What can a RC Helicopter do?

[Raven Morpheus]

Hello

New to this forums (and RC helicopters in general) so I apologise if this has been asked before.

I'm looking into getting into RC Helicopters because I've been playing Helicopter sims/games on my PC (like Apache Air Assault and Take On Helictopters/Arma 2) and I'd liked to try something a little more real world.

Basically I'm looking at purchasing either a Nine Eagles Bravo SX which is fixed pitch or going the whole hog and buying a collective pitch helicopter of a similar size, probably the Nine Eagles Solo Pro 100. I only have a budget of £150 at most so I can't really buy anything too expensive.

However I'm a little unsure on a certain aspect.

I've been reading a lot about Collective Pitch and Fixed Pitch and the differences between them. But I still don't understand what types of manoeuvres each can do apart from the fixed pitch heli's generally can't fly upside down. Basically I'm wondering if a fixed pitch heli can behave in the same way as heli's do in the games I've been playing, for example - when I push the cyclic forward the helicopter in a game tilts forward and I get forward motion, if I push the cyclic forward enough I can get the body of the heli and the rotors vertical. If I push the cyclic stick side ways the helicopter sidesteps, or rolls if I push the stick far enough.

In the videos I've watched fixed pitch helicopters seem to only move on a pretty much dead level horizontal plane. Can/do fixed pitch helicopters behave in the way I describe above or would I have to buy a proper 3D flight capable Collective Pitch helicopter?


Also I've seen there are PC based RC simulators available - are there any that are free that I can substitute a radio transmitter for an Xbox 360 controller?


Many thanks in advance for any tips on this.

[450man]

Welcome to the forum.

I am reading between the lines here but I get from the gist of your post that you want to learn to fly model helis and not just play around with games and simple "toy" like models? If that is the case you are in the right place and in which case forget about xbox and games altogether. There is no connection really between games and flying model helis except for the very basic ideas. Your game experience won't help a great deal I would imagine.

Can't comment on the models you mentioned as I don't know them but in general FP helis will tilt forward and onto their side but as you say, the pitch cannot be reversed to it cannot do anything that is even close to inverted. Coaxials fly mostly upright and are the most stable.

Take a look here for some great explanations on FP, CP and Coaxial and what they can do. This is a great site for beginners wanting to get into the hobby...

RC Helicopters, The Most Fun And Rewarding Of All RC Hobbies.

As for sims that use an Xbox controller... I wouldn't bother tbh. You wouldn't learn much by doing it IMO. Leave your games behind altogether if you are serious about learning to fly RC helis.

Have your considered a Blade FP? The MSRX is a great FP to start with.

[paulsouthport]

MCPX is CP, but it is still a great place to start!

[450man]

MCPX is CP, but it is still a great place to start!

AAAGH!!! Brain Fart I am afraid... I meant MSRX... changed post.

Thanks for that

[NoFixedAbode]

Re: What can a RC Helicopter do?

I used to use a free flight sim on winblows with a game controller. It's basic but that is all you need, not life-like helicopters or backgrounds. It was called fms I think.

[Raven Morpheus]

Hmm ok I'm still none the wiser.

The main crux of the matter is that I'd like to know if I buy a fixed pitch helicopter (like the NE Bravo SX) am I going to get a helicopter that only moves forward but with very little tilting of the body/rotors, only sidesteps, only rotates on the yaw axis, and very little else - i.e. very basic and boring horizontal flight and of course hovering?

Most of the videos I've seen show fixed pitch helicopters (including the NE Bravo SX) that basically look as though they're travelling forward along a fixed axis (imagine they're on a rope if you will) and once the guy decides it's time to turn round he simply applies rudder to pull the helicopter round on the yaw axis, but I'd like to be able to (eventually) perform manoeuvres like banked turns and stuff like you see the more advanced real helicopter pilots do, such as in the James Bond Tomorrow Never Dies film where the helicopter is almost vertical but still moving forwards - so far nothing I've seen of fixed pitch model helicopters leads me to believe I'd be able to do that.

As I have a limited budget I'd rather not buy a fixed pitch helicopter, then find out that I'm limited in what I can do with it and wish I'd bought a collective pitch helicopter. But conversely I don't wish to shell out for a collective pitch helicopter, which by and large appear to be at least 25% more expensive, if they don't really provide any more manoeuvrability over a fixed pitch helicopter besides going inverted.

I realise that one will be harder to learn to fly than the other and a collective pitch helicopter is a steeper learning curve but I am fine with that.

I'm thinking the answer to my question is that I should buy a collective pitch helictoper (such as the NE Solo Pro 100, or if I can afford it something like the E-Flite Blade MCPX), just that I'm looking for advice on what I've described I want to be able to do (eventually) to confirm that hypothesis.


@NoFixedAbode - thanks I'll look into FMS, I believe I've come across that in my search and reading about this hobby. I just want a free simulator I can briefly try out with a gamepad so I can see what I can expect from 4 or 6 channel helicopters, a limited budget means I don't want to be wasting money on stuff, and a gamepad has a similar type of stick as a transmitter does.


Thanks again.

[Stevec]

a Fixed pitch helicopter can fly around in all directions and will do loops and rolls, albeit very untidy figure 9 loops and falling rolls. much like a quadcopter.

fixed pitch helicopters tend to be fairly basic, both in quality and parts due to the fact that the physics of the thing limit it's inverted capability.

the fixed pitch heli has a variable rotor speed and makes lift by spinning the blades faster. loses lift by reducing the rotor speed etc..
as a result the controls feel mushy once you have flown a CP heli then you will know. but they teach orientations and tend to be easier to fly than CP helis.

the cp helicopter can do everything that the fp can plus do it all again inverted. as you vary the pitch of the blades to make or reduce lift the blades spin at a fairly constant speed, this gives a much more locked in feel to the helicopter.

the only way I can analogise this is driving a car with 1 gear and no brakes. it drives around fine but if you want to accelerate or slow down you have to wait for the thing to actually slow down or the revs to build your speed up.
as a total beginner unless you know anyone who can help you I think you'd be better off with a decent FP heli. especially on a low budget.

the saying is, fly as big a heli as you can afford to rebuild... this is very good advice. larger helicopters can quickly get into £200+ per crash. a set of rotor blades alone on a 700 size cost between 50 and 120 quid. the scale of the helicopter doesn't mean that smaller ones cost the fraction of their size to repair either, you can easily get into a £100 crash on a 450 size helicopter. so go in with your eyes open. this is an expensive hobby.

if you have the patience for it I'd suggest getting a sim and learning how to fly using a proper tx (you can buy a USB tx for £20 and FMS is free. FMS is real enough for you to get an appreciation of what is involved, be warned it is a lot easier than a decent sim or the real thing so don't think because you can fly on FMS it will save you money.
if you get serious then pheonix or real flight seem to be the popular sims at the moment and save 10X their cost over their lifetimes, if you use them correctly.

I'll let others recommend the best FP heli for a beginner I never had one...they didn't exist in 1991!!

My Brother in law had a honey bee from esky and that was quite easy to fly.

there is no reason why a CP heli cannot be as easy to fly as a FP heli but they cost more, due to the parts count, and they break easier due to the parts count, and you will need someone who knows what they are doing to tame it for you before you even try to fly it. I don't think £150 will get you into anything worthwhile in the CP front though unless you have help locally and can buy second hand, but don't do that if you are going it alone.


cheers
Steve

[450man]

Take a look at this. OK, I know it is a promotion video but it shows what the MSRX, a small FP heli, can do...

FP helis are not boring as a beginner but once you can fly a CP it then becomes a bit boring because a CP heli is so much more capable.

I would recommend getting a Blade MSR or MSRX secondhand, giving it a go, and if you find it boring then great! Sell it for what you bought it for and get a CP heli like the Nano CPX or MCPX BL. You should be able to pick a MSR or MSRX up secondhand for about £50.

[PorscheBoy]

Transform and disassemble itself in less than a second

[p4ddy]

Fly, crash, wreck marriages, destroy lives, give you an adrenalin rush, make your knees LITERALLY shake when you step out of your comfort zone & crack something new for the first time (that 'click' moment) Rumour has it a new Mikado will be released late 2013 that can replicate a sexual partner & make dinner & wipe your backside. I've already enquired about a pre-order & told the wife i'll be converting the shed as her new accomodation

[450man]

?????

[PorscheBoy]

?????

What's the title of the thread? lol

[tomatwalden]

Hmm ok I'm still none the wiser.

I'll see if I can help!

The main crux of the matter is that I'd like to know if I buy a fixed pitch helicopter (like the NE Bravo SX) am I going to get a helicopter that only moves forward but with very little tilting of the body/rotors, only sidesteps, only rotates on the yaw axis, and very little else - i.e. very basic and boring horizontal flight and of course hovering?

In short, no. The thing is to get a helicopter that has cyclic controls. All collective pitch helicopters have this. Some fixed-pitch helicopters have this. The Blade mSRX for example is a fixed pitch helicopter that has a swashplate and full cyclic pitch control. It can do everything a CP heli can do (pretty much) with the exception of inverted. If you want a fixed pitch heli that has scope for aggressive moves - avoid contra-rotators.. Avoid anthing with a horizontal fan on the tail boom. I can't comment on the Nine Eagles helis other than to say I would advise you consider Blade instead. Specifically the Blade mSRX.

Most of the videos I've seen show fixed pitch helicopters (including the NE Bravo SX) that basically look as though they're travelling forward along a fixed axis (imagine they're on a rope if you will) and once the guy decides it's time to turn round he simply applies rudder to pull the helicopter round on the yaw axis, but I'd like to be able to (eventually) perform manoeuvres like banked turns and stuff like you see the more advanced real helicopter pilots do, such as in the James Bond Tomorrow Never Dies film where the helicopter is almost vertical but still moving forwards - so far nothing I've seen of fixed pitch model helicopters leads me to believe I'd be able to do that.

Blade mSRX is able to do that. In fact any 4-channel fixed pitch with a swash-plate and cyclic pitch control.

As I have a limited budget I'd rather not buy a fixed pitch helicopter, then find out that I'm limited in what I can do with it and wish I'd bought a collective pitch helicopter. But conversely I don't wish to shell out for a collective pitch helicopter, which by and large appear to be at least 25% more expensive, if they don't really provide any more manoeuvrability over a fixed pitch helicopter besides going inverted.

Starting with FP rather than CP is the right idea. However, CP can do so much more than just go inverted. You can pick up a Blade mCPX for not a lot of bucks, but honestly, if you try to start with that from a standing start (sorry, but games do not count), you will just crash it alot and get frustrated. Flying CP helicopters is *NOT EASY*.

I realise that one will be harder to learn to fly than the other and a collective pitch helicopter is a steeper learning curve but I am fine with that.

I'm thinking the answer to my question is that I should buy a collective pitch helictoper (such as the NE Solo Pro 100, or if I can afford it something like the E-Flite Blade MCPX), just that I'm looking for advice on what I've described I want to be able to do (eventually) to confirm that hypothesis.

Again, I would advise you against CP to start with. You've got the wrong end of the stick with regards to FP.

@NoFixedAbode - thanks I'll look into FMS, I believe I've come across that in my search and reading about this hobby. I just want a free simulator I can briefly try out with a gamepad so I can see what I can expect from 4 or 6 channel helicopters, a limited budget means I don't want to be wasting money on stuff, and a gamepad has a similar type of stick as a transmitter does.


Thanks again.

As others have said, gamepads really are nothing like the real thing. I would seriously suggest you look at getting a ready to fly (RTF) Blade mSRX. You can get them new for less than a 100 quid. You'll be very surprised how capable they are!

[p4ddy]

Am i detecting a shameless Sabre video post opportunity??? YES I AM

[1chris]

I dont think this guy is really serious about purchasing and flying collective pitch helicopters as we all understand it, If he was that keen he would of carried out more research himself, rather than ask these mega simplistic questions and worry about something being 25% more expensive etc., etc