My experience and opinion.

I've got 2 gallons through a Raptor 30 and have not crashed once yet. My first experience with helis. I trained ONLY with the Real Flight sim. I have a co-pilot but haven't installed it yet.

If you are just starting out and don't have a good support network of established heli pilots nearby, you can't beat the sim fo getting started. Co-pilot or not, if you go out there the first time and you don't know what you are doing, you WILL dork the heli and possible hurt yourself in the process.

I agree the co-pilot is a great tool, and helps build confidence, but it also easily becomes a crutch that can limit your development.

Jason