Gaz Elliott Posted December 27, 2008 Share Posted December 27, 2008 I have been looking at these two models and i was all set to get the blade when some said it was not it was cracked up to be and that the Trex 450 was far superior . this has left me stumped Only having flown contra rotating helis and pico z I am stuck advice please??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wlfk Posted December 27, 2008 Share Posted December 27, 2008 I don't know the blade at all, but I do know the T-Rex and it is pretty good, provided you go for one with a metal rotorhead - makes crashing a lot cheaper. Carbon fiber frames and the metal tail are nice but not necessary. in some ways it's a question that needs to be better defined as there are so many versions of the T-Rex. For example, the 450x is a very different beast from the 450se v2. The same is probably true of the Blade. There's also the matter of what electronics you put on the helicopter. Personally I believe quite strongly that it's better not to cut corners. The 450 goes well with HS65MG servos for the cyclics, a logictech 2100 gyro (smaller and lighter than futaba) and a digital servo for the tail. It all ends up being quite expensive, but otherwise crashes become very expensive, and the helicopters fly poorly. A 450 with lesser electronics will be a completely different beast... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fats Flyer Posted December 27, 2008 Share Posted December 27, 2008 Easy choice this...................T REX everytime my freind Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Davies 2 Posted December 28, 2008 Share Posted December 28, 2008 i went from contras to blade400 it more twitchy than thought the t-rex seemed more stable to me having watched someone else fly one so i say t-rex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnH Posted December 30, 2008 Share Posted December 30, 2008 Kevin, that comparison is only valid if you watch the same person fly both models. If you fly the Blade & someone else (who turns out later to have 20 years experience) flies the T-Rex, then it proves nothing other than that they're more experienced.I have nothing against either model, but I do know the Blade 400 retails for about £270 complete with 2.4GHz radio. I put a Twister Storm in the air complete with 35MHz radio for under £200. There are some shops selling the Belt CP with radio for under £150. There are cheaper options than the Blade if money is a consideration, but the T-Rex isn't one of them. If money is no object then, yeah, spend as much as you can & keep your LMS in business Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Davies 2 Posted December 31, 2008 Share Posted December 31, 2008 hi john fair comment. theres always s/h to consider thats where ill be looking come the good weather wen i replace my blade. got offered a cracker a few weeks ago but am saving to replace my camera first Kevin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MThemadhatter Posted January 3, 2009 Share Posted January 3, 2009 If I had the money with those choices I would go for the T-rex as the spares are readily available. My LHS sells both trex and blade 400 and they have the trex but not the blade spares in stock. IMHO it's not the intial outlay on the heli you have to think about, it's how much it will cost to fix it after the inevitable and how long you have to wait for spares For example today I flew mine (Trex450 clone) backwards into the ground, and had the bits I needed a couple of hours later, and am in the process of rebuilding it. Would have had to order the Blade 400 bits.I also agree about the electronics, a heli with good radio gear will always fly better. I had some sg90's in mine first to get me going and I switched to HS65MG and the difference was very noticable, which I had not expecetd it to be. With the T-rex you can hand pick your componets to a point. My only grumble with Align is that they don't do a bare bones kit with just the airframe. So you are paying for motor/esc/lipo whether you are going to use them or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owen Hailey Posted January 25, 2009 Share Posted January 25, 2009 Hi all The best heli in the hands of a exspert is well worth the out lay, as it will stay in one peace, but in the hands of a novice will end up a more exspencive pile of scrap, so do not spend to much money till you know where you are going, that is my advice for what its worth. Keep it in the air Owen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Manning Posted February 13, 2009 Share Posted February 13, 2009 I have a Trex450 clone kit, It's missing some essential bits. Question is, how neer a Trex 450 is it? Then I can use the align motors etc. If you are moving from contra rotators to conventional, go for cheap all up. eg twister v2. Support your LMS and buy what they have spares for. Get out and Fly , John M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wlfk Posted February 16, 2009 Share Posted February 16, 2009 If you are moving from contra rotators to conventional, go for cheap all up. eg twister v2. I really disagree with this. My experience with cheap flying things is that you get what you pay for. I have yet to see a cheap helicopter that was truly controllable. Perhaps experts can do it, but that's also to say it's not a good helicopter to learn on. My flatmate bought two or three cheap helicopters and spent more than I did on my good one. I couldn't control any of them, yet I can fly my T-rex pretty well. Support your LMS and buy what they have spares for. Again, if I followed this advice I'd have been stuck with a really crappy artf. If you have a good model shop that sells what you want, then by all means. But Ebay spare parts for the T-Rex are 50% what the model shops charge. Proper helicopters are notoriously expensive and you need to save money where you can. With the internet, you can get next-day delivery for less than the cost of a bus ticket to the model shop. And a lot of the ebay dealers are small businesses. I don't see the ethical difference in supporting a small internet business or a small local business. Both are laudable aims, but only if they sell what you need. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delta Whiskey Posted February 16, 2009 Share Posted February 16, 2009 Yes, I disagree with wlfk, in that there is no point in getting metal upgrades just yet, you will crash, and that will only make replacement parts more expensive! I do agree going the Trex route though, but stick with stock parts for now, once you have some flying hours experience, and can last weeks without crashing, then when you do, replace with metal / carbon upgrades, as long as you know what caused the crash in the first place ( it will be usually you if it is setup correctly in the first place, and if the wallet can afford it! Oh and use a sim, if you are not already ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaz Elliott Posted February 16, 2009 Author Share Posted February 16, 2009 Well I gave in and got a blade 400. I am learning the various techniques and have set up the tx according to boggy on another site ( sorry!!!) It has tamed it down no end and I am managing a hover in the garden . Stripped one set of gears but at £2 in aint going to break the bank. Once the learning stage is out i will up grade servos etc. Would have like a TREX but the blade solved 2 problems in one. 1 it came with a 2.4 spektrum 2. I got it for a mega deal price and am well chuffed. BRING ON THE TRUMPETS!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delta Whiskey Posted February 16, 2009 Share Posted February 16, 2009 My brother has a blade, and is a total beginer, and trashed in on his first attempt from grass, a month later he had it ready again, this time I advised him to add some wheel colletts to the fly bar, to tame it down a bit, and also set up more expo on the radio. Seems to have help. Also get somewhere with a smooth surface, ideally a large sheet of ply or similar it help him when getting light on the skids to get used to the tail input, before lifting off completely, but it sounds like your hovering already so probably beyond this stage! I think it was the wrong choce for him, as it's classed as an Intermediate to Advance flying skills, but there are lots of ways to tame it down! Good Luck and enjoy! (looks calm out there today too!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wlfk Posted February 16, 2009 Share Posted February 16, 2009 I still disagree about the metal upgrades. Or at least I half disagree... My experience was that small dings rarely damage the metal components, but frequently break the plastic ones. But it depends very much on the component. I've found that the metal rotorheads are much more resilient than the plastic ones, and can also save the plastic components (e.g. mixer arms) in a crash. On the other hand, a metal tail is just as likely to break as a plastic one, but much more expensive. The most important thing is simply to hit throttle hold whenever you think you're about to crash. I agree entirely on the sim. Try Clearview, if you're on a budget. Glad to hear you went for a proper helicopter, which the blade is. Have fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Manning Posted February 16, 2009 Share Posted February 16, 2009 Wow, Wonderfull replies. Thanks to WLFK, and others. Lots of usefull info. many thanks. I must get some dark tan polish to repair the leather chair/ bladecx2 colision zone. John M Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barnesyboy Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 I have the Blade 400 and its a cracker of a heli, flew it pod and boom for a while and got the basic areos down with it, Its now going scale with the Align Hughes 500 body metal head and tail If u want to run batts bigger than 3s1p 2000mah you need a trex canopy on it as the blde one isnt big enough, straight swap and looks beter can be found on ebay for about £6, I also use glass 325mm blades bought off ebay for 2pairs for £8 ish same as the align ones but under Halve the price BB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barnesyboy Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 [ scale pics Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Mackey Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 Looks nice Mark. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barnesyboy Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 cheers bud BB Got your PM were all pukka ta Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Mackey Posted February 17, 2009 Share Posted February 17, 2009 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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