What do I do first ?

[Powerkiter]

Sorry first, if I am asking some questions that have been asked many times before. This is my first post of this forum.

I am looking at purchasing an electric helicopter. I was looking at an Esky Honey Bee. However, the more and more I read on the forums I think I should prehaps go for something like a Trex. I have flown a very cheap electric helicopter that my brother in law bought and found it great fun and a real challenge.

My only worry is that I go and buy a Honey Bee and then after a few weeks want to upgrade to a Trex.

Should I buy a Trex straight away, given that I have not really flown helicopters before ? I was also thinking of getting just a transmitter first and a simulator and then practicing on this first: any recomendations ?

I have had a look on a few web sites but not really sure what else I would need. I have seen the Trex 450 kits at about £75.00 but it does not usually say what else I would need, so I cannot really working out what the total cost is likely to be.

[Thomas]

DON'T BUY a Honey Bee if you want to be able to fly - My first heli was one and couldn't fly the thing - far too small and flittery, they are en excellent heli for introducing people into the hobbie but that's about it.

Trex is a good choice or maybe something bigger like a Robbe Eolo Spirit or a Swift - you will be spending over £500 for a complete new kit though, as you need the following
Transmitter
Receiver
4 servos
Gyro
Motor
Speed controller
Battery (LiPo)
Charger
and the model itself.

There are a lot of good second hand deals about, only problem is that you need a bit of knowledge to know what's good and what's shyte.

[Copusmaximus]

I bought a Walkera 22e 3d electric Helly(6 channel) as my first..I would not buy another Walkera product but it has been ok for learning...I have also had a fly with my friends Rapture 30 and it was so much easier and steadier than my little electric heli..Dont get me wrong I am very new to helis and just starting out but am improving all the time(i`m 37) so for me a cheap little electric heli has been the way to go.... A good flight simulator is worth it`s weight in gold IMO...

Heath

[Thomas]

Forgot the SIM bit, buy this http://www.realflight.com/

and before you all say Reflex is beter, with G3 you can multiplay and fly with others who can help you out.

[Disc]

Okay please try to understand that the small electrics like
a T-Rex or simlar size are real pigs to learn to fly. They are NOT
ideal begineer helis at all.

You want to go ther BMFA web site and find a local club then go
see them Flying and get some advice.

http://www.bmfa.org/clubs/clist.php


You really want to be looking at larger helis and you will need a budget
of around 500-600 pounds to kit any Decent small Electric Heli to a Nitro
30 size Heli. Basically its going to cost around the same money wise.

If you want electric then something Like a Swift is ideal. 399 inc Battery
speed Controler,motor. Needs a Tranny, Gyro, Servos and Li_po charger.

Try to give up the idea of the small electrics there are just not that good
I can fly one but then I lost it the other day and it wasnt that windy.

[Disc]

As for Sims While they are very good I have found that I cannot
Fly on them very well. Tryed at Clubman 3D... I am lucky to Hover the
dam things. I find the problem is the ground goes from view I am screwed
and crash I lose the tracking for the model vs the ground and thats it
crunch.

You don't need a Sim but they are handy as everyone here will tell you.
Just helps the hand eye co-ordination along nicely.

Several good ones about

[Fixxxer]

I'd agree that the nitro birds are easier to learn with being far more stable due to a larger rotor disc and weight. I have an X400 which is similar to the trex but it wouldn't be my first model. The initial outlay would bet similar to a nitro and you will really need a large open space to do anything apart from hovering with a small electric, so if the bank balance can take it then go for a nitro. I know there are a few places around that offer trial flights for about £25-30 to see if it's for you.

As for the sim then I would say it has helped me no end, it just gets you used to the giving the correct stick inputs. Reflex or realflight are both excellent and i believe the outlay more than pays for itself.

All the best.

[Thomas]

I'm going to stick up for electrics here, they may be a little harder but I think you learn quicer as you'll end up using it more - I learnt on a Trex and Eolo, I could practice hovering indoors or in the garden, if I fired up my 50 in the garden or on the village green I expect the locals would get upset. They are also less intimidating and quieter wich make life much easier.

Having said that though once you can fly around a bit you'll want more power, size and not have to wait for batteries to charge.

[Ade_Law]

wheres my sandwhich board guys? :-)

where are you from? Get yourself down the local flying school and give flying a try first before shelling out large wads of cash.

Ade

[Disc]

Er well his location would of been handy...

[antsis]

Hmm. I wouldn't say the small electrics are a pig to fly. They are certainly less stable than a 30 size i.c. but then you could compare a 30 to a 90. The bigger rotor disc is always going to be more stable. If it is setup correctly, just about any heli, including FP, will fly well.

I'll give you an example. On friday night, I was flying my hummingbird FP and another member came up to me and said he had never seen one actually fly around in a circuit. He asked me to look at his and i found the gyro gain cranked up and the swashplate tilted forward. So he was having to fight the rudder and also contend with it flying away all the time. I set the gain and mixer, got him to level the swashplate and had it hovering virtually hands off with some minor trim adjustment. This guy couldn't believe the difference that the adjustments made.

The main problem I have found, and this is mainly with the indoor models, is that people go into a shop, see the assistant hover the model on the counter and get the pitch about how easy they are to fly. What they don't get shown are the finer points on how to set them up. I've got the line about how every model is test flown beforehand, but everyone I've set up has been different. In this particular case, I know first hand that the LHS which deals primarily with the hummingbird FP advises people not to touch any of the adjustments. No wonder everyone thinks they are hard to fly.

If you want to stick with the electric models, go to the nearest shop and find out where the indoor meetings are. Go to one and speak to the guys there. Get the info and then decide what to buy. When you've emptied your wallet, take the model back to the indoor meeting and get someone experienced to check it for you.