Fedex bought me a new heli (Full Version)

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co_alpine -> Fedex bought me a new heli (8/23/2005 5:06 PM)

After may shipping issues with Fedex I will be getting $400 for a new heli. I have been reading about all the issues with about every heli, so I know that you get what you pay for. this is my first heli, so I did not want to spend too much until i know i want to stick with it, but I also did not want to totally buy myself into a corner.
I hate the 'what heli should I buy' threads but I would like some advice from those that post 'If i knew now I would have done it differently'.
so for around the $400 mark, can you all give some ideas? keep in mind I do not have a radio now, so this limits me a bit.




jhomman27 -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/23/2005 5:23 PM)

I would go for the blade cp by e-flite....it was my first heli and i was able to hover it in 2 or 3 days....i have had mine for about 2 months now i can already do basic 3d flying....

The heli is very stable for being as small as it is and i have no problems since day 1 flying it in 10 mph winds.....
and for 219 us dollars you get all you need to fly



jh4db536 -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/23/2005 8:24 PM)

an X400 makes a great first heli. it's a Very well behaved Trex-like heli at half the price. the only critical problem it has out of the box is the tail blades (just use trex ones for $4). this is my 3rd heli, but it shouldve been my first. i recommend this or the trex to any new pilot looking for a 400 class chopper.

so $110 for X400 kit
$115 for used/new JR xp6102 bare tx (prolly the best radio for the money)
$75 for lipo charger and 10c battery (more than enough for a beginner)
$70 gy240 gyro used (best gyro for this type)
$90 mega brushless motor (great motor...i want one) or you can spend $35 on an align one and itll be fine.
$65 good programmable ESC 30amp+ (Cc or hyperion)
$<65 Good Rx (berg, electron6)

i know this is over 400 (like 550), but these are great components. being great components, if you ever find yourself in a corner you can sell them off easily for little or no loss.



co_alpine -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/23/2005 8:28 PM)

how much bigger is that over the blade? I have nice charger (ICE) for my cars as I race 1/10 scale eletric so that cuts some cost and i have a few 3cell 1800mAH lipos so that will also help out.



jh4db536 -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/23/2005 8:44 PM)

588mm main rotor diameter (can use trex or shogun mainblades). it's bigger than the blade cp. at least with this heli you wont be having tail motor or mixer problems and such.

what are the discharge capacities on the lipos you have now. amp hours/C-rating? 1800mAH is enough capacity for this. i use the same and get 10-12minute flights with a thirsty motor and crappy blades.

oh and i forgot to mention servos so that's another $50 (GWS Naro+F HP & BB, etc)

[image]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v242/jh4db536/DSCF0059.jpg[/image]



co_alpine -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/24/2005 12:39 AM)

OK, I found a hobby store that actually had a true heli guy, what a change. OK, I am hooked on the idea of getting the T-rex kit (I can't remember the name of the kit but it was not he basic Gray looking one or the CCPM one) they had it for 179.00.
I am going to look around a little for a better price, but I am willing to pay a bit more as getting local support is worth it IMO.
I held back the 'Buy it now urge so I had time to look on-line for other options.

so, questions -
is that a good deal? is it better to do the T-rex 450 over the X400? it looked like the X400 was not that much cheaper.
I was going to do with the Futaba 240 Gyro, I know the 401 is only $30 more but every $30 adds up, so if there is a great reason to do it please let me know.
I am not 100% sure one the radio yet, I need to read up some more but I know i want at least a 6 channel with the 5 point adjustments over the 3.
I am also not sure on the brushless setup yet, but i figure I can get the kit going and then buy as I go.
I am going to make myself stick the $400 starting budget, but know I will be putting another $300-400 into it to finish it off.

I know that at that point I could be doing a size 50 nitro but I want electric for enough reasons to do it.

so if anyone knows a better way to drop $800 into a heli project please let me know.



KidNovak -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/24/2005 1:02 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: co_alpine

I was going to do with the Futaba 240 Gyro, I know the 401 is only $30 more but every $30 adds up, so if there is a great reason to do it please let me know.


I don't know what the best price is for a GY240 Gyro, but I purchased my Brand New GY401 Gyro on eBay for $114.95 with Free shipping.
Also quick shipping.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=5993601312

Novak



co_alpine -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/24/2005 1:05 AM)

that is a good price. they were 139 in the store plus tax.
thanks!



jh4db536 -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/24/2005 2:47 AM)

the Xp6102 has 5 point curves, digital trims, CCPM mixing. it has everything lol.

im not going to go into X400 vs Trex. they both have approximately the same issues with defective parts. The 450XL is a more updated version than the x400. although i still love the x400's very nice aluminum frame versus the plastic Trex frame.

the X400 is more beginner friendly configuration compared to the Trex. the cyclic is more tame and stable, the collective is very tame (this is a big plus in my opinion for a beginner). i think the collective on the trex is super aggressive.

X400 spare parts prices are almost as close as Trex, but availability isnt as good YET (the x400 can use many Trex parts anyway). Mods for the X400 seem to be cheaper or same as the Trex tho. Since you live in the states x400 parts isnt difficult to get.

the Gy401 is easier to find than the 240 because it's popular on nitro heli's running their digital servos. many of them are upgrading to gy601 etc so yeah. 401 will work fine if you get a good price on one. they tend to sell for like 140 with a digi servo. try to get it for under 100 without that servo. you have to do some bargaining heh

look into a USED Trex too if you want to cut costs further. im sure you can find one that is already finished (modded) and almost ready to fly for a good price. it might or might not come with electronics. there are a lot of people who buy micro heli's and then sell them because theyre too scared to fly it, etc.

both Trex & X400 dont come with motors. brushless is the way to go for these heli.



hoj527 -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/25/2005 2:43 PM)

Another possibility is the Shogun. I wish I would have bought this Heli first.

The new V2 is out with belt drive tail, Tower Hobbies is selling the kits for around $150. It comes with a brushed motor, just add electronics and fly. The brushed motor is 'OK' for a beginner just learning, and then you can upgrade to brushless as your flying ability evolves and you acquire funds. (I can look around and I may have a coupon code for $25 off a $150 purchase at Tower). I have a V2 kit, just haven't got it all put together yet.

I have the V1, and have flown many packs thru it. Just hate those crappy tail gears. The V1 kits are selling for about $100 or less, you just have to look.

Even at my limited flying ability, the Shogun handles the wind very well, almost as stable as my Caliber 30.

Another item, the Hitec Eclipse 7 and the Airtronics RD600 and RD8000 are great radios that won't break the bank. Century Helis has the RD6000 transmitter alone for $149 with free shipping for orders over $49.

HTH,
Bob



jh4db536 -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/25/2005 3:06 PM)

lol the shogun was my first e Heli (v1 + belt drive kit/cf frame). that thing is 10x harder to fly than my x400. im still not comfortable flying it however i cant wait till i can bring it back off the shelf. it's a very nice heli though, but i dont have the skill to make use of it yet. the shogun is a good 2nd heli in my opinion.

the collective on the shogun is way aggressive compared to the x400 (has mostly to do with power, light weight, and direct collective system). i never had my shogun stock though...400dh in a shogun is like a 300hp motorcycle. the shogun is a light weight powerhouse.

i dont know about handling wind as i only flew my shogun indoors. im pretty sure shogun's ultra light weight would be scary in windy conditions as i think it's bad enough in my x400 which takes it quite well. i think the shogun is a lot more fragile than Trex or x400 in many aspects, but it's also a much simpler design. parts replacement for shogun is probably twice to triple that of trex or x400.



jyc -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/25/2005 3:48 PM)

found this on ebay. X-400 assembled for $95 plus $17 for shipping. That's cheap.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=5994345995&rd=1&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&rd=1



hoj527 -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/25/2005 4:43 PM)

Don't want to start a Shogun vs. TREX vs. X400 war, just wanted to throw in another option.

quote:

jh4db536 said,

400dh in a shogun is like a 300hp motorcycle. the shogun is a light weight powerhouse.


I'll agree here. I bought my Shogun used with a cheap brushless motor already in it. Don't know the brand. The shaft came out of the motor after about a month. I replaced it with a 400DH and [X(]. I put the stock blades back on it to "tone it down" a bit.

My first Heli was a Fun Piccolo, so ANYTHING flies better than it. I got so mad one day, I kicked it across the yard. Only time it ever flew. [:D]

The price jyc found is almost enough to make me get one to try. Hmmm, wonder how I could slip another past the missus ? ? ? [sm=cool.gif]


Bob



jyc -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/25/2005 6:33 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: hoj527


The price jyc found is almost enough to make me get one to try. Hmmm, wonder how I could slip another past the missus ? ? ? [sm=cool.gif]


Bob


Coordinate so that the heli and the flower plus chocolate all arrive at the hose the same time[:D]



sparkling_fist -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/25/2005 7:06 PM)

im not sure how well this can turn out..
but you can buy a dragonfly 36 (without electronics)
and put good ones in urself..

it reasonabbly cheap and flys well with the right stuff

but id go with 1 of the t-rex or x400.



jyc -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/25/2005 8:09 PM)

That's what I actually did. I purchased a bare-bone kit and installed my own electronics. The #36 actually flies well because of the lighter flying weight. I just need to sort out the wagging tail issue...[&:]



co_alpine -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/27/2005 7:23 PM)

well, here is what I have pickcked up to get started with

-T-rex 450XL - 169.00
-JR XP6102 - 219.00

I got the XL as i am not sure about the CCMP and I see you can upgrade to that for around $30 later.
I got the XP6102 as it was highly recommended, as well as it came whit 4 micro servos and a micro receiver.

I think the prices were good, i know there were some better deals online but I went local as the help has been great, and they are going to look it over and trim it out when it is ready to fly.

I am going to get the Futaba 401 after all, but i am still not sure on the motor / ESC.
The LHS was getting a lot of new options in this week so they told me to hold off until they had a chance to run them all on thier T-rex to see how they all preform.
right now I am leaning to the mega brushless with the CC35 ESC.

I am about 75% done building as I could not go to sleep last night just knowing that was on the bench :)

question on the canopy, will it hold onto paint well? I am used to painting my cars but am not sure if the stock canopy is a paint-able deal or not.
thanks again for the help so far guys!



jh4db536 -> RE: Fedex bought me a new heli (8/28/2005 5:36 AM)

i personally dont trust the phoenix onboard BECS. if i were you id look into a seperate BEC or a Rx battery. Personally i use an Rx battery.

just bought myself a mega motor for 70 shipped lol. i hope i will pick up more flight time and put less stress on my lipos. that's a beautiful hovering current draw. 7.5amp vs 12.5amp. i might get an extra 5minutes of flight time w/ a cheap $25 1800mAH battery.
[image]http://www.trextuning.com/mega13tamps1.jpg[/image]
[image]http://www.trextuning.com/mega13twatts1.jpg[/image]


however i will be taking a power loss. the 400DH is almost twice as powerful and half the size. im putting this back in the shogun where it will have a very stress free job on a ultra light heli.
[image]http://www.trextuning.com/400dh-graph2.jpg[/image]
[image]http://www.trextuning.com/400dh-graph11.jpg[/image]



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