So you want to fly rc helicopters

[horsham rc]

this is all my peronal exsperiances with this hobby.

2 years ago i wanted a rc helicopter so i went to my lhs and got my self a blade mcx.
EFLH2200 Blade MCX
great loved it spot on for indoors but i wanted more so after 2 weeks i was back down the store looking for a new heli, i wanted somthing for out doors so i got a centrury 180.

The Century UK Evolution 180
it was a step up thats for sure but i liked it crashed it a few times but it was good to be outside with a heli. so after some time probebly a month or two i wanted..........a biger helicopter.
so again off to the lms i went , i can fly a helicopter i said, i want a biger one for more outside use so i got sold a twister cp gold and a dx6i.
J Perkins Twister CP Gold
well that was it straight in the ground back down the shop for a repair and then anuther repair. and then i gave up sold it all to the model shop and forgot about it. worst heli i ever bought!

around 6 months later i then got given a raptor 50 from a family member an old thing on 35megs pretty tatty anyway i took it out and got it started and atemted a hover ended in mass destuction but got me very interested in helis again so after so googling i found a thread and a post talking about phoenix sim Phoenix model flight simulation :: Welcome now up intill now no one had mentioned this sim to me despite my local visit to the modle shop so that was it off i went and got myself the sim,and a blade 120 sr Blade 120 SR wow how cool is this after a week on the sim i was out in the garden with the 120 doin alsorts (with out a crash) well for sometime anyway.
so with sim time and the 120 practice i went and got a trex 450 ¨È©Ý®a¹qºô¸ôÁʪ« stuck 500 skids on it and out i went just hovering for 2 or 3 weeks every now and then i would tri some more hight or some side on normally ending in a small carsh and a trip to the lhs but after some time i was translating the sim work over to the 450 and i was getting there side on forward flight i was loving it but felt somthing was missing in my helicopter xsperiance, A CLUB and a place to talk and get info THIS FORUM now a member of a club witch is great we hold indoor events through the winter and bbq up the feild in the summer and joining this forum i have learnt so much and now own two helicopters i can fly curcuits with and some light 3d (stall turns and flips). i still crash and break lots of bits but its all a learning curve and i have this forum and the people at the club for support.
as much as i injoy this hobby and no it can be very costly at times if you go about getting into the hobby the right way i.e a good sim and the right first choice in helicopters i think you will enjoy it and be in the hobby a good few years if not the rest of your life.

There is alot more to my story but this is the long and short of it

[CookieMan]

A nice post mate. Yes, Sim-ing is an essential ingredient in our hobby!

All the best.

Onwards and upwards, as we say around here!

[Tridztan]

Brilliant post and very encouraging. I guess like all things in life, you learn from your mistakes and the hard work pays off in the end. There is always light at the end of the tunnel..

[Snake_uk]

Thats pretty much me 3 weeks ago, but in a different order,

went to gadget show, impulse bought a double horse helicopter for inside use (don't laugh I said it was impulse)

liked hovering indoors, thought this is easy i want a bigger outside one, bought a century evolution 180, (spent more time waiting for spares than flying)

decided to get pheonix flight sim (after finding this place and taking on advice from members)

did a bit of reasearch, found out century transmitter wasn't compatible with pheonix, so when i purchased pheonix, rather than get it with the boxed transmitter i bought a ready to fly Mcxp as i figured i'd be good enough to fly it sooner or latter ;-)

but WOW, you really can tell the difference between a good and an average heli, the mcpx is like a ferrari compared to the evolution 180

one problem i do have is that im not taking the pheonix simulator seriously, im just hooning around, it could do with some better tutorials so i can set targets if you know what i mean.

im not sure about the club route yet, as im not taking it too seriously just yet

[horsham rc]

one problem i do have is that im not taking the pheonix simulator seriously, im just hooning around, it could do with some better tutorials so i can set targets if you know what i mean.

you need spend 20 mins being serious on the sim then mess about, the sim will teach you how to fly a hellicopter if you take it serious...

[vinny155]

i found the sim really boring for the first few months that i had it but now it is really starting to help me with stick movements and the differant inputs for the differant orientations of the heli,i was really close on selling it but now im so glad i didnt

[horsham rc]

i found the sim really boring for the first few months that i had it but now it is really starting to help me with stick movements and the differant inputs for the differant orientations of the heli,i was really close on selling it but now im so glad i didnt

i have struggeld with work this year and almost gave up with helis to but i am so glad i didnt as i do really injoy flying and i even got the miss to pop along to the club feild the uther week and she was very inpresed with what i could do as normally all she would see is the broken bits come home and me moaning i need money to fix them lol

[helismeagol]

nice post and I can understand your frustration. i've been practising on the sim since Sep last year as well as a co-ax and just recently purchased a Blade MSR, what a little tiger. I have now booked two hours with FlyinFish and looking forward to flying a CP heli before commiting to a bigger heli.

[PeteStewardson]

nice post and I can understand your frustration. i've been practising on the sim since Sep last year as well as a co-ax and just recently purchased a Blade MSR, what a little tiger. I have now booked two hours with FlyinFish and looking forward to flying a CP heli before commiting to a bigger heli.

Those 2 hours are gonna cost you big time, You'll be hooked

Dave is a great tutor, you'll be hovering the Phoenixtech 600n by the end of it

[gazza131]

Reading though some of the above stories, is like "been there done that, except i started with a Ehheli indoor heli (from model zone shop ) it lasted 2 minutes and then found spares impossable to get, I still have the ehheli hoping to get spares one day, then got a EP CALIBER 400 XP from flea bay for the princely sum of £52.00 which although a old heli had all the QUICK UK upgrades you could wish for, not really used this a lot as been kinda busy with life, and medical problems, but it flys really well (well i can get it to hoover lol thats great to me)

I then found myself here on what i consider to be the one best heli forum anywherewith the most helpful members ever.
I then got a Blade 400 but again due to things going on never really got into flying it, though this forum i found out there are flying clubs around locally to use, I went to my local flying club to look round and see what its about,
Well at Basingstoke Model Aero Club there is the most fantastic field for flying ( i have been told its one of the best in UK ) and the members are so helpful I have even got help and advice from peeps that only fly planes and gliders thats how great and helpful the club is, this then inspired me to get something a little bigger so opted for a Align Trex 500 CF, which to be honest i never got off the ground, buying a second hand 500 and not really knowing to much about the inner workings i found is not a good idea, i should have read up on it first anyways to cut a long storie short, i sent it to have it looked over and sorted out to make sure it was safe, and ended up part ex'ing it for a
Align Trex 500 FBL which is where i am today, have so far flown the 500 fbl for 2 batteries (appox 8 mins) before stripping the Torque Tube Front Drive Gear which is ok not a biggie, so i am waiting for them to arrive (any day now hopefully) and have ordered a few extra's just in case.

So thats where i am today really hoping to be flying this weekend if the bits turn up although in 8 months i have only flown for 8 mins the wait was well worth it, and although there have been times when due to ill health and life in general have made me consider packing it all in, i am glad i have not and really cant wait to get back in the air (hopefully with some help and flying tips from my peers)
So to end all i would say is, it can be tough annoying costly and frustrating (plays havoc with relationships) but to see your heli in the air under your control is amazing and well worth all the grief.

P.S.
anyone who has a indoor heli they wish to part with please e-mail as i would be very interested (but not a lot of money please