The Fork

Hey Everybody

What do you need to get started in RC flying? I'd like to start a new hobby and be serious about it too, and this looked like a lot of fun. I've done a little research and the only turnoff is the amount of $$$ that goes into it. Exactly how much have you put into your helis? And how much prior technical experience do i need? Thanks

MonkeyDude

Plan to spend just a little over $1000 on the starting package. You really can't go lower than that...anything lower will be a waste of money. But hey, it's a hobby, so it's a sustantial part of your life, don't be cheap about it.

MonkeyDude

Here's a sample list (and a good one) to get:

A Hirobo Sceadu kit
OS 32 Engine
Futaba 9chp radio
Futaba Gy401 gyro

I personally think that's the smartest package for every beginner. The Sceadu kit can be easily upgraded to a 50. It'll last you a long long time.

The Fork

Holy.... $1000?

Well then here's my situation. Unfortunately im only 15 and therefore have very little expendable income in which to buy such a thing. I do have more than enough money in the bank but i can't get to it without my parents' signature. So i guess what i need to do is somehow convince my parents. And don't get me wrong here, i am serious about doing something like this and i'd like to learn about aeronautics and aviation and design and all that good suck up crap....
Is there any good reading material i could get to learn about RC technology and helicopters? I'm not giving this up without a fight.
Lastly... would anyone want to be kind and benevolent and sell me stuff for cheap?
Thanks

Ramjet

Start out in planes. Much less initial investment.
Also much easier to learn.

I fly everything. Planes , Heli's, and Jets.

Yes, It costs a ton of money for all of em...

But I've got some that are over 15 years old now.

Ramjet

helitroll

If you are interested in helis then buy a good radio to start. It is easier to start with a heli radio and fly planes than to upgrade later. Good luck. Also start with a simulator that does both.

MonkeyDude

Here's a plan:

Do you have any assets you want to get rid of? like videogames? Sell them on Ebay and try to collect enough money to buy a gyro.

On your upcoming birthday, ask your parents to get you a basic helicopter kit, which should be only around 300 bucks.

For Xmas, ask them to give you three hundred bucks as a gift and save it

For your next birthday, ask them for another three hundred bucks and now you have enough money to get a good radio.

In the time being, save all of your allowances and try to find a job. A thousand dollars isn't so bad if you think about it. And beside, I'm sure your parents will allow you to withdraw SOME money from the bank, say $150, there you go.

So it'll take probably a year for you to reach your goal, buy Ray's Authoritative Helicopter Manual now and start learning, you'll NEED a year to understand stuff. Then as time come, you'll be ready. Even if you have the money, you shouldn't get a helicopter right now anyway since everything is new. Learn about it first.

The Fork

That's actually not a bad plan... except that my birthday was in december but thats beside the point. Now what's the deal with this Ray's Authoritative Helicopter Manual, can i find it in any old bookstore?
Thanks

ThBrtmn

http://www6.mailordercentral.com/heliproz/default.asp
Heliproz... 25 bucks with shipping.. Good reading... and if anybody ever asks you want for your Birthday, Christmas, Easter...anything... The correct response would be "CASH"... Bank it and in no time you'll have what you need.
Hawk sport Helli kit is only 160.00..
Good Luck

CyberPilot

My Feedback: (2)

I know everyone here has good intentions but you really need to look at the big picture.

Yes, the Century Hawk Sport is only $159 but you'll still need:

(approx prices)

Radio $175
Flight Pack $100
Engine $125
Gyro $125
starter & battery $45
start wand $15
glow starter $15
fuel $20

I wouldn't want to see you spend only $159 only to be disappointed to realize that you still need to spend an additional $600 (at least) on other required equipment.

Before you spend anything, read all you can on-line (it's free) then get an idea of the type of equipment you want and check retail prices then check prices for used equipment then decide if you can swing it.

Good Luck,
CyberPilot

Furyflyer2

My Feedback: (117)

Tell your parents that flying helis will keep you off the streets and out of trouble!

Docster

My Feedback: (1)

And if you find someone selling Ray's book -- make sure it's Ray's Authoritative Helicopter Manual -- NOT Ray's Complete Helicopter Manual.
The most current edition of each is the 3rd, but the "Complete" manual is over 10yrs old. All the theory is good and stil applicibale, but the equipment setup is all old technology. As a beginner, you'll need the pointers for the NEW stuff.

Most of all -- Make the commitment and SAVE, SAVE, SAVE. Mow lawns, do whatever, but save until you have enough -- DON'T piecemeal it together -- you'll just get frustrated!

You can also get free simulators like FMS to start out with -- but you really need a controller to do any good with a sim.
Hope it all works out for ya!

ThBrtmn

Cyber,
Youre right but 160+ is alot better than 250+ or 300...+...and the reviews are good.
I could have easily saved about 400 bucks on my radio but I went with the 8103 PCM for 700. Rd6000 would have done the job for less than 300.

The Fork

One more question:

How much weight can a heli support beneath it? I had this great idea of somehow attaching one of those wireless cameras to it so i could get some "Aerial Reconnisance"
Would that be possible?
Hey, if i'm in a nuclear fallout shelter one day when North Korea attacks Ohio im gonna need to see outside!!!

CyberPilot

My Feedback: (2)

I agree $160 for a heli is a darn good price. In fact, I own a Hawk Sport and I love it. I just didn't want this kid thinking that $160 was all he'd ever need to spend. It would be very disappointing to save up $160, buy the heli then be stuck!

CyberPilot

CyberPilot

My Feedback: (2)

Docster,

Where does it say 3rd edition? I just bought one and I'd like to make sure it's current.

Mine does say "Second Printing July 2002"

Seems pretty current, only 6 months old.

Thanks,
C.P.

MonkeyDude

It has to be a very small camera. But balancing it would be a problem. You'll need special equipment, which cost a ton of money, like...$600.

If you are REALLY ambitious, here's a plan for you:

Spend $1000 on a X Cell gasser and assemble it yourself without any help.[IMG]http://[/IMG] Then get a Futaba 9Z and 5 9253 servos to control it. Get a Gy601 gyro. Then, get one of those awesome camera mounting equipment for around $600 and mount it to your XCell. Then, get a digital SLR camera so you can take digital pics in the sky! How fun! You should get the Canon EOS 1D, which is around $7000 bucks. Then you are pretty much all set. Mount the camera and the equipment and try to fly it yourself first and see if you can go above 200mph with the camera mounted.

extremeflying

My Feedback: (7)

ok now calm down recently i just helped a friend building a complete package the cost is about $700-$800 with everything including field equipments and little tiny stuff he will need. not a bad deal at all. when i first started i spent nowhere near $1000 but now i think i have spent over $1500. hey 2 raps and a LMH all rtf except one rap needs a rx. pretty good deal

The Fork

Im hearing $700 all the way to $1200 to start out.... can we agree on a reasonable, logical figure here?

fiddy1

You have to decide on which Heli you want to get a accurate price range. I would suggest you get Rays book and maybe Realflight G2 before you go for the big dollar on the heli and equipment. Talk to someone at your local flying field or hobby store and get some ideas of what kind of heli you want to go with. Remember, you will need to buy not just a heli but tools to assemble it and fiels equipment to run it. Its a big step in this hobby and you dont want to be cheap on your heli. Most 30 size birds range from 159 up to 300 bucks. You might want to go with something that can grow with you. Start with a 30 and then move up to a 50 size. Rember this also, Bigger means more money! Blades, engines, and fuel. Learn on the sim if you can, it will save you money in the long run. Its not if you crash its when you will crash.

larrytoelle

Mr. Fork ...

About a month ago, just before xmas, I went to a hobby shop to purchase a present for one of my grandsons ... about your age. While waiting to check out, I had an opportunity to examine a 60 size helicopter up-close-and-personal. WOW ... I said ... that's some toy for $1600 bucks or so.

When I was about 12-16 years old, I loved building U-Control airplanes from balsa wood kits. I had one old McCoy engine that someone had given me and a pretty good Fox engine that I'd received for Xmas ... and about 30 planes, all assemble, but only a couple at a time with paint on them. Money was always a problem. The kits and glue were relatively cheep, but the hardware was outrageously expensive, especially on my newspaper route income.

When I found out about girls, the airplanes were set aside and as they say, I never looked back. After retiring a few years ago with health problems, I've been bored spitless. That helicopter in the hobby shop stuck in my head, and I set out to buy one and learn to fly it. Like you, it wasn't exactly in my reach, but it was possible.

After spending hours and hours browsing the internet, reading what others think about this or that, I concluded that it might be smart to start with used radio equipment and an inexpensive used helicopter. Electronics seldom wear out, except for the moving parts. Buying good electronics, whether heli transmitters or stereo or computers ... will save money in the long term and will retain your value.

The helicopter itself, I reasoned, was pretty much of an expendable item. I can better afford to expend $200 than $500. The transmitter, radio, servos, gyros and other equipment on the other hand, are less likely to be lost due to accident and therefore less expendable. Inexpensive or functionally challenged electronics are likely to always be a problem, if not electronically, at least a problem because you'll always be wanting more. Might as well get that behind you from the beginning and get what you really want ... right?

Here is what I've spent so far and I haven't bought the first gallon of fuel. It's a bit frightening, but ... I feel like it will provide years of recreation and challenge and is therefore, really an investment.

- JR PCM 10 (maybe 6 years old ... little used) - $375
- Hawk III (assembled w/engine, good servos, gyro and other upgrades, a low mileage model) - $275
- RealFlight G2 simulator - $190
- Tools (pitch guages, nut drivers, allen wrenches, etc) - $110
- Field Stuff (Starter, batteries, glow starters, chargers, etc) $100
- Supplies (oils, grease, glues, tie wraps, etc) - $50

TOTAL = $1100

Starting from scratch, this perhaps will get me flying when I graduate from the SS(simulation school).

I hope this helps you out. Like you, I'm looking forward to hanging a WiFi 802.11b internet camera from underneath one of these. It'll take a 60 size, at least, to do it. But between here and there, I'll be learning to fly and having fun in the process.

Good Luck,

The Fork

I'm hearing this RealFlight G2 simulator come up a lot. I downloaded this "FMS" simulator off of the internet and have been screwing around with that.

Is it necessary to have a top of the line flight sim? And is it necessary to have person-to-person training of some sort from a pro?

Thanks again for all your helpful input

ThBrtmn

I too downloaded the FMS Sim FIRST... I considered it a warmup for the G2... Got good at controling the keyboard on the FMS... then went to the G2 and had to relearn with a handheld TX... I think I can fly pretty good with the G2.. and would definitely suggest it for nothing else but for you to decide that you are going to commit... learing is the second best thing about it... I havent flown my real bird yet but the G2 is suppose to be as true to life as possible... and Ive heard a buch of Sim/Newbie stories that excel in beginner performance their first time at the sticks. Its alot of $$$ to commit to and I dont think you'll find a negative word about starting out with a Sim... Especially the quality of the G2.

440GTX

I learned the basics of heli flying with FMS
HOVERING. Can't go wrong with FMS for a start

Docster

My Feedback: (1)

Cyber,
I could have sworn that it said 3rd edition the last time I thummed through it @ the LHS -- guess not -- memory's not what it used to be! I currently have "Ray's Complete..." that someone posted as the "current issue sold in RCM" -- It's NOT! (Well, thchnically, it is the current version of the "complete" manual, but I don't think that's still in print!) -- My fault, I should have researched!
Anyway -- just trying to keep others from falling victim to the same thing.
Sorry if I made every panic and think thay didn't have the "current" version! :stupid:
Doc