Stay away from the HBK 2

[jrett]

HBK2
Esky 3900 Brushless, 30A ESC
complete Esky CNC, top middle, bottom and tail
Extreme 43T belt
MicroHeli Tail Rotor, Bell Crank and Main Gear (all junk don't but from them)
HS-55's on the main rotor
HS 65 for the tail
Esky HH Gyro
Probably more but so mad now I can not recall
Total flying time less then 2 hours
Total work time well over 100
Current residence-------In the garbage
Well at least I can save the 2200mha/25C's for a real FUNCTIONING well enginered heli
Please people on this forum tell the truth, Esky HBK2 is a basic piece of junk, save your money and buy something that will actually work, it sufferes from poor enginering and design from the start and no amount of money, labor and creative thinking will ever make it anything more then a maintenance HOG, if this was not the truth then how come SOW MAY post on this thread with problems.
Extreme products and service was quite good infact the only glowing area in this terrible experience.
All the other suppliers and producers were cr--p stay away from them.
Off tomorrow to start all over again this time I'll atleast know what to look for.
Good luck to all the newbeeeees your going to need it and a credit card.
I agree with you. I've been fighting with mine ever since I got it. The first flight, the tail rotor drive belt came off and the heli crashed after a nice long 30 second flight.
I'm trying to make something of it, but my suggestion for the new folks is to get something that costs a little bit more. You get what you pay for. Also, this isn't my first heli, so don't say I don't know what I'm doing. I simply know the difference between a defective product and a good product.

[gregor]

I bought my HBK2 in November and started logging flights in May. Since I've started logging I have 371 flights and a total of 45 hours in the air. In that time there has been minimal service.

Parts replaced 371 flights

Main Gear - It wasn't bad, but I wanted to try the B400 gear.
Pinions - 9t 10t and 11t. Wanted to try them all.
Esky 3800 - Lost a bearing
Tailbox Bearings - failed
Main Blades and tail blades - Damaged in a crash. Spindle and main shaft was fine.
AR pin replaced - Worn
Balls and links on CNC head replaced with SS - worn

This is my second heli (first was the Blade CP) so my experience working on helis really started in November.

[Darthdrk]

I have about six of these helis . I think two of them I got used i also have about four Belt cps. I guess Ive been lucky because all mine were RTF no problems. Only thing with the King2 I really think needs upgrading is the motors and even that didnt change the RTF status. Im flying mine so much that only thing s Im replacing is parts that wear out. Ive had a couple of stock esky gyros go bad . But as far as flying the helis right out the boxes, so far, so good. All Cp belt tail drive helis like a certain headspeed range for tail control. If you dont have your PIT knobs on the xmitter right, you will have issues. I start out at 12 oclock position on both and I adjust from there.

[racin06]

I don't believe that previous experience with a coaxial or fixed pitch heli provides any real benefit when first learning to fly a ccpm heli. It is a totally different beast.

I agree with the coaxial but I strongly disagree with you regarding FP helis. I learned to fly helis on the HBFP and moved up to the HBK2 without any problems at all. I wouldn't say the King is a "totally different beast." It still takes the same stick movements to fly the HBFP as it does to fly the King. Yes, the King is very sensitive to stick inputs and is MUCH faster versus the HBFP; however, it only took me a few flights to get accustomed to the flight behavior of the King. Myself and many others have started out with an FP heli and moved up to CP helis without a hitch. If you can fly an FP heli, you can fly any CP heli.

[Magenta]

My post was in direct response to someone complaining about the differences from their HBFP experience and their experience with the King 2. The sensitivity and quickness was too much.

Regardless of your experience, they are totally different beasts. You were able to quickly adapt; they weren't. C'est dommage

But for the thread (basically that the King 2 is a POS) it is an important point to recognize these differences

I believe that someone who successfully moves to ccpm, regardless of the path, and then flies a King 2 will enjoy the experience.

[cbrian4]

Its usually the people that jump the gun on a ccpm heli with no experience that say crap like this. If you can't fly it, that either means that you haven't invested the time to learn things properly or YOU cant fly it. Most people don't have adequate coordination to fly these things right off the bat, so you have to be patient and be willing to learn. One thing i've always found that works good for me to learn how to fly, is to just go for it-fly fearless! On the first flight of my fixed pitch, (with only coaxel heli and fms experience) I was flying circuits and figure 8's bone stock! You have to move out of your comfort zone to get better, if not, youwill never progress. For me, its all about research. I researched for a month before i got my king. And in doing so i learned all of the quarks, problems, small issues, dangers, and warnings of the heli so i knew what to expect and to change when i received it so i didn't have to learn it the expensive way. I suggest that if this is your first heli, that you step down to the fixed pitch. It will save you much grief and money in the long run. Especially cause its so beefy. In fact two days ago i decided to fly really high until the point that i couldn't see it. Well it ended up tipping and because i couldn't tell which way it was going, i only made it worse. It flipped completley upside down and i had no control so i just cut power. It plummeted 150 feet to the ground right on its head. I went over and picked it up and the main shaft had just slid through the collar. So i pulled up on the shaft, slid the collar down, and snapped the head onto the two bearings and took off again! lol no broken parts. I also heard one guy say he flew his into a stop sign and broke nothing lol Anyway back on topic... I really hope you keep trying, its harder for some than others but you have to keep an open mind (and open wallet). Best of luck.

[supra6]

Well the HBK2 parts came out of the box about a month ago with the arrival of the Extreme frame, so being stubborn I decided it was time to give it a try and see if all the bling and glitz worked. Success, hovers solid, quick on the controlls and predictable. There are those who say I am trying to make it something it's not, if that means a well flying heli with ease of maintenance then they are correct.
The list of replaced parts is long and the total is more then the Blade 400, which flew good out of the box, and I got a decent RX/TX in the deal which is now in the King
Extreme Frame
Extreme 43T drive
Extreme Battery tray
Micro Heli tail blade grips (don't bother)
Micro Heli controll arm (agan don't bother)
Idiao servos all around, digitail on the tail
E-Flite G110 gyro (Tellebe)
Mystery 30a esc
2200mah 20c batteries
DX6i
Blade 400 main gear
E-Sky CNC head and tail
CP-Belt tail rotor blades

Ok well the list of stock parts would have been much shorter and was the cost worth it, well I'll let each ansewr for themselves. For me it has reafirmed what I should have already know "you get what you pay for" and "it's better to do a job (or purchase) correct the first time", why go back and do things over.
Good flights to all what ever you are flying, after all this is suppose to be fun

[broggyr]

What is your experience with the MicroHeli parts that make you say 'Don't bother'? I don't have them, but I have the cnchelicopter washout base & arms that I am not thrilled with either...

[supra6]

Poor finish on machining, soft material, expensive and poor design. It seems that many of the parts the show for the king were planned for something else. The tail blade grips cause a tight fit on the attach point to the controll points and the screws provided were not long enough to fully thread into the nuts provided had to replace them and why not thread the grip itself to eliminate the nut, that's what I did.
The tail controll arm is slightly off on the lateral alignment with the secure point causing a bind at about 2/3'ds throw, grind out a bit of the metal on each side of the upperside slot untill it moves freely, gee same as what one would do with the stock part. the ball link though is flashie brass there is NO way to get it out , to use the second whole, with out tearing it up, replaced this also.
The plastic on the tail pitch slide is weak and flexes with any load.
These parts are not cheap and to have to modify them to get them working is unacceptable, IMO, stick with the E-Sky CNC and stock parts for the tail, the Extreme 43t is a deffinate along with more initial head speed via throttle curve. Take a look at the difference between Micro Helllllli and Extreme quality, I'd buy anything from Extreme.

[zore]

Here is my experience and it's short. I bought a blade cp pro and then another for parts. I crashed each and every time i flew it.

I then started looking at belt tail bits for it. Someone mentioned the obvious. Buy a HBK2 and move your blade cp pro stuff too. Success. It's what I wanted and was a cheap upgrade to the blade cp which is a pile if you ask me. The only reason I havn't sold it is because I will learn to fly it.

[Darthdrk]

Speaking from experience, Learning to fly helis on a small heli like a micro such as the blade Cp and or HBcp2 or even the HBFP can be more of a challenge than learning to fly on a HBK2, Belt CP or the T-rex.
Alot of it is understanding how a heli works, setup and the pilots learning curve. Another important factor is the product itself. I started with the litemachines 110 gas heli. It was the pain of all pains but one of the main mechanical issues with that heli was getting the 110 .061 gas engine running right. After I mastered it, I then bought a Aerohawk. This had to have been the worst heli I ever owned. One big issue was a seperating swashplate and linkages popping off. From there I think I bought the Blade Cp which I had great success with It was a no fear experience with it, I still have several. I bought a T-rex 450X modded to XL Still dont like the way it flies but its OK. Bought a Walkera 60, got in a couple semi good flights then I stopped throwing parts at it. The frames were very fragile and personally i couldnt stand the craftmanship. My conclusion, Junk. Over the years bought King2s and Belt Cps and there are commin known issues with the belt Cp and king2s. King2 definitely needs a brushless motor and the Belt Cp needs a 30 amp ESC over the stock 25 amp ESC which can be prone to frying due to its quality and even motor mount bolts being slightly to long and comming in contact with the motor windings causing a short. Now, I mainly fly Belt CPs and K2s, I will fly the others too but with the type of flying I do and trying to maintain them all, They work great for me. Cheap economical and parts are inexpensive and some parts are interchangable.

[supra6]

Well here in lies the point, for almost the same cash you can get yourself into a Blade 400. They are out there for about $400 +/- $30, nock off the price of the DX6i at about 170 and your at around 230 for the heli with a good motor, descent gyro and better servos, it's a bit larger and therefore more stable. Frame and parts are of better quality and it dose fly out of the box.
Let's throw in the RX/TX and there is no camparison.
True this is all about learning, learning to fly it, learning to fix it and coping with the frustration, why add to the delima with poor quality equiptment. It's just a sucker trap to get the person to spend more dosh on the Esky parts. Why after all these HBK2's that are out there do they not come with better motors from the start, reason they get you later (shortly) for the 3100, 3800 or 3900 upgrade and the esc.
Yep buy a Blade to learn and you will crash, repair and spend but your not rebuilding it to a different heli, the parts on it work, what's the deal with the tail pitch slider on the King, think after all this time it would be sorted from the manfactured, oh yeah new CNC tail assembly another got'ya. Plus with something like the Blade your options of upgrading when you choose to are MUCH more open.

[Sublime Snot]

Here is my experience and it's short. I bought a blade cp pro and then another for parts. I crashed each and every time i flew it.

I then started looking at belt tail bits for it. Someone mentioned the obvious. Buy a HBK2 and move your blade cp pro stuff too. Success. It's what I wanted and was a cheap upgrade to the blade cp which is a pile if you ask me. The only reason I havn't sold it is because I will learn to fly it.
I'd just like to say, this could have been my experience if I stuck with what I thought more than a year ago. Back then, my only experience in flying was with a Blade CX2. Got bored with it, as with anyone else, and looked at what else E-Flite makes in their line of helicopters. The way they advertised their CP Pro made me really want one. I started asking people for advice about it, most of them said to just skip it and get something like a Honeybee King 2. The CP Pro, according to them, is a pain to fly, where as the King 2 is much more stable with it's belt-driven tail system. I was persuaded and agreed to buy the King 2 instead of the CP Pro, and I'm glad I did.
However, I would have bought a Blade 400 RTF if I had the money at the time.

[zen]

My experience with the King went from good to poor to poorer back to good. I got a used one with a Century BM in runner and a fried ESC. Dropped in an Otter ESC and away it went. Seemed stable, powerful, awesomely fast. But my skill level wasn't there and after a few crashes the set up went to h*ll and it wouldn't fly for beans. I tried many times to make it work without success. Experience with the Blade CP Pro (I don't understand how anyone who can fly circuits with other CP birds can have a problem with this one.) and Trex 450 finally gave me the insights to set up the King right.

I am in the process of fine-tuning refining it. The variations from stock are: E-sky 3100 BM w/11 tooth pinion, CNC swash, CNC tail mechanics, turnbuckle pitch links, fiberglas frame stiffener for motor mount area, home made aluminum battery tray for easier battery installation and better CG, GY240 gyro. I like the lightweight plastic frame. The plastic head is terribly vulnerable to crash damage. My answer is to buy King II parts lots offered at reasonable cost. Now my King parts drawer runneth over and keeps me flying. Also, I am crashing a lot less.

Any CP model helicopter requires technical awareness and a full suite of tips, tricks, and artful dodges to build, adjust, and fly. I confess to being mightily relieved to arrive at a stage where the King works for me.