Getting a CP 6 Ch heli, Any tips or tricks for learning?

[FranBunnyFFXII]

New to Flite Test, but not entirely new to RC Aircraft. When I was a little kid my dad had RC gas planes and heli's, and I had my own little eletric RC plane(firebird outlaw). I don't have much space where I live so a while ago I picked up a little 3 channel syma 107 to mess around with and, well that escalated to a 6 channel collective pitch toy heli.

Since I ordered it, I've been watching videos and things all about RC helicopters, to be at least a bit familiar with them beyond the little toy 3 channel.

The one I got, WLToys V977 I picked out because it was reputed to be very durable and new pilot friendly.
But I'm still a bit intimidated by it, because so many people have expressed how difficult a collective pitch helicopter can be.

Backstory out of the way, any tips and tricks for learning outside of making trainer gear and "learn to hover"?
I expect a few crashes and screw ups, but I don't exactly want to destroy the thing so quickly.

 

[KRAR]

New to Flite Test, but not entirely new to RC Aircraft. When I was a little kid my dad had RC gas planes and heli's, and I had my own little eletric RC plane(firebird outlaw). I don't have much space where I live so a while ago I picked up a little 3 channel syma 107 to mess around with and, well that escalated to a 6 channel collective pitch toy heli.

Since I ordered it, I've been watching videos and things all about RC helicopters, to be at least a bit familiar with them beyond the little toy 3 channel.

The one I got, WLToys V977 I picked out because it was reputed to be very durable and new pilot friendly.
But I'm still a bit intimidated by it, because so many people have expressed how difficult a collective pitch helicopter can be.

Backstory out of the way, any tips and tricks for learning outside of making trainer gear and "learn to hover"?
I expect a few crashes and screw ups, but I don't exactly want to destroy the thing so quickly.

SIM time = your friend. The sim will teach you the most. Same with EXPO, this depends on the heli, with flybarless this this is generally set in the FBL unit itself. Too much expo and you will feel disconnected, to little and the thing will be all over the place.

Other than that practice practice practice

 

[makattack]

I kind of wish this was available back when I started learning to fly CP helis:
http://www.horizonhobby.com/product...helicopter-new-releases/nano-cp-s-bnf-blh2480

A nano cp with SAFE... that said, I'm more inclined to buy this now:

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/...o_3D_Helicopter_w_RF_Module_Radio_Ready_.html

 

[razor02097]

New to Flite Test, but not entirely new to RC Aircraft. When I was a little kid my dad had RC gas planes and heli's, and I had my own little eletric RC plane(firebird outlaw). I don't have much space where I live so a while ago I picked up a little 3 channel syma 107 to mess around with and, well that escalated to a 6 channel collective pitch toy heli.

Since I ordered it, I've been watching videos and things all about RC helicopters, to be at least a bit familiar with them beyond the little toy 3 channel.

The one I got, WLToys V977 I picked out because it was reputed to be very durable and new pilot friendly.
But I'm still a bit intimidated by it, because so many people have expressed how difficult a collective pitch helicopter can be.

Backstory out of the way, any tips and tricks for learning outside of making trainer gear and "learn to hover"?
I expect a few crashes and screw ups, but I don't exactly want to destroy the thing so quickly.

Step one when flying a heli when you have flown airplanes... Forget everything. CP helicopters have a reputation of being scary because of one simple fact....generally when an airplane pilot experiences trouble with a plane what is the first thing they do? Chop the throttle. Doing the same with a CP heli (especially a 3D capable one in idle up) will result in complete devastation. A simulator is a great idea and gives you a chance to practice orientation and allows you to practice new maneuvers without the risk of destroying your model if you get disoriented.

The absolute first thing I suggest you do is research exactly how a CP heli works and what the controls do. As I'm sure you already know the difference between fixed and collective pitch is the RPM of the motor doesn't change on a collective pitch heli when you demand lift...it will just adjust the pitch of the blades. When I first started looking at helis this info was sort of confusing when I did find it. I will try to go over the most basic things...

The first thing you need to know is the throttle stick controls collective pitch of the blades. This does not change ever. With the throttle stick all the way down you have full negative pitch. Essentially if the rotor was spinning it would be pushing the copter into the ground. As you bring the throttle up the negative pitch gets closer to zero until the stick reaches about the half way point. Then you have a neutral pitch. At that point you can spin the rotor as fast as you want but it will not produce lift. Going past the half way point introduces positive pitch which lifts the heli away from the ground.

Now that you understand what the throttle stick does you now have to understand what throttle hold and idle up does...


Throttle hold disables the motor. Enabling this and moving the throttle stick will still change the pitch of the blades.

Idle up increases the RPM of the motor to max power. The motor no longer responds to the throttle stick. This is typically used during the flight to allow you to keep motor power constant while being able to use positive and negative pitch. If the heli is capable of 3D that is how those pilots can fly them inverted.



All of that garbage said make sure you read your heli's manual. There is likely a difference in function especially the throttle hold...since it has a separate motor for the tail I don't know if that means it functions differently or what.

Hope I didn't confuse you too bad

 

[makattack]

I just setup the Blade Nano CPS with my Taranis with a DSM2/DSMX Module. I made an .eepe using the OpenTX 2.1.6 software, and it's been flying great with the different flight modes (stability, 3D, panic). The nice thing about using an advanced controller is the flexibility and options it provides for configuring throttle and pitch curves. For shaking the cobwebs out of the head for flying CP helis, this has been great. Flying so many fixed wings and multirotors of late, I've gotten out of the habit of using throttle hold. With a stabilized full CP (pos and neg pitch) flight mode, it's easy to get back into it.

Here's my configuration:
http://rcsettings.com/index.php/viewdownload/4-helicopters/244-blade-nano-cps

 

[dropitlow88]

What those guys said! I am also new to CP Helis. I bought a whole lot of craigslist for $300, two trex 450s, trex 250, blade MCPX, Blade 450 3d and Blade MSR with a DX6i to boot!! steal of a deal. I have crashed the blade 450 3d 6 times, the trex 250 4 times and left the trex 450s benched. Mind you these are all Flybarred helis. I had experience on the sim as well, several hours of practice. Fly bar helis are tough to handle, at least for me. The 450s have parts on order to go FBL. anyway...
For a great trainer the MCPX cannot be beat. this little guy is friggin tough!! I cannot count how many times I have smacked the ground with it, picked it up and off she went! The 450s and 250s so much as kiss the grass with a blade and you are tearing it apart for repairs, sometimes costly. Don't be scared away!! It takes practice, lots and lots of dumb thumbing on the sim. Orientation and concept of operation are everything! I can now zip around outside with the MCPX and have a blast! Inside I practice hovering and precise flight, I land on counters, stove, boxes, etc. Helps train the thumbs and the mind. I picked another 450 heli after doing a lot of research. The Walkera V450D03. I absolutely love this thing! The 3 axis gyro with accelerometer makes it extremely stable in beginner mode. I crashed the other Helis nearly every flight and when I put this in the air it was more stable than the sim! For the price It cannot be beat for a beginner heli. So smooth and rock solid in a hover, makes the MCPX look like its on crack haha. I have flown it 5 times now without a hitch, no crashing! I still can't believe how easy it is to fly compared to the other helis. It is still imperative to practice a ton on the sim however, still need to know the basics. I am using HeliX 6.0, the demo. Good free sim and will soon be purchasing. You are going to crash a few times. Don't get discouraged, You will get the hang of it! So much fun once you grasp the concept!