globemast

Hi guys,

I would like sto start flying Electric RC Helis. For a long time i have been flying RC airplanes and now want to make a transittion.

I have seen several electric helis with low prices like the Dragonfly 4, the Dragonfly 35, the Honeybee 2 RC, e.t.c.

What from the above helicopters or any other from your experience would you suggest me ???


Thank you.

oops

Hi Globemast.

Personally I'd recommend the Dragonfly #4. It's fun, good for flying inside (even in small houses) and OK outside.

Most importantly, it's easy and cheap to fix, and it's been said that if you can fly a Dragonfly #4 well, you can fly any Heli Quite probably true.

THe bigger models are more stable, but since you'll crash a lot while learning, they are a lot more expensive to fix, and do a lot more damage from just small accidents because of the higher energy in the rotors.

DF4's usually just twist and most commonly, the repair is just setting them up again

David

34Ford

My Feedback: (2)

I bought the Blade CP as my first and I believe its worth the money and now Im hooked, so I sold it and Im ordering a T-Rex with the works tomorrow.
If you have any local hobby shops you might want to see what they carry in the way of replacement parts for which brand of copter. It can really help when you cant wait for that part to come via the internet. Just something to think about.

globemast

Yes i am really interested also in the DF4. But what puts me off is that it is a Fixed Pitch heli, which as far as i know limits a lot.

What would you recommend me for a Collective Pitch Heli, to start with.

Thank you.

thecheatscalc

oh take the 35 off your list, you'll want the 36. It's a great heli, but it MUST have a good brushless in it (Please go the align 420LF route) mine after setting up can fly easy in low winds, of course anything over hair wipping is too much if you want learn. Besides there's a great thread on setting it up, wait what's the name... oh here it is thecheatscalc's guide to tuning/assm the 36, heh, I think you'll like it a lot. I kinda like the #4 as well, and I'm thinking of getting it actually. Money and parents are an issue though.

globemast

thecheatscalc ,


Can you please show me the link to your guide????

sparkling_fist

if ur going for a 36..
you MUST go brushless and you SHOULD definatly buy the align 420lf


*money and parents are always the issue..
im 14 have same problems..

thecheatscalc

globemast, my guide is just down the page a tad! here's the link even still http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_3480219/tm.htm please ask questions! it's a work in progress but tuning is completed, next comes the part most people have trouble with, ASSEMBLY

globemast

Hey sparkling_fist, what is the 420 lf?

Thank you.

oops

Hi Globemast,

The main limit of the FP Model #4 is that it can't fly upside down. It's only other real limitations are the blade design (fixed by clipping) and the power with a stock battery (acceptable, however fixed by bigger batter or better motor).

The new models are a full generation ahead of the old ones, but all the parts are still compatible.

I got into some serious FFF over the weekend before I crashed it. Probably over 30 kph, which is a reasonable speed for a small model heli.

Response is good, but the stock motor and battery can't pull out of a fast dive quickly enough. That's not a problem with a bigger motor or battery, but does affect it stock.

Still, I'm happy enough. With light blades, the response to the throttle is sufficient. Sure it's a little laggy, but my opinion of the Model #4 is that it's the ultimate trainer.

My other model is an AluSEF (Like a model #35, but all aluminium and fiberglass). My #4 time helps me with it a LOT.
I try not to crash that one, so I don't get too adventurous with it.

You can get a bigger model, but the #4 is a great start. I spend many hours hovering mine in the living room and bedroom, and lately, have taken to walking it to the park and also through the house (flying through open doors).

Best of all, it flies acceptably stock.

The only mod I do to my Walkera 4's now is to clip the chord to 32mm. The rest is stock - even the battery !

David

sparkling_fist

by 420lf i ment
the align brushless 420lf motor..
http://www.allerc.com/product_info.p...oducts_id=1608 is a link to where u can buy 1..

but if ur getting it u might as well get it cheaper from a combo deal
http://www.allerc.com/product_info.p...oducts_id=1389

the site is good and trustworthy

globemast

So in the end would you recommend me buying a Dragonfly 4 or a Dragonfly 36?

Thank you

sparkling_fist

"in the end" geat song by linkin park *best band

if u do buy the walkera 36
buy it without any electronics and instal your own.

oops

Hi Globemast,

That final decision is yours.

I first bought a Walkera 22A. I crashed it a lot. I really didn't have the experience and nobody to teach me.

I then bought a Walkera 4. It was simple enough to fix that I was able to teach myself to hover, with the aid of FMS.

If I did it again, I would go the Walkera 4, but that's just an opinion. A few others here hold the opposite.

So my advice? If you want to fly indoors, and sometimes outside when it's calm, then get a Walkera 4.
If you want cheap and easy to fix, again, a Walkera 4.

Otherwise, if you have people to teach you, other models might be more suitable.

I'd recommend you read the Walkera 4 thread beginning to end before choosing a Walkera 4 so you know as much about it as possible.
Ditto for other models also

Let us all know your final choice.

Keep in mind, many of us love the Walkera 4 for it's simplicity and convenience. But there are some bad stories on this forum about them also. Learn from them.

I don't have a #36, so I can't speak for that model.

David

thecheatscalc

The electronics, keep them and if they fail, then replace them, I've not had to replace them yet, and they wok great, but the internal ESC is overused, once you get a brushless system, then it works great, and most glitching is gone (besides interferrence)

sparkling_fist

but ur lucky,
all my walkera electronics are rubbish.. i had to replace servos,,.. gyro doesnt work,, chanal 6 doesnt work on rx...

the only good walkera product is the brushless motor and esc but the align ones are much better

the heli's are good themselves

Mikey-Flies

*** Off Topic
The receiver/transmitter are dangerous for the 36 in my opinion.

I started out thinking like thecheatscalc and was only going to replace them as needed. It didn't take long before I had a heli doing a full power for rear elevator towards some stairs with no control from the transmitter.

I swapped to an electron 6 receiver and use my Eclipse for it now. All the servo chatter went away (I actually think the walkera servo's are "ok" -> "decent" with a good receiver) and I haven't had any form of glitch since.

*** On Topic

I would recommend a beginner to start out with a #4 or similar (hummingbird, piccolo, whatever) fixed pitch although they are more "twitchy"to fly they are also more forgiving of control inputs and are far easier to setup/fix. Price and availability of the replacement parts would be the tie breaker for me amongst the models. The other thing to consider is flying environment. I wouldn't fly a 36 in my kitchen/living room with people about but I will fly my hummingbird in the same environment (as long as they are aware of the heli). The more you fly, the more you will learn to fly so consider how often you will be able to fly a larger heli as well. I'm not sure which upgrades will fit on which models but some should work across the board.

Now, if you want to go for an even easier heli to fly then perhaps something like the new blade cx (coaxial rotors) would be a good choice. They are apparently stable (will return to a stable hover in the absence of control inputs?) and will reduce some of the mental load for flying. That being said, they may also get boring a lot quicker as well.