cubmaster

My Feedback: (51)

I'm looking for some good honest opinions on what kind of RTF heli to look at and where to look for it. This price doesn't include upgrades or extra batteries or parts, but it is the maximum I can spend on initial purchase.
It will be used almost exclusively outside and maybe a rare athletic dome or quonset run.
I'll need one to learn on ( I'm very patient) and grow into 3-D also.
My main concern is warranty, stock runtime, size and aftermarket support but I'd like one that looks cool too and the BIGGER THE BETTER.
I've looked at the Walkera 22d, 22a, 22e, 36 3D, z400. blape cp, and the night ranger.
I've got a E-Maxx that I bought broken for a steal that I'm fixing slowly and want a Heli to give me a good reason to get out of shop for a while and learn something new.
When you don't know anything about heli's it's hard to filter through the claims and BS so just lay it out for me and I'll try to decide.

Motions

For that price I would go with the HoneyBee CP2. Most people, including me, stay far away from the Walkeras.

Actually, I just found this post. Blade CP for $125.
http://www.helifever.com/forums/1911...-blade-cp-sale

Charlie

I'm not trying to be a smart *****, I'm just going to tell you the way it is. If all you have is $175 bucks (max) to spend on a heli, you are probably in the wrong hobby. Helis aren't cheap to buy or cheap to run. Sure you can buy some cheap clone heli, but remember one thing, you get what you pay for. To buy a (good) heli for $175 bucks and maintain it is a pretty tall order. To be very truthful with you, buying the heli is the only cheap and easy part of getting into the heli hobby. The heli hobby isn't cheap no matter what heli you get, electric micro or nitro.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to discourage you from the hobby, I'm just letting you know the way it is, I don't thing your going to get very far in the heli hobby with $175 bucks (max).

Motions

I completely agree Charlie. But I figured if he's anything like I was, he will get it anyway and learn that over time. I just wanted a cheap little heli I could fly around the yard. Well, I learned it's not that easy or cheap. But, I caught the bug, so I turned my whole life around and made RC helis my life and budget.

DebianDog

Yep find another hobby. What are you gonna do the first time you crash? Wait 3 months to buy parts?

Motions

That's what credit cards are for!!! [sm=surprised.gif]

Chris_s

I'm of the same mentality. Once the initial purchase is done, it's not that hard to scrounge up some cash for parts

Here's a copy of a post I made of where I got my honeybee from.

cubmaster

My Feedback: (51)

Thank you Motions and Chris_s for not being discouraging. I'll look at the HoneyBee
For the rest, I know that if I want to play with the big dogs I'll need the high dollar set-ups with boxes of spare parts and hop-ups. I see that all the time in RC trucks/cars but I run my E-maxx for little or nothing and have no complaints about it.
I'm just looking for a basic set-up that I can up-grade or pass-on later if I really get hooked. I'm not willing to spend $300+ on something that can only get used 1/2 the year here in ND and when I have time. A friend of mine has a blade cx with the duel rotors and I thought it was cool and I'm going to get a heli. I just want one a little bigger and with a single rotor design. If I can get a good deal on a 3-D model I will, if not thats OK. The main reason for the price range was that was $$ of the models I found that looked like they might fit the bill and wanted to see more choices out there.

I'm asking for ideas not grief.

credence

My Feedback: (2)

Most people here are (understandably) just trying to save you some money. What will happen, with most people who are interested in this hobby, is that they will spend $150 on a RTF heli. Play with it, crash it (alot), repair it, etc. Eventually, they learn to fly it, and then decide to spend their money on a good quality bird that will progress with their skills (t-rex/mx400/stinger, etc.)

Alot of people will usually suggest (as this post is evident) that you save your money up and just get something good quality to begin with. However, it's a double-edged blade. If you like the hobby, a good initial investment (such as a t-rex) would make learning easier, and save you alot of money in the long run as you'll only need to buy one helicopter as opposed to two or 3 as your skill progresses. On the other hand, you may end up spending a big chunk of change only to find out flying helis isn't for you, in which case you're shafted. You're damned if you do, and damned if you don't .

Personally, I started with a cheap RTF micro, and though very frustrating at first as a newbie, learned to fly it, and then made a big purchase on a much bigger second heli. Had I done things right the first time around, I could've saved a good deal of money by just getting the better quality heli first. However, when I was in your place (looking to buy a heli) I wanted to spend as little as possible incase I got bored of it, or didn't like it.

So, of course, the decision is ultimately up to you, it's just good to see where some of these other comments are coming from, and to know that people mean well, and are only trying to warn you of the potential pitfalls of this hobby. Helicopters are the most challenging part of the RC hobby, so making informed decisions will only help you in the longrun.

If you don't mind spending more money in the long run, then buying a RTF micro is your best bet to get your feet wet in RC helicopters if you're unsure as to wether flying (and maintaining them) is your cup of tea.

Of course, as stated already, you DO get what you pay for. Just about all the cheaper RTF micro helis suffer from some problem or another, it's just a matter of choosing the lesser of all the evils, and it gets even more complicated, because one persons evil may be another persons saviour. A quick glance at the Walkera forums would show you that..

Take care!

airboomerang2

I have a honeybee cp2 for sale $200 plus shipping if you are interested. BRAND NEW. Decided after I got it in the mail (1/26/06) not to pursue the hobby. E-mail me if your interested ([email protected]). Bob

airboomerang2

also comes with one extra 1200 mah li-po battery and training gear!

HELI-JOKER

My Feedback: (21)

My opinion for you and ALL new RC flyers-take yor 175-add 75 to it and buy a good sim

supertiger2004

Ya and while your practiceing your new similator, save up a 1,000.00 and get a good quality nitro heli. I added up the amount of money ive got in my simple Venture 30 and with everything on it its comes out to 1,000.00 bucks when the purchase price was just 275.00.

ginoe

a total newbie to r/c helo's though i sail an r/c sailboat (but that's easy). i did not want to drop a whole lot of $$$. here’s my experience:

$139.90 - walkera 22e w/ training gear (no problems with product to date)
$216.39 - g3 sim w/ addon4
$ 42.94 - replacement parts after crashing (twice)
$108.25 - mc 977 battery charger (ok, problem – stock charger failed)
$507.48 - total cost to date (is that a whole lot of $$$ ?)

flying around having a blast - priceless

Shortymet55

I got a HB CP2 for Christmas this year. Being 14 money is a large issue. I took into consideration all costs. I made sure i saved up enough money. I had enough to buy 2 more CP2's if i needed to, but of course i woulndt so i new i was ready. I got it for $240 shipped with extra parts I though i would break. I also got a milehighwings simulator cord to pracitce on FMS. Im glad, and I think that it is enough, for computer and real is so different spending another $200 on a good simulator didnt seem needed. Anyway I made a mistake and bought a cheap battery and charger. Month gone. So i bought a $25 cahrger and $20 battery. There good. And I already have learned to hover my heli for about 15 seconds, but im still loving it.

So pretty much I say have:
plenty of time
patience
and about $350.

rsrogers

My Feedback: (10)

Hey Guys I've been into helis now for about 2 months & due to the matter of the subject I'll give you my run down. Mind you I allready have a Sim so I wont throw that in here.

Started out w/ a Blade CX just looking for something to play w/ around the house - took it back after 5 min because it was to easy. Got the CP spent somewhere in the neighborhood of $75 in spares learning (blades $15 a set!).
Got a Revo CP eHeli from Hobby Lobby up & flying.
Got a Century Hawk Pro up & flying.
Have a Trex on the way.

Cubmaster I started out just looking for something cheap & simple to fly around the house when I wasnt flying planks but the "bug" got me. So careful & put the bug repellent on thick! Also even though I got everything down pat on the sim before even taking the CP out of the box - till you get comfortable your gonna break stuff so $175 aint gonna go far[&o]

Oh forgot to mention that I'm on the second CP - crashed the first & after figuring up the parts ($84) it was almost as cheap to go ahead & get the ARF ($89) & not fool with trying to put it all back together. Just swap the electronics. No matter the objective if you fly helis your gonna spend $$$$$

airboomerang2

cubmaster, I have a honeybee cp2 for sale for $199 + shipping. It is brand new, hasn't been flown. I just got it on 1/26/06 and decided to stick with flying airplanes. It comes with an extra battery and training gear also. If you are interested contact me ([email protected]). Bob

cubmaster

My Feedback: (51)

Well I've been looking around and so far i'm thinking a ESky HoneyBee CP2 for $179 is a good starter. RC-Expert.com has a combo that comes with 2 lith batts plus free training kit and free pc SIMS kit. Is this Heli ready for a brushless or do I need a new esc for this upgrade? what is the difference between this and the Blade CP

airboomerang2

Sorry, I don't know a whole bunch about the heli's-this is my first one. I do know from looking around at alot of forums that the honeybee has everything with it already included like lipo battery and is already 3d ready, unlike the blade which you have to spend additional money to upgrade to 3d and also to purchase a lipo battery for it. The blade only comes with nicad battery stock. Both are around the same price. I bought the honeybee over the blade for these reasons.

airboomerang2

also wanted to tell you it will cost you around $35-$40 shipping + your $179 depending on how fast you want to receive your heli, to ship from Japan.

PaveLow58

If you are creative and have some energy, sales ability and a little heart, you can leverage an initial purchase of an indoor/micro helicopter into better things.

Within a few weeks, I've done the following:

1. Acquired a Blade CX, cheap and easy to control.
2. Broke the rotor head of 1212 inner shaft.
3. Acquired Parts and Learned How to Repair It.
4. Improved it with heat sink, and drilled hole in canopy for access to Mixture pot.
5. Learned How to Trim It and Fly It with some advice from Really Good People Here.
6. Demonstrated it in conjunction with talks from the NASA Glenn Research Center Website and Alberta's Thrill of Aviation Website.
7. Sold the improved kit to a local Charter Elementary School and taught a teacher how to fly it.
8. Used the proceeds from the sale of the CX to acquire a Blade CP.

I'll Repeat the steps above as necessary and/or possible.

Its no fun for me flying the helicopter alone. Is better with an audience of curious children. In fact, the helicopter could be the single most important symbol and centerpiece of any school science program.

Here's why:

1. SPACE: I can fly a micro helicopter in the gym or cafeteria of a school that doesn't have a field to support an airplane.

2. SCIENCE: The math, physics, electronics, radio and even control systems theory underlying the rc helicopter provides limitless food for learning.

3. HISTORY: The scientific and political battles fought in convincing people that this could actually be done is fascinating. The Wright brothers were motivated by a toy Penaud helicopter in 1878, but actually gave up on the idea.

The following people are great stories in innovation and make for good biography assignments for the language teachers.

Leonardo da Vinci, Jan Bahyl, Oszkár Asbóth, Louis Breguet, Paul Cornu, Emile Berliner, Ogneslav Kostovic Stepanovic, and most importantly Igor Sikorsky and Arthur M. Young.


So I think you can take $175 shoe-string budget and grow it into anything you want. Its been done before.

dsltek432

It is not brushless ready. Only lipo ready.

credence

My Feedback: (2)

Good post! It's good to hear you teaching the younger generation about flight. I'd be mildly concerned about some safety risks with flying near children though. I've been at the park a few times flying my larger electric and when kids start gathering around to watch it really makes me nervous. Even if i'm confident in my own flying abilities, theres no telling if something were to go horribly wrong mechanically, or even electronically, in flight. I'd rather not be responsible for putting a child in the hospital, or worse! [X(]

wingspan99

My Feedback: (2)

PaveLow, with the amount of creativity and sales ability that you put into that heli and the demonstrations you gave, you could have made a lot more money than $175! That seems like $175,000 worth of work. -Tom

PaveLow58

Honestly, this was all done in a matter of 3 weeks using materials already available online.

So, its not as much work as it sounds.

You can give demos without much risk too! Just show them how the swashplate linkages work and turn the blades and show em some photos of the Kamov series.

Tell em stories about Milton Wright bringing home a toy Penaud helicopter in 1876.