Model Forum / Radio Controlled / Helicopters / May 2009

  Practice and experience perhaps. When first learning to hover a model
helicopter it is not easy. After you have had a bit of practice you will
wonder why it was so difficult in the beginning.

  It also could be a bad setup on the helis. How much experience do you
have at setting up a model helicopter ?

  Tampa Bob

    You picked two advanced machines.  They will be difficult to
master under the best of conditions.  

    Where are you trying to learn?  I have a nice two car garage
where I learned.  Just a little bit of wind outside makes  the
difficult impossible for the new flyer.  

    I chose the the CX2 and it took me a while to get half way
comfortable with it.  It also cost a few replacement parts.  With what
you have, I would strongly suggest finding someone locally who has
flown and mastered them to help you out.

to fly a helicopter,
1,you need to be able to fly it before you can trim it
2 before you can fly it it needs to be trimmed
sort of chicken and egg problem

my advise is
1,get some sort of flight sim even FMS & its free, this will help
2 put lots of practise on sim first
3,get some one to trim helicopter first then try, if no one is near you
buy a more stable helicopter like a CX2 or similar
4,get some sort of training gear
5 only hover in short hops to start, close to the ground and if it goes
out of control put it back down
6 dont bother trying to fly round the garden until you can hover at will

Hi Harry,

Welcome to the world of model helicopters.  What you're experiencing is
something that almost all of us had to deal with at some point along the
way.  The previous post that mentions the "chicken or the egg" conundrum is
pretty close.  If you can't fly well yet, you really can't properly trim the
model and if the model isn't properly trimmed, you'll have little success
flying it with any real precision.  If you've got anyone close that can help
you go over the bird and make sure it is properly trimmed, that'll go a long
way for you.  At least if things don't go well, you'll know it's you and not
the model.

Another thing to keep in mind is that, even if the model is perfectly
trimmed in the air, it will almost never be for the initial lift off.
You'll have to learn to hold whatever controls you need to, to get it to
come off the ground straight.  Once it is airborne, you can neutralize those
control inputs for a stable hover and then you should be pretty much good to
go.  The sim suggestion is one of the better ones.  You can practice all day
long and not have to worry about damaging anything, including you wallet.

Helicopters, both the models and the 100% scale versions, are very
maneuverable and offer high levels of control authority.  That comes at the
expense of stability but once you start getting a handle on them, it's not a
big deal.  Get the sim and practice, practice, practice!  Be sure you
concentrate on the hover at first.  It's too easy to let the "model" move
off and then start flying around.  Try not to do that.  You really do need
to master the hover first as the real thing won't be nearly as forgiving as
the sim will be!

Good luck,
Steve R.

Thanks to all the people that replied to my question. Your advice was
excellent.

I will get someone to help me.

Thank you

training to fly helis isn't that simple as flying planes.but i thin
you'll have faster chance to learn the control. with planes you'll star
with flight sims. then probably 4 ch planes.. but, before you get t
that you'll really have to spend some time with sims.

oh btw, you should practice with 3/4 ch coaxial helis..probably lik
this 'wasp V2
(http://www.twift.com/RC%20Toys%20&%20Hobby/Skyartec%20WASP%20V2%20-%204%20Channe
l%20RC%20Helicopter.html

don't try to master 2 chs. u'll go nowhere

--
jabr

I've been flying heli's for around 18 years and find the little electric
heli's a handful to control.  I have a Blade CP, Blade 400, and T-Rex 450 SE
V2 and all are a handful until after I haven't flown for a while.  I also
have larger heli's, I have 2 heli's with 90 4-stroke engines and an X-cell
Graphite with a 60 two stroke, plus other 60, 46, and 30 size glow
heli's....  Anyway, the bigger they are the easier they are to fly as they
give me more response time.  On the down side, the bigger ones cost a lot
more dollars to buy and repair.  I'm not sure this is a good analogy but a
small helicopter is sort of like balancing a ping pong ball (a little
mistake and it's off fast) and a larger heli would be more like balancing a
beach ball (same concept but you have more time to correct).

My son has a Blade CX2 and it's a nice little heli but although he can fly
it, he still can't fly the other heli's of Real Flight.  The Blade CX2 is a
lot of fun but it's limited in how useful it will be in learning to fly your
other heli's, not useless but limited.

I would recommend for you to somehow get a simulator that you can use,
develop the reflexes to control the model and then go to flying the model
from there.  I have Real Flight V 4.5 and I find the little helis difficult
to fly until I practice on the simulator for a while.

Good Luck
RogerN

Hey....I did it. I took your advice and bought a CX heli (Twister Agressor)
and after a couple of hours of practice I can now hover it with some level
of control. I reckon a few more hours to get it stable (not overeact) and
then I will start doing forward, backward, etc.
Thanks for all your help. What an enourmous buzz.....:)

Cheers, Harry