Jeepers! She's all over the place!

[Vikki]

So, I'm stood a good few yards behind Chopasaurus (B450) and he's winding up. The ol' sphincter's twitching a bit and adrenaline is dripping into my bloodstream at about 4 barrels an hour.

I'm contemplating triggering the neurones that'll push my left thumb forward a bit more whilst I casually kick at the dung beetles gathered around my feet. Little do they know - I've got my bicycle clips on

Well, this is the first time I've actually really flown Chopasaurus. First flight was in a field that was a little too rough and on first landing the skids found a hole but the training gear didn't - busted training gear hub ends play after a few seconds.

Second try in my new, flatter field, resulted in a tail heavy (semi)controlled landing resulting in a busted tail case and a bent feathering shaft.

After some flying of my Quad I felt ready to try again. This time Chopasaurus had been set up and balanced from head to toe. Seriously, the £8.99 for a swash levelling tool is worth it.

Ok, so Chopasaurus is winding up and I do manage to persuade my left thumb to push forward and Chopasaurus leaps into the air like a pigeon shot from a cannon. Slight exaggeration there

I hovered him. I hovered him over there (points), over here (points), up there (points), down there (points) and back there (points), pretty much anywhere that Chopasaurus wanted to go, I was there, ready to hover.

Five take-offs and five landings. First one was a panic landing. After a while I thought I was doing really cr*p but as I was *cough* flying *cough* I noticed that it wasn't as calm as I thought it was. When I got back to work (with Chopasaurus intact) I checked the weather and found the wind wasn't 5 mph, it was 9 gusting to 13 mph!!! OK, I think, maybe I didn't do so bad as I thought. Seriously, though, it's a bit sad innit?

Tell you what, just watch the video and have a giggle. I apologise for the quality of the shooting but on my own I had no way of lining up BonceCam properly.

Blade 450 - YouTube

[Cagey]

Whoopee

No need for you to go to Specsavers. Ha ! You did damned good there, in that wind too getting it back safely each time. Betcha had a real buzz from that and can't wait to get out when the weathers more kind to 450s. Great going Vikki.

[Sheldrake]

Great stuff Vikki your posts are always good. I am a noobie and still bunny hopping around love the way you just went for it!

look forward to the next instalment

best wishes glad to see you are back.

[Vikki]

Thanks guys

Funnily enough, it was the sim that taught me how to bring him back to me. Taking Quadasaur out tomorrow lunch time. Going to be a bit windy for Chopasaurus. Looking forward to a calm day for that, as you say, Cagey.

Vikki.

[tourerjim]

Blimey you donarf give us a read! get rid of them main blades they are Chopasaurus & fit the Align woody's or carbons & your be out of trainers.!!!

[DaveJones]

Hey well done on the first real flight and bringing him home in one piece. I've shared a few of those sphincter tightening moments over the last couple of week flying my Trex 250 and 500. Both scared the brown stuff out of me when I spun them up the first few times, given half a chance I would of sat in the car when flying the 500 for the first time, I was certainly stood a long way away. It's certainly a different feeling than flying the very crashable (but not stand onable :-)) MCPX.

I experienced a few unplanned landing (a crash, but stayed upright and in the skids) but no crashes until today. Over confidence kicked in and I decided to play in the wind, all was going well until the third battery when a gust of wind got the better of me and my 250 keeled over and crashed in a field. Fortunately not much damage, new rotors and a main gear and I should be back in the not so windy air soon. I was still smiling even after the crash so I guess I'm addicted.

Not sure if its an effect of your camera, but it did look a little close to you a few times and directly overhead. If it was please be careful (especially out on your own) these things will do some damage if they hit you. The MCPX hurts enough, I learnt the hardway.

But congrat's again and I look forward to the next video, its good to have someone else learning with me and sharing the same experiences.

[Vikki]

Thanks guys.

DJ, it was getting close at times but not close enough that I was going to panic. My eyeballs were fixed on him like lasers and limbs primed and ready to go like a flea - boing!

Vikki.

[DaveJones]

Glad to hear it, worried that I'm starting to sound like my mum but would hate to read the post about a misjudgement!

Looking forward to the next progress update, and a none windy day.

[Vikki]

Do you have any videos, DJ? I suspect you're ahead of me on the flying but it sure is great fun.

Vikki.

[astra 8vt]

well done vikki not home in a carrier bag is all ways a good start in my books missed reading your posts aswell

[DaveJones]

Sorry no video I'm afraid but I don't think you are that far behind me. On a calm day I can hold the mcpx, 250 and 500 in reasonable hovers tail and side in, getting there with the nose in

Debating with myself as to whether I should take my 500 out today, it's a beautiful sunny day but a little windy again. All the theory says the 500 will be better in the wind but sods law means I'll break it today and tomorrow will be a perfect day and I'll only have broken heli's.

[Vikki]

Astra: Thanks

DJ: I'm out with the quad lunchtime, he quite likes wind. This time I'll make sure the camera's actually on before taking off with it, d'oh!

Vikki.

[highlightshadow]

As usual another entertaining post and video

Well done vikki ... nothing quite so bum gripping as those first few hovers .... a few more batteries full and you'll have them training gear off .... i found my 450 handles MUCH MUCH better now i've plucked up the courage to fly without them balls .... especially the FBL ... although on the plus side the FBL sits in the wind much happier

Cannot beat real stick time ... sims are great for getting that motor control in your head but the difference in tension in your fingers and therefore movements when its a real set of blades whizzing about is quite marked....

[Vikki]

Thanks, Shadow.

I'm pleased I actually managed to keep it in the air and land it safely even if my attempts to hover were all over the place. When I first started on the sim I decided not to reset if he got away from me and learn to get him back to me. I believe that was valuable practice, because, while I can hover in the sim the reality is vastly different, he did get away from me each time and each time I recovered him.

As you say, so different in the flesh, so to speak. The tension robbed me of fine thumb control

Got a total of 5 batteries now for those good weekends. Two batteries is lunchtime limit (unless I play hooky ).

Vikki.

[Vikki]

What surprises me is the speed at which it can accelerate and get away from you at. They really can shift. Doesn't behave much like the sim, either, but I guess that's to be expected. Even though I was making bricks I found it was a strange kind of wonderful fun

Vikki.