Raptor 30/50
Raptor 50 is my third heli. First one is a Shuttle 30 and then I bought an xcell se. My Shuttle is not good enough for 3D and the xcell is too expensive( and troublesome to repair ) to throw around, so I bought a Raptor 50 to practise and I absolute love it even in stock form.
I believe Raptor is a good machine as long as you build it with respect. It is cheap but it is still a heli and deserves proper attention and some experience is useful. One new guy at my flying field also has a Raptor 50 and he had a lot of problems ( wah wah poof poof ??? ) with it initially but soon after he got some help, we can see his face wearing a grin after every flight.
There is no perfect helicopter. If one wants to pick bone, there are always enough bones even in an expensive machine like Freya EX WC or Caliber M60.
There is some worthwhile upgrades you may consider in your Raptor 50 just to make it better. Try the metal washout and metal blade grip ( from an Asian online store ) which enable the blades to track a LOT better.
I totally disagree with the conspiracy theory that LHS/Online stores purposely push Raptor becasue it makes them a bucket loads. Will they sell you Raptor if you want to buy a Pro2K? They'll make more on high end machines and parts.
Why would they suggest Raptor then? To get more people into the hobby and the Raptor is really good value for money. Hopefully as their skill grows, they will start buying high end machines.
Phelip