Agree with what you say I started flying Heli's over 13 years ago my experiences must have followed yours, so a simulator is a good idea but a cheap heli option for a beginner is something like a hummingbird or twister they can take a lot of abuse and are very cheap to repair compared to an IC engined type.



Have following in my collection.

Early MFA still flying!!
Concept 30SX
Concept 60 SR II
Trex 450X with upgraded linkages (removes lot of the slop)
Trex 450X with CCPM upgrade.