Hiya from a newbie - Phoenix Sim then Heli is my approach!

[cyberman]

Firstly hiya to everyone, I look forward to being part of this community and taking advantage of the good advice I have already seen here.

Having decided I would like to get into RC flying I very briefly looked at planes but decided I just was not excited enough by them, love watching them but am not overly interested in flying.
Then I saw helicopters and for a few months now have been considering taking the plunge, and think I am almost ready to buy some hardware.

Based on comments here and other sites the first thing I have done is order a copy of the Phoenix simulator software and a transmitter to use with it.
I plan to try and use this to at least understand the controls even if I dont master them, hopefully the sim software will save me a few broken rotors!!

But I guess it wont be long before I am wanting to know what the real deal feels like.
I like the look and cost of the Esky heli's and they seem to get some good reviews, but I also like the look and sound of the Align Trex 450.
I am still undecided about fixed or collective pitch for my first, but reckon I'll take the collective pitch route and try to get to grips with it after practicing on the sim!

Anyway I am quite excited about the sim arriving later this week and look forward to seeing how I get on with it!

Thanks in advance for all your patience and understanding as I try to learn all the technical names and details etc.

Andy

[Mart61]

Hi Andy and welcome aboard.

I think you have chosen a good route into the hobby. Out of interest, what radio have you bought?

As far as a first model is concerned, well there are many answers to this question. Have you considered a co-ax to begin with? Something like the E-flite Blade CX2 or CX3?

[Holst]

I started with an esky as my first outdoor heli (belt CP)

It flew pretty well (with aftermarket electronics) but If I had my time again I would buy a better quality heli to begin with.
Its well worth spening the extra money on good quality kit in the beginning as it makes it easyer to fly and will last longer.

Marts suggestion of a small indoor heli is a good one as you can get alot of practice inside your house without having to worry about the weather.
I used a Walkera 4#3B to learn on, which is a hard heli to fly but once I went outside with a big heli I had no problems as I had done quite a few hours practice inside and on the sim before hand.

[tourerjim]

Welcome to the best forum 'well I think so, most I think would suggest Trex 450 pro as they did with me its a very good heli & ideal for beginners.
Trex 450 pro combo comes complete so all you need is Reciever & Radio, heli itself as the term used 'locked in' which make it a very stable heli ideal for begginers.
There are some post on this forum worth reading first although some will give there oppion of faults but I have had mine 3 weeks 60 odd flights with no faults or crashes with her, I have always been a 450 flyer & must say this is the best I've had.

[cupracing]

Hi Welcome, 450 pro is very good and stable but might be frightening for a beginner and quite costly in a ding due to it being shaft driven. Do a bit of research but I would suggest buying a model where the spares are quite cheap and easy to come by.

[cyberman]

I had not considered a co-ax type because I was worried it might lull me into a false sense of security when I then moved onto a bigger 'normal' type model.

Do people feel the micro type heli's such as the BuzzFlyer 3D are a better starting point than going straight for the Esky Belt-CP type helis?

When I ordered my Phoenix sim software I ordered a package with the esky 6ch transmitter. This seemed a reasonable cost decision as I do not know what heli I will get in the future. Hopefully this will not turn out to be a poor decision!

It seems that I have a real minefield of decision to make, glad I have not rushed into anything too expensive yet!!

[tourerjim]

Just keep reading the posts theirs plenty ofem thats the best wat to make up ya mind.

[acwman]

Welcome to the forums Andy(What a great name)... Think that you have done the first positive steps by purchasing a simulator. You can then test out the models and then will get a better feeling of what to expect from certain models.ie coaxial & collective pitch.

Your choice of your 1st model could really depend on how much time, and money you are prepared to take. A co-axial is extremely easy route to take, and will get you up in the air even without a sim!

Are you going to want to fly outside.. want to take it into bigger than living room manouvers, Big loops, aerobatics... 3d?

Have you the budget to buy new/second hand? have you budgeted for battery packs, and a suitable charger?

Personally.. as a beginner, I would seriously consider the 450 sport over the Pro.. as I have seen and heard is just as capable, but without the shaft drive.

Whatever you decide.. welcome the the Hobby!

[cambs flyer]

Hi mate and welcome

Contras are a great way of breaking someone in when it comes to real flying, learning the cyclic & rudder movements, repairing/upgrading and the very basics there is too learn on a simple machine.

I'd go for a 450 model if I was you, there's usually great second hand deals out there, and any 450 machine will do just fine be it XL, S, SE1 or SE2.

There's no need to go for the so called best and latest when the general Align Trex 450 class are very capable, the XL, ARTF-S models will see you well and will go like stink doing fast circuits, and easily tamed via EXPO which sofens the control sticks around there center travel on your controller (TX) so they fly smoother and mimic the stability of a larger machine.

Have a think first, you've done great so far by having a Sim to start with, but be in no rush to buy a CCPM Heli, practice like hell first, and if you can afford a cheap Contra Heli, it would be a bonus so at the very least you've had experience with flying something.

Best of luck mate, and keep asking questions when needed.

[sacko]

Id def go with a 450 and ideally id say a Pro.

The problem is, by the time you buy bits new/second-hand to kit the xl, v1, v2 out, you may aswell have bought a Pro.

The Pro is awesome and there is a massive difference between it and any other Align 450.

[Holst]

I had not considered a co-ax type because I was worried it might lull me into a false sense of security when I then moved onto a bigger 'normal' type model.

Do people feel the micro type heli's such as the BuzzFlyer 3D are a better starting point than going straight for the Esky Belt-CP type helis?

When I ordered my Phoenix sim software I ordered a package with the esky 6ch transmitter. This seemed a reasonable cost decision as I do not know what heli I will get in the future. Hopefully this will not turn out to be a poor decision!

It seems that I have a real minefield of decision to make, glad I have not rushed into anything too expensive yet!!

If you already have an esky transmitter then you could buy a micro heli that is compatible.

The problem with the esky transmitter is that its not computerised and is a real pain to setup a collective pitch heli with it.
Its not impossible but it makes life more difficult.

Keep practicing on the sim untill you are confident flying around with a variety of helis. A trip to your local club is a great idea, and if your considering an indor heli then there is probably an indoor meet that you could go to to see different small helis (and some 450's as well)

Although the 450PRO is "better" than the older align 450 helis its not something a beginner will notice when starting out.
The most important thing with helis is to get them setup correctly as as badly setup heli is much much harder to fly.

[cyberman]

In answer to some previous replies I want eventually to be able to fly outside, I live near Hanworth Air Park and Chobham Common so have a couple of good flying places nearby.
So my final aim would be to have something suitable for that, i.e. a Belt-CP or 450 type heli.

However as we are nearing winter (sadly) and good flying weather for novices might in shorter supply I guess the option of a small heli I can fly indoors or in the garden might be a good idea.

So the next query would be do people generally feel the co-ax option is the best and 'proper' starting point, and is this a good springboard onto more advanced models?

I guess something like the Buzzfly CX or Esky Lama 2 might be good starting points to go with after time on my sim software?

[acwman]

If you're looking for something a little tough, to be able to fly in the living room, the blade msr is coming out soon, and I think would be a good start. It's something which would probably easy to sell on aswell(should you want to) if you decide to go onto a larger heli.