Thinking of purchasing a used SR

[andrewpenny]

Hello, my LHS has a used SR sitting in their showroom. There is something wrong in the swash, but they're going to get back to me on a price with it fixed or as is ( i'll probably want it fixed.. so i dont have to wait for parts or put it together. Although the guy says he has had it flying, just not accurately due to the problem). I am fairly new to the hobby, and am looking for something that can upgrade me from my 120sr. I have a nano, and i can fly it successfully (not 3d) when it actually works.

So here's my dilemma. I don't know if i'm ready for a bigger type heli (i have a 450 but i'm not ready lol), but i'm already sick of my nano after a couple of months. It cuts out mid flight, its way to squirely, and i get about 2 mins of flight time. Its given me nothing but trouble and honestly i don't really want to fly it anymore. Is the SR a good upgrade? and are parts still easily accesible if i crash? I've read both positive and negative reviews (as for everything), just wondering if i could get some insight on it. My other option is going for something new like Blades 230, or maybe even get out of blade all together and try something like the Align 180. I own a detail garage with 3 huge bays to practice flying indoors, but i love going to parks and flying outdoors too.. can the sr be flown "indoors" in a garage thats probably 20 ft tall?

[toys2cars2toys]

I had an SR and liked it, but they are very old tech now (7 year old design) things have moved on a lot. I would not recommend a SR to a beginner now, I didn't have a choice 7 years ago!

My advice is to avoid it, it will do you no favours

The 230s is like night and day, stable and smooth. I think it's the best intermediate model around right now, the size is good for the park

I also had an align 150 too, if you want to go for this size, have a look at the WL V977 or the XK K120, they both have great reputations

[BrokeDad]

The 230S is a great trainer with some size to it. I love mine. With the stability and safe modes it will let you fly with confidence at first before turning those off. It's also new and a good suggestion. The K110/K120/V977 I could recommend also if you want something cheaper and smaller.

If you want a 230S a real nice one just went up for sale with lots of Rakon upgrades in the for sale section for just under msrp. They seem to go fast. I won't post the link as it's bad etiquette to advertise a heli for sale in a non-sale thread. It's not mine.

Edit: Just noticed today the price went UP. Probably deluged with PM's and decided it was worth more. Either that or the first price was a typo.

[TowPilot]

I had an SR.

I didn't keep it long.

There were better flying helicopters but since I got the SR cheap, wanted to give it a go.

It works, just keep in mind that don't expect the tail to sit still, or the response to any input to be precise. It simply isn't a precision machine

That said, I liked flying it for what it was. Had reasonable expectations such as that it would work, but it wasn't going to fly like a super star.

If I could afford nothing else, I'd work with it and enjoy it.

By comparison, would be like having a 12 foot aluminum boat powered by oars in a world where probably most people are out fishing in their shiny painted glass boat with 100 HP on the back with depth finders, lights, Go Pro cams, beer coolers and GPS

You can still go fishing in it and have a good day.

I wouldn't pay for one these days.

Since there then, so many other better and not too expensive options are out there.

The SR becomes the bait to buy better electronics and better to put that money into a more modern better flying ship.

[nighttrain06]

Yup 230S would probably be the ticket for you depending on your budget.
I have 2 SR's still fly em, but they can make you pull your hair out too!
As everyone said above they are just outdated and when they were of date they were not for someone still green off of a FP heli as advertised....you have to be prepared for that tail on the SR though as Towpilot stated, it'll go from seems like a heading hold heli to a rate mode heli on ya LOL
If you are sorta tight on budget, get ya a WLToys as mentioned, I've heard they are pretty good helis, and cheap to fix.
If you have some money room get you a 230S. Mine right out of the box flew excellent! Setup on my DX8 was a snap. I'll take mine to the field to warm up with before flying my other birds.

[yakky]

The SR was a bad helicopter when it was brand new. It was hard to fly for newbies. People soon figured out you could move the electronics over to a Trex 250 clone, and it flew better.

These days an SR is a TERRIBLE choice. Parts are going to get much harder to find as is any kind of support. Even if it is $10, it is not a good deal. Find a 200SRX if money is tight. Otherwise save for a 230S.

[learnedthehardway]

180 isn't as beginner friendly as the 230 but it will prepare you for a 450 better by using the same pitch and throttle curves as a 450 and teaching you about tail mechanics. Since you can fly a nano you don't need self level so I believe the 180 might be a good choice if you're looking for a stepping stone to get you ready for your 450 asap. Servo savers or metal servo gears are all it needs to be a pretty solid little heli.

Nano taught me how to fly, 180 taught me enough to go to 300-450 and never look back and is still a good trainer to this day. Once you know your way around the 180 they're very quick and easy to troubleshoot/repair. Also still flies good when it's old, beat up and vibrating like a sob...lol

[jetflyr]

I had more frustrations trying to learn on my SR. It actually held me back. I bought a 230s and I can't praise it enough. Even though I've both get bugger birds it's my go to for new maneuvers, etc.


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[nighttrain06]

I know there are a lot who HATE the SR, but I have 2 that I still fly here and there. I like my SR's, and they do actually fly pretty decent! Setup and being ready for the little buger is key to keeping it flying decent.....ok well different servos, metal parts, swash, and being very patient (maddening adjustments on the ESC/Gyro) Don't get me wrong I totally understand how people can and do hate this heli, I surely do. But it can be made to fly really pretty decent. I do know that pesky little brushed motor will actually last longer and run much much cooler when it is dialed in pretty good.
Shoot the very first SR I had I bought brand new, right out of the box the thing hovered up really nice and level, about 2 minutes after that I pounded the thing nose in into pavement because of my own dumb thumbing it.
The next flight or hover lasted 1 minute when the tail motor gave out on me, but I was not high enough to do any damage and landed it on the skids.
Third flight pounded it tail in....again dumb thumb and panic! No fault of the SR.
Fourth flight I stupidly had adjustments wrong and the heli took off in my garage and pounded into the ceiling LOL
No fault of the SR there either.
After that I had a few more crashes all my fault because of doing something stupid or dumb thumbing it.
MOst of the crashes I had with it was ME not the heli.
Sure it's not that easy to fly, tail sometimes will wing out on ya in a turn, its not much good in wind above 5 mph, because the weak tail doesn't hold the best. But on a calm day it's pretty nice to fly around.
So ya all quit beating up on my little SR, I still love her, even though I agree with ya all LOL I wouldn't recommend it!

[yakky]

Great post. Even though I had some experience with a mcpx at the time, my SR airtime was similar to yours, crash after crash. It never flew the same after the first crash. I look back and think now much better things would be if I had a 230s instead.

[nighttrain06]

Yup the 230s is one fine heli, although it has had some issues with the reciever some have reported and a buddy of mine has also had some weird reciever problems with his. Mine though I have not even upgraded because it just right outta the box was super nice and stable! The only thing mine will do is want to tilt right as it starts to get easy on the skids, little stick correction and she's up nice and steady into a hover, and flies right on! Have heard that it can be corrected but shoot I don't mind it flies so nice after that little hiccup.

[BrokeDad]

Yeah you just take off out of stability mode and it doesn't do the little skid tilt thing on takeoff. I usually just put up with it too and wait to switch once in the air. Once you are used to it the minor stick correction is second nature.