Beginners and New to Heli's ... Read this FIRST

[MadCrazyBonkers]

Hi all as a newbie my self i wish i had read this thread 1st as i took the route of phoenix and a dx6i to start with a month on its helped alot and having loads of fun but i wish i had got a coax 1st so i had something i could hold and learn on as with the sim im having big probs with the depth of field

[Dave Gordon]

I'm just getting back into heli's (this time properly!) after learning to hover a few years back on a battered old Hirobo Shuttle 30 which I got more or less free and fixed up myself (I'm wasn't new to r/c or nitro, just heli's) because at the time I was told that it really didn't matter what you learnt on as long as it was airworthy and had collective pitch. Is this not still true?

I can't work up any interest at all in anything less than a proper cp heli so my plan is to stick with the simulator until steady hoverring, safe landings and flying circuits become instinctive - then start flying a normal heli with training gear. Obviously it'll bounce regularly but if for example it's something like a well-used eBay Raptor to start with, it's initial purchase price and subsequent repair costs should still be a lot less than buying a series of new 'easy to learn on' models to work one's way up to flying a proper heli wouldn't it? A mate of mine learned on a .60-sized heli a few years back and he only broke a few blades, a canopy and a boom during his whole training period - once he'd mastered it he bought a semi-scale Jetranger fuselage for it and still flies it now!

Are training/coax/etc helicopters really nescessary?

[cjcj1949]

Training helis

We all learn differently and at different speeds. There is a big difference between flying on a sim and flying a real model. I don't know why. But most people are much better on a sim than with a real model. Helis are different from planes.You have little time to recover after a mistake. You can't learn without trying new things, in fact if you don't crash then you aren't trying. I think the msr is essential. Mainly because it teaches you where your limits are and nearly always survives. Once you can hover nose in a few inches from your face you can sell it.

Chris

[Dave Gordon]

We all learn differently and at different speeds. There is a big difference between flying on a sim and flying a real model. I don't know why. But most people are much better on a sim than with a real model. Helis are different from planes.You have little time to recover after a mistake. You can't learn without trying new things, in fact if you don't crash then you aren't trying. I think the msr is essential. Mainly because it teaches you where your limits are and nearly always survives. Once you can hover nose in a few inches from your face you can sell it.

Chris

Hi Chris, yeah sims are a world away from real flying but all I'm after from it are learning the gut-reactions and instinctive stick inputs by crashing, nearly crashing, then eventually saving virtual heli's rather than real ones lol. Btw I'm not coming to this via planes but from cars.

[rateater]

Hi All AND Yes Im A Newbie

Great comments read and took in currently have 2 3ch micro helis and love them 1 for the office and 1 for home. Like all the previous posts i am gagging to get my hands on a real heli so have just ordered the esky humming bird 3 WITH training gear. 1 question thou and probably a stupid one before i even attempt to fly this i would like to purchase the phoenix training sim But how does the RC connect to it or do i have to buy a different RC that is going to come with the esky kit.

Cheers

[cjcj1949]

Phoenix comes with a box that connects to the computer via usb at one end and to a tx via the trainer socket. The standard connection that comes with Phoenix is for a Spectrum or JR transmitter. Other connectors can be bought from Phoenix.

[rateater]

Advice please

Great comments read and took in currently have 2 3ch micro helis and love them 1 for the office and 1 for home. Like all the previous posts i am gagging to get my hands on a real heli so have just ordered the esky humming bird 3 WITH training gear. 1 question thou and probably a stupid one before i even attempt to fly this i would like to purchase the phoenix training sim But how does the RC connect to it or do i have to buy a different RC that is going to come with the esky kit.

As in my pevious post i was going to get humming bird 3 but i visited my loacal model shop today and they have informed me that getting spares for these is like getting hold of Rocking Horse S### is this the case

Cheers

[tiddler]

Great comments read and took in currently have 2 3ch micro helis and love them 1 for the office and 1 for home. Like all the previous posts i am gagging to get my hands on a real heli so have just ordered the esky humming bird 3 WITH training gear. 1 question thou and probably a stupid one before i even attempt to fly this i would like to purchase the phoenix training sim But how does the RC connect to it or do i have to buy a different RC that is going to come with the esky kit.

As in my pevious post i was going to get humming bird 3 but i visited my loacal model shop today and they have informed me that getting spares for these is like getting hold of Rocking Horse S### is this the case

Cheers

Personally I think you would be far better off getting a Dx6i tx and Phoenix. Then something like a Blade mSR or 120SR.
These are both well proven helis that are suitable for a novice, with spares readily available.

[cjcj1949]

Rocking Horses

Great comments read and took in currently have 2 3ch micro helis and love them 1 for the office and 1 for home. Like all the previous posts i am gagging to get my hands on a real heli so have just ordered the esky humming bird 3 WITH training gear. 1 question thou and probably a stupid one before i even attempt to fly this i would like to purchase the phoenix training sim But how does the RC connect to it or do i have to buy a different RC that is going to come with the esky kit.

As in my pevious post i was going to get humming bird 3 but i visited my loacal model shop today and they have informed me that getting spares for these is like getting hold of Rocking Horse S### is this the case

Cheers

Sounds like a good modelshop that. Not a bad idea to look for spares before buying a heli. Some people buy 2 helis as spares cost a lot on their own.

[gazza131]

i must totally agree with Tom, i have been into heli's for just a few months and the first heli i got is a shuttle nitro 30, and then a few cheapie indoor/outdoor electric helis, i have yet not used the shuttle as to scared of damageing it, like i have all the eletric ones, i only have the shuttle and a Caliber 400 now - wish i had started with something a lot smaller to get the hang of heli control before getting the shuttle

[carbon456]

Thought I would type a post because this is an important topic for people looking in to rc hellis, and there have been no replies for a few months now.
I class myself as a newbie, been flying/crashing for 4 months. There is a lot and I mean a lot to learn. I feel I have barely scratched the surface and I can fly my Trex 500 full throttle (the right way up ) in 30 mph winds with no worries. I still have a long, long way to go.
My top tip for newbies is to totally ignore replies that say ' i see there is still a load of crap written about rc helis', people like that think their way is the only way.. hell no.
Bubblefish777 gave a very valid option.
But the truth is there is no best way.
Training first will cost you £35 an hour. But I found it gave me a good idea of the different sizes and power sources of helis. Plus when you **** up, and you will the heli dosen't crash because the instructor takes over.
Every 'how I started in helis' story will be different. So give it a go, it will cost no matter which way you do it.
I went straight in with a CP honey bee V2, based on so many posts raving about it and saying it was such a good starter heli. They all can't be wrong but I thought it was pants, because even a heavy landing on training legs would break something. So I bought a Walkera 4#6, this crashes well , but flys indoors and out (not too much wind). I had to spend a fair bit and new skids, blades, and heads. But I realised, yep I like this hobby so once I could reliably fly and land I went in for the trex 500 and I am loving it.
SO; my point of view is go for a £100 ish 4ch micro heli, expect to pay the same again in bits, learn to fly basics and then go buy more size/power/quality.

[ModelGuard.Com]

Learning to fly if cash is not your problem

This is for new flyers who decide they are in this for the long haul and have the cash and balls to go straight in. This isnt for the faint hearted and I am sure I will have many angry opponents.
Remember when reading this it is for flyers who intend on sticking with this hobby for a long time and have the resources to throw at it in order to learn fast. If I suggest certain products then its because I personally think they are the best for the purpose and for no other reason.

Now here it is....
The foolproof guide to learning to fly model helicopters .....

First off lets get spending!
Find your nearest model shop that knows about setting up helis, preferably flybarless as well, ask if they would be willing to check it out for you after your build, if your local shop doesnt then drive to the next one.

Youll need the following......

A years membership with your local, preferably helis only club. £50-100

A decent simulator, preferably Phoenix with Futaba lead if needed £80

A decent 7 channel (at least) transmitter, Futaba 7c, Spektrum dx7, best of all a Futaba 8FG. (buy without servos but with receiver) £200-450

An Align T500 ESP 3G combo £600

As many 6s 2600 MAH 35C+ lipos as you can, 5 is a good start and will last a morning. £300-400

A decent charger, spend as much as you can because later on you will be charging larger lipos £150

A Skookum Robotics SK720 Flybarless electronics £360

A large hula-hoop (2feet) and dowling £10





Lets get going...

Open you heli kit and start building, take out the Align 3G flybarless controller and stick it on Ebay where it belongs.
Build you heli carefully and slowly, theres plenty of help on various forums. for the SK720 setup check out skookumrobotics.com especially the Wiki (theres a link to their recommended forum as well).

At the same time start practicing on the sim using only the t500 3g model.

After a couple of weeks your heli will be built and you will understand the basic control inputs.

Now take you heli back to the shop you bought it from, stick it on the counter and get someone to check it out for you. They should be willing to at least check all the controls and hopefully they will take give it a short hover.

You need to know that this heli is capable of flight! For this reason it must be hovered by a regular flyer, either at the shop or try someone at your club.

The SK720 is perfect because it has a self levelling capability built in and totally controllable. You can alter the self levelling action from 100 to 0, giving you Co-ax like level hold or none at all. Start off by programming it to self level 100%

cut holes on the inside edge of the hula-hoop and fix dowelling of the correct length, two pieces across and two pieces down so you have a solid platform. So many people start with crossed sticks and balls, but these are no good as the balls stick in the ground and tip you over. The hula-hoop is smooth all around and perfect for those heavy angled landings.

Off to the field...

Tuck yourself into a spare corner of the field well away from other flyers. Start up and increase collective until heli is light on its hoop and let the heli drift off, still on the ground, in the direction it wants to. At first just follow it around adding small inputs to try to make it stationary. After a while you can lift off to around 2 feet of the ground, once in this position the sk720 can be left to do its stuff. let go of the sticks and watch the heli level itself out and hover jsut like a co-ax, it will still drift but small cyclic inputs will bring it back in line. You will find the hardest part is take off and landing but once mastered remove the hoop as soon as you can.
Once you feel you have mastered hovering start to reduce the percent of self levelling in the sk720 software, do this by 10 percent at a time. You will start to find the heli will drift more in the hover but you will find you will get used to it. keep doing this until the self levelling is at zero.
You can now fly a model helicopter!

With the sk720 you can choose a switch on your transmitter so that you can go in and out of self level, This is very usefull when trying new things such as nose in hovering or first circuits. Eventually you can use it only for emergencies, when you lose orientation a flick of the switch will level it out and enable you to regain control. Once you dont need the self level capability, rest assured you still have one of the best flybarless units around. The next firmware release will also include inverted self level!

Keep practicing on the sim, try to stay one skill ahead on the sim and no more. learn something new on the sim then practice on the real heli until you can do it before moving ahead again on the sim.

Like this but with the dowels sunk into the hoop and not protruding out!

[Tim Procter]

Bubblefish

Last Activity 07-08-2008 04:14 PM
Shame he wrote such a great post because it looks like he has quit the hobby now.

I remember reading this post when I first started.

[Peter61_uk]

Hi All,

Ijust read this ...... And I think I might have a problem........ I've been looking at maybe learning to fly a helicopter for some time ....... My missus bless her, has heard me chuntering on some about it .....so she's been ad bought me a Honeybee CP3 ...... Now, From the outset I figured that whatever model I bought I'd need a bit of time on a simulator before I tried the flyig thing ....... But after reading this I'm wondering if, whatever, the CP3 might not be such a good idea to be starting with ......even if I do put in some time on the Phoenix Flight Sim I've ordered .....?

Cheers to All
Peter

[jakuta]

Hi im new to rc helicopters, I have a Buzzfly BF8transmitter and a phoenix simulater ive tried to get it to work on my phoenix but it doesnt actually work all that well, has anyone got an idea how to set it up correctly ive used the normal instructions on how to set it up