Projects What Is Your Next Heli Build And Why?

[Batwing]

I have purchased an Align 800 electric as my next and possibly final rc helicopter to build and fly. Two years ago the heli bug bit me. I quickly went through a number of small electric helis before taking on my Align 550 TREX Dominator. This was a serious challenge for me which took 4 months to build and 2 more to program. This is still my weekend get a thrill heli. I fly a couple of Blade 230s daily and I spend time on the simulator to learn new stuff before I try to fly it. I am over 60 so bigger is better, easier to see and very small parts are just annoying. I like the quality of Align helis but what do I know? The price of other helis has been an issue for me.

So my next build is the Align 800E PRO DFC Super Combo RH80E10X. This is the biggest heli they make it comes with motor, servos, ESC and Beastx giro. I am familiar with Beastx and it has performed well on my 550. I also like castle ESC and the 160 Castle looks like it can do the job. On my 550 I upgraded to a Castle 120 since the 90 provided seemed weak. For this build I also want to include an FPV for virtual passengers. I have not been able to master FPV on the simulator so I doubt that I will be flying this in FPV. Any tips or suggestions welcome.

Best wishes to all heli pilots please share your thoughts, it's the season to put something on your bench to fly in the spring.

 

[Admiral]

Sounds like you have a plan, like your selection of equipment I like Castle & BeastX however more recently I have be installing iKon FCs mainly for the Self Level & Rescue Modes which I have not tested yet.
The version #1 iKon is coming available on the second hand market at very reasonable prices and the only difference appears to be less logging and slower processor, at 68 my processor is a bit slower too so Ver #1 and me make a good team.

PS. No new builds on the horizon too many existing helicopters with small issues to sort out first.

 

[Smoggie]

Congratulations on your latest project! I bet you can hardly wait to get it in the air.
The biggest heli in my fleet is Goblin 770, I've got a few in the 700 class. Big helis are a real thrill to own and fly that's for sure. I've not got any immediate plans to add to my fleet because really i have to many already but I have just been doing a few upgrades to my Trex 700X over the weekend. I dropped in a new Scorpion HKII 4525 'Ultimate' that I picked up for a bargain price. i also put in a new tail servo after the original started to play up, it was only an intermittent fault but you cant take chances with these big helis.

How will you be powering the FBL and servos on the 800?

 

[James M. Lewis]

Hi everyone, My winter project is to build a 450 size Agusta A109. I recently purchase a TREX 450 clone on line. The sticker price for a RC Aero Dyre was a little rich for my bill fold. Regardless in what model I was looking at, $62.32 was the cost for shipping alone. I found a company in Canada, Rotor RC.com and they had what I was looking for. Had several questions and received responses in a timely manner. So to make the long story short, I bought a very nice fiberglass fuselage that's fully detailed everything from panels to revits. All hardware (several sealed bags) were included along with a good instructions sheet full of photos. It is made in China and the price was right, $59.99 plus 27.99 for shipping. The box arrived in six days from Canada and measured 3 feet long x 6.5 inches wide x 9 inches high. The fuselage length is 780mm and when I put the base plate of the main frame on the plywood pre-marked holes for securing helicopter, they lined up exactly. I was impressed knowing this will be a fun project this winter. And what makes this even more exciting is my son in law who also is a RC pilot is getting me a complete electronics package for Christmas. MY MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!