Looking for noob suggestions, phoenix setup.

[Sqwrly]

Hello,

So I'm new to this whole thing and figured this was probably the best section for this. I've been doing a lot of reading lately. This is a hobby I've always wanted to get into since I was first introduced to it about 12 years ago. My friend had a 500ish sized nitro heli and I tried to hover it. That was one of the most difficult things I've ever done. It seems like things have come a long way over the years.

The only thing that is set in stone so far is my transmitter. I picked up a DX8 a few days ago and also the Phoenix sim. I'm been toying around with all of the helis in there and I can hover most of them. I was immediately impressed with how easy it was on the sim, even flying the "pro" helis. Seemed much easier than the nitro I tried a long time ago. Not sure if they are much easier now or I just didn't have the coordination then.

Anyway I'm looking around for the right heli for me. I'd prefer to get something small so I can hover it indoors(especially this time of year, it's cold in NJ). I've read numerous times that a 450ish size is the best to start off with as they are move forgiving to fly. A 450 is obviously too big to hover in my living room. I have been looking at the Nano CPX, m CP X v2, and the 130x. I thought about going FP instead of CP but with the sim it's given me much more confidence that a CP might not be the worst to start with, especially if I can tame it with the DX8. I'm in no rush to start flying crazy orientations, I'm quite content hovering. The first night I had Phoenix I spent 6+ hours just hovering different helis and couldn't have been happier.

I've also read so many conflicting opinions about sims. Some say they are very realistic, some say they aren't at all, some say they do CP well but not FP. So I don't know who to believe. But that being said is there a set I can download somewhere that I know I'll have a properly setup transmitter and matching heli config for Phoenix? I don't care how big the heli is in Phoenix but just something that will give me the best real to life "feel". In other words I don't know what feel real yet so I'd like to know if there is a setup someone has for the DX8 and Phoenix that acts like a proper CP heli. Beginner friendly would be nice as well. I'm going to watch some videos/read about what I can really do with this DX8, expos and such.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

[rojack]

In my personal opinion, ...and I've logged a lot of sim hours in Phoenix, don't worry so much about some kind of "perfect" simulator setup. Just get in there and practice... but read below.

You've got a great transmitter, the DX8, and a great RC simulator, Phoenix. Now you need to spend some time and practice. But to really progress, you need to follow a curriculum of sorts. There are definitely specific things to practice that will help you with more advanced flying. There is a really nice list on this forum somewhere, unfortunately I don't have the link handy, but it starts something like this:

1. tail-in hover: hover the heli with the tail closest to you. The nose points away. This is the most natural and simple thing you can do. Try to keep the heli in one place more or less and at a specific height, at least several feet off the ground.
2. side-in hover: same as above, but the side of the heli faces you. Practice both sides!
3. nose-in hover: again, as above, but the nose is facing you. This is hard to learn!
4. lazy 8's: start with tail-in hover, turn the heli right, fly 10 or 15 feet, then do a 180, now facing left, and fly it past you to the left 10 or 15 feet. Then do a 180 to face the heli right. The heli traces a kind of squashed sideways figure 8.

There is a lot more... but this is a good start. Also I like to practice spot landings. Choose some specific areas and practice taking off and landing in different areas.

The skills are what you need, not so much some elusive setup.

For the heli, get the nano. You'll learn a ton with it and then will be ready for something bigger.

[Sqwrly]

Thanks for the information. I've been leaning towards the nano since reading more about the 130x. The 130x seems nice but also seems to have a load of little issues. The main reason I was concerned about a phoenix setup was just from seeing so many people saying a bad setup could make even the easiest heli hard to fly. So I just wanted to be sure I wasn't handicapping myself in that way. I've read a lot about throttle curves and such so I plan to screw with that some when I take breaks on the sim.

[rhodesengr]

personally, I find the real helicopters are easier to fly than in Phoenix. I've tried using my TX to tone down the response and also using the settings in Phoenix. Neither eally feels like the real thing. Phoenix has its place but its just not that accurate especially when you consider wind.

I think learning to fly CP indoors is just difficult. You really need more space than a typical living room or garage and you really want to fly over soft grass. Even a Nano gets moving pretty quick. Indoor crashes do much more damage than crashes into grass. A high school gym would be nice if you can get access to one.

The Nano is probably the way to go. I learned on the mCPx, then a Gaui x2, then a 450X, and now a Trex 550.

[Sqwrly]

So I ended up spoiling myself and getting both the nano and the 130X. I put the setups from the manual into my Tx and gave the nano a shot first. Man does that thing fly itself or what. That was my first ever lift off on a CP heli in real life ever and I was able to hands off hover it no problem. It's a blast to hover.

The 130X on the other hand was a beast. My living room is too small for it so I will have to fly that in a hangar or outside. At least until I master hovering. I tried it once and it was squirrelly and turned into a couch dart in a few seconds. I had my finger quick on the hold switch though, no damage done. I might be able to reign it in with some Tx trickery but I'll wait for now.

Having sim time prior to lift off DEFINITELY helped. The nano also seemed easier to fly in real life than any of the sim birds.

[j32driver]

Let me chime in on the Phoenix and Nano front:

#1) The Nano has done more to advance my flying than ANYTHING else. I absolutely love this little heli. I did the mild brushless upgrade and just love tossing it around the sky. You can't go wrong by picking up a Nano.

#2) Phoenix. I typically fly only a 700 size heli on the sim. Think of the sim more as an orientation trainer rather than a "Feel" trainer. I typically adjust the master performance slider up until I get something I like, then adjust the piro rate of the tail... and then go fly.

If you want to really advance, you need to practice certain tasks. I typically do circuits and figure 8's upright in all 4 orientations (nose 1st, both sides 1st, tail 1st), then switch to the same set of exercises only inverted. After that, I'll put in full rudder trim and fly circuits while the heli piros. Then do a 1/2 piro flip and work on the inverted piro circuits. After I get that done, I'll try to do some absolutely stationary flips and rolls. I usually polish a session off with upright and inverted autos.

One last thing about Phoenix. I use the flying field with the grass strip on it. FORCE yourself to absolutely stay over the grass strip or beyond it. Don't tolerate allowing the heli to get behind you or fly into you.

[Sqwrly]

Thanks for those tips, especially that last one. Forcing myself to keep the heli beyond a certain point will definitely be useful. I think orientation training is right for what the sim is most useful for. But I will say it DEFINITELY helped me get the basics of hovering down as well. I'm pretty sure my TV and Nano would have kissed a few times if I hadn't spent some time on the sim first.

I was actually doing some basic circuits I came up with myself but I keep coming across videos that the wonderful people of this hobby put together with nice structured ways to progress skills. Can't wait to try some of it.

Also, pegging your heli into a non stop piro sounds like a nightmare. One day...

[j32driver]

Originally Posted by NoValidTitle

Also, pegging your heli into a non stop piro sounds like a nightmare. One day...

This is hands down the best exercise I've found!

Start slow. Trim your heli so that it makes a 360 degree piro about every 5 seconds. Nice and slow. Then try to hover it. It forces your brain to change orientations and keeps it from getting locked in to one set of controls. Once you practice it a couple of times, you'll be surprised at how easy it really is. Once you get the hang of it, you can add more trim to increase the piro speed. The faster the piro, the more difficult this is. But there is a LOT of benefit from doing this even at a slow speed.

There are a lot of stories of guys learning to fly "Nose in". They practice hovering for a whole pack "Nose in". Then... when they turn it tail in to land, they dumb thumb it and crash. This piro exercise should prevent that.

[DaFedMan]

http://www.chadrg.com/flightschool/

This training series is helping me greatly in the way it is organized and the fact that it gives stretch exercises at the end of each video to ease boredom.

[Reelfast]

Originally Posted by DaFedMan

http://www.chadrg.com/flightschool/

This training series is helping me greatly in the way it is organized and the fact that it gives stretch exercises at the end of each video to ease boredom.

+1

I've only recently started following this series and I've made tremendous improvement (I've been flying around without structured tasks for months). I completely agree that having a stretch/bonus maneuver eases boredom and adds variety. Plus I like knowing what's coming next, and knowing that others have been successfully down this path.

Rudy

[tmc31]

Sorry, posted this in the wrong spot.

Tim