formula87

I have spent some money on RC cars and they can get $$ not as much as helis I have found out. But as with RC carsI have seen friends with good name brands ie: Traxxas, HPI spend600 for the car or buggie and spend thatalso in repairing them from crashes. So I may look into a fixed pitchminiheli with the trainer and go from there. What do you think? Again I posted this in the beginner forum becuase I know nothing about helis and don't know If I will like it or give it up. Just looked like more fun then rc cars.

Solman

As I have said, MSR $180 with remote, durable and inexpensive. It can be a blast to fly as well. CP(collective pitch) on average can run anywhere from $200 to $3000. For a decent crash on my Blade 400, repairs is usually on average $80 to $160. One of my friends has a Trex 500 and he seems to average about the same. On the Trex 600/700's just a set of blades can set you back $100.

drobin

You can spend as little or as much as you want on helicopters. I started with a fp than got a cp. But I went cheap and ended up putting a lot of money into them. I ended up giving everything away and got a trex 450. No crashes all last summer but that is easy flying. Nothing fancy.I thing it was said before but check out your local hobby shop. They will have people to help you. It's hard to try to do everything on your own. And you can get good and bad info online.

formula87

Karlik....... who was flying in this vid you posted someone you know? for about 100 I don't think I could go wrong and I could get my feet wet so to speak. it seems quick foe a brushed motor heli are there upgrades done to this?

formula87

So if i got a 3 chan coaxial and mastered that and then I could move to a 4 chan fixed pitch?And I could give the coax to my 6yr old. Would the 4 chan E sky sim be okay to learn on if I am just going to stay with fixed pitch for now? ..............again I am reading everything you guys are saying but in the end my walet will unfortunatly guide in my intial investment.

formula87

what about this kit I wish I had something like this when I was working on my rc cars. http://www.xheli.com/nowwi2newfrt.html

Solman

Looks decent and it appears to have all the important size tools.

How much can you spend?

formula87

Again I originaly wanted to spend about $100-150 on a RTF fixed pitch. just to see if it is a good fit. I read about people getting these "cheaper " helis and giving up becuase they can't fly them but I also read posts about making adjustments to the rotor ect...... and having them fly great. I build and work on race cars for a hobby so I kinda like haveing to tinker with stuff to make it better.

bauerbach

FWIW, you can always sell the heli if its not for you. as your already into RC, I doubt you wont enjoy it... but still, the option to sell is there, probably at a modest loss of a hundred or 2 on a good heli, something cheaper might well not have value for resale.

I dropped 200 on a CX3. another 100 on broken parts/stock and modification. and now I have a trex 450 on its way. considerably more expensive. the radio alone was 280 I think and 110 for the RX.

costs to play, but I suspect my enjoyment in this hobby will be directly related to the quality of the equipment I use. cheap lousy heli, poor flight characteristics, weak reliability, no advanced abilities, ect. I wont be in the game long.

formula87

Okay went down to my LHS and talked to the owner he had a Blade MCX RTF tiny thing his floor demo
http://www.bladehelis.com/Products/D...rodId=EFLH2200   he wants $75 but I might get it for $50 !!!! 


then he had 10 of these rtf $119
http://www.e-fliterc.com/Products/De...rodID=EFLH1250 or I can get this for $100 RTF


http://www.xheli.com/50h33-warhawk300-m3-black.htmlor this mini by exceed coax?

Which one??????????????????

Solman

If you can get the floor demo for $50, go for it.  You can always keep it later for kids or friends after you get bored with it.  I still keep mine around for that purpose

bauerbach

the CX2 and CX3 Im torn on...I have a CX3, its really just a bit large to fly indoors, unless you have a gym or maybe an empty garage(still gonna have a short ceiling though). I can fly it in my den, but its not doing much more than hovering there. outside, it... barely manages. calm day, and it still takes full direction to stay still even with no perceptable wind.

the MCX would atleast be small enough to work inside, so thats a positive.

still, coax helis hover. nothing more than that. even with upgrades, they dont do flips, they dont move with any reasonable speed, they just... hover. and kind of drive around as you direct them. neat... but quickly grows a bit boring. So either you spend 100 bucks and get bored with it and shelf it, or you spend 100bucks, and end up replacing it in 2 weeks :/

I guess there is that chance that you spend 100 bucks, hate it, and go back to cars. but perhaps you wouldnt have hated a collective pitch...

Real2You

Just get the blade mSr and you won't get bored of it after an hour. You can fly it indoors...its super durable....it can get going pretty fast...and you can learn the different orientations so you will get the valuable muscle memory you will need if and when you get a CP heli. Opinions...Opinions...Iguess that's mine....Pick one and GOFORIT!! Have Fun!!

formula87

My bad the one at the LHS is the new Blade MCX http://www.bladehelis.com/Products/D...rodId=EFLH2400and I may be able to pick up for cheaper then 119 so I may go for that since it has a few upgrades that may make it fun for a bit longer.

formula87

I may go for the newer version MCX2 since you can change some settings as you get better so you won't get bored.  One thing I noticed is the stock tranmitter is kinda Kmart like................... The Walkera and Exceed modles look like pro transmitters and I would like someting that will fly out side that is why I was looking at the Exceed  http://www.xheli.com/50h33-warhawk300-m3-black.html   It is still a coax but I know I will have to go thru it before the first flight but it can fly outdoors and indoors. Looks like a pretty neat RTF but I will go back to the LHS today and talk to them as they only sell E flight and Novus.

Solman

I got that transmitter as well and it works fine for that application. If you go with the original MCX, all you have to do is get a swash plate for a Blade MSR and change it. It is a direct drop in and willdo the same thing.

cwalke32477

Here was my progression:
Purchased a 50-60 dollar Esky Lama cx 4ch heli, at a local computer store (of all places)
Loved it for a while but got bored.

Purchased a Esky Honey Bee King II 6ch from ebay for about $150
-good little heli, and cheap to fix. Has some minor quirks though. -like crappy gyro
I put a bunch of upgrades this heli, got it flying nice and stable, and still fly it to this day. It has survived through
9 or 10 crashes - make sure you order parts ahead of time, as everything for it comes from China, and it takes forever.
This is the Heli I really learned to fly on. And the crappy gyro makes you learn rudder control.

Just beacause I was fascinated by them, I purchased a Blade MSR. Very fun fixed pitch micro heli. And is very durable! I've slammed mine into the ground so many times, I lost count. With this bird, you can practice, carefree, because it seems like nothing breaks on it. (Well I had to replace the flybar one time)

Then I got a blade 400
The blade 400 is a bit bigger, more stable, has better quality electronics, and parts are available just about everywhere
The transmitter it comes with is also very nice and programmable. However, unlike the $150 you'll pay for an RTF Honey Bee King 2, you'll pay about $480 to $500 for the Blade 400. However, like the Honey Bee King II, the Blade is also very cheap to repair.

I have a CopterX 450 SE V2 (T-Rex clone) in the works, but have not finished it yet.

If you really want a cheap RTF that is decent and flyable (within your posted budget), go with a Honey Bee King II, make sure you order a couple sets of spares like blades, grips, pushlink set, tail boom, servos, main gear, main shaft, feathering shafts, etc. Parts delivery for this bird, is very slow.

formula87

^^^^^^cwalke32477 So would you say I would be better off buying the Blade MSR FP even though I am a begginer but the fun will last longer with that one.
Is the Blade MSR that much harder to get a handle on then the MCX or MCX2 which are coax.
Thanks

bauerbach

MSR is cheap, light, small. Its still not CP, but in any case, your worst situation you probably wont be that high up nor would it fall that fast anyway. so unless you drive it into the ground or into a tree, how much damage can you do to it? cheap platform to crash for learning purposes, I think thats important?

Real2You

Formula.....the mSR is EASY to fly....even though its a fixed pitch and not coaxial. Where the crashes come from are trying to do to much....getting "crazy" with it. But for learning to fly it's a great little indoor heli and and its super DURABLE....which is important for a beginner. When I bought mine I bought a bunch of extra parts that Ihave never used because nothing ever seems to break. Another good thing about is ....as you get better with your flying skills....you can get going pretty fast with this heli.

formula87

does it do okay outdoors?

formula87

Well I went to the LHS and tried to talk the owner down on a Blade MCX2 but ended up buying his floor model Blade MCX. Pretty fun, need to buy  another battery just for a back up.  I am glad I got it because it seems hard to fly or maybe something is out of adjustment. Since this was a floor model there was now owners man can I download one online?

Solman

They should be able to help adjust it for you especially since it was a floor model. Yes, you can go to horizon hobby website and download the PDF instructions.

formula87

I know it was after they closed got the manual online. I flew it a little got caught in a tree ect...... Can these little things get out of adjustment easy? My trims might be off also.

Real2You

If you hit a tree then you are flying outdoors and just a small breeze will make it appear out of whack. Something could still be out of alignment...does it act funny indoors also? Ihave heard people in here say their heli's flew funny by just flying under an air vent in their living room.