help me make a desision

[jaspar]

Hi guy and gals

I'm a newbie ( well a returnee after 25yrs, had a just started hovering a heliboy back then)

I've decided to get back into the hovering game but cant make up my mind on what to fly

I have decided it has to be electric and i dont think i want a contra.

so it is realy a desision between

a new blade 400 rtf with spectrum dx6i

or

wait until i can find a reasonably priced used trex450 and put a spectrum dx6i in it, cant aford new just now.

or

save a bit and get a used trex 500. saw one fly the other day and fell in love with them.

I have been looking at the for sale on here but most of you guys are way south of me, im in edinburgh.

already practicing with my sim and can hover tail in and a little figure of 8 now and then
help me make a resonable decision.

[trillian]

Well, if you want something a bit bigger I have a Gaui 550 I will be selling. It uses two 3 cell packs so if you got a 450 you could share LiPos with it.

But it depends on your budget.

[jaspar]

whats included in what you are selling ie servos gyro bat etc.and how much you looking for it

I love the thought of a bigger heli to handle the wind better. but budget is the decider.

[Gate88]

Same here! I had a 20 year break too!

Ahhh Those were the days, Hirobo Shuttles, Concept 30's, flying without gyros on old Sanwa plane radios, standing about all day at Kempton Park cause there was a rumour that someone was going to fly a heli UPSIDE DOWN!!!! Paying £32.00 for a "pair" (yes they came in two's back then) of feathering shafts and waiting 2 weeks for them to arrive.

Welcome back Jaspar! I just started again late last year and the first thing that you'll find is just how far things have come. The technology & engineering is staggering compared to the good old days. It's like riding a bike, even 2 decades on I could still get off the ground & hold a stable hover once I'd got used to these new fangled heading hold gyros. (I was still inputting bags of tail everytime I throttled up or down much to the amusement of the onlookers)

I must say that the little electics are fun but a little skittish & you need lightning reflexes especialy if you are used to older more lathargic models. Bigger is definitly better, more stable, easier to see (with our old eyes) but the thing to bear in mind is not so much the cost of the Heli but the cost of the flight batterys. Some of them can cost as much as a gramaphone!

If you can afford it get the TRex 500, if not try and find a decent 2nd hand 450, but be warned, there's a lot of dogs out there!

[jaspar]

thanks gate88

yes when i started couldnt aford a gyro after furst bump i decided i could aford one,

as ypu say technologhy has come on leaps and bounds.

although a 450 sounds like a good starting point again the size of a 500 is very atractive.

trillians gaui 550 sounds very atractive if the price is right now that ive googled them.

the trex 500 i saw was just about the right size for my needs but a new one os over my budget.

[sacko]

Trex 500

I have had a Blade 400, great to learn on, but you will out grow it very quickly im sure.

Loved my 450 se v2 and really rate them, but would sell/swapped mine for a 500 anyday.

[moonmanflyer]

thanks gate88

yes when i started couldnt aford a gyro after furst bump i decided i could aford one,

as ypu say technologhy has come on leaps and bounds.

although a 450 sounds like a good starting point again the size of a 500 is very atractive.

trillians gaui 550 sounds very atractive if the price is right now that ive googled them.

the trex 500 i saw was just about the right size for my needs but a new one os over my budget.

After seeing Trillians raptor 30 that Mark Lane bought, i can safetly say the gaui will be in mint condition.
My lad had a gaui last year and was a really nice heli but sold it for a nitro.

[Eddie]

My 2p worth.......Blade 400... Your gonna crash whilst learning but B400 spares are not expensive, once you get more comfortable with your flying and orientation then research and buy a heli like the Trex 500 or a better quality size 450 heli....

......If I'd started out with a Trex 500 to learn on I would'nt be able top afford the hobby, learning with my Twister Storm 3D (same as B400) was the best purchase I ever made.....and still love to fly it!...

Good luck in what ever you buy and let us know how you get on...

[marky]

Blade 400 is hard to beat, everything you need comes in the box, and the DX6i radio that comes with it is very nifty and if you move on to something more exciting in the future it will probably suit for it as well.

In the right hands you can really blast it about but it is still a safe enough model for a novice, sounds like you will be well on your way with your previous experience.

Spares are good value and readily available, check out the details form their website - EFLH1400 Blade 400

Just sold mine as I had splashed out on a TRex 450 Pro and two 450 size helis meant the good old 400 wasn't getting any flying. It was a bit of a wrench letting it go, but it is now getting someone else addicted to heli flying. They are very nice little heli.

[Gate88]

trillians gaui 550 sounds very atractive if the price is right now that ive googled them.

the trex 500 i saw was just about the right size for my needs but a new one os over my budget.

Yea I'd be tempted to go with trillian's 550, especially as you're getting Lipo's in with the deal, whatever she wants for it I'm sure it'd be resonable and at least you know it's not going to be a thrashed out crock of s**t!

[del19_82]

Jaspar, why not take a drive over to waterfoot heli club (not too far from livingston) and have a look at all the helis we have. There is 450's, 500's, 600's, 700's Raptors, Furys etc. Lots to look at and gives you a feel for a club as well!

[cambs flyer]

You can't really go wrong with a Blade 400 RTF set up, it's about as cheap as a good machine can go all in, and a little setting up makes her sing nicely.

IMHO the Trex 500 is the finest 500 class Heli out there, no other company can offer what Align do regardless what I see or read for the price, and the spares back up they offer is second to none, however the batts and blades can sting badly if too many crashes happen at once.

Most importantly first thing is get you back in the air, and for around £350 will buy you a brand new 400 RTF and spares to keep you going for a while, of course there are also second hand bargains.

The only minus point is the crap ESC Eflite power plug which until a Deans is fitting limits you to there crap £50 1800mah Li Po's, but a simple £2 fix will sort that nicely.

Welcome back buddy and best of luck.

[stuskimac]

You can't really go wrong with a Blade 400 RTF set up, it's about as cheap as a good machine can go all in, and a little setting up makes her sing nicely.

IMHO the Trex 500 is the finest 500 class Heli out there, no other company can offer what Align do regardless what I see or read for the price, and the spares back up they offer is second to none, however the batts and blades can sting badly if too many crashes happen at once.

Most importantly first thing is get you back in the air, and for around £350 will buy you a brand new 400 RTF and spares to keep you going for a while, of course there are also second hand bargains.

The only minus point is the crap ESC Eflite power plug which until a Deans is fitting limits you to there crap £50 1800mah Li Po's, but a simple £2 fix will sort that nicely.

Welcome back buddy and best of luck.

rather than pay out £50.00 for the eflite battery, i use align 1900mh @ £26, 2100mh @ £35 and £2150mh @ £36, they work fine, 2100's give a longer flight time, you just gotta solder on favoured connectors.
i still use eflite connectors, i find them easier to seperate than deans plugs which i find really tight ?
i think the blade is a good package, not the best, but not bad at all.
i saw a guy in a shop with the twister 3d storm, it looks identicle to the blade, only 35mhz not 2.4gh, might be even cheaper starter ?

[cambs flyer]

I agree Deans can be tight, however I've never had many probs with the True Deans plugs I purchase, plus there smaller for fitting under the canopy.

Another good point is any Li Po Pre-fitted with a plug is 99.9% of the time Deans, and if you buy from Andrew at Maxpoly he fits True Deans for a small charge, though it isn't a difficult job anyway.

[chopperaddict]

HiJaspar

Like you I returned to helis after a 12 year break while I was working in the USA. And yes, everything has changed a lot since our halcyon days of Hirobo shuttles, Concept 30, Kalt Baron and Schluter Chamions. (RIP - they were so great)

I would support most of the recommendations made here, but would like to add a couple of other ideas.

I restarted with an Esky Belt CP, and soon modified it all over the place to make it do what I wanted. It was a great intro to electric heli flying, cheap to repair, and it got me back pretty quickly into my original flying skill, so I got back into FFF, general aerobatics etc, and ended up putting it into a scale Airwolf fuz.

I then decided to move up to a true 450, and chose to go the clone route as there are now so many clones of the famous Trex 450. My choice was a CopterX SE V2, and I have to say I have been well pleased with it to date. Again parts are relatively cheap, and easily available, plus you can use 1800 - 2200 lipos which helps to keep the costs down compared to the costs for the larger cell packs.

You certainly need to go for a dDX6i or similar radio, and with that and a decent charger, you will be away with a smile on your face.

Welcome back to the world of heli flying, it's really nice to know that there are some other "old farts" out there like myself who still love this hobby.