Choosing a Micro Electric Heli

[Scruffmeister]

Hi All,

I'm looking to buy a bind-n-fly electric heli. For context, I can fly fixed wing well enough but have no experience of helis. However, I have learned to hover, fly around etc. fairly well on the Phoenix flight sim. I want to buy something that I will no get bored with in 15 minutes, something that I can grow into. Obviously I don't want to bite off more than I can chew... can someone recommend a good entry point for me? Would the Blade mCPX be pushing it too far?

Thanks

[Steve W-O]

Got no idea if it is what you are looking for, but the clone 450s from HK can be put together for a very good price.

 

I can keep them in one piece, but not on Phoenix!

[cagey]

If as you say, you can do all the basic stuff on a sim, then a Blade mCPX would be ideal. I'm at the hovering stage with a 450 and being VERY cagey with it. Been on Phoenix for over a year and doesn't do it for me, but in the 20 flights I've had with the mCPX I've learnt more than all the simming put together. It's a cracking little heli, capable of serious flying as well as being terrific fun.

[Ed Darter]

you looking for something to fly indoors or outdoors? makes quite a difference to the type of model to look at.....

[paul@scc]

Posted by cagey on 22/06/2011 22:13:13:

If as you say, you can do all the basic stuff on a sim, then a Blade mCPX would be ideal. I'm at the hovering stage with a 450 and being VERY cagey with it. Been on Phoenix for over a year and doesn't do it for me, but in the 20 flights I've had with the mCPX I've learnt more than all the simming put together. It's a cracking little heli, capable of serious flying as well as being terrific fun.

+1. Just got one and it really is a fantastic little heli.

Didn't think I would get back into the heli world, but I wanted something to fly in the garden and ended up with the MCPX. Very happy with it, Toooo much fun,

 

[David E]

The MCPX seems pretty good outdoors as well as indoors. Seems to cope with the wind surprisingly well!

 

The HK450 is a fairly good bet too, though be sure to read up online about things to check / fix before flying.

[Allan Bennett]

Just like cagey, a sim doesn't do it for me. I started into helis, after 25 years in fixed wing, with a Twister Bell 47 coaxial. I flew it (still do) in the garage and, in my opinion, it's an ideal way to get your brain/eye/finger coordination dialled in to the needs of a heli. Spares are readily available, and it's robust enough to fly with nicks in the blades, and to bump into things without falling apart completely.

 

After two years on the Twister I felt I was ready for a T-Rex 500, which can handle the wind a bit better than the 450-size helis. Its handling was, of course, much different from the Twister, but I'm sure I had less crashes with it than I would have done if I hadn't had the previous experience with the Twister.

[Lazygit]

If you can handle coordinated and independent rudder and aileron on fixed wing, then the mCPx and some long grass is the way to go. They are stable and will fly hands off for a few seconds at a time. They will cope with the wind better than most aircraft . They are very light, so crashes are not totally destructive. The repair costs are reasonable.

 

They are not the thing to use in the average house though unless you are good. Outside they are great, will cope with wind that would keep most flyers on the ground, even if they turned up at the field. They take up quite a bit of space so a garden will be restrictive.

 

The unfortunate bit is they give you the impression you can fly a helcopter. Be warned, moving to a flybar type will still cost you in repairs. Flybar helis are very different to fly as they don't have the same level of stability as the mCPx.

 

Overall the mCPx is probably the best training aid there is.

[Anthony Billings]

Hi, if you want an indoor model then go for the Blade MSR, do not go for the T Rex 100 which is a poor copy and does not fly very well. The MSR will fly outdoors in a light breeze, is fairly forgiving of crashes and is very stable, also great fun, i've had mine for over a year now and still love throwing it around.

If you are after a bigger outdoor model ie 450 size then I would recommend a CX 450, a clone of the T Rex 450 but a lot cheaper, you can learn on a 450 size and if you google Radds school of flight it will give you a free download of lessons to follow, he talks to you like you are a little kid, but if you can put up with that he will teach you to get it in the air.

The advantage of learning on a 450 size is that when you are ready you can mod the 450 a good deal before buying a bigger and more expensive heli later.

As you can tell I have come from flying heli's to having a go with fixed wing for a while, any heli related questions then just shout.

Tony

[Myron Beaumont]

Very interesting your comments on sims! I've had several goes on the flightmaster/clearview one I have and find them almost impossible to control ,in fact the ones they call trainers are the worst .IMHO. Maybe it would be fun to try a real one .We have plenty of long grass by the way

Myron

[Anthony Billings]

With a sim, it all depends on how you set the sim up for your chosen heli, ie if we look at phoenix, there is a vast array of settings that can be changed just as in real life with a programmable Tx.

One of the easiest things to try first is to change the sim speed, by slowing it down to say 80% things will be a bit easier, then change the ground effect to 100% as in real life, then you can add the expo to your controls which will smooth things out.

As for model selection, leave the so called trainers alone for the time being, choose the largest heli you have available in your menu, as with fixed wing in general, the larger the model the more stable it tends to be.

As you get more proficient you can start to reduce tha amount of expo you are using, change to a smaller model and start to increase the sim speed.

Sims if set up correctly are a great tool for training, especially heli's, as with a real model, any sort of crash or hard landing will cost loads in repair bills, in fact my first hard landing with a belt cp 450 cost over £30 in spares required to get it flying again.

Tony

[Lazygit]

Posted by Anthony Billings on 17/08/2011 19:46:49:

....................... as with a real model, any sort of crash or hard landing will cost loads in repair bills, in fact my first hard landing with a belt cp 450 cost over £30 in spares required to get it flying again.

Tony

This doesn't happen with a mCPx. They weigh 45.5g so crashing on long grass is a non-event. Just cut the rotor speed quickly.

I learnt on a Shuttle, £100+ per crash, a Mini-Titan (450 size) £80 per crash, and a TREX 250 £20 to £50 per crash, I now fly the mCPx most days in any conditions flying high (50ft) circuits. It's a much better learning tool.

 

250 size helis and upwards are machines which can bite you, or onlookers, badly. The mCPX is relatively hazard free and costs £4 to £10 per crash assuming there is any damage at all. Mostly it's a case of realigning the main gear and pushing it back on the shaft.

[Barryorbik]

I have been crashing and repairing my heli's for at least two years. My fleet is the same as Anothony's and I have suffered with similar repair costs plus lots of lost flying opportunities waiting for spares to arrive. The biggest advances I have made were not with Phoenix but firstly the Blade MSR, as this allowed 'real' indoor heli practice and latterly with the MCP-x (outdoors only though because its mighty quick) . Both of these heli's will help to develop your skills but if you go the MCP-x route its worth getting a BNF version and a Spektrum computer radio such as the DX6i, DX7 or DX8 etc, as this will allow you to tame it down quite a lot whilst you are learning. The MSR is cheaper but it can get a little boring outside in low wind conditions, as it only flies the right way up and is far too stable when compared to 'normal' RC helicopters.

 

If the MCP-x had been available when I started two years ago, I think I would have been doing F3C by now instead of still practicing for an A cert, plus my credit card bill would have been miniscule.!

 

Have fun but stay safe - Barry