F1roddo

Hi Guys,

New to the heli scene, have been playing with gas boats for a while, but have always had soft spot for heli's.
Started off with a few venom coax heli's, then Eflite blade MSR, but now would like to try something bit bigger
in the 450 size, without going into massive expense until I get more experienced.

I was considering one of the Exceed range of heli's, E-flite or E-sky, but would like to know what others think about the these products and
which would be the next best step?

Any advice would be very much appreciated.

Many thanks

Regards
Chris

Rob2160

G'day mate!.. another Aussie! ...there is a huge amount of information on this subject in these forums..

I followed the progression from Co Axial to MSR then 120 SR, then Blade SR, then finally to a Blade 400.

My experience with the 400 was very poor as I was let down by a faulty servo..

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgoztDiEZ7k[/youtube]

I spent $400 on the Blade 400 and it crashed twice before I realised the servo was faulty.

There are much better options than the Pre built helis..

Go with a TREX clone.. they can be had for kits starting as low as $10...

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...dProduct=11446

But pay a little extra, ie $32 and you will get a great heli kit..

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...dProduct=14570

or even better for $50

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...dProduct=14571

Both of those links are from a NSWWarehouse..

I have that exact helicopter and it flies WAYbetter than my Blade 400 ever did. (even a minor crash in a Blade 400 will cost around $50 for parts, Aussie $$, we pay more downunder...but going with a TREX Clone kit. just buy two kits, and your will have a full set of spares for the same price!)

I put good quality servos in it and it has over 160 flights so far with NO issues.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNrafMSx_AU[/youtube]

I have built 3 of these clones now and they are fabulous.

I would never waste money on a pre built 450 size heli again when you can get much better value by building it your self..

All the resources to assist in the build are available online..

I bought mine from www.nitroplanes.com and www.hobbyking.com

Hobbyking have a warehouse in Australia.

MikeysRC videos on youtube show you step by step how to build one.. Here is his first video.. they link in series..

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z4zJREpU7u0[/youtube]

Here is another good post on this topic.

I strongly recommend you read this post..

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9990427and watch the above video..

They got me started with the clones and I couldn't be happier!

Here is my latest..

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9X0rYnHEDY[/youtube]


The kit cost $69.. The components another $120... Total cost under $200 it now has over 70 flights and is awesome (all prices quoted in Aussie dollars)

This is how you I built the above heli.. it took me 9 hours in one sitting..

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lU4w7IT-1do[/youtube]

I know that is a lot of information to digest and just 3 months ago I would have never considered building my own heli from scratch, it seems a daunting prospect.. but digest the idea for a few days.. you won't regret it.. the helis are MUCH better than pre built and you get to choose servos, motor combinations etc etc.. and there is nothing more satisfying that seeing your OWN creation fly..

This is my favourite heli and how I fly it every day..

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DRv4Wz-T4Q[/youtube]

Here is a great thread on this heli... started by another Aussie!

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10052781

Hope all that helps.

Moontan13

Finding out about Hobby King on these forums was a godsend.
I caught this bit in one of the discussuions:"bigger is better but a 600 class or larger is cost prohibitive". All the stuff from Hobby King for a HK600GT cost just under $400 including a 6ch radio. The radio was DOA and not worth returning due to shipping cost. $40 lost there, so I threw down and got a Futaba 7C system instead. I had planned to buy just the heli kit from HK, then the other bits locally. Locally they want $300 for the battery and another $300 for the motor, and $125 for a lipo charger. All 3 items from Hobby King cost $115.

I'll also suggest you get a copy of Ray's Authoritative Helicopter Manual and a flight sim. Both are invaluable, IMO.

F1roddo

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the reply, some great info there Rob. I have browsed Hobby king and these HK heli products, but I am abit unsure
whether I want to take on a build of this scale as I have never attempted a heli before. I guess thats the beauty in RTF heli's.

Have you guys ever heard of the Titan 450 heli? Looks like a good little unit with alloy and carbon fibre upgrades.

Cheers
Chris

Rob2160

Hey Chris.. no probs..I understand completely...

I bought a Blade 400 for the same reason...

I have heard of the Mini Titan.. is that the one you are referring to.. I beleive it is still a kit though.. do you have a link?

F1roddo

Hi Rob,

Here is the link, got some nice heli's for sure.

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/NEW-Carbon-Fi...item2eac927d96

What do you think?

Cheers
Chris

Moontan13

Seems overpriced by a fair margin. See if you can find a RTF like this one online direct.
While I buy a lot of parts on ebay, I see where somebody is re-sellingclone kits for an outrageous mark-up. Example, an HK600GT kit is being offered at $150 with $100 shipping, and that's $100 more than you'd pay buying from HK.

F1roddo

Hi Moontan,

Apart from the price, do you think that its a good little heli?

It seems to have all the alloy and carbon fibre upgrades and is bascially ready to fly. Have you heard much about these Titan heli's?

Cheers
Chris

Rob2160

Hi Chris..

That looks fairly nice for an RTFheli..

Carbon and alloy is a good thing..

My only concern would be the quality of the radio, servos etc?

But its worth a try...it is similar to something I probably would have bought before I knew about the kits..

Let us know if you get one.. how it goes..

Moontan13

I don't know anything about Titan. If that's the one you like, then be sure you can get parts for it. Good that the company selling is in Australia though.

Here's a link to some I saw where the price was around $200.

http://www.xheli.com/rtf.html

Rob2160

I just had a look through that ebay seller's other helis..

Looks like all his helis are the Hobbyking Kits.. and components.. all very familiar to me..

He is buying the kits, assembling and re sellling..

He has pretty good feedback so I'd say you are pretty safe to buy from him..

F1roddo

Hi Moontan,

Yes, this small heli and others that they sell a compatiable with Trex parts.
Thanks for the link, I browsed Xheli site looking at those heli's. Probably liked the Esky 450 CP the most being RTF.
Good prices on Xheli and informative site.

Cheers
Chris

F1roddo

Hi Rob, yer I had alook at Hobby Kings kits and kinda figured that he was doing something along those lines. I have contacted a few ebay buyers
who have bought this 450 heli from him to try and get some feedback on the heli, so hopefully I will get a reply from one of them soon.
His feedback seems quite good and I have sent him a few emails enquiring about the heli and recieved quick and helpful replies.

He sure has some nice RTF heli's though.

Cheers
Chris