New To Hobby

[TIM R]

Got A T-rex 450xl As A Gift Completely Built Only Lacking A Transmitter. I Have Very Minimum Time On Helis So I Am Open To Any Suggestions. I Am Thinking Of The Hitec Eclipse 7 For The Radio. Also, I Am Aware That I Should Get A Simulator And Practice...practice...practice. I Appreciate Any Views Or Comments. Thanks.....tim

[MikeV]

I Think You Should Stick With The Simulator, Practice, Practice, Practice Is A Good Idea. Also, Try Not To Capitalize Every First Letter In Every Word. Just An Observation ;)

[TIM R]

I came onto this web site looking for some help and support as I am new to the hobby and you tell me to practice on a simulator and comment on my computer skills which were not written up that way, just the way it came out. I am gratefull for the reply, I guess I just expected a more thorough reply especially from staff of mag. Tim

[Motions]

Before you buy a radio you need to be sure what Rx you have (negative/positive shift) and buy a Tx according to that. If you have a Futaba Rx, you will need a negative shift Tx also, like....well, a Futaba. The JR systems are positive shift.

You need a bare minimum of 6 channels and I would recommend a minimum of 7. The radio is your most inportant investment in this hobby so try to get the best you can afford. It will be around for a long time.

[axis]

For a radio the Spektrum DX6 is awesome. No radio hits, full Spektrum technology..
As for flying your heli, try a sim and get proficient first. If you just cant wait to go out and fly it (I know I couldn't), be sure you have some training gear for it.
Start with tail in hover and go from there. Thats what I did about a month and a half ago and I am starting nose in now and some forward flight with great results. the only time I use a sim is at the LHS but, when I get the cable for my DX6 I plan on doing alot more on the sim.

[midi0101]

Hey Tim,

we all gotta take some humor once in awhile.....anyway, here is my opinion about how one should go about learning to fly an RC helicopter...

go and get yourself a good simulator. Use this simulator together with a real helicopter..
i.e.: you learn to hover on a simulator, then you go to the field and practice hovering on the real bird.
do not get overly confident with your sim knowledge....the fact that you can hover inverted 5 inches of the deck with the sim does not mean you can do that with the real thing (ask me how I know that.... :( )

take your little T-Rex and pack it up for later....it will be to much for you and you will get frustrated. A T-Rex 450 is a great little machine, but it is not suited for a beginner.
Do yourself a favour and get yourself a stable platform to start heli flying....it will cost somewhat more in the beginning, but it will save in the long run.

[axis]

midi is right. A TRex is a little much for a beginner. However, it can be made to be a tad more gentle.
For what its worth...
Put the smallest pinion gear it came with on the motor. I think its a 12. This will help keep the headspeed down and make the heli a little more subtle to inputs.
Also, add a steel wheel collar to each side of the flybar. This will increase the flybar weight and make the heli even more subtle.
Buy training gear or make some using whiffle (spelling??) balls and wood dowels. You'll be glad you did.
If your heli came with the plastic blades, dont use them. They flex waaaaaay too much and you'll end up like me having two tail booms that are jacked up in the exact same spot due to over flexing of the blades in hard touchdowns.
When you do start hopping and hovering around try and keep a little distance between the heli and the ground. The machine will be more stable if it is out of its own prop wash..

Thats about all I can think of. enjoy.