120sr upgrades advice needed

[helipilot]

Hi guys..,

Im after a little advice on upgrade options for my trusty 120sr...
Ive been keeping a eye on the Microheli website and they have started making aluminium upgrade parts for the Blade 120sr. Ive replaced the main shaft with their ali version and i wanted to know if any of their other parts are worth spending my hard earned pennies on.. they will soon be offering a full metal swash plate along with a flybar control arm and blade grips.

Yes i know they look nice but will i actually notice any benefit in terms of flying improvements or are these upgrades more for the bling factor...? my little heli flys nice enough in its stock form so i only want to upgrade to parts that improve its performance not just look nice and shiny, if you know what i mean...

I know they do alot of metal upgrades for the MSR so any thoughts from MSR owners would be greatfully received too....

Thanks in advance...

Simon

[tiddler]

Simple answer................Waste of money!

[helipilot]

micro heli upgrades

Thanks Graham....

Nicely summerised mate...! I have to say i hold the same opinion i just wanted to check if i was missing something...?

Are ANY of these upgrades of benefit to your heli or are they just for show then...?

After my first post i read through the MSR thread and they seemed to confirm that the aluminium upgrades where of no benefit and in some cases made their heli fly worse...!!!

Unless anyone can recommend an upgrade that will improve my heli ill stick to the stock set up and save my pennies....

Thanks Simon.

[Nick B]

This little heli is fine in stock form,get more lipos and have more fun

Just dont fly it at night in the cold cos it becomes brittle,snapped a blade tip tother night on a tip over landing

[robgt]

I upgraded my mSR. First it was just the blade grips, which made a big difference. It flew far better with that part alone upgraded on it.
Since then I have basically upgraded every other part of it with the micro heli upgrades. It's a different heli with them on. It still has the same overall flight characteristics, but it does everything so much smoother and nicer.

If you want to upgrade anything, I would suggest the blade grips, and the swashplate when it comes out.

Cheers,
Rob

[msssltd]

I tend to stick to upgrading for strength and longevity rather than performance. The blade grips were the first thing I upgraded on my MSR as they were the first thing that broke. The swash, head and link anti-rotation were upgraded when they broke.

I doubt I would want to be bouncing an SR off the walls the way I am prepared to do it with my MSR though.

Currently waiting for the epoxy to dry on my MSR frame after a bit of nose in practice

[helipilot]

This little heli is fine in stock form,get more lipos and have more fun

Just dont fly it at night in the cold cos it becomes brittle,snapped a blade tip tother night on a tip over landing

Im glad you said that.. ( not that you fooked your blade tip ) but the bit about the cold... i was thinking of trying a spot of night flying myself... i ll stick to my nice warm living room me thinks...

[bolders]

I tend to stick to upgrading for strength and longevity rather than performance. The blade grips were the first thing I upgraded on my MSR as they were the first thing that broke. The swash, head and link anti-rotation were upgraded when they broke.

I doubt I would want to be bouncing an SR off the walls the way I am prepared to do it with my MSR though.

Currently waiting for the epoxy to dry on my MSR frame after a bit of nose in practice

+1 on the MSR blade grips. They are a definate week spot. I got through 3 sets before switching to the alu ones (the amount paid for the 3 plastic sets would of paid for the alu set ).

However even if the other bits do make your heli fly a bit better, is that what you really want. Where do you plan for your heli flying to go - are you looking to move on to a CP heli or stay where you are.

The alu upgrades are not cheap, even for the msr, and that money could go a good way to buying a second hand DX6i (if you dont already have one) or a second hand 450 CP heli (if you are looking at going towards a CP heli) or even Phoenix flight sim for example. Im sure you would get a lot more for your money out of any of these purchases than you would from an increase in flight performance on your SR120 (especially if you are a beginner).

[helipilot]

I upgraded my mSR. First it was just the blade grips, which made a big difference. It flew far better with that part alone upgraded on it.
Since then I have basically upgraded every other part of it with the micro heli upgrades. It's a different heli with them on. It still has the same overall flight characteristics, but it does everything so much smoother and nicer.

If you want to upgrade anything, I would suggest the blade grips, and the swashplate when it comes out.

Cheers,
Rob

Thanks Rob.,

I was thinking of the swashplate upgrade when it arrives ( will they be offering a nice blue one like they do for the MSR??? ) i have already replaced the main shaft for the MH one. That has made a difference and has made it quieter, smoother and reduced head wobble ( i love using big technical words ).

Ps.., im enjoying the articles in MHW mag.. good to see a bit more humour in the write ups... Keep up the good work.. you ll be on the front cover soon..??

[helipilot]

120 sr

+1 on the MSR blade grips. They are a definate week spot. I got through 3 sets before switching to the alu ones (the amount paid for the 3 plastic sets would of paid for the alu set ).

However even if the other bits do make your heli fly a bit better, is that what you really want. Where do you plan for your heli flying to go - are you looking to move on to a CP heli or stay where you are.

The alu upgrades are not cheap, even for the msr, and that money could go a good way to buying a second hand DX6i (if you dont already have one) or a second hand 450 CP heli (if you are looking at going towards a CP heli) or even Phoenix flight sim for example. Im sure you would get a lot more for your money out of any of these purchases than you would from an increase in flight performance on your SR120 (especially if you are a beginner).

Hi mate..,

Yes you have some good points.. that was mainly the reason behind asking for advice.. im happy to spend some money on upgrades that will help me to get the most out of my heli ( i also love tinkering and taking something good and making it better ) But im aware there is alot of parts out there that yes, look good but dont actually do anything and ive not got money to burn..

Where im upto is.. i already have an RTF Blade 400 so dx6i as well but as i was totally new to helis ive struggled with a CP heli as a first machine. I then got the 120sr and to be fair ive had so much fun and learnt so much from this little heli that for now im happy to carry on havin fun and exploring the limits with the 120...i dont really want to get into 3D but i do like the idea of scale flying ( but thats an expensive game if you want a nice sized machine ) in time i will either go back to the blade 400 or sell it on.. see how i feel when the time comes i suppose...

Thanks for the tips buddy...

[bolders]

Hi mate..,

Yes you have some good points.. that was mainly the reason behind asking for advice.. im happy to spend some money on upgrades that will help me to get the most out of my heli ( i also love tinkering and taking something good and making it better ) But im aware there is alot of parts out there that yes, look good but dont actually do anything and ive not got money to burn..

Where im upto is.. i already have an RTF Blade 400 so dx6i as well but as i was totally new to helis ive struggled with a CP heli as a first machine. I then got the 120sr and to be fair ive had so much fun and learnt so much from this little heli that for now im happy to carry on havin fun and exploring the limits with the 120...i dont really want to get into 3D but i do like the idea of scale flying ( but thats an expensive game if you want a nice sized machine ) in time i will either go back to the blade 400 or sell it on.. see how i feel when the time comes i suppose...

Thanks for the tips buddy...

Bearing this in mind I would say to keep the 120SR as it is and just keep flying it. THe upgrades may make it a bit smoother and fly a bit better but you will soon learn to fly around these problems without the upgrades. Instead buy Phoenix flight sim (assuming you have a computer that is up to the task). When I first started I was able to get my blade 400 in a reasonable hover and quickly progressed into FF after a few months practice on Phoenix - I also felt comfortable enough to do this without training gear.

Phoenix will give you a good idea of what to expect from a CP heli and if you want to progress in that direction. It will also be the best preparation you can do before flying the blade. Finally second hand sales of Phoenix are quite rare and they tend to keep there value well so if you do decice its not for you it can be sold on at a minimal loss.

I say this from experience of my eflight CX2 (my first 4ch heli). When I first got it I had not even considered CP helis and had no idea the addiction would get this bad. At that point I spent a lot of time looking on you tube and forums reading about CX2 upgrades people had done and the sort of money they had spent (a lot). I planned to do the some of these upgrades with mine but it never happened as I got an msr soon after, which I flew a lot more. Soon after this the blade 400 came. With each new heli the CX2 became less significant. Now it is in its box with broken blades and no RX as I robbed it for my trex 450 (the next heli lol).
I would not even consider spending any money for CX2 upgrades now (I havent even paid for replacement parts to get it going again lol). I would much rather spend money on my CP helis .

wow long post.....sorry