back to mode 1, obviously. no point switching, i guess. better practice some other stuff than practice switching mode.

not really. the motors get pretty hot even after 5-6 mins flight, this is true from coax to bigger helis with brushless(although brushless will withstand this better). so bigger batt will just add weight and eat the motors lifespan(especially if not brushless). plus, more maH = bigger size, which means it may not fit your heli and you may loose your center of gravity.

trust me(although i'm still new in this hobby), 5-8mins flights is plenty enough. you'll probably loose focus if you're flying 10mins or more( at least i do).

This post has been edited by zeroglyph: Apr 3 2012, 11:01 AM

wouldn't RC Flyer V3 be much more easier? that way blimps and glider flyer also can joint .

coaxial= easy to fly, self stabilizing
fixed pitch (w/ 45 degree flybar)= flies just like a coax, self stabilizing
fixed pitch (w/ 90 degree flybar) = flies like a collective pitch but simpler to setup
Collective pitch= able to do acrobatics and more agile. harder to setup

heli size generally dictates the responsiveness. bigger helis are less responsive but are more wind resistant, smaller helis, vice versa. a CP heli has better chances flying in the wind. a 300+ size FP/coax have a better chance in the wind than the smaller ones.

between 8-10 i'd say . CP helis are advance helis, they don't call it that if it's not difficult. more moving parts = more repair + setup time. flying wise, if you've flown a fixed w/ 90 degree flybar before, you can fly a CP (fly, NOT do stunts).

most remotes, you can just swap the potentiometer to change mode. some (like esky ET4), you only need so exchange the retention spring and flick a switch. note that the mode you fly, depends on the 1st mode you use. so if you want to use mode 2, start with mode 2. else, it's not that easy to change later because it's muscle memory (i know, i've tried).

so although most remotes can swap from 1 mode to the other, you won't. so pick a mode to fly in a stick with it.

depends on the design i guess. but logic wise, swapping the potentiometer would work for most remotes. not so sure on the higher end remotes though.

but i find mode 1 easier for forward flight .

a 100 size is too small for my taste. i'd go for at least a 200. a 100 size is fun for indoor obstacle course though.

not to mention the price of the helis. i think their helis are way overprice, especially for the beginner's model (the LAMAs).

to be honest, i like esky. they are really beginner friendly, in price point that is. the lama v4 is quite a great heli, but some upgrades will be require to handle minor outdoor wind. the big lama is more or less a bigger version of the v4, so it will handle wind a bit better.

haha...i crash my HB v2 a few days ago, into a tree. after a 10 foot drop(on grass), only one link arm was broken. it flies again after replacement. the HBFP V2 is indeed more durable.

in most cases, it's just gimbals swap and some switch flicking involved(servo reverser). no re-soldering or what so ever required. not too hard actually, just need to pay attention to what you are doing.

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Added on May 8, 2012, 4:24 pm..and the 5th channel is the collective(for 6ch heli that is).

This post has been edited by zeroglyph: May 8 2012, 04:24 PM

if you're using esky's et4 tx, you just need to swap throttle spring , then flick the pot switch at the back. the pot switch will swap the throttle and elevator and viola, mode 1/2.

my bad, i was referring to flight channels actually. not what's actually written on the rx box(or setup wise). as you said, 5 ch is the absolute minimum for CCPM. you can still fly CCPM heli without controlling the gyro gain on the tx (which i consider the 6th ch - if you use it).

on the tx mode swap, yeah, it's an "in most cases" basis. obviously, programmable tx will be easier and none standard clone would be harder.

yes it is. esky tx would definitely work with methods described earlier. LAMA tx uses the gimbals swap method.

question is, can you find an esky LAMA in mode 2 here? i think most of them comes in mode 1.

well, no real advantage on either of them. the general rule is, you fly in the mode you started with. for example, i started in mode 1, because the 1st heli i got was mode 1. 2 years, later i tried to go to mode 2, but it's kinda stupid move, you can't really untrained muscle memory. so i stick with mode 1.

if you really want to nitpick. heli wise, i found:

mode1: easier for forward flight, as elevator and yaw in on one stick. (especially in the case of coax or helis with similar flight characteristics.)
mode2: easier for hovering, as cyclic is on one stick.

some argue that mode 2 is more to the real thing, but then, with the real thing, you don't have to learn orientation . i was a heli sim game junkie before i started this hobby, and i found rc is a bit harder because of the orientation issue. unless i go FPV of course.

you didn't ask the seller to test fly the thing for you? seems like the 4-in-1 is messed up, or a motor is defective.

usually you don't have to mess with the 4-in-1 setting out of the box. but just in case:

the gain is for gyro lock, and proportion is for rotor proportion. turn the proportion knob to where the heli is spinning. if helis spin CW, turn the knob CW and vise versa. try adjusting this knob 1st to see if it helps.

don't be like that la. esky's lama v4 isn't that bad. parts are easy to come by and upgrades are easily available. plus, various fuselage option is a cool feature.

blade strike happens when the heli tilt too much causing the blade spinning planes to clash. not related to the flybar linkage. the seller that you linked didn't sell extended inner shaft. he/she sells the metal part upgrade, which is not that necessary(at least not all of it).

you need "extended" inner shaft to help "reduce" blade strikes, which is quite infamous in coax. here's a sample:
http://www.rcsmart.com.my/webshaper/store/...roductItem=1074

and yeah, get some hard blade upgrade too, that'll help with the crashing.

yep, that't the hard fact .

i started with 2 coax, an esky lama v4 and a colco apache(1st heli). the colco comes with an extended shaft out of the box, and yeah, you can clearly feel the benefit of it. you can go a little bit more aggressive with an extended inner shaft.

rcsmart is just like any other hobby shop. some stuff are cheaper some are more pricey. the sell lipos pretty cheap though.

the tail is wagging? most likely the gyro lock is too tight. loosen the gyro gain a bit.

err...yes, but those cheap batteries are....."cheap". won't last. you're comparing against what exactly?

for esky lama, i like turnigy. for some reason these things just balanced out nicely with the heli.

for that Rm5, you can see the difference just in appearance. plus, my coax runs xtreme motors, any batt below 20C won't last too long, it'll get bloated only after several flights.

and yeah, rcsmart sells lipo at "competitive" 'price. i bought a 3-cells 900mah in TS for my honey bee at RM55. rcsmart sells a turnigy 3-cells 1000mah only for RM30.

yes, it's normal. sort of the same condition why an FP/CP heli would want to drift to the left upon lift off. the tail blade exert some force to one side when you spin, so it will definitely try to drift to the opposite side. a coax has no tail blade and thus can spin in one axis.

not really gyro. it actually has to do with:
1) weight of the heli - those bigger heli has better CoG doesn't drift that easily
2) belt driven - better tail authority with CP tail
3) gyro gain control - you can control the gyro gain with CP heli(in flight). so if you want to spin like crazy, just disable the gyro lock and the heli would spin freely.
- you can spin the v200d02 like that too if you loosen the gyro lock.(can't do it in flight though)

This post has been edited by zeroglyph: May 18 2012, 03:35 PM

no problem. i did the same thing with my honey bee, loosen the gyro a bit so i can spin quickly to tail-in if i get panic.

well, i read somewhere flying an unstable heli actually helps you build your reflex/control skills. you have to constantly try to recover the heli instead of just letting it hover hands free. so it's really not a bad thing .