My husband flys I want to too!

[Mballen]

I'm very new to helis, I actually only have a 4 channel indoor heli and yes...it's crashed now! But my husband flys and he's really good, I would like to get into it so I can enjoy the hobby with him...what do you suggest a good beginner is? He flys a trex 500 and I adore it. I'm brittney btw.

[kavic5150]

A 500 sized (425mm blade) heli is a great place to start. Along with a simulator like phoenix or realflight. If your hubby doesnt have one already just check the for sale section here on HF.

There are a couple of things to consider like what does your local hobby shop stock? Its usually either Align Trex or the Blade series from E-flite.

How easy will it be to stretch the heli you fly to run 500 or even 550mm blades is another consideration.

If you have young eyes and good reflexes you could get a 400/450 size heli. These are easier on the budget when it comes to crashes but they are a little more twitchy and more difficult to handle with anything more than a light breeze. Personally I recommen a heli with 3 bearings on the main shaft, one above and below the main gear. Its a better design IMHO.

And when It comes to blades, aim for cheap since you will probably have a few crashes. Wooden blades are good since they will self destruct on impact thus saving damage to other more important and expensive rotor head parts. Also get some bright 2 color blades for easier visibility. All white blades are practically invisible at 100 feet on a cloudy day.

The best advice I can give is do alot of reading here on HF. When in doubt, ask questions.

Happy flying.

[bosslady]

fairly new to it all myself and trying to "get more involved" myself. I found that the small indoor blade was more difficult than the larger ones. However not really "allowed" to fly his bigger ones. But i am going to get a blade quadcopter. I think I will have a bit more confidence in it's and my abilities. good luck and try not to get discouraged like I did. Simulator really really helps.

[sarah1097]

The 500 size helicopter is a good size and it is not so small to see when you get it out there. I have two 450s (which I will be selling ) because now that I fly my 600 and 700 there is just no comparison. 450 are nice also for learning on, however once you get really good it makes it hard when you start taking them out there further or higher to do 3d or whatever. My biggest thing is I will fly my 700 and then my 450 and not realize I can not take my 450 that far out or high, it disappears much fast. however I will say this, if I was going to have to crash a helicopter it by far would be the 450, it is not so painful to fix. 500 should not be that bad either.

[MRSxDOT]

I started with a Blade 120. Its small, durable, but it can't take any wind and is a little big for a small house, so we got a Blade MSR. Its good for indoors. Once I got the hang of flying a little my hubby had me fly his Blade MCPx, it can handle wind & do 3D & is not too expensive, low $100s. Yeah, we kinda worked our way down the Eflite line, he he, but I love flying the MCPx. I haven't attempted any 3D but I've almost got forward flight. My hubby flies an Align 450 Trex and he LOVES it. I've heard a lot of people say that it is a good model too.

[aaronbru]

Get the same helis as your hubby so that you can steal all of his replacement parts

[Fredo0709]

Originally Posted by aaronbru

Get the same helis as your hubby so that you can steal all of his replacement parts

wow... so smart. and do this to him...

[MattHeli]

Hi I'm just starting too.

I went to my local hobby shop and made a list of what heli's they have a good selection of parts for.

Then I got the sim and I'm going through the models my hobby shop carries to find one I'm most comfortable with, then I'll buy that one.

[epoweredrcgirl09]

I would suggest a phonex sim and an MSR... If you want a cp heli then go for the mcpx since it is durable and if you crash(as long you hit throttle hold) then more than likely it wont hurt it and you can keep flying with having to spend 100$ in parts to fix it after a crash.... I love to see when more females get into the hobby just wish more where in GA lol

[Allincrazyforit]

I loved my raptor 30 and I still do just stock up on wood blades ,spindwles , and booms ...I must have pounded that bird into the ground a hundred times ..not to mention balenceing blades...and tuneing, a nitro motor are basics every piolet should learn....and you only need one hot start and you will never have another one DONT GO IT ALONE ASK FOR HELP but learn to wrench on your own bird finless bob has a ton of videos ,...step by step for building helis and programming eletronics

[Allincrazyforit]

Also the raptor is alot bigger than a 500 & with stock flybar paddles it is very very stable
You can also get somone at the local flying feild to buddy box you ..ask around but most important I know is to enjoy the ride all the crashes, close calls, the box openings, the new friends, the blown paychecks, the excitment when you finally learnto hover, yours first invert & on & on.. Wow sorry bout that

[Ghostflyer1]

Originally Posted by Mballen

I'm very new to helis, I actually only have a 4 channel indoor heli and yes...it's crashed now! But my husband flys and he's really good, I would like to get into it so I can enjoy the hobby with him...what do you suggest a good beginner is? He flys a trex 500 and I adore it. I'm brittney btw.

As folks have said before SIM SIM SIM and more SIM. Then go straight to a 500/550. They do not eat the pocket book in a crash. Most of all just have fun with it. Both of you will meet some really great folks when you start attending events and fun fly's. Oh one more thing


WELCOME to the ADDICTION!

[kavic5150]

Ten months and no update? Have you found another hobby?

Dont you just hate it when "life" keeps us from the things we really want to do?

[mickeyjohnston]

Originally Posted by Mballen

I'm very new to helis, I actually only have a 4 channel indoor heli and yes...it's crashed now! But my husband flys and he's really good, I would like to get into it so I can enjoy the hobby with him...what do you suggest a good beginner is? He flys a trex 500 and I adore it. I'm brittney btw.

Based on your posting, your husband seems qualified to answer this question. He knows your skill level better than anyone on here and he also knows your budget better than us also. I recommend taking his advice.

[DaveHolland]

My girlfriend is the same way, she sees my old 500 (I fly the 700 now) and she wants to just take it up. She is absolutely 0 experience and I keep telling her to fly the sim. Learn to at least hover in the sim and she can hover the real one.

[Chrislee]

i think the Syma 107 will be a good choice, it is easy to fly, and quite cheap, very suitable for a new beginner.

[Ghostflyer1]

Originally Posted by Chrislee

i think the Syma 107 will be a good choice, it is easy to fly, and quite cheap, very suitable for a new beginner.

Would probably be better off getting the phoenix flight sim and a good radio. Practice until you can hover, move it around and stop it where you want it. Then go directly to a 500/550

[minititinflyer]

Originally Posted by Chrislee

i think the Syma 107 will be a good choice, it is easy to fly, and quite cheap, very suitable for a new beginner.

you girls that start off cna start with a sim and blade msr great heli is to fly and learn or blade sr120 best where to start eazy cheap to fix and fly. learning to fly on the sim and in real life will get you on the right track

[Crowbar]

I recommend against flying a 500 as a very first heli. These things are dangerous as hell and as a beginner, you need to make the mistakes.

I'd recommend getting the Phoenix flight simulator, Blade MSRX and a DX6i first. Also order an extra landing gear and blade grips and a whole bunch of batteries for the MSRX. This will get you going. You can learn on the sim and hover around in the apartment/house. If you flip the kill switch (aka "Throttle Hold") when the heli is getting out of hand or too close to an obstacle, you won't hurt yourself or damage it too much. The blade grips do break a lot though, it's the weak spot. Only fly the MSRX outside in very large field with no wind. It's a fixed pitch heli, so any wind (or even fast forward motion) will make it climb and there's no way to make it go down (not even killing the motor if the wind is strong enough).

Once you've mastered the MSRX in indoors flying (i.e. you can land and take off from the couch table, hover it in all orientations, turn it with the rudder without losing control), get a nano CPX. Start off with very low dual rates and practice hovering (especially nose in) indoors. When that works for a full battery (4 minutes), take it outside and gently fly it around. The nano is durable and uses the same batteries as the MSRX so it's a win-win.

I'd follow it up with a Blade 130 X (actually get two of them, they do break and parts are either expensive or take a while to come in the mail if ordered online). That's a super capable machine and will also teach you lots about heli maintenance, safety and setup.

Then I'd go for a T-Rex 450 Pro DFC Combo with a AR7200BX (buy that second hand or get a Blade 300X). Build it slowly and carefully.

[ah_liang]

I wish I have a wife like that or maybe not when she found out how much they cost.