Help needed in starting up please

[Suebea]

Hi

I am desperately in need of help. My husband has asked for a RC Helicopter for Xmas and i do not have the slightest idea where to start!!!!

I would class him as a beginner although he has flown rc models in the past but a few years ago and he is eager to start up again.

Could anyone please recommend a good model to start with and what is the best type etc. with easy to get replacement parts !!!

Thanks

Sue

[rachel]

Hi sue and welcome :-)
I am sure we can help but an idea of where he wants to fly and your budget would help .

X Rachel

[Suebea]

Hi Rachel

Thanks for the reply, I was thinking of a budget of about £100-£150 and he will be flying mainly outdoors. Obviously the budget will not include any spare parts you think will be sensible to have in advance like rotor blades or batteries. Im not sure if this is a reasonable budget for a start up though if need be i could go higher.

Thanks

Sue

[SaneAdam]

Do you know if he has any preference in terms of size? I would think for that budget the MCPX would be a good place to start. Thats a small heli though... but does perform quite well outdoors considering its size. It could be a little too twitchy for him though. Do you know if he has any experience with collective pitch helicopters? The other option probably more suited to a beginner would be an MSR.... or even maybe an MSRX when they become available. When you say he has flown rc models before.... do you mean helis or was it planes?

[rachel]

hi sue for outdoors I am thinking smal (450) size electric which is not a field I am that skilled in ,so we will see who else replys.

Does your hubby have any transmiter or a prefereance such as futaba or JR (makes of radio)?

A very good indoor model might be closer to your budget .
lets see what we can sort out.
x Rachel

[the doc]

MCPX flies well indoors and outdoors. If he has flown helis before then an MSR would just be boring (and it is crap outside).

You could get an MCPX well within your budget - and if he doesn't have a transmitter you could go for the ready to fly (RTF) version that has a basic transmitter with it.

[johnsandywhite]

MCPX flies well indoors and outdoors. If he has flown helis before then an MSR would just be boring (and it is crap outside).

You could get an MCPX well within your budget - and if he doesn't have a transmitter you could go for the ready to fly (RTF) version that has a basic transmitter with it.

I agree with the MCPX. Flies TEN times better than ANY 400/450 I have attempted to fly until I got the MCPX. Very forgiving and bounceable. IMHO

[debrooker]

I think MCPX is the best idea, as they'll be nothing more dishartening than a broken 450 from one moment of error

[moyesboy]

At £100-150 probably the best heli would be an MCPX. This is a true collective pitch heli that will fly upside down and sideways and once he can hover it and fly it about he woild be able to fly more or less any heli up to the big ones that memebers on here fly.

This is a tiny heli though. You can hover it indoors, or fly it in the garden. You don't nwed or want to be in a big airfield type place unless its exeptionally calm (not often in Carlisle).

Because its very light it wont often break when it flies into walls/floor/ceiling and repleacement parts are cheap.

Its not impossible to get a decent used larger heli for not much more budget, but thats a bit of a minefield unless someone helps with the choice. I would avoid chinese copy products of larger helis at that price mark. But its not just the purchase cost as you must consider the crash cost for spare parts. Typically a crash will break the blades and bend some shafts and maybe strip some teeth of plastic gears:

Palm size (MCPX) - £10? probably difficult to break anyway. Fly indoor or in the garden when its calm.

450 size (blades are 325mm long) - crash cost £20-50 (Trex 450, blade 400) requires a tennis court sized area to fly.

500 size (blades 425 long) - crash cost £30-£60 requires at least a tennis courst sized area to fly.

550 (.30) size - blades 550 mm long - crash cost £40-£100 needs a flyign club field to fly.
600 (or .50) size (blades 600mm long) crash cost £40-£100 needs a flying club field.
700 (or .90) size (blasdes 700mm long)- as above but even more expensive.

To get a decent .30 or .50 size heli to fly at a club flying field would be more like £300 plus the cost of a transmitter.

Maybe your husband flew models with Carlisle and District club out at Kirkbride where I lived in the '70s. I used to fly models there.
I heard there are some folks flying helis somewhere near Talkin Tarn at weekends.

[Cagey]

Sue if your man is really keen then an mCPX will definitely tick all the boxes, most noticeable is the bashability of it, plus a fun factor up into the high numbers , espacially for a beginner, it's a wide grin inducing little bugger,and you'll get loads of brownie points into the bargain. It's the start of an expensive obsession though LOL.

[rob12770]

the mcpx is very small sue.. just so you know, its only a few inches long, less wrapping paper though

[Cagey]

the mcpx is very small sue.. just so you know, its only a few inches long, less wrapping paper though

Yeah but it comes in a BIG box though !

[Suebea]

Thats great all of you thank you so much for you help and advise. I will tell him about this forum and he can come on and get lots of usefull tips and advise. Who knows he might even get me interested

Sue

[rachel]

Hi sue some sound advice from some on here but don't tell hubby until after Christmas or he might see your posts !
As for the mcpx it's a very good fun heli but due to it's size som think it's a "toy" it's really a very good fun heli but indoor in a large room ( like a sports hall) is where it's best.
Outside ? Well yes but only in flat calm or light winds.

Given the budget it's bang on for you needs

[johnsandywhite]

Outside ? Well yes but only in flat calm or light winds.

I'm sorry Rachel, but I have to DISAGREE. I have flown the MCPX in VERY high winds during the Summer (???) and it was quite easy to control as opposed to the 400/450's. In fact I would say it flew as well as my 600's and 550's in the wind OUTDOORS. I have mentioned before? Everything I can now do on the bigger Helis was done FIRST on the MCPX.