Doahh

Is this a good heli to learn on?
I'm a car guy and have gotten interested in Helis and want one that I won't grow out of (Can do 3d etc) but I want it to be decently easy to fly. I'm learning to fly the RADDS way

rotarydoc

Hi Doahh,

Well, as far as collective pitch helis go, it's as good as any to start on, and you won't outgrow it anytime soon...but there are many who will argue for and against starting out with a collective pitch heli, vs a coaxial...like the CX2.

The collective pitch helis are quite a challenge for someone with zero heli experince, for sure! Do you maybe have access to a simulator at your local hobby shop? If so, it would be a good idea to try to fly a collective pitch heli on the sim, to give you some idea of the degree of difficulty involved.

There have been many who start on a collective pitch, and you are definately doing the right thing with RADD's...if you can be patient enough to stick with it, you should be OK.

The B400 is a fairly complex heli, and when you crash, will be a bit more involved to fix...notice I said when you crash, not if...it is inevitable, and sometimes somewhat costly...

I'll let the others chime in, just my 2 cents...

My short heli pilot career so far has been like this...started with the CX2, got bored/pretty good with it...got the CP Pro, still flying it, but realizing the downsides of a motor driven tail...and now have 2 B400's...they fly sooo much better than the micro CP size helis...much easier to fly....

Hope that helps...by the way...this hobby is very addicitive, don't say I didn't warn you!! LOL !!

Glenn

rotarydoc

Hi Doahh,

I almost forgot, plan to replace the servos on the B400 sooner, rather than later...they WILL fail, sometimes with disasterous results....the only drawback to the B400 that I have seen so far. I replaced all of mine with JR DS285 metal gear servos, and have not had a problem since.

It may be fine for a while on the stock servos, but look on this forum about the issue, some have had mid-flight servo failures, causing an unexpected loss of control, followed by a crash...

Glenn

gnd2

If you have the patience and mechanical aptitude you should be able to learn on it just fine. I learned to hover on a Blade CP+ using radds and then went to a trex when I realized motor driven tails suck, but the B400 should be fine. The only thing is, I learned to hover the Blade CP in my garage but I don't think that's a good idea with something the size of the 400. Go outside when the wind is calm.

Doahh

Sweet... Yeah I played with the Realflight 3.5 and something clicked and I could mostly hover the CP heli steady... It was a .60 size Nitro thought so that probably made a difference. I'm almost posative that I have the mechanical aptitude for this... how hard is it to fly 3D with one of these birds once I get used to it?

jp473

As hard as the ground you crash on. Just kidding. But seriously, it looks easy when someone else is doing it. Someday I hope to make it loop but right now I can’t. Best advice I have is find some people you can watch and ask questions of. I’m lucky to have a lhs that has a place to fly indoors and out and we can use it for free. All the owner asks is you buy the parts from him. Fair enough I think.

Doahh

Sweet... Blade 400 it is.
Picking up today tomorow friday or saturday...

rotarydoc

Hey Doahh,

Sounds good! You won't regret it...I sometimes wish I had just had the #$%#% to go for the B400 to begin with....but I have learned alot from the other helis too...

I actually started with an Airhogs Havoc Heli...back in January! LOL I don't like to admit it, but there it is, for the world to see ! Now I have not one, but two B400's in my ever growing fleet! This hobby is extremely addictive, be careful !!

It has a habit of draining the bank account too...lol !! But it's worth it !!

Hope you enjoy the new heli...keep us posted on your progress!

Glenn

casey_lamm

yes you can. I am learning on it. Get some 5mm carbon fiber dows and some plastic practice golf balls. Make some training gear. Its well work it.

Parts to stock up on

Extra set of blade or 2
Feather shaft
main shaft
fly bar

rotarydoc

I have to second Casey's post. save yourself lots of cash and make or buy some training gear! You WILL need them for a while, at first! They may look dumb, but they'll save your heli alot of damage! Also second the parts list...a good start.

Good luck with the new heli!

Glenn

evdreamer

I have around 300 flights total with my helicopters and I am still flying right side up. But I am trying to do it in a way that doesn't involve crashing.

Nick

Doahh

Yeah Training gear was a duh for me...
Extra set of blade or 2
Feather shaft
main shaft
fly bar
got it

H3li

Doahh, I know you posted in an E-Flite specific forum, but have you considered other 400 / 450 size Heli's ?

A belt driven model is a logical/great choice (over a motor driven tail) - You might also consider the E-Sky Belt CP , or the Thunder Tiger Mini Titan (what I opted for - far superior over the 400 - I did look into both!).
However, if you are looking for 'cheap and cheerful' then the Blade 400 will do the job (you will also have a decent Tx thrown in + 2.4Ghz technology).

Doahh

The feeling of dropping $600+ into this hobby at once kinda leaves that pit in my stomach...
I'll need a new laptop in a few months and this chopper would make the money situation perfect... It fits my budget
Does the Mini Titan come in RTF form with a DX6i, DX7 or some other tx?

rotarydoc

Hey Doaah,

Not knocking the suggestion of other helis at all, by all means, keep an open mind...but that being said, also keep in mind parts availability at your LHS, there's nothing much worse than being grounded for days waiting for simple parts...a big plus for the Eflite helis in most areas...

Just my 2 cents, again!

Glenn

Doahh

E-Flite is majorly stocked at my local Hobbytown...
That's what I was thhinking too but I'm not sure if the MT has parts at my LFS...

I think I'm going with the blade for sure

Doahh

So I assume I can't charge the battery with my Duratrax ICE cahrger wvwn though its Li-Po compatible?

rotarydoc

Hey Doaah,

Good choice on the Blade. Parts availablity was a major deciding factor in all of my heli purchases. It really sucks to be down, waiting for parts, especially if the weather is nice...the only parts issue I have had with Eflite is finding feathering shafts. They are/were hard to find...I think they are becoming more available now...if you see any, grab 'em !!

I can't intellegently comment on the charger question, I'll leave that one for someone that might have an answer for ya!

Good luck, and keep us updated!

Glenn

rotarydoc

Hey Doahh,

Although I didn't answer your charger question, I will comment that getting a balancing charger that has a readout for total millamps charged is a valuable tool...it will help you keep the batteries in good shape, and help you determine flight times as well.

I went with the Eflite C505, which I like very much. I also hear that the Cellpro chargers are excellent...either way, they are far better than the stock Efilte charger. It will do what it is supposed to, but doesn't tell you very much about what is going on with those expensive LiPo's !!

Take care,

Glenn

evdreamer

I agree with Glenn on this. I won't buy another brand of helicopter except the ones that horizon hobby supports. I have not had any bad luck with their products. Even if the part you need is out at the LHS almost every helicopter shop online carries parts for E-Flite or Align.

Nick

evdreamer

Does your charger have a balancer built into it? If not you will need to get one that has the same kind of balance connector on it as the E-Flite or what ever brand batteries you want. On the majority of balancers you will need to hook up the balance leads and the main leads to charger it.

Nick

Doahh

Sweet.. I'll probably eventually get a better balancing charger but I'll stick with the stocker for now

rotarydoc

Hey Doahh,

The stock charger does a good job, it just won't provide the info that the nicer ones do. I used mine for quite some time before I invested in a good one. You may want to save that cash for an extra battery or two, after you get a little flight time under your belt, one won't be enough, I can promise you that!! LOL

Have a great time with the new bird, and keep us posted!

Good luck,

Glenn

evdreamer

I use a seperate balancer and it works just fine. You just need some sort of balancer with Li-Po batteries. It was much easier when I used NiCd's. On the left side of the picture is my charger and balancer.

Nick

H3li

No problem - wasn't trying to knock your choice, was just looking at this with an open mind.

Although I did buy my Mini Titan at my local hobby shop, they dont infact stock alot of spares (also the same for the Blade CX2 I bought from them too!).
I personally find that a number of hobby internet shops (UK based) to be ALOT more reliable and have so much more stock, where I will can receive parts within 24 hours.

For both my MT and Blade CX2 I've bought most of my spares online, or on EBay.
As everyone says, it is great to support your local hobby shop but when they often out of basic items such as main blades, I have to look to other sources!

ANYWAY - All the best with your Blade 400, I'm sure you will find it ALOT of fun !