Ready to fly out of the box.
Includes battery and charger.
Very stable and easy to fly.
None
noted
Heli-Max has introduced the next offering in it's line of
electric powered helicopters. The AXE-CX is a small,
coaxial rotor head helicopter that can be flown comfortably
inside a large room or gym, or outside on a calm day. As an added bonus, the
AXE even resembles the full scale Schweizer 300.
Kit Name:
Axe CX Coaxial RTF Micro Price: $99.98 Main Rotor Span: 10.6" (270mm) Flying Weight: 4.25 oz (121g) Blades: Included Motor Used: 2 included motors Radio equipment: Included!
8 AA Batteries
Shipping box
Contents
Battery and charger
The
first step to any RTF review is to extract the instruction manual
and read it from cover to cover. One of the problems I
have with some of these smaller models is the lack of detailed
information about the radio system. On the Axe CX however,
I opened the manual and saw a large warning note that practically
jumped off the page about the radio system. The note talks
about how the Axe CX is equipped with a radio that is on a standard
72mhz R/C aircraft frequency and can cause problems if you fly
at or in the vicinity of established flying fields. The
channel number is also marked clearly on both the transmitter
and the shipping box. Good job Heli-Max!
The manual is typical of those found with Great Planes products
and includes information on the Academy
of Model Aeronautics, support and warranty information,
a full inventory, and a web page to check for last minute changes
to the manual. In addition, the manual contains information
on lithium battery safety, charging, and of course complete
instructions on how to get the little Axe CX in the air.
With
the exception of charging the battery, reading the manual takes
longer than getting the Axe CX in the air. Plug the battery
charger in without the battery and check for a green light.
Plug the battery in and the light should turn red. When
the battery is fully charged the light will turn green again
and you're just about ready to fly. The charger must plug
into a 120 volt household outlet, there is no provision for
field charging. The battery, however, is equipped with
a standard JST connector so field charging with a Filed LiPo
charger will only require a JST charge lead. These leads
are available at most hobby related retail outlets.
Included transmitter
Close up of electronics
Battery and charger
While
the motor battery is charging you can take a moment to gather the
only thing you need besides an outlet to get the Axe in the air; 8
AA batteries for the transmitter. Heli-Max has again come
through with an external charge jack should you choose to purchase
NiMH or NiCad batteries and a suitable charger. I used
standard AA batteries that I raided from the children's Christmas stockings.
The standard alkaline batteries were going strong after 10 or 12 flights.
The tag
on the charger says that the battery could take up to four hours to
charge but even after flying until the battery started to loose
power the charger only took 45 minutes to an hour. Out of
habit I like to give LiPo batteries time to cool to room temperature
before charging but in the case of the Axe, the battery wasn't even
warm when I removed it immediately after flight.
Flight times of four to five minutes seemed to be about where I
could detect a drop off in battery performance; the first indication
is the tail starts to drift. Take it easy on your battery and
it should last many cycles, fly it until it's dead a couple of times
and you will probably be replacing it.
A Great
Planes
ElectriFly 2S 500mah LiPo battery is available for a reasonable
17 dollars, so having an extra battery on hand is an economical
way to extend the number of flights you will get in a flying
session.
Flying the Axe CX is very easy. Both of my young daughters
gave it a shot and didn't have any trouble hovering tail in.
The controls aren't very sensitive compared to other models but this
quality makes it very easy to fly. The Axe CX will hold a
hands off hover for several seconds. The down side of course is
the Axe CX can't do much in the way of aerobatics but that certainly
isn't what it's designers intended.
Editors
Note: Model should be flown indoors or outdoors in very
calm wind.
One
of the concerns I almost always have with micro helicopters
is the gyro on the multi-function mixing board. I'm happy
to report that I had no problems at all with the tail wandering
about on the Axe CX. The only time the gyro started to
act up is when the battery was getting low and by then it was
time to land anyhow.
If you fly a larger
helicopter and are having trouble with nose in orientation, the Axe CX
doesn't cost much more than a set of rotor blades for a 50 size
helicopter and it takes a surprising amount of abuse. I
bounced off the couch a few times and getting back in the air took
nothing more than setting the helicopter back on it's skids.
Whether you're looking for a helicopter that you can get in to
the air with minimal effort, or you're a seasoned pilot that
wants to keep his skills during long winters or rainy days, the
AXE CX is worth a serious look.
I crash no broken parts rotor lower blades spin when battery is plugged up junk cost to repair unknown helimax will not return calls yet pissed off 100.00 in the dumpster
The comments, observations and conclusions made in this review are solely with respect to the particular item the editor reviewed and may not apply generally to similar products by the manufacturer. We cannot be responsible for any manufacturer defects in workmanship or other deficiencies in products like the one featured in the review.
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