Questions from soon to be new Logo 500 owner

[Caveman5150]

I have 2 Blade 400s which got me hooked on the hobby (been fying them for 6 mos, about 10 crashes total, 2 due to static discharge) & have finally decided to get a REAL helicopter.
I'm not a big 3D guy, but I like loops & rolls, mostly like cruizin around & FPV stuff.
I was wondering, going from the Blade 400 which cost me $50-60 a crash, & considering how well protected & sturdy the Logo 500 design is, what's the average cost of a Non-3d crash for you folks?

I already got my blades & know that's $75 right there, but what else usually eats up your wallet on these things? I know I'm gonna crash a few times, but people have told me --going from the flimsy, small, light-weight Blade400 to the giant Mercedes Benz Logo500, I'm supposedly going to find it is "exponentially easier to fly". Would you agree?

My set up will be (& I'm open to your opinions, though the parts are already ordered):

--500 3D w/ Flybar (couldn't afford barless)
--550mm Razor
--Hacker A40 10L 8-pole Heli
--Thunderpower 6S V2 5000mah
--.7 Mod / 15-16 teeth
--70A Pro 3D ESC
--Logitec 6100T gyro
--Futaba 9650 servos (nylon)----Should have got JR metal ya think?
--Anti-Static tail boom & fuselage metal components

Whatcha think a run-of-the-mill crash will cost?
(my crashes will not be during crazy high speed 3D flight, I just fly regular & w/FPV)

Thanks gang

[LITHIUMSTATIC]

That's really a loaded question because it all depends on how hard you hit and at what angle. It can be as cheap as $125 if your lucky all the way up to a rekit. If you want something that crashes well get a Compass Knight 600E. It flies better than most anything in it's class but not as good as a Mikado.

[zguy]

Do the 9650's fit the 500 frame?
If no, I'm happy w/ the BLS451's. Good luck and please report on your progress.

[helicraze]

Use 15T with that motor, also 70A ESC not familar with that brand, a cheap option is aling 75A ESC, you will need other servos, get some full size servos.
Also regarding crash, you will find you probably won't crash as often, it feels so right when flying a logo!
If you do crash it could be any amount!

[billyd]

If you're worried about crash costs you should stay with the smaller helis.

The larger helis can cost you alot in a crash. Even if you get off cheap it will be in excess of $150 most likely. The main blades are about $90 and they are going to break nearly every time. And the batteries are $200 to $400 depending on what you buy and you could taco one of those without breaking a sweat. The tail boom folds easily too which leads to alot of work in the rebuild.

My first crash with my logo 500 3d was around $230 (I actually spent around $280, but replaced some stuff that was marginal). It was a minor crash from an impact standpoint. If I had the same kind of crash with my 450se, it would have probably cost $50 to fix it.

[kraaijer]

I don't think that the 9650 will fit, nor that they have enough torque for the Logo 500. I would reconsider that choice if I were you.

Ron

[stevehonn]

There are two noticably expensive parts on the Logo 500, the hardened mainshaft and the plastic canopy. If you use the standard mainshaft the one-way bearing tends to dig in. The supplied plastic canopy is a very thin plastic material, mine survived about 6 crashes before I actually wrote it off but it sure looks tatty quickly. The spares costs for most other parts is fairly reasonable but the Logo 500 isn't a cheap heli to crash.

[Caveman5150]

ok

[helicraze]

the logo 500 comes with fibreglass canopy standard now, or a least mine did!

[Caveman5150]

I assume you guys all started off with some sort of mini-helos. When you made the jump to a significantly larger Logo 500-600, would you agree that you found it "exponentially easier to fly", perhaps not with regards to 3D performance, but just in general handling & stability?

My main problem with my Blade400s is that they get so tiny at distance, I Iose orientation & crash. That, or they get terribly buffeted by wind that they bounce & twitch alot, which kinda un-nerves me. Ya think I'm gonna fly this 500 and have a noticibly easire time flying (& crash less I hope) or would you just consider this move to be one small notch up?

PS. I re-purchased JR digital metal servo sets, as recommended (the kind that are $110 a piece!). The ".7 mod" was sent to me with the kit. I have a neighbor who is a helo pro that is going to help me assemble it & hopefully I'll finally understand all the parts to the helo & be able to truly grow in this hobby. I can't even fix my 400s when they crash because I have no idea what does what. The woes of the new addict....

[helicraze]

Yes it is much easier to fly the larger ones. I stopped crashing as soon as i got a larger one!

[t-rexn8]

Is the black mainshaft that comes in the 500 3D kit the hardened one or no?

I know the one with my 600 3D kit had a chrome finish.

[dahld]

If the ESC you described as a "70 amp pro 3D", is the new Hacker X-70-Opto-Pro-3D, call Aero-Model (www.aero-model.com), and ask them for some guidance on which governor option to use with your motor. They can set straight what's not real obvious in the directions.

Take care, Dave Dahl.

[dahld]

The black shaft that comes with the 500 kit is the non-hardened version. The hardened ones are polished (comes with the 600 kit).

As long as the spool-ups on your heli are slow, the black shafts are fine. Using a Jazz 55-10-32 ESC (nice smooth spool-up), I had one soft shaft last over 500 flights in a Logo 10, and never got gouges. If you have an ESC that spools up very fast, or are using throttle curves vs. gov mode, and flip out of throttle hold into a flight mode (switches set wrong), the one way bearing will grab the shaft so hard that it will gouge the shaft.

What happens in a crash between the two shafts has been debated, and since what can or does happen in a crash is so dynamic, having a softer or harder shaft can either work for you or against you. I've seen it both ways. Just depends on the crash.

IMO, use the black shaft until it's either bent in a crash, or you have a "hot start" and gouge it. It still works gouged, but I can't vouch for how long before the one way bearing might be affected by the gouges. When I was in that situation, I ordered a hardened shaft, kept flying the old one until the new one came, and the one way bearing is still OK after an additional 200 or so flights.

Take care, Dave.