicopter that totally performs better than every other in all ways... theres pros and cons with them all really. Simulators a must, and the earlier you get it the better, preferably before you buy a descent helicopter.

I'm not disagreeing, but I think what works best for a particular person varies - particularly on circumstance.

Personally, I've found learning to hover on Phoenix is *much* harder than learning to hover on a Buzzfly, and on GAUI EP100s.

Doubtless part of this is 'just me'. Another part is that I've managed to find reasonable sized rooms to practice in.

Indoors vs outdoors and big helis v little ones is an interesting issue, but again comes down a lot to circumstance. The more hours flying you can get in, the faster you'll progress.

It's taken me an awful lot of hours to get anywhere, really. If I was only getting half an hour a week depending on weather, etc, I think I'd have given up.

Similar about RTF vs ARTF or kits. In general, I much prefer being able to chooe the spec, etc. However, this makes the learning curve harder.

The Blade 400 seems to be as good an RTF as there is (and good value), but from what I've heard here, I'm not sold

[cambs flyer]

Quote me: "Or Sim & DX6i inc AR6200 RX £185ish, then either build or buy something like the Twister Storm 3D heli'. or build a 450 or what ever you wish to start with."

I do believe you've just sentenced what we've all ready said, as for a Sim making it harder then it really is to me is a good thing, but it takes none of the nerves away when your got a real CCPM machine hovering tail in.

I wrote my recommendations as a cheap but good first option, as with said above with the TX/RX & Sim, then choose what Helicopter he fancies as a second option.

This guy needs answers to his questions in "as simple as possible" approach as he's only just starting out.

Ben if you need any more help mate just shout.

Ask Ron or John about the Blade 400, there two of the forums experts on this machine, as are a few others who I can't think of right now.

Remember this (and why I recommended what I did) during the learning process you'll spend a couple of hundred quid on spares and upgrades with the B400 at least, so by the time you've learned the basics and can fly without crashing, but having the odd accident as you try different moves the £260 will be more like £500ish, after you've brought a few more Li Po's, and a half decent charger.

But cram in as much Sim time as possible, I did and it payed out handsomely in my early days, as it does to this day where I'm flying much more aggressively.

[scallybert]

I'm just pointing out that what's best for one person may not be best for another person.

eg someone with a flying field at the back of their house may well do best on a different route to someone with access to a big room.

I don't think Phoenix helped me until I'd got to the point where I could already hover the GAUI EP100s.

IIRC, Ben lives in Central London, and was previously asking about indoor clubs.

[Made2Fade]

I think you better re-read my post mate Im sure i said something to the effect of go for what you want when you progress to a full on 6 channel flying machine. ie what i like he might not like. However i think partly the reason Wayne suggested the blade 400 is because you get the DX6 with it. So that would mean not having to purchase one in the future if he progresses again. A wise choice IMO. Im sure this has all got a bit confusing for the guy now when it didnt need to be lol Hes probably thinking jesus i wish i hadnt asked. Again and i think i already said this... its each to their own (ie personal preference). Correct me if im wrong here but im sure a very high % on here would recommend the same route or 1 extremely similar. I think what i suggested gave the guy a choice of heli in the end rather than saying just go get this and get that. You can almost guarantee if a beginner goes to buy something thats suggested on here then they will come back from the LHS with an entirely diffrent heli. Ive done it myself Again down to personal preference... you soon learn to listen to the majority though.

Cheers
Lee

[cambs flyer]

Thank you Lee.

Indeed I always take the cheapest route when someone unknowingly wants to jump into a CCPM machine without the basics mastered first first.

Or call it "Basic Training" is more apt.

Most flyer's after the Contra route has been breached crave to fly outdoors and have the freedom of a park or flying field, to test there acquired skills after many hours on Phoenix.

Again for just over £50 he can also buy the 4#3b and have the knowledge to fly that indoors safely, as I can't imagine much household items being damaged with one of those, so long as ornaments aren't on shelfs and such.

Too fly a 200 Class machine in my livingroom just isn't going to happen, a hall or gym yes, plus if you have a double garage, but to fly something like the Trex 250 inside the average house is madness.

OK so when Ben returns He'll read the Blade MCX is he's best bet to begin with, and we can answer further Q's as & when.

[LondonBen]

Thanks

Thank-you for all the info and the warm welcome to the site.

I'm sorry I didn't reply sooner but I have been away on a residential training course and away from internet access.

It was really good to receive such considered and varying opinions. I guess it shows that there isn't a single route to heli-star-dom.

In trying to find what is most relevant to me I'll explain what attracts me to RC helis:
First, I love very small scale stuff, don't know why but tiny precision devices have always held my attention.

I prefer the detail and control to speed or ease of first-use. With the first helis I had (pico and airhog) trying to take off from a CD case on one side of the room do one orbit of the lampshade and land on another CD case was my main aim. I found it frustrating that the machines just weren't designed to undertake precise movements.

I'm confident that I won't be seeking to move up to outdoor 3D flying (I appreciate this may change once I have exausted indoor flight but I see that as years away). I envision that I'll be content with doing detailed manouvres round the living room for quite some time. I'm in awe of doing stuff like landing on a pringle tube (not that I expect to emulate it anytime soon).

I'm worried that the Blade mCX will be easy to start on but won't allow me to progress without upgrading to another heli and if that is the case would it be more cost effective to go for a more sensitive and difficult heli but one that will ultimately allow further progression. Also, can you get spares for the Blade? I know stuff will break, I'd hate to add another broken cheap (ish) heli to my existing collection.
What do you think? Am I underestimating the abilities of the Blade? Can you get spares?

I'd be happy to go along the sim route to gain skill, but don't I need a controller that can be plugged into the PC? If so should I choose a heli that comes with controller that could achieve this? Also my laptop is fairly old and cannot run the graphics of the newest games out at the moment. Are heli sims graphics heavy?

I don't think I'm experienced enough with my soldering/mechanical assembly skills to build a kit. I'd prefer to buy a RTF and then learn from doing repairs. Ultimately I'd love to be skilled enough to spec up and build my own but I think I can safely say this is quite some time away.

In order to run repairs it seems that I'll need micro-soldering iron, mini screw drivers, anything else?

Final question, where is a cheap place to buy all this heli goodness? With Xmas on the doorstep I'm happy to invest £150-£200 in the machine, spares and basic tools. Where can I go to get the most for my money?

Thanks for your ongoing patience with all my questions.

Ben

[Made2Fade]

Any of the guys listed down the left hand side of the RCHA home page are good for purchasing gear from. Personally i use fast-lad and midland helis. I think you'll be extremely struggled to find an RTF heli and also get tools etc for the price you have stated. Maybe take a look at some second hand models for that price though. Theres always some good ones come up on here so keep ya eyes open. I think if ya bump ya budget up a little bit that the Blade 400 will be the right ticket for ya Everything ya need in one box plus its a 3D capable heli so you shouldnt outgrow it quickly.
Cheers
Lee

[Made2Fade]

http://www.fast-lad.co.uk/store/e-fl...de-p-2617.html

cheers
Lee