broken man Posted September 28, 2007 Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 How difficult is it?...... I "had" a RC helicopter....got caried away and and now have just a tail rotor gearbox left from a £600 kit in my garage...watch this guy amazing!!!! http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=TaRSGTOBi5g Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mossy835 Posted September 28, 2007 Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 well that was something eles. what can you say. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pin Posted September 28, 2007 Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 With the right tuition and suitable kit, putting at least 2 hours of tuition in a week you'd be hovering in about 3 or 4 weeks depending on aptitude. From then it depends how well you take to it. I was a BMFA "B" ticket holder and instructor fixed wing and rotary for about 4 years. I have seen people pick up hovering in a couple of hours, I have also seen (older people) take months to master it. The "playstation" generation find it much easier. Where you go from hovering depends on so many factors. I have taken about 60 odd people from novice to "A" ticket standard and I would say the average time to get to that standard is probably about 60-70 hours stick time. Given the right machine, set up correctly with buddy box (dual controls) you will come on way faster (and considerably more cheaply) than trying to do it yourself. I don't know that many completely self taught pilots who are competent, but they do exist. Flying a helecopter is much harder than flying a plane, you have much more to think about and the aircraft is significantly less stable than is a plane. There are basically 3 major hurdles :- Hovering, transitioning and nose-in (controls reversed essentially). Once you tackle each hurdle you are about ready to fly solo and then it's a case of practice practice practice. There are a couple of extremely talented helecopter pilots on this forum, I'd be interested to see if they agree with me Edit: the guy flying is Mark McAlpine, an acomplished 3D masters pilot, he's extremely talented but there are others better than him - perhaps even one on this forum Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
broken man Posted September 28, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 Hi Pin, if you're that good I bow to you Sir...., I had a couple of lessons with...Colin....can't remember his surname...Bliss I think a few years ago! Got to 10 ft Hover and then thought I'd take it for a spin....NOT! strangely I had more success with the real machines....with an instructor at my side of course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pin Posted September 28, 2007 Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 This guy here, can fly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twelvebore Posted September 28, 2007 Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 The guy makes it look too easy. I've crashed and burned so may times I've given up on the hobby - and that was fixed wing. As my friend above points out, I'm from an older generation, not brought up on 'puter games consoles, and arcade games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twelvebore Posted September 28, 2007 Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 Broken Man makes an interesting point. I passed my PPL some twenty years ago, (since lapsed) but I can't fly the models. I blame the illegal immigrants !!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
broken man Posted September 28, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 Hmmmm great pilot that guy Pin....interesting they use electric Helis...Mine "had" 4 foot carbon fibre rotors...very expensive tunneling machine!!! Inspiring.....Might even find some cellotape and glue, go find it in the garage! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pin Posted September 28, 2007 Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 Are you berettaman in disguise? I could teach someone to fly a 3 channel plane in an afternoon. Taking off and landing is something else and takes time to master. Teaching someone to hold a hover on a buddy box can be done in an afternoon with the right pupil, for most it takes much longer. The kind of flying you have seen here is called "3D" - so called as it makes the aircraft move out of it's traditional planes of movement. For helicopters inverted flight is a good example, for planes hovering is a good example. At one time, when I started, you had to learn and practice on an actual model. These days there are kids I know of who have spent thousands and thousands of hours on a PC simulator then been able to pull off tricks like you have just seen. Like I say, playstation generation Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
broken man Posted September 28, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 Thanks for that...are you the police heli pilot that's currently outside my window at 200 feet...strange but true! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pin Posted September 28, 2007 Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 No but being a total geek as I am, I have flown an RC heli entirely using downlinked video cam footage taken from it via a 2.4gz video link. Sat inside our club hut with the windows closed I was able to hover and fly around the field without being able to see the heli Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
broken man Posted September 28, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 woooommmmphhhh....that's so flash he's on fire..lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJaxeman Posted September 28, 2007 Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 Have spent alot of time with Heli's myself many years ago though but recently bought a E-Sky Honey Bee king 2 and it's a breeze to fly in not much to wind being a electric Heli but none the less is very responsive and for just over £100 for the full set up I am well impressed. I have had alot of flight time and very little down time so far only done one set of main rotors ( £10 a PAIR bargaing). Have fun JAS Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pin Posted September 28, 2007 Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 They are class. Chinese copy of another design but @ £90 I paid for the full thing (lipo, controller, charger, heli etc) they can't be beat. I fly mine round the office, launched off my hand buzz a few peeps and then back to the hand Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Griff36 Posted September 28, 2007 Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 Helicopters are very hard to fly, as Pin has already posted you need to practice on a buddy lead with a competent flyer, if it goes "t*ts up" you will still go home with (fingers crossed) all your kit still in tact. I have a Mirage fighter powered by a jetcat P120 engine (pretty quick) which if to be honest, somedays I come home and think "how the **** is that still in one piece" and I have been flying for 8 years. Keep at it, it is a very enjoyable past time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonp Posted September 28, 2007 Report Share Posted September 28, 2007 I have just got myself a Picco Z (about teh size of a mobile phone) and although its only 2ch, its awesome fun, and its less than £20 I plan to move onto the HoneyBee next Picco-Z : Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave-G Posted September 29, 2007 Report Share Posted September 29, 2007 Pin - I'm thinking I should know you. And you probably know my younger brother and I. (Think G-BLADES) Colin's surname is indeed Bliss Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Buck Posted September 29, 2007 Report Share Posted September 29, 2007 I bought an RC Helicopter over the internet a few years ago, I hadn't previously had any experience of them (not the best idea I hear you say) but at the same time I also bought an RC Simulation program, now it wasn't cheap but neither was the helicopter. So by spending a good while playing on the simulator and then transferring what I learnt on the computer I then put it into practice in and self taught myself the basics of how to fly it in the back garden. I fitted training arms to the heli and tied the end of each arm to the ground using some string so that it's couldn't just tip and smash into the ground, starting with a 1ft length, then as I gained more control I extended the string bit by bit out to 10ft and then removed the string altogether. The result was that I never crashed the helicopter. Unfortunately I kept on having problems starting the heli, but it turned out that the starting problems were down to a wire shorting out on the engine, by this time I'd lost interest in it and it's just been put on one side since then. I really should dig it all out and sell it at some point....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WeihrauchPower Posted September 29, 2007 Report Share Posted September 29, 2007 You can get tiy little ones that fit in the palm of your hand! Expensive though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pin Posted September 29, 2007 Report Share Posted September 29, 2007 Pin - I'm thinking I should know you. And you probably know my younger brother and I. (Think G-BLADES) It's very possible we have met I know Dave Wilshire and Steve Roberts very well (they fly at my club quite a bit)... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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