Ok, I know many of us arent Donald Trump...so we cant go spend gobs of money for a heli.
So how do you build a decent heli without breaking the bank?

Normally, cheap and good dont belong in the same sentence.

But.....

For those of you getting into helicopters, that want a decent helicopter, there are options.
And Ill share a secret option that Ive used now for a while. This setup is the cheapest I could build one, while still retaining a respectable amount of "good".

I like the 450 size helis. So Im going to be going off that premise.

First off, you will need a heli kit. Align is nice, but you dont have to spend that kind of money for a trex.
Trex clones can be had for very cheap, and many are just as nice as the Trex, and fly the same.

Goto nitroplanes.com and order a Exi 450 kit. They are $29 bucks. DIRT CHEAP. Shoot....order 3 or 4 at that price. That way when you kill one, you can toss it in the parts bin, and put all the equipment into another one. Or build two or three of them for backups.

The next most critical piece of equipment is the Gyro. You dont need a Futaba 401. Ive tried a bunch of different gyro's on the market, and I finally found one that in my opinion is actually better than the 401, and much cheaper.

Its the DCTRUM GY48V AVCS Gyro. You can get them at http://store.rcsupersales.net/servle...sh-1017/Detail
I really do like it better than the 401. For one, it's encased in anodized metal, so you can top mount that thing without worrying about a flybar paddle smashing it into a bazillon pieces.
Secondly, its a AVCS gyro....the workings are identical to the 401. Thirdly, it just plain works, and its cheap at $36 bucks. Ive since stopped buying the 401, and put these on all my heli's. Why spend more for the same thing, and yes....it will run digital tail servos.

Next, for the servos.

Servos in general are finicky devices. And when combined with low quality, can be a nightmare. Ive tried lots of the cheap garbage out there that weren't worth the plastic they were made out of.
But....amist the garbage, I found a couple that actually arent too bad for helis.

T-Pro SG90 servos from nitroplanes.com - They run $5 bucks a pop, and Ive been using them in my heli's for a while now. Even with a couple of bad hits, they havent failed once. Surprise Surprise.
For the tail....the EXI D113F digital. $10 bucks at nitroplanes.com This too is a really decent digital tail servo, and it also fits the Trex type tailboom mounts perfectly. Use the round servo arm. It will be smooth as glass.

Speed controller....I use the Exceed RC's 30A ESC - $14.95 from nitroplanes.com

Motor....Exceed RC Optima from nitroplanes.com - $32 bucks.

Lipos... Any ol' 3cell 2200mah lipo. Ive been having good success with the "lightmax" 2200 20C Zippy packs that I picked up for $20 a piece.
You can try these....which are probably similar...http://www.nitroplanes.com/83p-2200m...p-111-20c.html

So lets look at your total for a Exi 450
$156.95....minus reciever.

That's as cheap as I can do it, and still keep the quality at least good enough to actually fly the crap out of it.
I have heli's with this exact setup, that Ive been flying for over a year. No problems at all.

Now please bear in mind...this is the lowest cost FUNCTIONAL heli.
Its not the super hot, best thing out there....it is what it is.
So if you are looking for a low cost option, that will just plain fly....this is your best bet in my opinion.