E-Sky HoneyBee V2...anyone here fly one?

[y2blade]

I have had a good few flights with my easy heli and now looking to get something a bit bigger

I'm looking at one of these
http://www.heliguy.com/Electric-RC-Helicopters/Hon...
http://www.rcmods.co.uk/esky-honeybee-v2-24g-p-676...



has anyone here got one? would you recommend it as a first step into the work of larger R/C Helicopters?

[Emsman]

These are a bit dearer, but having seen a friend fly one they really are superb

[Emsman]

Emsman said:

These are a bit dearer, but having seen a friend fly one they really are superb

eta link-

http://alshobbies.com/shop/lookupstock.php?pc=4029...

[y2blade]

B-Reight said:

What have you flown previously and how competent at it are you? There are quite a few fixed pitch choppers around this size (~500mm rotor dia.) and imho they are all much of a muchness.

If you are a beginner one thing is guaranteed, you will crash, so it may be worth getting a chopper that has cheap spares or is cheap to completely replace. I started on these and totaled three before i got the hang of it.

thanks

yes I understand that and everyone has got to start somewhere...right?

I'm used to R/C models (nitro off-road cars and Electric cars) and have very good hand/eye co-ordination...have good general understanding of how a helicopter works

I have a 4channel indoor helicopter that I have got to grips with VERY quickly and am happy to mess about with for a couple of months, so I'm JUST LOOKING at what is the next step.....with the view to possibly buy "something suitable" just before Christmas


all advice taken onboard...thank you all in advance


I found out today that a colleague has a Belt CP V2 so had a very good chat with him about them

[B-Reight]

Is the one you have at the moment coax or seperate tail and rotor?

I went from a 300 size fixed pitch, like the honeybee you linked to above, to a 400 collective pitch (E-flite blade400) and it's a very steep learning curve. The blade400 is very similar to the BeltCP your mate has, and both are decent bits of kit. I think the chopper Emsman posted should be a good intermediate step.

Edited by B-Reight on Tuesday 2nd November 21:21

[B-Reight]

Oh and go for a 2.4ghz computer radio like the spektrum DX6i or better as soon as possible, the Dual rate and expo functions are indispensable for getting to grips with flying these whirlybirds.

[Holst]

B-Reight said:

Is the one you have at the moment coax or seperate tail and rotor?

I went from a 300 size fixed pitch, like the honeybee you linked to above, to a 400 collective pitch (E-flite blade400) and it's a very steep learning curve. The blade400 is very similar to the BeltCP your mate has, and both are decent bits of kit. I think the chopper Emsman posted should be a good intermediate step.

Edited by B-Reight on Tuesday 2nd November 21:21

The main problem with the eflite helis is the quality of the radio gear and electronics.

I started with a belt CP and upgraded the electronics and with the upgrades it was fairly capable.
With the standard servos and transmitter setting it up was difficult and the slow and inaccurate servos were a real problem.
If you dont have a heli that is properly setup and predictable its very hard to learn with. Especially if you dont have the experience to tell the difference between poor setup and poor thumbs!

You are better off spending a little more money and buy an Align 450 sport with the included electronics and a decent radio (DX6i would be my recomendaton)
(EDIT) - I should have said alot more money, as a 450 sport and DX6i isnt going to be cheap

I now have a 450 pro and its much much easyer to fly than the cheaper alternatives. Far more predictable and accurate.
Spares are also more widely available and no more expensive than the competition.

I dont think there is an intermediate step with 400/450 size helis, you either buy something high quality and keep it, or buy a cheap heli and replace half the components to make it usable.

If you dont have it already buy a copy of Phoenix RC simulator and a transmitter and get practicing. Only once you can fly around confidently on the sim should you try a real heli.

Edited by Holst on Tuesday 2nd November 22:11

[B-Reight]

/shameless plug/ I have a copy of Phoenix R/C along with the standard dongle if anyone needs one for less than RRP.

[y2blade]

B-Reight said:

What have you flown previously and how competent at it are you?

I recently bought one of these, and I've taken to it very quickly










I will be looking to buy something bigger just before christmas, and from what I've read the HoneyBee V2 should be ideal...Hence I was asking on here to see if anyone had one...and to ask for their thoughts on it

[TPS]

y2blade said:

B-Reight said:

What have you flown previously and how competent at it are you?

I recently bought one of these, and I've taken to it very quickly










I will be looking to buy something bigger just before christmas, and from what I've read the HoneyBee V2 should be ideal...Hence I was asking on here to see if anyone had one...and to ask for their thoughts on it

I can easily fly one of those and moved on to a honeybee.The honeybee is nothing like those indoor models and a lot harder to fly in my eyes.

[y2blade]

TPS said:

y2blade said:

B-Reight said:

What have you flown previously and how competent at it are you?

I recently bought one of these, and I've taken to it very quickly










I will be looking to buy something bigger just before christmas, and from what I've read the HoneyBee V2 should be ideal...Hence I was asking on here to see if anyone had one...and to ask for their thoughts on it

I can easily fly one of those and moved on to a honeybee.The honeybee is nothing like those indoor models and a lot harder to fly in my eyes.

excellent thanks for the first hand feedback

have you wrecked it? or is it a case of "use your head, get it trimmed properly and build-up gradually and you will be fine"

[esuuv]

Generally the smaller the model is the harder it is to fly.

I'd say if you can fly a buzzfly then you can fly pretty much anything bigger without too much hassle.

[y2blade]

esuuv said:

Generally the smaller the model is the harder it is to fly.

I'd say if you can fly a buzzfly then you can fly pretty much anything bigger without too much hassle.

thanks, that is what I though

I can take off from the kitchen table....fly around the house (avoiding the cat and dog) and land upstairs on the bedside unit

[TPS]

TPS said:

I can easily fly one of those and moved on to a honeybee.The honeybee is nothing like those indoor models and a lot harder to fly in my eyes.

y2blade said:

excellent thanks for the first hand feedback

have you wrecked it? or is it a case of "use your head, get it trimmed properly and build-up gradually and you will be fine"

Sorry i was not fully with it this morning.The honey bee i found difficult at first but slowly got to grips with it a little bit.
It was a bit light which I think is what I found to be a problem with it though.The only bits i had to replace was the blades after a while as i damaged them.
I then moved onto a belt cp and this is the one i have had one small accident with that required some new parts(read as quite a few) to the head rotor.

[y2blade]

TPS said:

TPS said:

I can easily fly one of those and moved on to a honeybee.The honeybee is nothing like those indoor models and a lot harder to fly in my eyes.

y2blade said:

excellent thanks for the first hand feedback

have you wrecked it? or is it a case of "use your head, get it trimmed properly and build-up gradually and you will be fine"

Sorry i was not fully with it this morning.The honey bee i found difficult at first but slowly got to grips with it a little bit.
It was a bit light which I think is what I found to be a problem with it though.The only bits i had to replace was the blades after a while as i damaged them.
I then moved onto a belt cp and this is the one i have had one small accident with that required some new parts(read as quite a few) to the head rotor.

thanks TPS

As I said earlier I'll do another month or so and with my little BuzzFlyer (I enjoy messing about with it so much I'm in no real rush to upgrade) then look at something larger nearer christmas as a "gift" to myself

I do have a choice of a few large indoor areas I can use when I get something bigger, and will also use it outside on calm days

[Emsman]

You could always look at one of these....
http://www.centuryuk.com/Products/Ready+To+Fly+Rad...

[y2blade]

Emsman said:

You could always look at one of these....
http://www.centuryuk.com/Products/Ready+To+Fly+Rad...

funny enough I was just looking at these here
http://www.xheli.com/2estaro4chrc1.html

[Emsman]

Nice.

Only ever seen one of the century version, but it's bloody big, stable, and looked easy to fly- but guess they all do!

[y2blade]

B-Reight said:

Is the one you have at the moment coax or seperate tail and rotor?

I went from a 300 size fixed pitch, like the honeybee you linked to above, to a 400 collective pitch (E-flite blade400) and it's a very steep learning curve. The blade400 is very similar to the BeltCP your mate has, and both are decent bits of kit. I think the chopper Emsman posted should be a good intermediate step.

Edited by B-Reight on Tuesday 2nd November 21:21

Fixed pitch...it has seperate main rotor and tail rotors (see the pics above)

B-Reight said:

Oh and go for a 2.4ghz computer radio like the spektrum DX6i or better as soon as possible, the Dual rate and expo functions are indispensable for getting to grips with flying these whirlybirds.

cheers, yes I am only looking at 2.4G

thanks for all the info

B-Reight said:

/shameless plug/ I have a copy of Phoenix R/C along with the standard dongle if anyone needs one for less than RRP.

fantastic, how much is that? PM me if you'd rather...I was about to order the E-Sky R/C Simulator to play about with




I have done a lot of reading on the heli forums and will be sticking with my original plan of enjoying my little indoor one for at least another month, then buy myself something bigger around christmas