RC HELICOPTERS any experts here - DPChallenge Forums

Tamron SP AF 28-75mm f/2.8 XR Di for Canon

11/23/2007 02:47:00 PM · #1

Anybody here into "electric" RC helicopters.

I want to get into it because i'm impressed with the little $20 mirco unit. Technology has made it an affordable hobby now. I want to get a starter training unit for around $200, but I'm being bombarded with options. Good units I've seen range from $130-$250 and I'm thinking of the esky honey bee king 2 or esky belt cp with the brushless motor.

These are the brands that seem to be good, but i dont know wat order they fall in ranking as preferred choice(u know, like Canon then Pentax then nikon and so on LOL).

T-rex - (I think is the #1, but too expensive)
Eskry - ( I think i prefer their line up)
wakera - ( Cheaper but mostly use Nimh)
Falcon - Seems overpriced

So! features I'm looking for is:
1 brushless motor
2 lipo battery only
3 gyro
4 upgradeability to mostly aluminum rotors and acc.
5 eCCPM or CCPM I think I'd prefer eCCPM
6 Close to $200
7 most importantly RTF ready to fly

philup

Canon EOS-5D

11/23/2007 03:03:13 PM · #2

I wish I could help you with helicopters. I used to fly airplanes. Just get a trainer (somebody else who can fly a helicopter and is attached to your remote) so you don't crash on your first try :).

Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 EX DG Macro for Nikon

11/23/2007 03:34:43 PM · #3

I dont know anybody here that flys that kinda stuff. Actually i do, but their into the older gas stuff. What i really want is info on which brand and model to start with.

FireBird

11/23/2007 05:09:10 PM · #4

Originally posted by dmadden:

Anybody here into "electric" RC helicopters.

Stick with your 20 dollar unit and try to find someone locally to you that can teach you the ropes. R/C copters are one of the few things that can dissipate money faster than buying expensive lenses. The only thing that can dissipate money faster is a woman buying shoes on Black Friday. (Ducks
and runs for cover.)

Message edited by author 2007-11-23 17:09:53.

cryan

Nikon D700

11/23/2007 05:37:28 PM · #5

Go to your local hobby shop and talk to the guys working there. I too am trying to get into helos, they are just plain cool. All I do right now is drive stuff. I know there are plenty of really RTF kits out there. Another good place to look is Towerhobbies.com.

StevePax

Canon PowerShot S50

11/23/2007 05:49:50 PM · #6

I've been looking into this too, believe it or not. I went down to my local hobby shop (which isn't very local - about 40 miles away, since I live in a small town off the beaten path) and talked to them. If you've seriously never flown before, their recommendation for an electric helicopter was the Blade XP or Blade XP2 (same chopper, just an upgraded radio on the XP2). Then, once you've mastered that, move up to the Blade CP or CP Pro. I'm sure there are as many opinions on that as there are hobbyists, but that's the info they gave me. I've seen the CP Pro doing some pretty amazing 3D acrobatics on Youtube - do a search and check it out. As for me, I really think I'm going to just get the Blade XP and stick with that for a while - I'm not really interested in moving up to the really crazy stuff.

Nikon AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor 12-24mm f/4.0G IF-ED

11/23/2007 07:07:06 PM · #7

No hobby shops here, period! :)
I cant find the blaze xp only the cp but I got a lot of info from some guy in a forum. I'll be going with the esky honey bee king 2 $150 or the esky belt cp $190. They are very stable for beginners and cheap by comparison. These seem to be the most popular in that range. Parts seem to be sold at every site i look at.
As for the hobby being expensive, well i guess i dont see it that way yet. The cost for parts are like $30 here $3 there. But the gas models which i would never get into are expensive and so are the parts.

jbsmithana

Nikon D300

11/23/2007 08:08:12 PM · #8

I race 1/10th scale Electric Trucks, not copters, but I know a few people who do (or have tried).

Just a word of advice. They sell training software for your computer that uses an actual controller. That way your training does not wreck multiple copters while your learning.

I did a quick search but did not find it but I know a guy who has it so it is out there. Try here:
Horizon Hobby

I've had good luck with them as a mail order / internet provider.