bargain blade 400's with dx6i

[dogbiscuit]

its been getting loads cheaper in lots of places for a few weeks now. looks like there could be a new version on the horizon, with all the dealers tring to clear out old stock. i have been learning with one (with an msr also) and can highly recomend it.

[Spannaz]

yup, seems there is something in the wind, maybe the dealers are not letting on, but my LMS is really unhappy about this price war that's kicked off. According to them if it carries on they'll stop stocking ALL horizon products as they make a loss trying to compete.
I agree on free market, but if all the local shops close down and we are just left with internet sales it could be an issue, but these are not internet shops that are selling them.
Daniel Stores = £205.00 and have loads in stock
Kings Lynn = £204.99 in stock according to website
ALS Models = £199.99!!!!! The Blade BNF retails at £175 alone!!! If i had not been offerred the DX6i @ £60 then i would have bought one of these for the transmitter alone, put the blade in the loft until i learnt to fly it rather than crash it.
Recession means its getting cut throat out there!

[helifreek]

i got mine a year ago and soon relised that the electrics are rubbish. look at my signature at the bottom and see what i changed. the motor is good and the reciever is ok so long as you dont let get too far away. the gy401 gyro is a must. 110 new but you can use it on a 600 no probs. the servos are plastic geared or some similar material and will drive you mad replacing. 65mg are around 20-25 each with possible deals for x3. 5084mg at 25-30 is too good for this heli but works v.well with the gyro. as you get better and ask more of the heli ie full neg pitch in idle-up or full power for climb out then the esc will shut down. some forums people have had no problems but most have so 35amp esc @ 30 35.

so....205 model and tx
200 ish elec upgrades
25 extra charger and lead
85 x5 zippy 2200 11.1v 20c
20 align 325 3d pro cf

for around 550 you will have a GREAT HELI to begin with a decent amount of stick time. it will hover well in 10-15 wind and the tail is v.good. get yourself some training gear to learn the basic take off/hover/landing and then you could stick a 500 skid on it for a bigger footprint when landing. the extra weight at the bottom will make it a little more stable in the hover. then move onto the original skid when you confident u can land ok.. keep the original electrics and put them back in if you want to sell it on to another newbie. as u can probably tell...this is exactly what i did. have fun :-)

[Spannaz]

makes an iteresting read, does this mean that the Blade 400 is NOT a great beginner? is there a better place to spend your dosh like for like??? It was going to be my 1st 3d Heli purchase, once i mastered it on a sim.................................or should i look elsewhere then?

[Boggy]

if your looking toward 3D then no the blade is not a good start.If however you are just starting out and learning the ropes the Blade is ideal. All the "upgrades" mentioned are usefull but not necessary till you start to progress.

The servo's dont stand a crash well. but are cheap and simple to repair.
the esc is adequate for general sport flying as is the motor.
the gyro isnt great but again with a better servo works perfectly well(hs 5084 is ideal)

it is what it is a cheap to buy rtf plastic framed heli that is cheap as chips to repair, can be calmed down for beginners and is a great starter and will loop roll and do mild stunts.Full pitch climb outs and hard 3d ?the blade is the wrong heli no matter how much you spend on it!

[Spannaz]

invaluable comments thank you! I would love to be able to do crazy 3D flying, however that amount of talent and skill would probably require a huge amount of time and probably money to achieve, and with 3 young boys and the wife and her interests, my Heli hobby is going to be difficult, but with the eldest now taking an interest, things may change.
I was always advised to buy a blade, probably due to the DX6i that it comes with, but as now i already have one, i ponder if purchasing a BNF would be the wise choice. Yes i plan to crash it (don't kid myself it's never going to happen) but at the same time, i will probably wander down scale route, rather than full on 3D.
However, most LMS are salesmen, and their livelyhood relies upon selling us things, so walking or talking to anyone from a shop is risky in my opinion. It's advice like yours that helps clear the muddy waters.
I plan to buy a proper heli, fly it, crash it on the odd occasion, but more improtantly enjoy it. I don't wish to buy something that is forever unreliable, would rather spend more money to start off with, knowing that the things you really rely on to keep you flying, are going to do what they are suppose to do, rather than spending 10 mins flying 2 hours fixing everytime!
old syaing i suppose, you gets what you pays for!

[Andy from Sandy]

I think though if you get in touch with fast lads they do price match pretty well

If they can price match then there is no advantage to using them over another supplier? If they can price match then why was their price higher in the first place?

I do use fast lads as well as other places. I say spread your money around and help keep all the places going.

[Boggy]

if its scale your looking at then a trex 450 is the obvious choice as you already have your Dx6i and most 450 fuselages are made for the trex so no or little modifying needed.
that said the blade will fit in them with a little playing around!

[Spannaz]

interesting point, especially as i know of someone getting rid of an unsued T rex clone (century GL450) that's never been flown! and for very little money too!

[cjcj1949]

I learnt from scratch on a Twister Storm which is almost the same as a Blade 400. They are both sold as intermediate rather than beginner. They are ok until you start to crash and land heavily. They do work out of the box but not for much longer. The Trex450 is much better but will cost more to start, although the parts are cheaper than the Blade or Twister. You might look at the HK450MT which is available for around £40 without electronics. You can transplant the electronics from the Blade.
A 450 size Heli is quite difficult to learn. Anything bigger is better. An mcx or msr is a good way to learn as they survive much better than a 450. Basically a 450 doesn't survive any sort of crash or heavy landing.
10 mins flying and 2 hours fixing is being optimistic.
A sim will help a lot, but there is really so much to learn.
Lessons at £30 an hour will be a good investment.
If you still want to fly the Blade don't forget the Training UnderCarraige and set rates to about 70% and expo to 25%.

Chris

[wdf76]

just saw a 2 yr old blade (admittedly unflown by the owner) sell for £195 including postage on ebay. I'd be a bit gutted if I'd won that and then clocked new models selling for £199-£205.....

[Sqwidge]

Isnt the HK450MT a clone? Is it any good?.

edit: Personally I think that 500 is a good size heli to have and can't wait till I can afford to get one.

[challis349]

If they can price match then there is no advantage to using them over another supplier? If they can price match then why was their price higher in the first place?

I do use fast lads as well as other places. I say spread your money around and help keep all the places going.

I'm no fast lads for everything person, besides, I can't be owning a compass, it was just something I read of fast lads price matching an msr deal a few weeks ago

[Spannaz]

just saw a 2 yr old blade (admittedly unflown by the owner) sell for £195 including postage on ebay. I'd be a bit gutted if I'd won that and then clocked new models selling for £199-£205.....

I saw that too, but ebay can be very strange place, seems some people get dragged into a "i won't be beaten" bidding war, and often seen secondhanfd items sell for more than new price! £195 for a heli that according to the seller is not his, and has sat in the loft for 2 years and can not confirm if it flies or if the battery is faulty is crazy considering you can get it new and delivered for that money.
Yes i'd love to fly a blade, but considering i am looking to go down the scale route, it seems a 450 T Rex is a better option due to the number of bodies available for it! But have found out, the DX7 is probably the better choice for me over a DX6i due to being able to use retracts and lighting options due to extra channels on the 7!! Expensive this hobby ain't it lol

[Mark_T]

But have found out, the DX7 is probably the better choice for me over a DX6i due to being able to use retracts and lighting options due to extra channels on the 7!! Expensive this hobby ain't it lol

Take it slowly

A DX6i will do what you need right now and will remain something you can easily sell on when you are ready to trade up.

When you do make the move to scale projects you'll find that a DX7 is really not the best route as 7 channels is not going to give you the flexibility you may want either.

I'd suggest you use the DX6i until you do make that move then decide what you really need.