Purchasing Advice

[Rdavis007]

I am looking at buying a 450 for a practice Heli. I don't know much about the 450 or what I need to get it in the air. I fly Futaba and have an extra Futaba 7008 Reciever and a Spirit FBL. Will these work with the 450 servos, etc. Thanks for your replies in advance, I need some education on this bird.

[Thomas.Heiss]

Try to find at least a Blade 450X V2 (FBL) if you already have a Spirit System FBL.

The 4503D does not have the best servos and motor (same true for 450X V1): https://www.helifreak.com/showpost.p...6&postcount=23

The flybar cage and flybar setup on the 4503D is IMHO not much fun either: https://www.helifreak.com/showthread.php?t=368277 :-)

The biggest problem for me were the slanted flybar cage / washout arm parts.
This is not a T-Rex which seem to have lined parts (e.g cage sides).
A bit harder to get the 4503D paddles properly aligned with a pitch gauge.


The hole 4503D flybar head will make you IMHO crazy...I promise.

You will have to work so hard around avoid to let head parts strike against each other (=bindings) when moving servos....so many possible places (washout base pins, main shaft, blade holder, swashplate, etc.).
In the end I even removed the fixed links (washout arms to flybar cage) and replaced them by variable links!!

Even the (necessary) aluminium flybar holder set will take you hours to get bearings in and out from head - was at least the fact for me (but took actually days to find a proper way to install bearings) :-)


There are other helis with FBL head and different servo geometry (e.g Gaui X3) which are more known on HF as a beater heli or allow you to use 2-3 same servo link length (not so on Blade450).

The 4503D + 450X V1 + V2 top left landing leg frame will break anyways...


Once again: Do yourself a favour and jump at least on the 450X with a FBL head wagon.
The bonus will be more pitch and cyclic ranges (they still are a bit limited on the 450X because binding of the nick arm to the left canopy pin).

Price raises 2012 -> 2016 are not fun on Blade replacement parts anyways...still is especially true on EOL / discontinued helis like flybar parts.
But main shaft part prices (the FBL one) on 450X are not better...
Compare them to KDS 450.

Thomas

[Copternewbi]

What is a kds 450? I crashed my 450 3D and just spent almost $100 on parts to fix it. How many times should I do this? Would any other 450 size heli be more durable and cheaper to fix? Thanks.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[HeliLust]

A good option for a 450 would be an align trex. They can be had fairly cheap used in the classifieds. They fly good and parts are easy to come by.

Another option is a gaui x3. It's kind of the same story as a trex as far as flying g good and parts being out there.

Personally if you want to keep crash costs down get a Sim and use it. Next would be to forget blade helis even exist. You end up paying more for parts for a heli that just doesn't fly very good, not that they can't but by the time you get it there you could of had one that does for less money.

[Copternewbi]

I think you hit the nail on the head with the simulator. It kills me to spend $100 on a sim and hope it'll work on my 5 year old laptop when I can by another used 450 3D for around that price. But crashing isn't an option anymore.

I do like the look of the x3 though!

Thanks again for the advice.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[qcman]

The B450 doesn't crash all that well either especially with its plastic frame. It can bust in a crash that makes fixing it more time consuming. And yeah as noted that mouse trap flybar cage cage good lord!

The servos are crap and will strip on every crash. So to me its not a good beater heli but is a nice flying bird in general nonetheless. I have Tarot FBL head on mine, metal geared servos and a Kbar and it flies pretty good.

[Thomas.Heiss]

Most of the time it is only the left front landing gear plastic which breaks out of the main frame.

You need to mod it (do not screw it into chassis!).

Frame in total (besides left front) holds well so far - 3 crashes.

[BrokeDad]

Mine also seems to love to bend feathering shafts on the least little blade strike. And yes OMG that freaking FB head What a PIA to set up. I need to convert it over to FBL like my 450X.