FAQ: HeliFreak General Heli FAQ (2024)

B. Getting Started

1. I'm interested in getting into RC Helicopters. What all do I need?

"Need" is a subjective term and the "needs" of some will be different than those of others. Below is a basic list of items to get you started. Thanks to HF user ThBrtmn for the initial items.

1. Helicopter kit - General consensus seems to point to a "400" sized kit or larger.
2. Transmitter - 6 channel minimum for an electric helicopter, 7 if you're going glow-powered (nitro) and want to use a governor.
3. Receiver. Again, 6 channel for electric, 7 for glow. (Most transmitters come with a receiver and receiver battery pack)
4. Gyro w/high speed servo. Often sold together in combos. These items will help control the tail rotor.
5. Servos. Number and size depends on the model you buy. As few as 3 but as many as 5. Check the docs that came with your helicopter kit.
6. Rotor Blades. Unless your kit came with blades, you will need to buy main and tail rotor blades. Size is dependent on the kit you buy. Again, consult your kit's docs for proper sizes. Woodies are good for complete newbies as they'll take a lot of the force of a crash and break before you'll start bending or breaking head parts.

For a Glow (Nitro) powered helicopter, you'll also need the following:

1. An engine of the appropriate size for the kit you've purchased.
1. Glow plug(s). Consult your engine docs for the recommended type.
2. Glow Driver/Ignitor.
3. Starter. Used to spin the motor during startup.
4. Starter Shaft. Type depends on helicopter brand. Consult your docs
5. Battery/Batteries to connect to/run starter. Setup depends on preference…corded or cordless.
6. Fuel. Make sure it's helicopter fuel with an appropriate oil content. (18% or higher)
7. Fuel Pump. Manual or electric.
7. Fuel Tubing. Size appropriately to the model you're building.

For an Electric helicopter:

1. Brushless motor sized according to the helicopter you've purchased.
2. ESC (Electronic Speed Control) with proper cell number and Amp ratings for the motor.
3. Batteries. Number of cells and capacity is dependent on (you guessed it!) the helicopter you've purchased.
4. Receiver battery & regulator or BEC (Battery Eliminator Circuit) of appropriate amperage.

Tools Needed for Assembly

1. Ball link pliers
2. Hex driver set (1.5mm, 2mm, 2.5mm, 3mm hardened tips)...way easier than a set of allen keys.
3. Glow plug wrench. ( can be substituted with a socket wrench with 8mm socket)
4. Pitch Gauge (unless you can borrow a buddies for the time being).
5. Blade Balancer (unless you can borrow a buddy's for the time being).
6. Thread Lock Compound like Loctite 242. Medium strength - sometimes referred to as "blue".
7. CA (Cyanoacrylate) model glue...(pretty much super glue)
8. Small metric ruler. (comes in handy)

Optional Items

1. Head Button (to slow your head speed down when retrieving the Heli or tuning the motor)
2. Fuel line clamp and plug for fueling without flooding the carb.
3. Fuel filter (This would almost be a must… very wise to have one) "T" if you use a clamp and plug system.
4. Remote glow adapter (almost a MUST unless you enjoy removing the canopy every time you want to start it).

Again, this is a basic list and by no means covers everything you may need. If you're like mosT RC modelers, you'll soon have a full toolbox and probably more than one "junk box" with RC stuff in it.

2. Sounds cool. What kinds of helicopters are available?

(contributed by OliverDots and edited for content)

There are 3 different types of helicopter available for purchase and it really comes down to your own personal circ*mstances and personality. Money plays a factor as well, but since your wife or significant other may be reading along with you, we won't go down that road. You also need to consider where you'll be flying as a large helicopter won't be welcome at the city park.

First up is the coaxial helicopter.

The 4 channel version like the Esky Lama V3 for example. These helicopters have no tail blades as the twin main rotors rotate is opposite directions, eliminating the need for a tail rotor. To turn, one set of rotors will either speed up or slow down and the torque differential between the two rotors turns the helicopter. The pitch of these blades are fixed and altitude is controlled by the rotors either speeding up or slowing down. The main control unit in the helicopter is called a “4 in 1”. This is the Receiver, speed controllers and gyro. The gyros in these "magic boxes" do a pretty good job holding the tail but tail inputs are still needed when hovering. These helicopter are very stable and can nearly hover hands-free without any control input. These are usually flown indoors as they really can’t handle more than a very very light wind. A lot of people learn to fly with these helicopters as they are very easy to learn on and fairly durable. They have the same control system as single rotor helicopters so you can learn the basics of flying, without the expensive crashes and repairs. Not only will it teach you rudder / aileron / elevator and throttle control, but will also teach you about orientation. This means you can learn to fly side-in and nose-in. Orientation is very important to flying helicopters and with the coaxial heli being so stable, it is not too difficult to learn.

Advantages of a coaxial helicopter are….

• Stable
  
• Durable
  
• Capable of being flown in an average living room
  
• Minimal damage to objects and people, if struck by the blades
  
• Quite inexpensive to buy
  
• Fairly inexpensive and easy to repair and set up
  
• Comes ready to fly with all the electrics included.
  
• You can let your friends have a go.

Disadvantages are….

• Cannot be flown outdoors unless there is virtually no wind
  
• If you do fly outdoors, you have to keep the heli fairly close to you. Due to their small size, it’s very easy to lose orientation.
  
• Controlling the altitude will never be sharp and precise. There will always be a delay as one rotor will have to speed up or slow down, although altitude is still very controllable.
  
• You may soon become bored and want to progress to a single rotor heli.
  
• Although you can learn a lot from it, you will still notice a big difference when you move up to a single rotor heli.
  
• The gyro is pretty good but won’t hold the tail rock steady.

Next we have the FP (Fixed Pitch) Helicopter.

The following 2 paragraphs contributed by Dusty1000
There are essentially two types of single main rotor FP helicopters, those which have the flybar at 90 degrees to the blades such as the Honey Bee FP and Walkera 4#3B, and those which have an off-set fly-bar/head such as the Blade mSR and Walkera CB100.

There are various designs of the offset flybar/head type FP helis, but the one thing they all have in common is that the flybar and blades are approximately 45 degrees apart. These helicopters will stabilize themselves into a stable hover, to various extents, in much the same way as coaxial helicopters do, when the cyclic stick is centered. They are designed to be considerably easier to fly than 'traditional' FP helicopters with 90 degree flybars, and as such the advantages and disadvantages are in-between those of coaxial helicopters and traditional FP helicopters.

These are 4 channel helicopters and the altitude is controlled by the single rotor either speeding up or slowing down. These helicopters have a motor driven tail rotor. The main control unit in the helicopter is called a “4 in 1” and like its Co-Ax cousin, contains the receiver, speed controller and gyro. Like the Co-Ax gyro, it does a pretty good job holding the tail but tail inputs will still be required when hovering. The smaller “micro” helicopters are normally flown indoors or outside with near to zero wind. The larger types, like the HoneyBee, can be flown indoors but require a larger area. Something like a double garage is fine. They can also handle a gentle wind.

Advantages of a single rotor helicopter

• Unless you go for a micro size, you can fly these outdoors in conditions that would ground a coaxial.
  
• A good helicopter to buy and learn on, before progressing to a CP helicopter.
  
• Quite durable although perhaps not as durable as a coaxial.
  
• Cheap and easy to repair.
  
• They come already built and most come ready to fly with full electrics included.
  
• They are big enough to allow you to fly further away and still keep good orientation.
  
• Will keep you happy for a long time before you feel the need to progress to another heli.
  
• Not very expensive to buy.

Disadvantages

• You can’t do much more than hover if you fly indoors, unless it’s a sports hall.
  
• These will hurt you or others if struck by the blades. They will draw blood!
  
• Require some amount of setting up (they very seldom fly straight out of the box).
  
• A lot more unstable than a coaxial so it’s a longer learning curve.
  
• The gyro is pretty good but won’t hold the tail rock steady.

Lastly we have the CP (collective Pitch) helicopter.

Now we have what some call, a “real” helicopter. These helicopters are 6 or more channel, with main blades that change pitch. Throttle and pitch are automatically mixed for you in the transmitter. You don’t need 3 sticks and 3 hands. This is a single rotor helicopter but now, altitude is controlled by changing the pitch of the blades. This means a given height is easier to maintain. Climbs and descents are faster and more precise. This type of helicopter is capable of flying inverted and performing complex aerobatics and what's called "3D" flight. The tail-rotor is usually belt driven. A belt runs off a gear that is driven by the main gear (the main gear drives the main rotor) to the tail gear driving the tail rotors. The tail blades also change pitch to turn the nose of the heli. This makes the tail control very precise and responsive. The electronics in these are all separates, (no 4 in 1) and consists of a receiver, multiple servos and a gyro. The gyro typically has a heading hold feature which for best part, holds the tail very well in hovers. Little or no input is needed at all to keep the tail still but you will need control inputs to get the tail to move in a turn.

Advantages

• A high and steady head speed which means high stability.
  
• Can be flown outdoors in stronger winds.
  
• Controls are much more responsive and precise.
  
• Capable of aerobatic and "3D" maneuvers.
  
• The bigger you go, the further away you can fly.
  
• You can buy them ready to fly with all electrics included.
  
• Usually have a very good gyro which holds the tail very well.

Disadvantages

• High rotor speed means, even a small knock will break quite a few parts. If someone is struck by the blades, main or tail, they a trip to the local Emergency Room is usually the outcome. These helicopters are potentially VERY dangerous.
  
• Steep learning curve and require a lot of time spent to set up or repair.
  
• Again, these heli’s will need inspections, checks and adjustments before the first flight. You can’t fly straight out of the box.
  
• Every knock will probably cost you money.
  
• Setting up can be a frustrating experience. You will probably need to watch plenty of videos and ask lost of questions on the forums if you are a beginner.
  
• Time spent on maintenance and inspections. You don’t want a malfunction if you can help it.
  
• These are noisy. A neighbor won’t be happy with you flying it in the garden at 11 o’clock at night or 6 o’clock in the morning.
  
• If you fly in a park, you need a large “people free” area to fly in.
  
• Not recommended to fly these indoors unless it’s a large sports hall/gymnasium or similar.

Note: For the absolute beginner, a CP helicopter is probably not a good choice. They are dangerous and potentially lethal. It can be done, but you are STRONGLY encouraged to seek some hands-on help from an experienced modeler. You will probably crash very often at first. Crashes can cost you quite a bit of money and many many hours of repairing and setting up, and increase the frustration level enormously. You could soon become disheartened and your wife will be asking where all the housekeeping money has gone!

3. What's all this going to cost me?

Like any hobby, the deeper you get into it, the more it is going to cost. While there are a lot of RTF helicopters out there that can be had for a couple hundred dollars, the reality is that they're not very high in quality or performance. That's not to say you can't start with one of these helicopters and be successful, but that old adage, "you get what you pay for" certainly comes into play here.

Typical initial cost for a name brand helicopter, radio and basic tools/support equipment is $500+, a not insignificant amount of money to get into a hobby you may not enjoy or be successful at. There are other options though. The proliferation of "clone" helicopters, models that are direct copies of the name brand models, and cheap electronics have made it possible to get that number closer to $300. HF user Racer38 shows you how in his Beginners 450 Part 1 Cheap Cheap Cheap thread.

4. OK, I bought a helicopter and radio and all my basic tools. Now what?

What comes next depends on what type of helicopter you've obtained. Some helicopters come RTF (Ready To Fly) with transmitter etc. Some are ARF (Almost Ready to Fly) which means the airframe is assembled and you need to install the electronics and power system. Some are BNF (Bind 'N Fly) - the helicopter is fully assembled and set up (set up being completely subjective here) and you need to "bind" your transmitter to the models' receiver and do some programming. Some come as a box of parts - a kit - and you have to assemble it, install your electronics, set the mechanics up properly then program your radio. It sounds a bit daunting at first, but if you've got a little mechanical aptitude and a willingness to understand some basic concepts, it's not that difficult.

For RTF and BNF models, you really should double check the set up of the helicopter. While your shiny new RTF heli may say in the instructions it's been test flown at the factory, it does not necessarily mean the helicopter is properly set up. Same with the BNF. It may look good and controls may move around when you fiddle with the sticks on your transmitter, but it doesn't mean it's correct. Any intermediate pilot can probably hover a poorly set up helicopter, but that's the last thing someone just entering the hobby needs.

For an ARF or kit built helicopter, you need to do the setup regardless. Just bolting everything together and spooling up won't necessarily result in anything good. The forums are full of posts from people who assumed if they just assembled it, it would fly. Take the time to set up the helicopter properly.

One final word (ok, maybe a few dozen words) about all these types of helicopters, especially the ARF, and BNF helis (or kits with some assemblies already..um.. assembled) Check each and every screw that goes into a metal part for threadlock. Most people pull one screw out, clean it, apply threadlock and reinstall the screw regardless of whether it feels like it's got compound on it or not. Nothing sucks more than having a part fly off in mid-air and helplessly watching your helicopter crash to the ground. For a kit helicopter, remember, any screw going into a metal part needs threadlocker. Screws going into plastic do NOT get threadlocker. Some people put a dab of CA on these screws, but usually the plastic does a good job of holding the screw in place without it.

Now that you're thinking you're in way over your head, there's some good news. That news is in the form of HUNDREDS of free videos in Finless Bob's Helifreak Tech Room These videos cover dozens of models, radios, gyros and of course, basic concepts. The information available in these videos is staggering to say the least and finding what you're looking for sometimes turns into a project itself.

Thankfully, as a member of the Helifreak community, you've got a tremendous resource put together by HF user and Support member, kgfly - the Heli Skills and Setup 101 compendium. Inside you will find over 100 videos covering the absolute basics up through actual kit builds for several dozen helicopters. Most find it best to start with the basics while assembling the helicopter. Watching the build videos for your particular helicopter often sheds light on typical "gotchas" encountered during the build. Of course, as always, if you get stuck or can't figure something out, there's the forums and the HF community. Finding local help is another great alternative. Most fellow RC'ers are more than willing to help you get going and you may make a friend in the process.

5. My helicopter is assembled and set up. How do I learn to fly it?

Everyone is different in how they learn to fly. Some just dive right in, some find local help from an experienced modeler, some pay for lessons. There are a lot of web site that offer free tutorials on how to fly but one that seems to get the nod time and time again is Radd's School Of Rotary Flight. Based on responses posted in the forum, it seems to work pretty well as long as you're disciplined enough to follow the lesson plans.

Of course, a simulator can be invaluable in developing those initial skills and allow you to get your brain wrapped around the skills required to get your new model off the ground and safely back down again.

6. I hear about simulators all the time. Do I really need one?

Need? Not necessarily. Will a simulator help? Absolutely. Simulators these days are much improved over the 1st computer based RC simulators. The SkyLark RC Heli simulator of the early 1990's used a modified transmitter plugged into the game port on your PC. The graphics and physics were rudimentary at best, but it was a valuable tool for learning to hover and get into forward flight. You did have to know how to set up the transmitter so it was by no means "plug 'n play" but for what it was, it worked well. Today, you simply install the software to your PC, plug the supplied lead into your transmitter and the USB port on your PC and you are good to go. In most cases, the interface cable is the copy protection for the simulator software and they are not interchangeable between the different simulators.

Current simulators do a much better job of replicating the "feel" of the simulated model and most allow you to use your actual transmitter to control the model. There is a lot of personal opinion out there as far as what's the "best" simulator, but when it comes down to it, they all offer the same basic functions; learning to control the helicopter, learning orientations, learning new tricks, developing what some call muscle memory so that piloting our model becomes more natural. With a simulator, there is no danger of a crash destroying your model. Press the reset button and voila! You're back in business.

(Copied from a post by OliverDots and edited for content)
They are good training aids but, don’t think if you can fly on a simulator, you can fly the real thing. If you had a driving simulator with a steering wheel and pedals and you practiced for 3 months, do you think you could jump in a car for the first time and past your test? No, but you would learn more about driving a car compared to someone who hadn’t used a driving simulator. You will learn what each stick does and how to use all 4 movements at the same time. You will learn the basics of hovering, and turning etc… And when you are ready to try flying nose-in and side-in, it will help. Just don’t think, “if I can do this on the simulator, then I can do this with my heli. You won’t. It will help to prepare you. It is a great training aid but nothing beats actual stick time.

7. I've decided to buy a simulator. Which one should I get?

As stated before, there is a lot of personal opinion among which simulator is "best". Some offer free upgrades and aircraft, some charge for major updates but have huge amounts of community support. Others are popular in some parts of the world than where you may live. A lot of Hobby Shops (at least here in the States) now have demo stations where you can try out various simulators and some simulator companies offer a trial or demo download so you can see for yourself what the simulator is like.

This is by no means a recommendation nor a comprehensive list, but two of most popular simulators available are Phoenix and RealFlight. Again, some will argue the merits of one over the other, but it really comes down to what you like. Be aware that many simulators offer the ability to "fly" with friends online (i.e Multiplayer) but you cannot fly in an online session with a RealFlight owner if you have Phoenix and vice-versa.

There are some free sims out there as well. FMS is one and is sometimes bundled with some Co-ax or Fixed Pitch helicopters. Additionally, HeliFreak user markb has written a free sim, HeliSim and it is available for download right here: https://www.helifreak.com/showthread.php?t=53247 In either case, you will need to find an interface cable for your particular transmitter. These are usually available from your local hobby shop and/or online retailers.

Unfortunately, as of this writing, simulator software is only available for PCs running Microsoft Windows. Many Mac users have reported success in running the simulator under a Windows Emulator. There are also a few people doing the same with Linux based systems. You'll have to do a search to find specifics on what you need and how to set it up with your system.

8. I've got my helicopter and been practicing on the simulator. Where can I fly?

It's really best to join a club and fly at the club field, but many modelers fly in empty fields, parks, private land etc. Legally, you can fly just about any open area as long as there are no local codes preventing you from doing so, however, you have to remember the potential for injury and damage these models have. Most of the public has no idea of the potential danger an RC Helicopter poses and will wander into your flying area, or allow their pets/children to do the same. While you may have the skills to completely control your helicopter, things happen and the last thing you need is to hit someone or something with your model.

If you don't have a local club and your only option is to fly at a park or open space, take all precautions to ensure you don't endanger anyone or anything else. If you can, bring a buddy and have him "spot" for you - that is, keep an eye on the surroundings and keep you informed. You can't concentrate on the helicopter and the happenings around you at the same time. Don't fly over or near others, near walking or bike paths etc.. Use a little common sense. Time of day can make a big difference in how "available" your chosen flying area is. For example, early mornings a park can be full of joggers or completely empty. You will need to figure out the best times and days for your particular flying area.

Another consideration is the noise. Even electric models make noise and that noise can carry for surprisingly long distances. That noise can upset people living in close proximity to where you choose to fly and while you may think the noise is great, others won't necessarily share your enthusiasm. Time of day is another consideration here. Your local park may be deserted at 6am, but it's a good bet the people living near the part don't want to hear the high pitched whine of an electric motor at that time. Again, use some common sense and be a good "neighbor".

9. I've found a local club and want to join. How do I do that?

Easy. Fill out an application, send it in with your club fees and wait for your membership to be approved. In most cases, it really is that easy. Some clubs are private and have specific limits on the numbers of members. Some are military personnel only, some are a mix that require a specific ration of military to civilian members. Some clubs are helicopter or fixed wing only, some are a "if it flies, it's welcomed here" organization. In all cases here in the States, membership in the Academy of Model Aeronautics is required. Other countries have similar requirements with their modeling organizations.

AMA membership nets you many things, most importantly is liability insurance. Secondary to your homeowner's policy, this insurance will cover damages you may incur after an incident. As with any insurance policy, there are limits to the coverage both financially and in what things are covered. You can read how to join, membership benefits etc on the AMA Membership Services page of their website.