The next step after a cx2

[JayLex]

I haven't posted much on this site and I read it most days! It seems that whatever questions i have someone has asked and someone else has answered. Anyway now I am ready for your personal opinions even though i reckon i know what a few may be!

I almost gave up with a twister cp as never got it working properly but following other advice i bought a dx7 and phoenix, then luckily a few weeks later got a cx2 for my birthday back in october. since then have been having great fun practising on both and feel that i can do most things relatively easily, so now for the big step!

Outside space is not an issue nor is noise as luckily have access to a farm in the middle of nowhere at weekends but what do you recommend? I believe i am right in saying that a 600 or 50 size would be better for a beginner as it is more stable, or would a 450 be better? Then if a larger one there is the big question on nitro or electric. Neither i really understand so would have to learn more on both. Would i not get more flight time from a nitro and if so i would have thought that this would be better for a beginner.

What should i consider the most important thing at this stage size or power supply? And what would you then recommend?


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Thanks Stuart for such a great site i am sure that there are many like me that don't post but read a lot and who you have helped encourage into the world of helicopters, if not for you i would have given up at the twister stage.

[Ade_Law]

do you have phoenix sim?

the down side of a 50 size electric or nitro is that you need to be flying them at a club. That being a properly controlled environment no public around etc. you also will have people around to help with setup etc.

with a nitro you will get 9+ mins of flying per tank and do 4 flights before needing to recharge the reciever battery if you use a 4 cell nimh or nicad. more if you use one of the li-po batteries and a regulator.

electric your looking at 5-6 mins max and a bit over an hour to charge and a massive leisure battery to charge off of.

once you start looking at the models that fly properly by the time you put all the radio, gyro etc in them there isnt much difference in cost between a 450 electric and a 50 size nitro.

Ade

[wazzer]

I wont fuel(get it!?) the Nitro-Electric battle as it just gets us now where!!
They both have there advantages and disadvantages.
You have to decide if you like the sound and smell of nitro over the cleanliness and convenience of plugging in a battery. (guess what my preference is!)

Personally i think that anything 30 size and below should be electric and anything 50 size and above should be Nitro but thats just my opinion.

I think the most obvious choices for 50 size nitro or electric are
Knight Sport (nitro only so i believe)
Raptor 50 (nitro or electric)
Trex 600 (nitro or electric)

They all have good reputations
There is a huge amount of information avaialble on the net for them
and parts supply for the Raptors and Trex's is very very good (not sure about the knight but i think it is also pretty good)

Best bet is to see what is the most common type of heli flown at your nearest club or what your nearest hobby shop has best support for. Or if you have no club fly what your mates fly. We have no club near where we live but there are a few of us who get together on a weekly basis and we all fly very similar machines (few shoguns few Trex's few Hurricanes) Hurricanes are just beginning to out number anything else now. That way you always have help and support for your heli at hand and you can always scrounge parts when your in a pinch.

Good luck in your choices and let us know what you go with.

Ben

[Sao]

electric your looking at 5-6 mins max and a bit over an hour to charge and a massive leisure battery to charge off of.

Electrics are getting better all the time I get 8 mins out of my 50 sized E-Heli
The newer charges can charge the batteries in 30-40 minutes but you wil still need a huge leisure battery or a small generator.

That said, if you're new and learning I'd recomend a nitro heli over electric as you can get more flight time per hours up the field

[JayLex]

Thanks for all the advice guys, it seems from this that the best thing would be to get a 50 nitro.

The only thing that concerns me at this stage before i choose which heli, is that ade and wazzer mentioned clubs. Do i have to be a member of a club to fly it and learn, could i not just be a bmfa member and fly on the farm where there is no-one around for miles. I understand that it would make it easier to learn and for people to check on setup but i was planning on doing that part at one of the schools around like flying fish or paul heckles. Is there something i am missing? Also how do i find out what is the nearest club to me if you think that that is the best way to go.

Ade - got phoenix and has helped a lot, think i bought it on your recommendation many months ago rather than give up with the old twister cp.

Thanks again to all

Alex

[del19_82]

http://www.bmfa.org/clubs/index.html

Check this for a list of clubs

[JayLex]

Thanks for that Dez, really useful but you would have thought the bmfa would list contact details rather than having to contact them for each club and wait for that. Oh well. Whilst on this topic anyone know of a decent club around cirencester in gloucestershire that they could recommend.

[del19_82]

Jaylex

http://www.cdmac.freeserve.co.uk/

This club according to the BMFA is heli friendly but you would have to contact them to see. There is a page with contact numbers for the commitee members on their site.

Hope this helps

[matt27]

Hey Jaylex

i will soon be at the stage your at if not am and flying my CX2 in my hall.
i have been looking at the Trex 450 or the HoneyBee King2. i dont know what other people think about this but looking at what other people have been saying i might have been looking at the rong kind of thing at should have really been looking at the knight or trex 600??

can anyone say if i have been looking at the wrong kind of thing please!!
thanks
Matt

[timmmy]

neither are the wrong kind,ihave a 450se and i get a bit more flying in with that due to beenable to use it where i cant use a nitro so in that way its great,and i have a 600n for club use and i have somewhere else to use it.both are great both have there advantages,suppose its a question of where and when you can fly it.i have the same amount of cash in both give or take a bit