I've got the bug to get into helis...

How many of you do both planes and helis?

Helis will make you a better and cleaner flying airplane pilot...

Kavan Jet Ranger, Heim BO-105, Dubro 505, Dubro Tri-Star, Kalt Baron 20, Concept 30, Nexus 30, Hawk Sport 30 with Schweizer Fuse, Raptor 30, Hirobo Evo 50, Raptor 90, Swift 16, Trex-450, Hirobo Lama Co-Ax, Couple of MCX's, and a recent find on ebay of a MarxACopter...yeah...I got bit by the Whirlybug!

I fly both, but mainly planes. I have flown a T-rex, Axe, and can do most basic manuevers with a Blade 400. Hovering, nose in, rolls, loops, but haven't got brave enough to do much inverted yet. It's fun, but I still prefer fixed wing, it's just in my blood.

Sorry, duplicate post.

As per the photo, I fly both, but am newer to planes as heli's are really my thing being as I really like their complexity from both a flying point of view, and an appreciation of their level of engineering (I get almost as much fun tinkering with, and setting them up as I do flying them ).
The plane I got for the other side of the coin for when I want to use a simple thing and just enjoy the other side of what it is that this hobby has to offer - that being the simple joy of flying model aircraft!!.

I have been playing around with Helis on the simulator for a little while, and while I am not sure if it is something that I will stick to, I had to try. So I just ordered this:

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/s...Rex_Compat.%29

We'll see what will come out of it.

I fly both and cant say that I like one better than the other.  I do know that I have a hard time switching back and forth simply because my left thumb gets a tad lazy from flying planes.  And still being somewhat "new" to both I always fly my heli first...then switch over to my plane/s.  Im sure once I become seasoned, it wont be that big a deal.  However, I punched the heli hard into the ground one time when I needed some rotor correction and did the input with my right thumb.  Can you say THWACK! lol

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Helis, planks, gliders, jets, if it flys I own or have flown it.

Sim or not, IMO - get some training feet as well, a 450 size heli is about as hard an introduction as you can get to RC aircraft (yet it IS doable, I did it that way, and all I can say just plan each flight's 'goal' before hand and move through the basics of stable tail in hover, nose in hover, forward flight etc before your even think of getting fancy or flipping it!!).
To put it into context, my .50 nitro heli is a hell of a lot harder to fly than my 65" trainer plank (re pic above), yet big .50 nitro thing is at LEAST 4-5 times eaiser to fly than my old 450 sized electric was (bigger aircraft are easier to fly by default).
Still, at least it is a good model that will be capable of more than you will be able to do for some time, parts are cheap and easy to get!
Enjoy!!

Thanks Kiwi, and no I have no intentions of going crazy with this thing. I have been through plane training so I know what to expect and what not to expect.

This is a kit so by the time I get it, learn about putting it together and actually finishing it I will have plenty of sim time.

I´ve been flying, gliders, then planes, then helis.. in that order.

the toy cars I had when young, got me into gliders... there I leared basic acrobatics, how to "fly" and "fly the nose", land etc and most importantly, retention of energy, which is invaluable in deadstick landings.
planes taught me more about motors and speed controllers and changing the "view" of flying where I was used to being on top of a mountain with 100mtrs of drop below me so you could fly at eye level..
this all definately sped up my heli learning, but as by far the best plane pilot in my club, it really did send me back to square 1, when i got my first trex450. everything was new, even the basics of hovering etc whcih I did at about 10 cms.. over and over and over.. and in the warehouse at work etc etc etc.. even when I could take a simulator and blast around the "sky" with a heli..

like I say, flying planes will make it a lot easier than for a 100% newbie but dont think it will give you a head start.. you start from 0 just the same, but you´ll find the learning is accelerated.

I really dont want to sound negative at all.. just for every pilot in every situation its best for them, their model and their wallet if you are more cautious than overconfident.

I fly both and enjoy both. My last heli was a Raptor 50 and I flew the snot out of it for 2-3 years.

You can learn a lot about flying helis in FORWARD FLIGHT from flying fixed wing but hovering and transition you need a heli to learn on. Sims are great but the real thing has a little extra edge to it.

Fully agree with your comments. Perhaps I worded my own comments poorly: when I said I have learned to fly a plane so I know what to expect I wasn't inferring that flying planes is the same as flying helis. I was referring to the process so what I did mean to say was, I did it right the first time (join a club, get a trainer and instructor, etc.) so I was going to go through the same process. Having Played with a heli on the sim a little bit so far I already know that this is a whole new ball game! I am looking forward to it though.

I did skim through the heli forum and as expected there are a lot of opinions about the different types of equipment to get started on, but I couldn't find a general consensus on the type of gear to choose. For example, it seems half the people recommend starting with a FP heli while others say not to. I guess I need to do some more reading there, but as an experienced heli pilot if you have any recommendations on a beginner's heli I would welcome it.

To be honest I did self teach myself to hover.. in my garage..
but i did it with a cheap hobbycity HK450... and when I bought it I bought a massive stash of spare parts.. I broke it LOTS... but now I havnt done any repair work on my heli for over 6 months..
I´d say due to the fact that i DID make the errors, so i was able to learn from them.

I fly both. But if I had to choose only one, I'd go with the one with fixed wings. There's something about rolling take offs and landings that I just really enjoy.

No worries, least with a 450 electric, while not recommended, you can hold the thing at arms lenght to check main blade tracking is correct (provided your arms are long enough of course) - the big nitro need to be either held in a hover with a spotter checking the tracking (dangerous for the spotter), or fixed to something SOLID and spooled up and checked while on the ground (i used my outside garden table and about 6-8 good sized zip-ties to be sure she was staying put.

As per my last post, I'd still suggest that aside from a good pitch gauge and blade balancer (mandatory items for setup), training feet and a good flight/learning plan for every single flight are going to be the two best tools in your learning arsenal. God knows trying to tick off the basics one at a time help me HUGELY when starting to learn how to fly my old 450 electric - and having had cars before was pretty much no use at all!
If I was to suggest a 3rd option, get the best 2.4gig programmable computer radio set you can afford, as that way if you get hooked just like everyone else in here has done (sorry for the stereotype guys), you won't hopefully need to upgrade you radio and lose money down the line. And then when your totally hooked and feel the need to get something larger and more complicated (be it a plane of heli), you'll already have that good radio gear waiting at home for you to hook it up to the plane. The 'expo' settings will also help tame the heli to begin with by reducing the servo travel in the initial part of your stick movements (expo can take a monster of a heli re it's ability to react cyclic & collective input before you can even blink, and turn it into a total kittycat if added at the right level)
Also, find out what brand of transmitters is more common at the local club your most likely to fly at, as getting the same will make it easy for buddy boxing when you feel you need to get your license for larger aircraft (all part of that forward planning theory)

If all this sounds overwhelming, please don't let it be!!!!
It IS doable to learn off a 450 3d heli (like I said, I did!), all these comments are intended to be are guide lines to help a little as it will still require a steep learning curve from yourself.
A good sim like Phoenix will help a LOT, and save you a fortune down the line, but as no two helis ever feel the same, your real one will no doubt feel different when you first fly it. So look on the sim as tool to learn thumb memory, flight orientation and how it changes as the heli moves about in relation to you (the controls control the heli from the nose, not how it is in relation to you). In the end, the sim should add to your flight skills, not be the basis of them. Personally I try to keep well ahead of my real world flying in the sim so that whatever I do in life, has been well surpassed in the sim - meaning I'll find it easier doing "X move" in the real world, as I'd rather try to be cleaver and smash my sim helis up a million times before I risk smashing up my real heli by pulling that same stunt unless I'm 100% sure I'm better than the skill level required!
Ie - sim flight at 11/10th's of my skill!! ...... expensive nitro thing flown at 7/10th's of my skill level!! (walk before you can run as they say)

PPkk, Your right heli's are a ( whole new ball game) when you are talking about coming from airplanes ! They will test your flying skills to the limit, and at the same time improve your flying. I own both, and started with airplanes liked it so much went and earned my private pilots lic. Then I tried my hand at heli's, and would fly a heli over a plane any day ! Here's why, You can Fly heli's from ANYWHERE you live, in a parking lot one day, to a ballpark the next ! And you do not have to worry about wind with these machines, Flying these at night is way more easy to see, than in the day ! Take the plunge, you will enjoy every minute of it !!!

I fly both..... just not well

One thing that is nice is that a modern TX like a 6i or the like will fly both.

Actually this was one of the driving factors to get me started. I no longer live close to a flying field so this would give me a chance to get out more frequently.

+ 1 on that, I use a Dx6i for both my nitro plane and heli!

I fly only fixed wing. I don't have enough hands to fly heli's...

Yeah, I've watched you guys and am convinced that you have a hiden hand somewhere in there.

CGr.

Not to sound like a "know it all" (I far from do!).  But I wouldnt take the advise from whoever above said you can hold a 450 heli in hand to check blade tracking.  While its possible...I advise against it.  Its much safter to tie it/tape it down(I use metal duct tape and tape it down by the skids to my garage floor).

Check out this thread at helifreak and decide for yourself (you will need to register there to see pics I think)...

http://www.helifreak.com/showthread.php?t=34727

If you got something to say to me, have the you know what's to say it!

Like I stated ..... "while not recommended" .... it is doable, I did it many times, but only after triple checking my hand grip to ensure I was in control.

If you took the time to read that post, I also stated that "the big nitro need to be either held in a hover with a spotter checking the tracking (dangerous for the spotter), or fixed to something SOLID and spooled up and checked while on the ground" - let me know if you want to contest that this is bad advice, as right now, you might not sound like "know it all" .... but I can tell ya what you do sound like if you want me too!.