RE: 1st Heli
Ya, the JR 9303 will handle anything you throw at it. For $300 to $400 though you're a little limited unless you buy used.
You've got the choice of starting out with a 300 size fixed pitch like the honey bee fp (already mentioned) or go to a 400-450 size electric like the esky belt cp or blackhawk 450... etc (there are tons of choices in the 450 size right now). It may come down to parts support, what does your local hobby store carry? You might be able to build a decent thunder tiger e325 for $400.