I am an accomplished 3d airplane pilot and I would like to try a helicopter. I have mastered, and quite frankly become bored with, my coaxial chopper and would like to get into a smaller ccpm machine. There are so many choices and I have my eye on the helimax axe. It is a very complete setup, however I have a ccpm capable radio and I don't mind some assembly. I'd prefer something which is complete with motor, speed control and gyro and is 3d capable for the future. Also, a good supply of replacement and upgrades. I would really appreciate your advise!

Awesome first post. However- terrible choice of a heli that you have your eye on... I think that most will agree that it is just not that great of a bird.

A budget would be nice.

For a lower budget, I would ask you to consider the Esky Belt CP or the Esky Honeybee King 2. They both come in a variety(RTF, ARF, bare bones...) and have awesome support(as in cheap compared to Eflite...). Both are able to perform 3D.
http://jaghobbies.com/rc_planes/ek1h-e016a_cart.htm
http://jaghobbies.com/rc_planes/belt_cp_cart.htm

For a higher budget(one I wish I had, lol) Consider the Align T-rex 450 or 500. Amazing quality, but on the more expensive side. Definitely more than capable for 3D.
Not sure the best place to get these...

Hope this helps...

Trex it.

walleye, i bought the trex v2 on tuesday, v2 kit, never opened it and got thinking of the expence. took it back today and bought a rtf blade 400. had a good first day, just hovering around. looks and seems like a good heli. i've heard and i believe the trex is super and will probably get one down the road, but i wanted togo right now. who knows . i might be perfectlly happy with the 400 blade @ about half the price.

I guess my all up budget is about $200. I thought that I might get that response regarding the helimax. I was interested in it because of a positive review in a magazine. I would love to see just one review where they say, "this product is a p.o.s." Perhaps helicopters are the same as planes in that the horizon or great planes products are usually outdone by the smaller distributors. Am I maybe getting ahead of myself with the ccpm? After reading a post of another beginner I realize I was mistaken with the difference between fixed pitch and ccpm. maybe the honeybee will do just fine. At $99 from Hobby-Lobby and cheap repairs, it may be the wise choice.

the fixed pitch is better for beginners but you can learn on a ccpm. As a plane guy, if you already have a good sim then you can learn fairly quickly on ccpm (I did that). But... if you want to learn fast and not have much down time I'd suggest getting 2 hbfp so you have a back up when one is down for repairs.

I'll share my experience with you and you can judge for yourself.

I flew planks for years and decided about 1 year ago to try helis. My progression of expenditures.

Blade CP

Simulator

2nd Blade CP

Blade CX2

Raptor 50

Raptor 50


I have a box full of wadded up mini-electric helis. I fly my 50s all the time. I've just reached the point to where I can do a little inverted and 3D.