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DomingoFlores -> Walkera 36 not all that bad (3/21/2006 9:18:06 PM)
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Hi Guys
I am a newbie to the world of rc helicopters and have really benefited from all of the information that you as flyers have printed. To start, I like many other wanted to get into the hobby at a low cost. For a couple of reasons.
1. have a family so wife put me on a budget
2. did not want to spend a lot on something which I didn't know if I was going to enjoy or not.
After reading some of the reviews stating that the Walkera 36 which I had purchased (on ebay like so many others) was a piece of junk, I was pretty discouraged. (My best friend also read the threads and decided he would go to the LHS and he bought a TREX, which is all they sold.) I thought, what did I do. I just spent a 150 on a piece of junk. Well I decided that there was nothing I could do about it now and decided that I was going to make the best of what I thought was a no win situation.
I started reading about the problems people were having with their helis and the responses with the possible solutions.
I started reading all about starting the tx and heli, trimming, balancing, screw tightening, remote switches and on and on.
All of this was incredibly helpful because as we all know the instruction manual that comes with this heli is garbage.
All of this before the heli even arrived.
Well the heli arrived
I unpacked the heli and went through my checks
First thing I do is make sure all is in good condition, seeing as some helis have arrived damaged.
screw checks (all tight except for those that reqire some play - rotor blades)
balanced the blades (very important because weren't balanced)
unplugged motor and attached battery after turning on tx with throttle stick all the way down as instructed in the threads (all works, servos, gyro ok after adjusting sensitivity)
plugged motor and tracked blades and adjusted the pitch using the pzt and plt knobs (all good)
The Heli came set up very nicely with no broken pieces which made me very happy.
Next thing was to put training gear on.
Now for the fun part. I realized that after reading all of the threads, that I would not be up and flying right away. I knew that it would probably be a couple of months before I would be doing that. If you are a newbie don't even think it is going to happen right away. You are just fooling yourself and will make this a more expensive habit than it has to be and probably lose interest.
I found a nice pavilion with a huge level cement slab on which to practice near my house. You really need to have a wide open space for this hobby. I chose the cement slab because I didn't want my landing gear getting snagged in the grass and causing a more devastating crash. (I was prepared for a few crashes) I have only been doing this for 1 1/2 weeks and am still learning to hover. I am not very high yet. Maybe 5-6 inches but I am happy with that. At that height I can bring the heli down (sometimes roughly) without any damage to it. Let me tell you, just watching the little heli come off the skids and hover is really cool for a newbie. All of this practice time helps me become familiar with the tx and what to do when the heli yaws or rolls or goes forward and backwards. Plus it helps me make more adjustments to the trimming which I found out is best done when the heli is in flight. People don't realize how important it is to become familiar with all that the heli can and will do.
I am not going to say that I have not had any accidents because I have. Being that I do practice on a cement slab I did lose control and the heli slid (not flew) into the leg of one of the tables after I brought it down from the towering height of about 3 foot. It got away from me, started rolling slightly and I got nervous when it got up to that height. (remember i am just a newbie and I could hear my wife in the back of my head complaining of how much it wasn't going to cost to repair) Nothing damaged other than the blades. Put the spare on and up and practicing again. Again, all this is part of the learning curve.
People need to realize that it takes practice and preparation to fly helicopters. I can say that, because my best friend who also bought the TREX has also had trouble flying his heli. It wasn't a breeze to fly like some people say just because it is made by ALIGN. And he had his setup by the LHS owner. He has had the same accident and having more trouble controlling his heli just as well. Why I don't know. I am concentrating on mine right now and learning all about it.
I have the stock motor in it and it does fly, but only after adjusting the pitch of the main rotors. It would not fly out of the box. So please people don't trash the heli because of this. Just be patient, learn about the heli, make the proper adjustments and it will fly.
I do recommend getting Li-po batteries for your helis. I ordered mine with the 1800mah and charger. (charger works fine by the way and light does turn red when battery is charging and green when fully charged) I ran a test based on one of the threads which stated that if battery is 1800 and charges at 1a battery should charge for about 1.8 hours (1hr 48mins). Plugged the battery in, set the timer and like clockwork the light turned green at 1hr and 48 mins. (cool) Haven't attached to a voltmeter to check on it but I am assuming by the run time and by the fact that it does not get hot or swell that it is charging properly. The longer battery life (about 15 mins) is a plus because I enjoy practicing with my R36 and having to cut it short because of loss of power is a bummer. Plus you will notice more blade speed with the Li-Pos. Be careful when going to this battery and throttling up if you have been using the mah. Just be patient and ease into it. I plan on getting a couple more of these. Also plan on getting a brushless motor and esc but only after I have become more comfortable with flying with the current setup. I understand that a brushless motor has a little more power and think that I should wait on that for now.
All in all I am very happy with this helicopter. It flys and that is what is important. I am not going to compare it to other helis since I am new and have never flown another heli. But I can say that it can be just as easy to fly (for those who have flown helis in the past) or just as difficult to fly ( for the newbie as myself) but it needs to be properly adjusted. This I can say because of the difficulty I see my best friend having with his TREX. (just because it is a TREX doesn't mean it is easier to fly, even after he spent almost $650 for the base kit, and electronics) (ouch!!!) If people want to upgrade this heli, they can. Just wait until after they have become better flyers. Why spend a lot on something you are going to break and have to replace. Break the inexpensive first and replace with inexpensive. Then when you can fly your heli buy the expensive upgrades. (that's my philosophy)
The bottom line (at least I feel) is this. Don't go into this thinking you be up and flying right away (with any helicopter) Those videos that you see are for marketing and those heli flying veterans make it look it easy. It takes practice. Buy what you can afford. Your local hobby shop may not sell yoru heli or replacement parts for your heli but you will find that most are more than willing to help with questions, flying and setup. (they have been selling helis for a long time and are familiar with heli setup and flying) You just have to ask. They love that you have taken an interest in this hobby and want to you to enjoy it for a long while.
Also forums like this are a blessing. I can't thank you all enough for all the information. It has really made this fun.
I will keep practicing, hopefully improving and reading these threads looking for some more great information on this heli and flying in general.
thanks again
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