any good books?

[Argonaut]

On my steps up the ladder to learn more – anybody care to recommend good ‘bakground’ reading books to get me from zero to flight?
Some I have seen mentioned are:

'Learning to fly Radio Control Helicopters' - David Day
'Setting up Radio Control Helicopters' - David Day
‘R/C Model Helicopters a Guide for Beginners’ - Malcolm Messiter
‘The Guide to Building and Flying R/C Helicopters’ - Nick Papillon

Welcome any suggestions of other titles

[wildc4rd]

I picked up the 2 by David Day after recomendations. Well worth the reading.

[Hangar-7]

I read most of the books in your list before getting a heli - IMO most of these are a bit out of date. The best thing I did was by buying Phoenix sim and Blade 400 heli + helps from the forum and I made quantum leap.

You really need to get a real heli - interactive learning is the only way forward. There are plenty of vids as well but vids wouln't make sense if you do not have a real thing in hand.

Good luck

Edit : Last two books I found useful

[GravityKills]

I recommend Colin Mill's "practical theories" articles, here at the bottom of the page.
There's a lot of stuff in there that every heli owner should know.

Model Helicopter - W3MH - Free access articles and reviews

Especially the last part on the flybar holds a lot of information that is a complete mystery to many (while that's a topic I don't need to know - simply stick with the setup from the manual).

About learning to fly: Have a look at "Radd's school of rotary flight". Don't take it verbatim, but don't take it too lightly either.
The idea is, learn to fly without crashing. It has worked for many, including myself (well ask the F3C judges and they may disagree - according to their standards I should practise hovering )

RADD'S SCHOOL OF ROTARY FLIGHT?

I would be careful with printed books: There has been a revolution in RC helis, namely 3D. What used to be cutting edge 5 years ago is now partly obsolete (not everything, but take revolution mixing as an example).

[Argonaut]

I have read them ... but thanks for pointer, are there newer ones availble .. those are close on 20 yrs old .... been big improvements in electronics in 20 yrs.

[unleashed666]

when i started i just watched the finless videos on helifreak, and read some various wesites including radd's

[trillian]

when i started i just watched the finless videos on helifreak, and read some various wesites including radd's

Yeah, I was going to say, the finless videos are usually really good and I think there are some setup vids that apply fairly generally to different helis.

[Bruinbear]

I would really recommend this series of DVD's/book - Ray’s HeliTech
There are also some great videos at the Helifreak website (FinlessBob).
The best spent money, as I expect most would agree would be the Phoenix Sim. Worth every penny and will realy help your flying skills ...and your pocket, costs nothing to learn/crash here !
Good luck,
Mike.

[waveydavey]

Russ Deakins guide to Model Helicopter Aerobatics. Don't be fooled by the title, it's a touch dated being written in 2001 or 2 but I found it superb. It takes it from basic hovering to starting out in aerobatics, well explained and with some very dry humour. It has certainly helped me following his exercises

[Biggles]

Russ Deakins guide to Model Helicopter Aerobatics. Don't be fooled by the title, it's a touch dated being written in 2001 or 2 but I found it superb. It takes it from basic hovering to starting out in aerobatics, well explained and with some very dry humour. It has certainly helped me following his exercises

I second that!!!!!!!

[Brian Gifford]

Russ Deakins guide to Model Helicopter Aerobatics. Don't be fooled by the title, it's a touch dated being written in 2001 or 2 but I found it superb. It takes it from basic hovering to starting out in aerobatics, well explained and with some very dry humour. It has certainly helped me following his exercises

I third it! as said, a bit dated as to the technology, but the techniqes, etc, are spot on.

[Argonaut]

I would really recommend this series of DVD's/book - Ray’s HeliTech
There are also some great videos at the Helifreak website (FinlessBob).
The best spent money, as I expect most would agree would be the Phoenix Sim. Worth every penny and will realy help your flying skills ...and your pocket, costs nothing to learn/crash here !
Good luck,
Mike.

So does that mean you already had your Transmitter .. or did you make your Transmitter your first purchase (after Simulator)

[Radbourne78]

I fourth the Russ deakin book - Found it really useful