leaving the toys behind

[Hughes Helicopters]

I have grown up and am done with Blade/Horizon. Their products hold you back at a certain point. The crappy gears the cheap servos (450x) the way the gear drive is laid out. I spent two years thinking I was crazy, until I looked at some Mikado and Goblins recently. Just as easy to crash but far easier to fix and far higher quality. As the saying goes you get what you pay for. No wonder they pulled out of the pro market.

[Epoweredrc]

Nothing wrong with Blade, but yes they are better brands. sometimes a FBL can make all the difference in the world or how a heli is set up.I used to be a huge blade fan, now i own 0 Blades and 2 Align, and 2 XK products

[toadiscoil]

I am not a Blade hater nor am I a lover. However the 230 S is a heli I keep and will keep recommending for a beginner and I really enjoyed and truly miss my 360 CFX which is the one true works-right-out-of-the-box heli from Blade and has very impressive performance.

Yes it takes a couple of upgrades but the 360 will stand up to many kit helis on its class once you get tired of the stock components. A two blade with an iKon and KST 215's on the cyclic really shines.

Now yes you get what you pay for and the higher quality and more powerful components (that of course you can pick and choose to your taste) of kit helis put them several steps ahead.

Blade has its place and I am like you I got rid of all my Blades to fund my kit helis so I "graduated" from Blade. But if I could afford to keep all I would have kept the 230 and the 360. The only downside is that as I said they need a couple of upgrades to really keep up after being used and abused for a while.

I am sure you will enjoy your transition do your research to find a good next step.

Good luck!

[Hughes Helicopters]

I use a Bavarian Demon FBL which I love. My FBL cost more than my 450x. I suppose I could upgrade to better servos.....but the drive train is my biggest peeve. those plastic gears strip the second you look at them wrong and they have such limited contact with the motor pinion its crazy. Just a cheap entry level product that frustrates more than helps. Like a bad Harbor Freight tool! But some Harbor freight tools are ok, but cheap helis are a pain.

[toadiscoil]

The new Trio seems to have a defect of gear mesh that strips the main gear on flight but I only stripped gears on crashes. Properly meshed should be ok with the helical gears which I believe started on the 450X. But regardless as the latest episode of RCHN states, this hobby is so diverse that you get out of it what you want.

For example I chose a Goblin 380 as my first kit build after selling my Blade stuff. Super happy but was aware crashes would be expensive (and they are!) but after not crashing as often and mostly due to failures out of my control (not a dumb thumb or lack of Loctite) I was ok with it. But Blade products, computer simulation and the Rescue feature got me to where I am. Granted very newbie but finally enjoying the hobby after dozens of flights.

So get rid of the 450X if it is now not to your liking and get a kit heli. Then start a new phase of the hobby and enjoy!

Originally Posted by Hughes Helicopters

I use a Bavarian Demon FBL which I love. My FBL cost more than my 450x. I suppose I could upgrade to better servos.....but the drive train is my biggest peeve. those plastic gears strip the second you look at them wrong and they have such limited contact with the motor pinion its crazy. Just a cheap entry level product that frustrates more than helps. Like a bad Harbor Freight tool! But some Harbor freight tools are ok, but cheap helis are a pain.

[yakky]

Why does everyone love bagging on Blade? They get people into the hobby and offer a ton of value in ready to fly models. Does anyone else even offer anything close to ready to fly for less than a car payment?

OP, why didn't you buy a Mikado or Goblin as your first heli?

[chrisconn2]

Originally Posted by yakky

Why does everyone love bagging on Blade? They get people into the hobby and offer a ton of value in ready to fly models. Does anyone else even offer anything close to ready to fly for less than a car payment?

OP, why didn't you buy a Mikado or Goblin as your first heli?

+1

[jrman83]

The OP was just stating his frustration. He probably got into Blade because like you said, for less than a car payment. But now the love affair is done and I think he realizes that if he doesn't want to continue to make those car payments, he may need to move on. Nothing wrong with that or what he said, IMO.

And in the long run he may have been better off with a Goby or Mikado.

Sent from my SM-N910T3 using Tapatalk

[Epoweredrc]

Well you have a great FBL system never had one or flown one but heard great things... Well not sure why your having gear issues, i have hundreds of flights on stock motors and gears and honestly not sure ive ever replaced a main gear or pinion servos, sucks, the old fb gyros sucked. but the 450x things got better but still crap servos. all mine got upgraded to hitec servos.

That trio does look cool and ild love to try a 3 headed heli one day but not sure it be a blade

some people have worse luck then others

[Mike680]

Originally Posted by toadiscoil

The new Trio seems to have a defect of gear mesh that strips the main gear on flight but I only stripped gears on crashes. Properly meshed should be ok with the helical gears which I believe started on the 450X.

The original 450X had a straight cut main gear. Many people put an aftermarket helical main gear/pinion on theirs, myself included. I went with Lynx. Then the 450X V2 came out with a helical main gear, metal geared servos, etc. Basically, the improvements we'd been doing all along.

[Nytro97]

I just don't get the mentality of comparing $200.00 to $500.00 helicopters to $600.00 to 3000.00 birds. Of course you get what you pay for in most cases....this is why we have choices in this life. If you feel you want or need (there is a difference between the two) and are a demanding hard 3D flyer by all means get out the wallet and pay up , that's your choice. I would rather not have that feeling when the $2500.00 heli takes the dirt nap.
For a weekend sport flyer like myself Blade has and is serving me well. Yes they have had some models in the past that were lacking in areas, but they have stepped up their game have a really good lineup now.

[mattbeau]

I don't know. I'm not against blade, they have their place. I still have a 180 CFX. I flew the crap out of my nano cpx and got a lot of training out that one. I flew the crap out of my 300 CFX also. mine had all upgraded electronics but the airframe was fine. my friend now has the 300cfx and is learning 3d on it instead of his more expensive helis.


If your new to helis and are just exploring the hobby, I think a blade 230s, 270cfx or 360cfx are great helis to start with. if you have been flying a few years, sure, there are better helis out there but be prepared to build it and buy all the components separately. I'm at about 2.5 years into this and have:

180 cfx
oxy 3 +
goblin 380
protos 500
align trex 600N

I primarily fly the oxy and goblin. they are the perfect size for me. I do wonder though what it would be like to fly a brand new 270cfx now that I'm experienced and not crashing every other outing. for 479 it might not be bad.

pricing out my oxy3 stretch:

kit: 285
esc yep 40: 20
eox 2214: 60
brain: 165
kst cyclic:84
spectrum h3060 on the tail:27

comes to about 650 give or take.

these are by no means the best electronics or an optimal setup but its essentially what I've flown on if for the last year. If I wanted to put the best in, I bet I could hit 1K$.

[slogoat]

Originally Posted by mattbeau

I don't know. I'm not against blade, they have their place. I still have a 180 CFX. I flew the crap out of my nano cpx and got a lot of training out that one. I flew the crap out of my 300 CFX also. mine had all upgraded electronics but the airframe was fine. my friend now has the 300cfx and is learning 3d on it instead of his more expensive helis.


If your new to helis and are just exploring the hobby, I think a blade 230s, 270cfx or 360cfx are great helis to start with. if you have been flying a few years, sure, there are better helis out there but be prepared to build it and buy all the components separately. I'm at about 2.5 years into this and have:

180 cfx
oxy 3 +
goblin 380
protos 500
align trex 600N

I primarily fly the oxy and goblin. they are the perfect size for me. I do wonder though what it would be like to fly a brand new 270cfx now that I'm experienced and not crashing every other outing. for 479 it might not be bad.

pricing out my oxy3 stretch:

kit: 285
esc yep 40: 20
eox 2214: 60
brain: 165
kst cyclic:84
spectrum h3060 on the tail:27

comes to about 650 give or take.

these are by no means the best electronics or an optimal setup but its essentially what I've flown on if for the last year. If I wanted to put the best in, I bet I could hit 1K$.

A 270cfx is listed at 399 now. Frequently, coupon codes pop up allowing one to be picked up for $360. Not long ago horizon had stackable coupons and I was able to add one to my cart for like $330. Still kinda kick myself for not following through on that checkout process...

[JonJet]

I will be buying a 270CFX with the bonus cash from work...some time in November

5 hours OT and $200 just for doing it makes just over 3/4 of the cost...so to Me it's a <$100 investment - any coupon will make it less

A small price for an afternoon of work

As some have said...if you want to shuck up the buck...go for it

Blade offers plenty of BNF options for My tastes at the moment and I've not been disappointed...realizing what the intent of the model is in the first place is more than half the battle of decision

[yakky]

Originally Posted by JonJet

I will be buying a 270CFX with the bonus cash from work...some time in November

5 hours OT and $200 just for doing it makes just over 3/4 of the cost...so to Me it's a <$100 investment - any coupon will make it less

A small price for an afternoon of work

As some have said...if you want to shuck up the buck...go for it

Blade offers plenty of BNF options for My tastes at the moment and I've not been disappointed...realizing what the intent of the model is in the first place is more than half the battle of decision

Make sure you do the survey that went out this month for $25 off, and around BF there will be sales plus coupons making for some serious deals.

[toadiscoil]

There's a lightly used 360 CFX Trio on the classifieds. I have had two of the regular 360's and loved them. Still a very manageable size but super powerful. Really nice heli probably the best Blade has to offer.

Originally Posted by JonJet

I will be buying a 270CFX with the bonus cash from work...some time in November

5 hours OT and $200 just for doing it makes just over 3/4 of the cost...so to Me it's a <$100 investment - any coupon will make it less

A small price for an afternoon of work

As some have said...if you want to shuck up the buck...go for it

Blade offers plenty of BNF options for My tastes at the moment and I've not been disappointed...realizing what the intent of the model is in the first place is more than half the battle of decision

[Waxxingibbous]

whats so horrible about the blade 450x?
from what i see, a simple design. very easy to fix.
every crash so far has been only main gear, blades, tail blades and feathering shaft, maybe elevator servo arm

im not saying theyre great, but decent trainers and beaters that can be put through the paces. it surely deserves some merit for that.
.

yeah most kits are better but they are way more expensive to build and crash, the higher quality parts are just simply more $$, so ill keep a 450x around to push the envelope skill wise knowing if i crash, its 10 mins and 2 parts(which discontinued on sale means i got a bulk of parts for really cheap)

[toadiscoil]

My opinion that's what the little 230 S is for. Simple, inexpensive and capable. Then the 360 is a 6S beast that can be tamed down and used as a progression heli. The 360 is after all the evolution of the 450X, it even shares some parts. After the Trio was released when 2 blades appear on the classifieds they are very reasonably priced. Even the Trio on sale now I would go for it myself if my money wasn't already spent on a preorder. I really have a soft spot for that heli really nice and enjoyed it very much. It is able to provide to me everything you need to thoroughly enjoy the hobby. 450 class 6S machines are to me the beginning of helis that are portable yet powerful enough to give you that rush and presence in the sky when flying it that smaller helis just can't provide.

Originally Posted by Waxxingibbous

whats so horrible about the blade 450x?
from what i see, a simple design. very easy to fix.
every crash so far has been only main gear, blades, tail blades and feathering shaft, maybe elevator servo arm

im not saying theyre great, but decent trainers and beaters that can be put through the paces. it surely deserves some merit for that.
.

yeah most kits are better but they are way more expensive to build and crash, the higher quality parts are just simply more $$, so ill keep a 450x around to push the envelope skill wise knowing if i crash, its 10 mins and 2 parts(which discontinued on sale means i got a bulk of parts for really cheap)

[Mike680]

Originally Posted by Waxxingibbous

whats so horrible about the blade 450x?

The cheesy and flexible plastic frame for starters. And, the horrible servo geometry with that ridiculous Rube Goldberg type setup for the elevator servo. I rebuilt mine on a Lynx frame and it was like night and day with how much better it flew with nice, even cyclic servo geometry with straight servo-to-swash links all of equal lengths. The stiffness really improved cyclic responsiveness and precision. But, you can't get the whole frames anymore since Lynx likes to stop making upgrade parts very soon after a heli is discontinued. If (when) I kill my Lynx frame and can't get parts for it, my 450X is getting stripped of anything useful, retired and trashed.

[BrokeDad]

I've flown my 450X and 360CFX many times already today. OMG can I tell the difference especially with the 3S vs. 6S. If I flip the right switches I have set up I can put the 360CFX into monster mode... the 450X not so much. It is a world of difference since putting in the Ikon though on how the 450X flies. It's the perfect afternoon .. gotta recharge packs now.