markspm

What is the advantage of a raptor 50 vs a 30 other than engine size

BarracudaHockey

My Feedback: (11)

More power, more stable, better autos, all the advantages but nearly the same crash cost as a 30, the downside is greater fuel consumption.

Do yourself a favor, buy once and get a 50.

HeliTB

I agree with Cuda. Don't get me wrong I have 30 w/OS .37 and love it. If you have the extra cash get the 50. If you are on a budget get the 30.

PutU2Sleep

My Feedback: (3)

I second the 50, had a 30 like HeliTB and then got a 50 Titan...definately worth the little bit extra $$$

soop7667

I've never flown a 30, but I've seen one flown, and the power just isn't there like a 50. If you ask me, a Raptor 30 is like having a Mustang with a 4 cylinder in it - it just doesn't make sense. I'd say definately get the 50, and while you're at it, be sure it's an OS 50 Hyper - can't go wrong there.

tippy

There seems to be a misconception among those that fly agressive and need the extra power. They seem to think ALL heli pilots "should" fly agressively and "will" need the extra power. That's simply not true. Not all pilots fly in a style the REQUIRES the extra power of the 50.

See [link=http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_6582279/tm.htm]Casual Flying[/link]. The perception is so strong that this poster thought he was the only one on Earth that didn't fly agressively.

In order to make sense of this ... you have to understand that the heli only needs to put out as much power as it takes to support your style of flying (with a little extra for emergencies). Having the extra power of the 50 would be (for me) a waste simply because my style is not agressive and the extra power would be under utilized. So for me ... the only difference would be a higher fuel bill. Does that make any sense???

Sure ... it doesn't make sense to you to have a 4-cyl Mustang ... if you were the one driving it.
What if you were getting the Mustang for your grandmother that drives around town at 30 mph. Would 400HP make any sense???

How you fly or are intending to fly should determine the necessity for power out.
Those that fly in a high energy agressive style will always advocate the 50 ... and I can't argue the logic ... if the flying style requires the power.

But opting for the 50 just doesn't make sense if you are not going to fly in a style that needs the extra benefits/power output of the 50.

Did any of that make sense??

AutoMike

YES it did.

People are really missing a larger picture here with the 30 vs 50 thing. While its true that the 50 airframe cost is only slightly more than the 30 and the fuel consumtion is slightly higer and the crash parts are close to the same price how about equpment cost?? "Whaa?" you say....

What would you say to a newbie that shows up to the field with a raptor 50 titan with a OS 50 but has a CSM 400 series gyro with box stock basic servos all around flying on a 600mah 4 cell ni-cad?
You might ask why he would try to fly on THAT equipment. While this stuff is way below what should be flow in that example heli, it would be ok in a .32 powered Hawk, Raptor 30 or most 30 size machines. Heck on a 50 size heli and the "why buy twice, buy the best first" outlook, one could spend $500-600 extra just to out-fit the heli with the proper radio gear that the 30 class helis dont really need for flight training. Not to metion the heli WILL be bashed from time to time damaging the more expencive 50's radio gear in the process. Just another way to look at debate.

soop7667

I hadn't ever really looked at it quite like that. I agree; Come to think of it, theres quite a few of the guys that come out to the field that don't fly agressively. They have 50 Hypers, and some the TT50Pro, and of coarse there are some 30's as well. Most all of them fly very casual, mostly hovering right in front of them. My personal style is "ballz to the wall" If I could fly more agressively, I would, and in time, as I get more experience under my thumbs, I will. It has been conceived by myself that anyone who flies a Raptor would want to fly it like that eventually, but apparently I was wrong.

Other than having a readily supply of parts, why wouldn't they get a heli that's made for that casual style of flying? I would think it would be a lot less expensive to get into heli's that way.

kenhiraihnl

Dittos on the above (and to further beat a dead horse)…I’m a 68 (69 next month) year-old Raptor 30 and 50 flyer…The younger guys flip, roll, chaos, etc., a foot off the ground…I do my moves (mild 3-D) with at least a 50-foot safety margin…So far, my OS37 hasn’t sagged and let me down (pardon the pun)…To me power is a needle or collective management issue…If I need a power fix, I fly my 550-blade Logo10 or drive my Cobra, Lightning, or Sportster1200…LOL… Ken

BarracudaHockey

My Feedback: (11)

As usual Tippy makes a good point.

You should define your expectations first, well your budget then your expectations. However I've heard a lot of people say "i'm just going to putt around and fly scale like" till they get their first taste of aerobatics then they want MORE MORE MORE

markspm

thanks for all the opinions guys. I bought a raptor 30 that I have not done anything with yet. I also bought a trex 450 se that I just started to monkey with. I just want to start out on the right foot. About 25 years ago I bought a plane and got rid of it just as fast as I bought it. About 8-9 years ago I got back into it knowing I needed to be patiant and have someone helping me. Out my club everyone flies planes so I am on my own. I spend allot of time on here reading and on my G3.5 sim

MFLOOD3800

My Feedback: (51)

Get all of the Raptors and be done with it.
Get a 30 Vll, a 50 Titan, and a 90 and be done with it.
You can have the best of all worlds and worries or concerns will be gone!!

calvino

lol, "oh, I crashed one, NO PROB, I can fly the 50, oh you want to fly, shure here is my 60....", later that day "honey, why is the credit card maxed out [sm=red_smile.gif]", yeah, every pilots dream, fun, but prob stuff of dreams

MFLOOD3800

My Feedback: (51)

I have flown a 30 Vl, a 30 Vll, a 50 Vl, a 50 Vll, a 90 std with all the SE conversions and soon I will fly my 50 Titan(maybe today).

I will say the 30 is very nice but slow in the abilities to do the moves quickly.
The 50 Vll is much quicker and seems more responsive.
The 90 has more feel of control and not as twitchy yet has all the authority of the 50 Vll.

I cant wait to ty the 50 Titan, I feel the 50 is probably the best choice for us weekend warriors.
It has cost in mind and you get the control and authority needed.
I have also flown JR's Venture 50, Aligns Trex 450 XL, SE and Walkeras junk, as well as the Blade CP and CPPro, and in my opinion, go with the Raptor 50. Doesnt matter if its the Titan or the Vll. I believe you will be totally satisfied with this heli both now and as you advanced in skills.
Great investment!!!!

misileman

My Feedback: (8)

I have all the Raptor sizes, 30, 50, 60 (now with a 91 engine), and a 90SE and love them all. The biggest differance between the 30 and 50 is more power, stability, and overall performance. The 30 is a blast to fly but doesn't do stick banging as it will load the motor quickly. The upside is it teaches me to be conservative with input controls and to work on precision. The 50 will take anything I throw at it.
The major differance between the two is crash repair costs. I'll try anything with the 30 and not "clinch up" near as bad as with the 50. If I can do it with the 30, the 50 will make it easy. But if I crash the 50 it will take much more time and money to get it dialed back in. The 30 takes less time and money to get it dialed back in. FYI, the 30V2 is nothing special, mostly plastic head parts, Maverikk blades, 49BB, with decent servos and a Rev Max Limiter. The 50 is a full on SE with metal everything from head to tail, Radix blades, GV-1, high end servos, OS Hyper 50 with Hatori pipe. It's replacement costs are considerably higher and pucker factor is upped a little bit (not as bad as the 90SE) but enough to raise the comfort factor.

I'd recommend buying the model that "YOU" can best afford/enjoy and make it your personal pride. Any decent model on the market today can be customized to do the type of flying that you prefer. The Thunder Tiger brand is noted to be affordable and very well supported and you can't go wrong with their market credentials.

Welcome to the heli community and most of all...........enjoy it.