Who Flys?

[Trex SE]

Let me starts off this topic. Who are into electric helis here?   :shock:  I do.  :lol:

[adriantan]

hi Trex SE! I fly electric helis. Started off with a Dragonfly to learn my hovering and then moved onto a Shogun / Zap 400.... also learning my hovering. hahah.

Nah lets see... I can hover in any orientation (tail-in, nose-in, side-in) and do forward flights as well as turns. I have yet to move onto highspeed flying and backward flights. So far I have no guts to do those yet on a real heli. I have however tried it on the simulator and I fly fine there (backwards though I still crash a bit, loops, rolls, tictocs, inverted flight... orientation still off). I guess it's the "fear factor" that is limiting my abilities in real life.

I guess a Gas Chopper will be easier to fly as well as see in the sky but also scarier as it's hugh and those kinetic/stored energy in the blades is just frightening especially when they come into contact with anything apart from air even with the engine idling after a crash.

Trex: Do you fly a Trex ? Duh I know silly question but I had to ask. How's that compared to a shogun? I know it's heavier and a bit more touchy so I've heard.

[Trex SE]

The Shogun and Trex HDE has almost the same charactoristic, less responsive as compare to the CDE version. Notting beats a ccpm setup.

[adriantan]

Doesn't the Trex have CCPM ?

How long have you been flying choppers and what Nitro choppers do you fly too?

I also noticed that there are a few versions of the Trex... HDE & etc . What do they stand for and which is the best model to consider? Might decide to upgrade the shogun.

[Trex SE]

Doesn't the Trex have CCPM ?

How long have you been flying choppers and what Nitro choppers do you fly too?

I also noticed that there are a few versions of the Trex... HDE & etc . What do they stand for and which is the best model to consider? Might decide to upgrade the shogun.

The latest XL Series has 2 versions, the CDE (CCPM) and the HDE ( Machanical). I would recomend the CDE Ver.

[melvin_sin]

hi,
    i'm new to heli & still learning hover only,before that i'm flying nitro trainer airplane.my senior told me the bigger side for a heli is more easier for hover.the nitro heli less problem than the EP heli so i desire to fly a nitro heli.but i know flying EP heli is fun also.

[adriantan]

hi Melvin,

Your senior is correct to tell you that it is easier to hover a larger helicopter compared to a smaller helicopter. As such it is easier to hover Gas Choppers compared to the smaller Micro & Sub-Micro Electric Powered Helicopters. The reason is due to larger helicopters having heavier mass and thus takes more effort to move the model. This means you will have more time to react to the model's movements compared to smaller EP helicopters. Also Gas choppers are not affected by the wind as easily.

Having said that... I learned to hover on a Mini Dragonfly and having mastered that, I am proud to say I should be able to hover a Gas chopper without problem. All it takes is practice, practice and practice.

p.s. After you learn your tail-in hover, you should try your side-ins and nose-ins before learning to fly around. It'll help you save lots of money from not crashing your beloved helicopter.

trex SE, Would you know how much a Trex CDE is going for these days?

[melvin_sin]

hi,
   yep,i know.if can fly a EP heli should be no problem to handle a nitro heli.where u guys fly ur heli?check this out
   http://www.pinnaclemodel.com/index_ecat.php?cPath=1
   my fren told me the trex CDE included shipment ard US$200 at this store.

[adriantan]

Cool.. I saw a Trex there for like USD179 or so... with brushless motor and 25A esc. I wonder if we can get it locally for cheaper? Perhaps Singapore would be a better bet? I still prefer local shops because of servicing and support.

Anyway which Nitro heli are you upgrading to? Noticed you were selling your EP heli. Going for a Raptor perhaps?

When you're learning I still think an EP would be better though less stable but it'll give you more practice time at home compared to having to wait and fly only when you are at the field.

[Trex SE]

Wow.....Playpen has upgraded the forum format. Thumbs up.   

[Nan]

Hi, I am very new here. Years ago I hv a very strong interest in rc heli but cant afford to buy. Nowadays I noticed there are so many battery operated heli with a resonable prices. Recently I hv bought a mini rc heli (Fairy-SYMA) for my 3+ yrs son. It is ony RM59 at Carefour but RM168 at Bkt Bintang Plaza. Quit a bit frustated becoz it is difficult to control. Then I get a bigger one (Air Mars Champion-CITRINE:RM268) lenghten 630mm with double blade but I bought for ony RM150 at the same shop at BBP. Still cant get full control with it thats why I am here to get an advise. Pls anybody. 2ndly can anyone tell me where I can watch you fy the heli in KL? I wanna watch.

[adriantan]

If you proceed to any of the flying fields (e.g Kota Damansara, etc), you will be able to see the helicopters (gas and electric) in action. You will notice that the proper helicopters will be able to have more control. You can move the helicopter in all axis (up, down, left, right, forward, backwards, throttle) and because of that ability, you will find that the "proper" helicopters are much harder to fly. They are inherently unstable compared to the "toy" helicopters that you can find at the normal toy shops.

Toy Choppers are stable in hover and thus limits your control movements... maybe sometimes making it hard for you to put it where you want it to go. Some only go up and down and some can only yaw. However as mentioned, proper helicopters are the way to go. If you proceed to http://www.ourplaypen.com/2007/02/03/trex-600-3d-flight/ you can see a video of what a proper helicopter is capable off. It'll blow your mind!

Do take note that proper helicopters are more expensive at thousands of dollars as compared to toy choppers which are only a couple of hundreds at maximum.

[Nan]

Thanks Adrian , I appreciated everything you Feed me. U already answered my question of what u meant by a real & toy heli. Yes, if  I got time for sure I will see them play. Last time how long do u take to say that u already can hover the real heli from the 1st time you start having it? How many spare batteries do u always carry along everytime u fly yr heli just to fullfill yr day?

[adriantan]

Nan. No problem. My pleasure to provide you with my views as to the differences between the cheaper helis and the more expensive ones. For me, it took me close to 2-3 months to get into a stable hover. Slow by my standards because I was afraid of crashing the helicopter. When I first started flying, I learnt using a Dragon Fly Fixed Pitch Helicopter. For each charge, the battery lasts only 5 mins or so. After that I would go charge it for another hour or two then fly again. Since it was an electric heli, I could fly it anywhere (even from home) and that made the learning process faster instead of having to go to the flying field just to fly.

For me now, I have two packs of battery for my Zap. Each Battery is able to last about 15 mins or so. I fly each session for about 7 mins, then land and let the motor rest then fly the other 7 mins. So in total I get about 30 mins worth of flying which is more than enough for me. The other part of the hobby is to hang around and chat with your fellow buddies there at the field. It's something like fishing I guess.... it's the company that matters as well