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Beginners Corner > Second Helicopter?

Zaaaguy72
Veteran
Location: Grand Rapids, MN

If you can swing it, go for the Trex 500, I wish I did. I have a Beam and love it, but my buddy's 500 is perfect, stable, easier to see.

Fly, Fly, and Fly some more!!!

08-14-2008 07:40 AM

Brunobl
Veteran
Location: Pomerode, SC, Brazil - 26 40S 49 11W

Second helicopter

I think the stability issue is really irrelevant. The 450 sized helis are not really much more unstable than a 500-size (or nitro or 12-lb gasoline helicopters for that matter). It is the timing, not stability that really sets them apart. Smaller helis tend to react faster than larger ones, that's all. You will find that you get used to any particular heli's timings quite easily, actually, specially if you are coming from the smaller end of heli size range.

As for wind, my 450 handles it quite well. That is not a problem.

That said, the real issue IMO is visualization and orientation with the smaller helis. They get tiny in a hurry, so you will tend to fly them closer to you, as compared to larger ones. The upside is that there are more places suitable for flying a 450 than a 500 or 600. Then again, this is irrelevant if you only fly at established flying clubs, with space to spare.

IMO it really boils down to what you want, (specially in terms of flying space requirement and cost of ownership), not whether or not a smaller or larger heli is more or less stable.

-------------------
Best regards,
Bruno.

08-14-2008 04:05 PM

SkyWarp
Senior Heliman
Location: Planet Earth

Quote
I think the stability issue is really irrelevant.

That is a new one on me. If any of you newbies feel the same way then please do explain because this just doesn't make any sense to me whatsoever. Bruno, either your really good or just have a serious case of misconception.

Century Swift-
Anticipating a crash is worse than the crash itself.

08-14-2008 06:36 PM

heliman79
Senior Heliman
Location: loxley, alabama united states

one might suggest the blade 400. it is the same size/class as a trex 450( uses the same size 325mm blades), flies great and comes with a awesome radio that you can use with later models. checkit out.

precision is the by-product of practice.....

08-14-2008 07:29 PM

Zaaaguy72
Veteran
Location: Grand Rapids, MN

I think the Blade is a good choice for a beginner, however, I feel building your first heli yourself is a good idea because you learn considerably more than buying an RTF.

Fly, Fly, and Fly some more!!!

08-14-2008 08:51 PM

heliman79
Senior Heliman
Location: loxley, alabama united states

agreed, but in the course of repairs you learn alot also

precision is the by-product of practice.....

08-14-2008 10:39 PM

TJinGuy
Elite Veteran
Location: Socorro, NM - USA

Quote
one might suggest the blade 400. it is the same size/class as a trex 450( uses the same size 325mm blades), flies great and comes with a awesome radio that you can use with later models. checkit out.

Flies okay but it will never compete with the Mini Titan or T-Rex. And the radio that comes with it is not bad but surely not awesome. Now for the bad. When you do crash it, and that will be very soon after buying it, you will be replacing a lot of servo parts. That will give you the idea of upgrading servos like everyone does. Now you just added another $100 to your B400. Oh and then you find out that the included battery is not only too light but also only gives you maybe 5min of run time. So now you are going to want some 2200mAh batteries. Oh and now it takes even longer to charge them on the lame stock charger and forget about tracking battery use as the stocker gives you zero info. So it is time to fork over some more money for a new one. Looks like the "good deal" B400 is not as good a deal as you thought

I see no use for the B400 except for to sell to hobby shop walk-in buyers that have no idea what they are doing. Do yourself a favor and build a 450 from scratch. You will not only learn way more but also spend your money on things you actually want to own.

- Chris

Variety+spice+life+supporting_paper_towel_industry=
King2+Rex450+Protos+Concept30

08-14-2008 10:51 PM

heliman79
Senior Heliman
Location: loxley, alabama united states

size,stability it all depends on ones perference. i have 3 electrics and one nitro. the upside to electrics is the conviennce and low noise ( somewhat low) the downside they are by nature more "twitchy" than a glow or gas heli but can be tamed down by expo. bigger glow helis are more easy to see and track but can be very noisy. the elctrics dont seem to bother my neighbors much, the raptor isnt liked very much

when i fly it the kids and pets are rounded up pretty quickly, which i have never put anyone or thing in danger with it. so there is always pros and cons.

precision is the by-product of practice.....

08-14-2008 11:05 PM

heliman79
Senior Heliman
Location: loxley, alabama united states

well i love my blade, granted it needed some tlc when i bought it. with the cnc swash, blade grips and flybar cage it flies just as good, if not better than a comparable trex, for less money.

precision is the by-product of practice.....

08-14-2008 11:14 PM

Daveyg
Heliman
Location: Irving,tx

I've been learning on a blade 400 and I see no reason to up-grade it.
it flys well enough to learn the basics on and is cheap to repair.If you want to learn extreme 3-D then yeah the T-rex would be better. I plan to buy a 600E in a few months and keep the 400 for a beater.

do unto others then stand back and watch.

08-15-2008 12:43 AM

Ozz58
Heliman
Location: Ft. Worth, TX USA

Pricing

TJinGuy,

The math for me doesn't work. I do really like the T-Rex 450, but the best deal I can find is $849.99 with a FM radio. I have a 600 size nitro, but got a Blade 400 over the fourth of July holiday. Yes, it needs upgrades if you want to push it, I've upgraded the servos, better batteries and charger, and main blades. To date these upgrades plus the cost of the heli ($399) comes to $780.00, that's still under by $150. Now I really don't know if this 400 can perform as well as a stock T-Rex 450, but I still have $150 in my pocket.

My next heli will be the T-Rex 500, and soon I hope.

I have many posts about the 400, and if you read them you'll see I'm pretty objective. It's not built as well as my nitro, but it's flying great with the upgrades. I might upgrade the gyro, not that it needs it, but when I get the 500 I can put it that.

Is the T-Rex 450 worth the extra $150.....maybe, just not for me.

Craig

08-15-2008 01:07 AM

Brunobl
Veteran
Location: Pomerode, SC, Brazil - 26 40S 49 11W

Skywarp,

Quote
Bruno, either your really good or just have a serious case of misconception.

Care to elaborate?

-------------------
Best regards,
Bruno.

08-15-2008 01:15 AM

TJinGuy
Elite Veteran
Location: Socorro, NM - USA

A T-rex 450SA setup with basic stuff can be cheaper. I have no idea where you are getting $850 from unless you are starting with a SE from the get go. Let me lay out some prices for ya

$239 Rex450SA with motor and esc
$105 LogicTech 2100T
$17 Hitec HS-81 (tail servo)
$75 (3) Hitec HS-65HB (cyclic servos)
$180 Spektrum DX6i
$75 CellPro 4S
$60 Outrage 25C 2200 pack
= $751

You could cut a few more corners like getting a $60 Telebee gyro and $42 Hitec HS55 cyclic servos and save another $78. New total of $673.

So how does that sound?

As for performance, both a Mini Titan and TRex450 are much better performers. Whether you need the added performance is a different story.

- Chris

Variety+spice+life+supporting_paper_towel_industry=
King2+Rex450+Protos+Concept30

08-15-2008 03:14 AM

Ozz58
Heliman
Location: Ft. Worth, TX USA

TJinGuy, you must shop with my wife.

Trust me I'm not a Blade 400 guy. If your numbers are correct, and I assume they are, than the T-Rex would be the way to go. Did you look at my past posts?

But remember this guy was flying a blade CX, not really in the class we are in.

I did look at the T-Rex 450, very nice, but didn't have the time to build it as I was going on vacation and wanted something to fly out of the box. There is no dought in my mind the T-Rex is much better, but he is new to flying, only the Blade CX in his past, so that's why I said the 400 would be nice.

If I had to do it all over again, I would of gotten the T-Rex 450, but as with my Blade, it would be forgotten when I got the 500.

Craig

08-15-2008 03:42 AM

TJinGuy
Elite Veteran
Location: Socorro, NM - USA

All numbers are from ReadyHeli.com, go look for yourself

- Chris

Variety+spice+life+supporting_paper_towel_industry=
King2+Rex450+Protos+Concept30

08-15-2008 03:47 AM

Zaaaguy72
Veteran
Location: Grand Rapids, MN

Tj's right.

Fly, Fly, and Fly some more!!!

08-15-2008 03:14 PM

UglyJumper
New Heliman
Location: Sunnyvale, CA, USA

Well, I did it...

I bought the T-Rex 500 and a DX7.

Thank you all for your kind help. I got a lot of very good ideas and very good information. I also got some conflicting information, but that's just because this is not an exact science.

When I started this thread, I had narrowed the choices to:

T-Rex 500
Blade CP 400
Swift 16

When I visited the Century shop in San Jose, they talked to me a little bit, but then they ignored me when I had more questions. If I had gone with the Swift 16, I would have been visiting them a lot for parts, and I just did not want to deal with them after that. Other LHSs have all of the parts for the Blade CP 400 and the T-Rex 500, so I took the Swift 16 off the list.

The Blade CP is a pretty good deal, but the bird and the transmitter seem to be a little limiting.

The T-Rex 500 seems to be a better bird overall, except the blades are just so &*+#%!* expensive. On the other hand, there seems to be a LOT of after-market support for it.

In a narrow decision, I selected the T-Rex 500. The support for it was the deciding factor. I already know my decision is not perfect, but I think it is the best choice (for now).

UglyJumper

09-09-2008 05:36 AM

dave75d
Veteran
Location: Jacksonville, FL

great call on the 500. i started with the blade, now i have the whole align family (700 coming this winter). as for your blades, check out helidirect. $25 fiberglass, or $30 carbons. that will help your budget. also, i reccomend the outrage battery packs 6s1p 2500. $140 will set you up with that. youre gonna love that bird. if you need help on your setups, post here, these guys are good.

ten grand in helis and all i can do is hover

09-09-2008 05:56 AM

UglyJumper
New Heliman
Location: Sunnyvale, CA, USA

The whole family?

Dave75d,

The whole Align family? I am so jealous.

Chris

09-09-2008 05:28 PM

dave75d
Veteran
Location: Jacksonville, FL

this rabbits hole goes as deep as your credit cards will allow.

ten grand in helis and all i can do is hover

09-09-2008 05:35 PM

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