ORIGINAL: HeliYogi
TTMT, Thank you for your active participation in this forum helping others with your experience.
The tail motor issue never went away in my helicopters, I also send them with Tim at MRC (superb service) I had two Quarks the same problem. I sold them.
Is the innovator comparable quality to Hirobo? I read the plastic parts especially the fuselage was really cheap, whats your take on it?
Llike you, I appreciate scale. Have you seen the Mini Titan with the pre-painted Agusta Fuselage? That's one good looking and flying bird.
Cheers!
Well, just my opinion, but I think the Innovator quality is fine. It's mostly plastic, but Ihave nothing to complain about. My first model was replaced under warranty by Thunder Tiger. It had a spurious power failure issue that caused it to drop to the ground in flight. They said they found some poor solders, so they replaced it and were very nice about it. The second time it fell to the ground, it was fairly high - maybe 10 - 12 feet. It feel straight down and landed on its gear. The gear broke, but that was about it. So, I'd say it seems fairly sturdy.
In my estimation, the Innovator relies on essentially the same principle as the Quark for its inherent stability. It has a large, rubberized flybar that I think is the key to the stability. It comes pre-programmed from the factory with slow rotor head speeds. You can by software for $40 to change anything you want on the heli, but I've stuck with factory settings. There's a really slow rotor head speed and a slightly faster speed. I use the faster speed. The slower speed is too slow and causes tail wag. The faster speed is still very mild. It works for me. I'm still a nervous pilot. You don't program the radio. All of the programming is done through the software. There's just basic trim tabs on the radio. So far, I don't feel like I need the software. When I get more confidence, I'll probably buy the software and begin to increase the performance. The batteries last a decent amount of time. You have to buy a power supply if you want to charge using A/C. I don't like the idea of charging of my car battery, so I bought one from Hobby People for about $25 and it's been great. I've read that people don't like being limited on what batteries they can buy, but I can fly the Innovator successfully (basic circles, etc) and I'm satisfied. Well, that's my 2 cents.
I have a Mini Titan but, as stable as it is, it's not as stable as the Innovator, so it's grounded right now until my flying skills catch up. I haven't seen that fuselage, but I've seen the Cobra fuselage and it's looks pretty nice.
Happy flying.