Walkera 52#1 - Beginner!!

[Brewber]

Hi christianbeccy

Let me start my saying that I am a complete novice at this rc heli business, which is an important context to begin with and apologies in advance for a long reply.

Following advice from my local hobby shop + all the gurus on this forum, whose advice is consistent across the board (!), I went and got a CX2 (and now have Phoenix sim) and its the best advice I have ever taken!

I have already bounced my heli off of beanbags, sofas, skirtingboards and tables. I have had to replace blades and inner/outer shafts, which is great because I have learnt lots about how its put together...which generally means I can learn how to fix any negative idiosyncrasy with it, but means I have spent few £s rather than many per crash.

In 15-20 flights I can now hover and traverse my living room (available space is about 12' by 10', avoiding obstacles etc). Having bought Phoenix to learn nose-in and do stuff while my lipos charge I have come to the following realisation...

If you think you are competent with the controls/orientation of a heli, invest in Phoenix for £80 to test how competent you really are. It'll likely demonstrate just how many £000's a cheap "proper" heli would have cost.

I can't stress enough how good the advice is on this forum, from guys who must have literally haemorraged £s to get the experience and knowledge they now have. I know I'm grateful!

Finally, its a consistent view amongst this forums frequenters that Walkera helis are manure, again from experience I am sure so...take heed

best regards (for you and your wallet)
Brewber

Well, it all started when I got one of those el-cheapo £20 2-Channel Indoor Heli's for Xmas. LOL. I actually found it alot of fun, but it didn't last long before the tail-motor had packed up. End of that. However, I still haven't fully excercised the inner-urge to convince myself that I don't want to get into this!!

Now, I am resisting the urge to spend a fortune as I know this isn't wise. However, I am determined to buy the best Heli I can for the least amount of money, whilst being sensible about my choice.

So far, I am very interested in the Walkera 52#1, with the main 2 reasons being....

1. I can buy one for around £80-90 (OK, so thats from Asia).
2. It suggests that it can be used 4ch FP or 6ch CCPM, which I assume is a great advantage in terms of learning, but also being able to do a little more when the time is right.

I can see this resulting either in me getting bored of not being able to do it, or me really loving it and wanting to buy something 'proper', with the latter being fairly likely. I have RC experience, I used to race 1/10th scale Electric Touring Cars on Astro Turf and was reasonably good, although I appreciate that this is entirely different, i aren't going into it totally green. I also understand from what I have read on here and on t'internet in general that the ideal way is a co-axial Heli, but I am convinced that there is a more 'conventional' Heli out there that suits my skill level and budget without having to get into the absolute 'beginner' stuff. Perhaps I am being a little over-confident?!?

Now, back to the Walkera thing. The 52#1 is fairly low in the Walkera's range, but it seems to be the only Heli I can find anywhere that offers this 4ch/6ch ability. Are there any others? Or do all 6ch Heli's have this ability and I have missed the obvious?

I'd really appreciate your help guys, I am truly all 'Googled' out and just want to get on with it!!

[withnail]

I would also vote for the co-co route! As a newbie myself I'm really glad I have stuck with my cheap to repair Esky Lama V3. It flies well, is simple to repair and is very reasonably priced. The Blade CX2 gets excellent reviews and has the added advantage of the new standard in radio equipment. But, as you have seen, costs about 50% more as a result.

You mention that you are worried about "growing out" of a 4ch model too quickly. I can only speak for myself here, but I think you will be suprised how much practice it takes to really master the flight controls. It may only take a couple of flights to get the hang of a reasonable hover, but flying in different orientations and precise landings take some getting used to. I can see it being several more months before I can do all the things I want to be able to do with mine.

If you are really opposed to the idea of a co-co, the other route is to get a good simulator (Phoenix gets a universal thumbs up and looks stunning) and a Tx box to use it with. That way you can practice on a 6ch helicopter without the repair bills.

Regards

Mark

[Boggy]

guys you don't outgrow the cx2 its always there when you need to practice orientation and you dont need to travel just sit on your settee and have fun!!!

[gazza]

guys you don't outgrow the cx2 its always there when you need to practice orientation and you dont need to travel just sit on your settee and have fun!!!

Wise words Bggy!

I've just brought the control rods out a couple of holes on the servo arms on my CX2 & it's taken the little bugger into a whole new level.
Still mega stable in the hover but it moves really well & I consider it a blast to fly- For orientation training it's ideal & a nice break from the boredom of the sim... Just been flying backwards circuits around the kitchen.

As mentioned in my signature I've got a 450 & a 600 & I STILL find the little CX2 a thrill to fly so it can't be bad hey?

[spacy]

i have gone through the same root, got a £20 2ch over christmas, was a blast but got me thinking bigger. went out and got a blade cx2 a few days later with phoenix sim, spent a few weeks having a blast with the cx2 in the lounge and flying the bigger heli's on phoenix, this now moved me on to a blade 400 which had its first run out today and i can honestly say without the cx2 and phoenix i would have destroyed the 400 in seconds, however it survived and i cant wait to take it up again. cant recommend the cx2 enough

[christianbeccy]

So, this is what I want??.....

http://www.elitemodelsonline.co.uk/P...Indoor/item685

[gazza]

So, this is what I want??.....

http://www.elitemodelsonline.co.uk/P...Indoor/item685

That's the fella

[gazza]

Search 'Blade CX2' on youtube mate theres boatloads of vids.

[christianbeccy]

I much prefer the look of the Belt-CP, but I'm guessing that this would be a silly move??!!

http://www.sussex-model-centre.co.uk...d.asp?id=24010

[Brewber]

How much heli experience do you have thus far?

If you estimate the cost of each "spill" to be a pair of blades, feather shaft (or whatever its called, the shaft between the blade grips) and a mainshaft...how much does that come to? Now estimate how many flights will end in a spill in the beginning (most).

Hell, I'm a complete novice but...for my money co-ax is the best starter (stable, cheap to repair) + a sim. I have already "spent" thousands on repairs in the sim, glad it wasnt for real! (plus, as Boggy says, the co-ax never stops teaching you).

I much prefer the look of the Belt-CP, but I'm guessing that this would be a silly move??!!

http://www.sussex-model-centre.co.uk...d.asp?id=24010

[The Gagsy]

I must agree with brewber, start on co-ax, I was going to get top helicopter but after reading forum and seeing what all others had to say. I just stayed wiyh my lamo 4 (pardon the pun but they are lamo's) it will give you the eye, so to speak, i have been at it for 3 weeks now both little flights with co-ax, and flight sim, still loose the plot on stick inputs and feel i will never get it, but if I had got an expensive helicopter i would have spent a fortune on parts now, without question. trust everyone here, i would say they are right with us starter flyers.

[M0nkeyj1m]

CX2s rule..

Hi christianbeccy,

I'm another newbie piloting a CX2. I had a few crashes; broke the tail in to two pieces, bent the inner shaft, warped the inner shaft gear, broke a skid and damaged at least 2 packs of upper & lower blades.

Cost, compared to some, less than I'd spend on a night out..!

CX2........all the way; It's great. Shudder to think what the costs would have been if I had bought the Bee King 2.

[spacy]

yes the belt cp does look more desirable, but once you have flown it for 2 secs, unless your a bit gifted it wont be looking very good at all. get a cx2 and a decent sim and you will be laughing

[christianbeccy]

OK. So, further to this, I am detecting that PhoenixRC is the best sim. Now, am I correct in my understanding that this can only be used with you TX unit and useless without it? So, I can't get on and do anything with that until I have bought my Heli?

I like that kinda 'skimpy' look to the Belt CP and lots of other Heli's of the same style, but I did notice that you can buy a Carbon rear boom that makes the CX2 look like that!! LOL. At least I can make it what I want aesthetically!! Maybe I will get it and the looks will disappear from importance.

Best price I have seen is £120 posted. Are there traders on here that sell these? I am probably going to buy 2.

[xygax]

Blade and Phoenix £200 the pair.... The belt looks god but its got a couple of foyballs theat will catch you out... Firstly if you follow the instructions the main gear will chip away at the battery... They arent brillantly trimed out of the box and will need a little work to make them fly...

steve