LOOKING TO GET MY FIRST HELI, ADVICE NEEDED,,,  
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LOOKING TO GET MY FIRST HELI, ADVICE NEEDED,,, - 7/4/2006 4:43:11 PM   
jongurley



Posts: 2804
Joined: 4/24/2003
From: Goldsboro, NC, USA
Status: offline 		First off alittle background,, I have been flying airplanes for about 8 years, and have went from trainers to giant scale 3d/aerobatics,, anyway I was looking to get possibly a Raptor 30v2 I was wondering would it be best to buy the kit or the arf, I hate building anything with a passion, I am one of those guys that wish I could afford a crew chief to go to the field and just hand me the tranny ,, however I have heard some guys say when you get your first heli build it so you will learn the concept and after the first crash know were the parts go,,, anyway just wondering,, and P.S. which motor should I get with it, stock TT.36 is alot cheaper but is the O.S. worth the extra money,,, thanks guys,,,

_____________________________

"Practice, confidence and arrogance makes you a better pilot, few can use these to the best of their ability" JONG
       Post #: 1

RE: LOOKING TO GET MY FIRST HELI, ADVICE NEEDED,,, - 7/4/2006 9:37:22 PM   
jez33


 

Posts: 336
Joined: 1/30/2006
From: kent, UNITED KINGDOM
Status: offline 		mm,,,thats a hard one,,,

i also cannt be bothered in building, although ive built a couple for customers or friends ect here n there.

i got my 1st ever fuel heli as 2nd hand and it was already build and i had to do a few repairs and upgrades ect so if you are like me already mechanicly minded then i think youll have little problem in rebuilding so then id get the artf ...in any case you still have to take the old damaged or worn bits off so even if you didnt build it from new then you still have a mold so to speak to put it back together again...

but as youve already been probably told, if youve built it from a kit then it helps you to understand how helis fly and rebuilds and so on

(in reply to jongurley)
       Post #: 2

RE: LOOKING TO GET MY FIRST HELI, ADVICE NEEDED,,, - 7/4/2006 11:14:17 PM   
credence


 

Posts: 2518
Joined: 5/19/2005
From: Brampton, ON, CANADA
Status: offline 		Helicopters also require constant maintenance. If you can't be bothered to even build your own helicopter, you may find the hobby rather frustrating in the longrun.

You'll probably spend more than half of all your time with your helicopter tinkering with it rather than flying it. Price to pay for complex mechanical devices unfortunately.

Of course, it just makes the times you do get to fly all that more enjoyable. I've yet to get bored with helicopters, and i've been doing this for about 3 years now, I think . Still get a rush everytime I go flying.

_____________________________

Daniel
True Northern Hobbies, Inc.

(in reply to jez33)
       Post #: 3

RE: LOOKING TO GET MY FIRST HELI, ADVICE NEEDED,,, - 7/5/2006 4:22:47 PM   
BarracudaHockey



Posts: 11222
Joined: 7/13/2003
From: Orange Park, FL, USA
Status: offline 		Stick with the OS engine especially if you don't want to tinker. Credence is dead on, there's quite a bit of work involved, parts break in a crash, parts wear out, vibration effects things etc.

Lots of Raptor info at http://www.raptortechnique.com

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AMA 77227 http://www.jaxrc.com

(in reply to credence)
       Post #: 4

RE: LOOKING TO GET MY FIRST HELI, ADVICE NEEDED,,, - 7/5/2006 10:54:24 PM   
jongurley



Posts: 2804
Joined: 4/24/2003
From: Goldsboro, NC, USA
Status: offline 		Don't get me wrong guys, I don't mind tinkering or fixing a mechanical device like a helicopter, I just don't like the kitbuilding, etc,etc,, I don't mind one bit maintanence or what not,, keep the suggestions coming,, thx

_____________________________

"Practice, confidence and arrogance makes you a better pilot, few can use these to the best of their ability" JONG

(in reply to BarracudaHockey)
       Post #: 5

RE: LOOKING TO GET MY FIRST HELI, ADVICE NEEDED,,, - 7/5/2006 11:12:09 PM   
jez33


 

Posts: 336
Joined: 1/30/2006
From: kent, UNITED KINGDOM
Status: offline 		im with you all the way there mate...
i hate building new stuf . i dont mind the maintenance so much i spose coz its already flying but building them is such a chore to me although necessity makes me do it sometimes..

(in reply to jongurley)
       Post #: 6

RE: LOOKING TO GET MY FIRST HELI, ADVICE NEEDED,,, - 7/6/2006 10:44:40 AM   
pilot77


 

Posts: 234
Joined: 7/26/2003
From: no city, AUSTRALIA
Status: offline 		get the kit.. i hate building them too. but it teaches you plently about how to fix and maintain these bloody things.

(in reply to jez33)
       Post #: 7

RE: LOOKING TO GET MY FIRST HELI, ADVICE NEEDED,,, - 7/6/2006 3:43:01 PM   
BarracudaHockey



Posts: 11222
Joined: 7/13/2003
From: Orange Park, FL, USA
Status: offline 		I can put a Raptor together in a night while watching TV. Also maintenece at some point will involve stripping it down to the frames and replacing or greasing bearings etc. I would always go with the kit.

As for the engines the OS is worth every penny that it costs over the TT engine, not only is it more powerful its more consistent.

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Andy - Helicopter Forum Moderator
AMA 77227 http://www.jaxrc.com

(in reply to pilot77)
       Post #: 8

RE: LOOKING TO GET MY FIRST HELI, ADVICE NEEDED,,, - 7/7/2006 2:18:42 AM   
james199



Posts: 267
Joined: 5/28/2006
From: lake city, FL, USA
Status: offline 		Raptor is a good bird but i love my venture its got a webra power plant and its a blast to fly and stable as all get out
i say get a JR Venture

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Remember what goes up must come down !

(in reply to BarracudaHockey)
       Post #: 9

RE: LOOKING TO GET MY FIRST HELI, ADVICE NEEDED,,, - 7/7/2006 3:50:22 PM   
jongurley



Posts: 2804
Joined: 4/24/2003
From: Goldsboro, NC, USA
Status: offline 		Just checked my local hobby shop,, they carry alot ,,, I mean ALOT of RAPTOR parts, and T-rex parts,,

_____________________________

"Practice, confidence and arrogance makes you a better pilot, few can use these to the best of their ability" JONG

(in reply to james199)
       Post #: 10

RE: LOOKING TO GET MY FIRST HELI, ADVICE NEEDED,,, - 7/9/2006 4:10:55 AM   
wldcwbypilot


 

Posts: 467
Joined: 9/29/2003
From: Corpus Christi, TX, USA
Status: offline 		jon,

i have built lots of planes and 5 helis to date. TT has Raptors that are arfs, you do the final assembly and you have the manual that shows the steps to build each major assembly. The manual also describes how to change out different parts. Get a few neccessary tools, blade balancer, blade pitch tool, ball link pliers, a ball link reamer and lots of cash for crash kits, you will need to have at least three handy for weekend repairs. Do yourself a favor buy all digital servos and the best gyro. The best you can afford. TT engines can be just as dependable as OS, hell i know guys with OSes that have more tuning problems than my TT39. I have had 1 flame out due to the glow plug loosening up, but that also happens with OS.

bill

< Message edited by wldcwbypilot -- 7/9/2006 4:15:45 AM >

(in reply to jongurley)
       Post #: 11

RE: LOOKING TO GET MY FIRST HELI, ADVICE NEEDED,,, - 7/9/2006 4:49:49 PM   
jongurley



Posts: 2804
Joined: 4/24/2003
From: Goldsboro, NC, USA
Status: offline 		Thanks for the replies guys, alot of good newb answers,, about the DIGITAL servos what do you reccomend,, I was going to get the FUTABA GY401 servo combo, and what digitals for the flight controls,, I want to run JR or HITEC, I am anti futaba,,

_____________________________

"Practice, confidence and arrogance makes you a better pilot, few can use these to the best of their ability" JONG

(in reply to wldcwbypilot)
       Post #: 12

RE: LOOKING TO GET MY FIRST HELI, ADVICE NEEDED,,, - 7/9/2006 5:14:18 PM   
BarracudaHockey



Posts: 11222
Joined: 7/13/2003
From: Orange Park, FL, USA
Status: offline 		OS engines are many times more dependable than TT engines so stick with OS.

The 50 Raptors aren't available as ARF's only the 30 and even then you really should build one from the ground up, the people that build those arf's don't always fly helicopters and you never know if they have used locktite on all the important parts.

As for servos it depends on if you want a 30 or 50, on a 30 3151s will do, on a 50 9202 or if you want digital 9252s.

The 401/9254 combo is the best price for performance gyro combo on the market.

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Andy - Helicopter Forum Moderator
AMA 77227 http://www.jaxrc.com

(in reply to jongurley)
       Post #: 13

RE: LOOKING TO GET MY FIRST HELI, ADVICE NEEDED,,, - 7/9/2006 6:07:25 PM   
jez33


 

Posts: 336
Joined: 1/30/2006
From: kent, UNITED KINGDOM
Status: offline 		i dont totally agree with barracuda heli on the tt engine n os, but he is right in suggesting that you probly are better off buying an os in that the 50 os engine is more powerful then the tt 50 .. os engines are infact nearly always more powerful for the same tt engine so i also like barracuda would buy the OS engine for the power and reliability,also they are easier to get the tuning right .
mind you there are more powerful units then even OS and have as good handling as them too..

but in defense of the tt engine once you have run them in well and you have found its optimum carb settings and got a good pitch n throttle settings i have never had any more trouble that ive not had with an OS engine...my 39tt and 50 tt engine dont miss a beat and work aswell as my OS. i consider the tt engines i have (and the other tt engine flyers i know) to be very reliable and consistent and on a par with OS.

i perhaps will admit they are a bit fussier then the os engines though in that the type of 'exhaust/mulfer, fuel,plug and setup' play a part where as the OS is more forgiving in all respects.so in this regard i think TT engines are not the best beginners engines but ive had quite a few years with os and TT (amongst other engine makes ) experience and i certainly wont shy away from buying a tt engine but the os is the one id favor a little more...

(in reply to wldcwbypilot)
       Post #: 14

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RE: LOOKING TO GET MY FIRST HELI, ADVICE NEEDED,,, - 7/9/2006 8:37:29 PM   
wldcwbypilot


 

Posts: 467
Joined: 9/29/2003
From: Corpus Christi, TX, USA
Status: offline