New Zoom 400 V2 Landing Gear is Da Bomb!

[rob_jones]

I received my Version 2 landing gear for my Zoom 400 today. Wow, what an improvement! Can you say "El Colo"?












I got it from Fung in Hong Kong (fung@flying-hobby.com). Probably not worth it if you aren't ordering anything else. But if you have a few items you need, They're not a bad deal for $20.

[WillJames]

Damnit Man!! I am going to have to get a Zoom 400!

[jhodges]

Ditto here William .... I NEED A ZOOM !!!!!

Rob, is that the MJP Carbon gyro mount ???

[rob_jones]

:twisted: Just rubbin' it in, guys! :twisted: If it makes you feel any better, I had my first "incident" yesterday. The elevator servo failed in flight. Luckily I had enough control to get landed, but just barely. I bent one of the boom supports, but it wasn't terminal. The servo (HS-55) is stuck in the nuetral position and won't move. I hope Mac'll swap it out!

Johnny: The gyro mount is home made. I have a sheet of carbon left over from when I built a friend's Hornet. I made the battery mount out of it, too.

[OMCtechUSN]

Hey all,

I was reading through your posts about the zoom 400. Would you consider that heli a good beginner helicopter? I normally fly planes, but have wanted to try helicopters, and that particular one seems like a good deal. I'm just looking for more people's opinions about it. Any info would be appreciated.

Dan

[WillJames]

I don't own one Dan, but I would advise you to get a Raptor 30 or Raptor or Evo 50. Learning on a Micro is much harder than on a larger machine. The other thing is that you really need to get some help from experienced modelers no matter what you decide to buy and learn to fly. I'm sure there are people who would tell you differently, but I had 6 different helicopters over 20 years, and barely learned to hover..... until I bought a used Raptor 60 and got some help from Randall Norris, Shannon Davis and Clintstone.

***Edit*** Check the Helicopters for sale forum Dan and take a look at the Raptor 30 Package that BigVanVader has for sale. That would be an EXCELLENT package to start with, a heli from a reputable guy that is setup and ready to start learning to hover with. That is what I would recommend.

Hope this helps you make your decision,

[rob_jones]

William is right. I don't think the Zoom would make a very good beginner heli. I suppose you could learn on it, but it would probably take a lot longer and you won't save any money. It would cost about the same to buy and set up the Zoom as it would for a 30-size glow heli. And parts cost almost the same.

The good thing, though, is that it's small and quiet. But it's really meant to be a high performance heli and would probably be about like trying to learn to ride a horse on a Kentucky Derby winner. If you want to train on a micro, something like a Hummingbird or Piccolo would be much better suited (and cheaper).

[cnsheets]

I have a complete Zoom package on its way from flying-hobby!!!!!!!!

[rob_jones]

Sweet! Be sure to pay close attention to the mesh of the tail rotor input gear. Mine was a little loose and stripped in flight yesterday. Zoom fall down, go boom!

I guess I'm about to find out how easy/hard it is to get parts for the little bugger!

[OMCtechUSN]

Hey guys thanks for the info. I've heard a lot of bad press about the piccolo and hummingbird as being much much harder to fly than any .30 size helos. I looked at the zoom 400 because it has similar mechanics to the .30 size models and all I'd need to put one in the air is a flight pack and gyro, and the himaxx 2025/phoenix 25 motor system if I decide to go brushless.

[vinrx7]

OMCtechUSN
if you still plan on getting a zoom for your first heli, you should at least get a good simulator and learn the basics. Good luck and have fun. :glasses2:

[OMCtechUSN]

I ended up getting a hummingbird CP and hawk sport and have flown both, although all that's been has been short hops and trying to learn hovering. The Hummingbird has a brushless setup which gives it enough power, instead of barely adequate power that it comes stock with. I use a CSM heading hold gyro for the hummingbird and a futaba 401 in the hawk. Both work pretty well.

[WillJames]

aglad to hear you got flying OMGTechUSN!!