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

[Spud gun]

Waiting for my sim to come mate but great advice

[vauxhall]

hi there I am new to this site and what I see of it with some of the advice that has been given to other members looks great and very helpful I have a question I have got my self in to this new hobby of flying helicopters I got my self a raptor 60 witch was a mistake for a first helicopter because the starter was worn and I had it replace and then it snapped one me so I have decided to sell it. I have got my self a smaller one a 30 and every thing works fine on it but the problem I have is when I start it up the engine seems to race away to fast and not idle I no that the settings are incorrect on the dx6i and would like to no if there is any one that could give me some advice on the basic settings so that it will idle and to get me started then I can play with them to get it to my liking. thanks for reading (Vauxhall)

[Tim Procter]

hi there I am new to this site and what I see of it with some of the advice that has been given to other members looks great and very helpful I have a question I have got my self in to this new hobby of flying helicopters I got my self a raptor 60 witch was a mistake for a first helicopter because the starter was worn and I had it replace and then it snapped one me so I have decided to sell it. I have got my self a smaller one a 30 and every thing works fine on it but the problem I have is when I start it up the engine seems to race away to fast and not idle I no that the settings are incorrect on the dx6i and would like to no if there is any one that could give me some advice on the basic settings so that it will idle and to get me started then I can play with them to get it to my liking. thanks for reading (Vauxhall)

If you are at the basics I would ask the question which is my nearest club and gain some help there.

Where are you from, Club members will give you the help to get the basics learned then progress from there.

[vauxhall]

hi thanks for the reply i am from se london and i am looking for clubs near to me but not yet found one but i still would like to get some kind of settings so that i can get it running correctly

thanks

[Clinicaldaz]

Greetings. My name is Darren and I have the bug.

I got a silly apache toy helicopter for christmas, and, although it is (was) obviously rubbish, I had a tonne of fun chucking it about my front room, my kids loved watching me crash it too! As my birthday was only a few days after christmas I got myself a Syma s107G, which was an obvious upgrade from the toy, but still a 3Ch and pretty boring (if a bit more durable and flyable than the toy apache). Doing some reading I quickly realised that I should have got a 4CH so I ordered a Nine Eagles Bravo. So far so good. A lot more fun. However, I accidentaly pushed the right stick in at some point and flew it straight up at full speed into a light fitting. The tail snapped in half, and the fly bar snapped. Being in the UK I couldn't find any spare parts. So. More lessons learnt!

The point i'm at now, is total bewilderment in what to replace the Bravo with. I definately want to fly indoors, I definately want a 4CH that I can learn and progress on. I wouldn't mind getting another 4CH co-ax but is that really much of a move on from what I have / had? Should I get a RTF 4CH Co-Ax with a transmitter I can use a sim with? I just don't know what to do / get next, but it needs to be quick! Don't want more than a 10" rotor span indoors but don't really like the really tiny micro helicopters. Any help or advice would be wonderful.

Many thanks in advance... Darren.

[Arborist Al]

First heli's

Hi,

I am both new to the forum and also to the world of heli flying.

So my first heli was a cx2, i could not get on with it, my thoughts were " what a waste of money, this heli flying is to hard with this thing, beginners heli, my backside", but then got a blade msr, yes entry level heli, £95 RTF. blade radio etc just two lipos, i followed the simple instructions, heli and Tx bound, within seconds hovering, super, ok, a few hours flying around my local gym helped, so now have a mCPX, just getting a DX6i, and also have a Hubsan x4, which is fun to fly in my front room. I have also got Pheonix V4, this has helped so much, saved a shed of money by crashing in pheonix and not in the outside world.

While i can agree with the starter post, the advent of real easy to fly helis, has got to be the way to get new people interested in this hobby, i may not be the best flyer and i don't have the years of knowledge and experiance, "indoor toys mastered in 5 mins by 5 yr olds" maybe but mCPX can fly 3D, not in my hands yet, but the linitations are on me and not the heli. Who knows maybe in a couple of years i will be able to sign the foot of my posts with loads of heli models that i have mastered.

thanks for taking the time to read my opinion on the first heli debate.

[cjcj1949]

You are quite right. The original post was correct when it was made. People start on small helis now. The new Scout is a good place to start for £29 RTF or anything else up to a 130-X. Or if you can get someone to buddy box you you can go for a 600 or nitro. Sims are very useful, but the cost of crashing makes bigger models seem more difficult than they really are. You can now learn a lot from a survivable heli like the 130-X, or that's what I'm hoping. I'm currently wondering if 450s are too easy to damage and not large enough to be reliable.

[Cham_Biz]

On reading this, I'm a new RC pilot. I currently have 2 two helicopters at the moment and I was thinking to get another one I currently have a 3.5 ch and a 4ch, I was thinking on upgrading to a 6 ch CopterX Black Angel Pro RC Helicopter - RTF Version. I looked on websites at reviews and videos and was wondering advice or review for anyone how owns one are has flown one if it's the right step I'm taking to get one.

[HeliMonkey]

I started with a Raptor 50 nitro as small electrics were hardly available back then and those that were were around were not that good, taught myself the basics of setup, hovering, circuits, stall turns just from reading and researching on the web and practicing on the sim and in the field, it was great! The only issue I had was not having an official place to fly such a large loud heli and the cost of repairs when it wanted to be on the ground while I wanted it in the air. I personally think the learning curve and stability of the big helis is an experience that cant be matched by the smaller electrics, although my 450 Pro DFC was a massive learning curve for me.... bloody FBL!! I've still got the Raptor but only really fly my 2 T-Rex 450's at the moment but they are so hard to see and seem much faster/more agile than the 50, so much so that I'm going to get another 50 size nitro soon to calm things down a bit. The co-ax helis or smaller indoor heli's are great as a training aid or for when the weather is crap but IMO you cant beat the experience of full on outdoor large nitro or electric flight. I don't/can't do 3D yet unless its on the sim. This is an expensive hobby as are most R/C based hobbies, it is all part of it. It all depends on what you want from it, a cheaper easier option you may get bored with or an option that requires patience, deep pockets and tests your skills and gives you an amazing feeling when you nail the things you practice on the sim or indoors and then transfer them to a big "real helicopter like" model outdoors. The sound of big blades in the air is just one of the many things I love about the large heli's. I also think the added cost of continually upgrading from smaller heli's to bigger and better can be worse than the cost of just jumping in at the deeper end with a larger model. The best advice is, if you can find one, join a club or get some 1 on 1 tuition as others have said, something I never did but plan to do in the future as I don't feel I'm progressing as fast as I could be with a little help and guidance. As per the OP if you do go big and get that 90 size nitro for your first heli be prepared for the FACT it WILL be expensive when you crash, I think that is what puts people off the most is just not expecting the cost of a crash after parting with a shit load of cash initially. I'm lucky enough to have a good job and an understanding lady and no kids at the moment so my money is all mine which does always help..... muahahahaha! Good Luck whatever you chose!

[Boggy]

Tbh I think that with the progression of technology and the amount of new products available this thread has outlived its usefulness as a "Sticky" beginners guide. However I say "pity the fool" that tries to rewrite it , as there are so many different ways to get started now and so many different opinions on which is the way to go Time to get the white spirits out and unstick this?

[Barrymartin]

Created October 2007

This is a small guide for anyone asking several common questions when joining this board…
What Helicopter should I buy ?
What’s my progression path ?
I have a budget of ‘X’ what do I go for ?

When first deciding you want to be involved in RC helicopters it’s very tempting to buy the best one you can afford. This is a bad move for several reasons. Firstly bigger does not necessarily = better. RC Helicopters can be relatively cheap (£100 or so) to very expensive (£1000’s). However they all have some basic skills requirements which can be self-taught and regardless of your income, you’ll want to acquire these cheaply and easily.

The first thing you need to acknowledge as a ‘would-be’ RC pilot is you WILL crash. There’s no ‘If’s’ ‘But’s’ or ‘Maybe’ about this. You will crash. Just take that as a given for the moment.

What will kill this hobby for you will be the cost and complexity of your crashes. Again, this can be a 5 minute repair job costing £5-£10 or it can be 3 or 4 hours (even more in some cases) costing £100’s.

So the simple truth I am trying to impart is … even if you can afford to blow £1000’s on your first Heli your progression path starts the same as everyone’s….with the basics.

The first ‘real’ and basic helicopter you should buy is a co-axial fixed pitch Helicopter. One of the most popular is the Blade CX2 and retails for around £110. There are many similar Heli’s such as the Lama v3 and v4. You may hear of the ‘Mash’ Helicopter. (This is actually a medivac… seen in the comedy "MASH" about the Korean war). However I’m going to talk about the CX2 as it’s what most of the new folks on here have bought recently. For this you will get a CD of how to basically set-up your CX2, a simple 4 channel transmitter (Throttle, Yaw (Rudder), Elevator and Aileron), a battery pack, charger and of course the CX2 helicopter. When you go to buy your CX2, you’d do well to buy the following spares as well :
1 pack of upper rotor blades
1 pack of lower rotor blades
1 or 2 battery packs
1 Inner shaft
1 Fly bar
1 set of landing skids.
The spares are about £20-25 the batteries around £25-30
The CX2 is designed as an indoor helicopter and requires reasonable space. An empty garage would be ideal. A sports hall or church hall would be brilliant. DO NOT fly the CX2 outdoors until you have had a lot of experience AND it’s calm if not still. The SLIGHTEST gentle wind will generate huge amounts of lift and your heli will shoot up and out of control before you can react. Your only choice will be an immediate power off and hard crash. Consider yourself warned J.

The CX2 is a co-axial design meaning it has twin rotor’s with the torque of each rotor cancelling the other out as they counter-rotate with respect to each other. In other words it’s very stable and doesn’t have a tail rotor. The receiver in the helicopter also acts as a Gyro and will help keep the helicopter facing the same way, leaving you free to keep the helicopter in a hover without worrying about the aspect the helicopter is in. .

The CX2 is initially flown with the nose pointing away from you or what is known as ‘Tail In’ … the tail obviously pointing towards you. The is the easiest way to fly as the bank, and pitch controls reflect directly in the behaviour of the helicopter. i.e. Push the stick forward and the heli moves forward.

The CX2 is also what is known as ‘fixed pitch’. This means the rotor blades do not change their pitch depending on what the throttle is doing. This again makes for a very simple model , but is sacrifices manoeuvrability for this. It also keeps the mechanics of the rotor head simple and cheap.

On average the CX2 will take most people around 3-4 flights before they can maintain a vague hover. Given the cost of the batteries (around £15 each) buying 2 or 3 will increase your fun and flight time. It’s unlikely you’d fly more than 30-40 mins a day to begin with… it is taxing and will require some practice !

Once you have got the hang of the basic hover you’re probably going to want to start trying to zoom around. Don’t !
All flights begin and end in a hover or will for the next year or so. Therefore it’s important to get the hang of a good solid hover to being with. When you feel you have achieved this then progressing to forward flight out of a hover and a stop back into a hover is your next step. It may seem easy with a CX2 but later as you move up to larger heli’s the inertia of a heli will make this more problematic as you need to ‘flare’ to break your forward impetus and come to a halt. Get the hang of this now.

By now you’ve probably hit a few things and chipped your upper and lower rotor blades and when you do, they will need replacing or they will effect your flight performance. There’s a chance you’ll bent the rotor shafts, damage the canopy, damage the landing skids etc etc. These will all cost £5-£10 a time to fix. After a few weeks you will also want to increase your performance of the Helicopter and ‘soup it up’. This can be done with aluminium parts that provide sharper response and indeed motors and batteries are upgradeable as well. This is a great place to mention that by now you’ve probably spend £150-£200 on parts and upgrades. So if you started looking at £200+ to spend … don’t spend it on a £250 Heli. It will cost you double that in crash repairs etc.

So lets say you feel you’ve got the CX2 weighed off … really ??
It’s time to keep learning the basics….while it’s still cheap to get it wrong.
Try to hover Nose In. All of a sudden the heli response appears reversed. Input right stick and the Heli banks right ... but in 'Nose In' it drifts to your left ! Obvious stuff but very disorientating and difficult to master. For a lot of pilots this takes a while to get sorted. Try Hovering Side On to you. Again orientation is difficult. (at this stage check the BMFA A certification requirements ... similar to what you practice here is needed to pass.)
Can you move around in a square in all different orientations ? Can you move around in a square while maintaining a slow pirouette ? It will be a long time before the CX2 has outlived it’s teaching abilities. Remember….upgrading simply increases complexity and cost of crashing.

Sooner or later money will burn a hole in your pocket and you’re dying to spend it. OK. STOP ! Don’t go and buy that super duper heli you saw in the magazine… at least not till you’ve flown it. What do I mean ? Well the next purchase you should make is NOT another Heli. It’s a good quality Heli simulator and if you have oodles of cash….buy a good transmitter to use with it…preferably the TX you’ll use on your first ‘proper’ heli. Something like a popular DX7 or DX6 would be good. As for simulators the Phoenix at around £80 is excellent and a favourite of many pilots. The Phoenix even has a model of a CX2 now available ! The phoenix simulator will allow you to acquire the feel (and shock) of a larger more complex helicopter without the immediate expense of crashing it. For example buy the phoenix, set it up and then fly the Align T-Rex 600n helicopter. You’re looking at around £1200 of Heli there. How long did you last before smashing it ? 20 seconds ? That smash will almost certainly have involved those cool looking rotor blades smacking the ground. They’re £70 a set in the real world….. 20 seconds…£70.. getting the picture yet ? Practice and practice and practice some more with the IC and electric training helicopters that come with the package. Use the CX2 and simulator to get as proficient as you possible can. Once your craving for a large heli can no longer be controlled use the simulator and this forum to help you select your first Mini size helicopter such as a T-REX 450 or maybe a Mini Titan…. Consider the power train as well…. IC or electric Heli ???. This will probably cost around £500 to get you flying happily but again….. don’t buy cheap….you’ll make the mistake many of us made by buying weak, poor flying and accident prone helicopters that will cost you a lot more in the long run. Finally if you really do have money to burn, the next best investment you can make is lessons. Get a professional tutor to get you to a good flying standard and also teach you about set-up. It takes years of dedication to build, set-up, fly and diagnose all aspects of helicopters.

It’s a long road but immensely satisfying. Welcome to RC Helicopters J

Thanks for taking time for sharing this article, it was excellent and very informative. Its really very useful of all of users. I found a lot of informative stuff in your article.I found your hints to be most valuable. Thanks, you didn't wander to un-important subjects and kept the interest up.

[Capt-pugwash]

hi all,not sure where you introduce yourself on this forum so will do it here,my name is jeff i am the wrong side of 50 and live in r.c.t.south wales and have had a art tech mini pred heli for 2 years but have been unable to get the thing in the air, was out today but no luck thing spins so i striped the tail down only to find plastic gears worn hence slow rear roto spin.
thx
jeff.

[Ritchieme]

Welcome capt, you got it sorted now ?

[Capt-pugwash]

Yeah sort of,ordered parts on net,wanted to upgrade but could not find anything so had to go with plastic parts should be fitted by wed (fingers crossed).
thx for reply.
jeff.

[Capt-pugwash]

went to mid rhondda model club last wed which is held in tonrefail comp school every wed 7-9 where guys (nice bunch) meet to talk and fly in sports hall,which i missed, looking forward to next wed taking my heli over to setup right.
jeff.