JoeyE

iTrader: (45)

Are the Kyosho ones hard to fly?

Ike

iTrader: (8)

Good god! Why would someone race lawnmowers over racing shifterkarts (something I used to race)??? Not insulting you in the least Bob, just trying to understand.

Sorry to go off topic Anyhow these helis sound neat, I haven't seen one in action yet but I'm intrigued...

Bob-Stormer

iTrader: (8)

Thread temporarily hijacked... I apologize.

Because it was freaking hysterical, and SEROUS fun. Plus, as a tinkerer, you got to build and manufacture a lot of your own stuff. We got to be on TV... A LOT! Kind of plays to a persons ego. We landed a small contract with Scotts, Everybody that saw it got a grin on their face, and the guys involved were the best group. Good freinds, all of them. Imagine 40-50hp in an ill-handling chassis, that weighed 300 pounds on crappy tires, geared to use that 50 horsepower at a maximum speed of around 50mph on short grass and dirt tracks. Imagine being side-ways on a lawn tractor going 45-50 mph with an 800cc briggs twin sceaming along at about 8000-8500 R's. It's hard to describe the crazyness of it all, but if you raced shifter carts, you probably get the idea.

Here's another way to look at it. Less weight than a racing quad, more horsepower, less traction, and no-suspension. It's an interesting scenario.

Bob-Stormer

iTrader: (8)

Found some action shots... They never really do the craziness any justice.

I miss it every day... *sigh*

TimXLB

iTrader: (14)

Ike:

Hi,

if you ever saw them race you'd know why. they were/are really cool to watch. yes they are'nt shifterKarts. and they don't run on a asphalt track. (we raced karts for a couple years. sprints, KT100 supercan). kinda like karts/offroad road course.

Thanks

Ike

iTrader: (8)

I've seen them race and it is comical. But I had no idea guys were dumping that kind of money into them I guess I'll never fully understand why someone would want to race a lawnmower over a shifterkart the same way I'll never understand why someone would want to race Tamiya minis over a 1/12th scale pancar. Seems like you can have just as much fun and go faster and handle better at the same time.

I will say that racing 125cc sprint karts was pretty intense stuff and the competition wasn't always the friendliest (Senior Sportsman was much friendlier). Being 15 and having some 35 year old guy get in my face wanting to fight me because he didn't like a pass I made opened my eyes to how serious some people took this stuff. Lots of easily bruised egos and secretive nonsense, not to mention cheating at races where tech wasn't intensive. I would imagine the lawnmower racers didn't have much of that kind of drama, and often drama and overly intense competition takes a lot of fun out of racing.

Bob-Stormer

iTrader: (8)

Ah, and there in likes the secret. You can race lawnmowers ANYWHERE! City park, your back yard (if it's big enough). There was a group of dudes in Ohio that were mudbogging theirs... *ick*... Plus, they don't do karts within 400 miles of here, and guys were Tractor racing... and that's how we got into it.

Frankly, I'd rather have raced Legends, but that's not close by us either... Just how the entertainment works out.

You can build a stocker for the price of the mower and use the stock engine, that makes it pretty cheap. Even a rock stock 12hp briggs will pull a mower to about 55mph when you gear it right. Just like RC, it doesn't have to be expensive if you don't want it to be.

The BP class mower of mine in the pics I've had over 100mph on mumerous occaisions. Was it a pleasurable ride at that speed... uh..

Don't let the pics of the high end machines fool you. They really are essentially go-karts (with a MISERABLE center of gravity) built with lawn mower parts to look like lawn mowers. If you look close at the one without the hood in the shop, it has essentially sprint car style steering. And that ain't no mower axle under there...

429racer

iTrader: (19)

Guys, if you want to know more about helicopters there is a website like RCTech here at http://www.runryder.com. It is where I have picked up alot of info.

rtypec

iTrader: (2)

Lol...the Tamiya track has a nice little field next to it that I kinda fly in. I haven't been driving as much as I should lately, since I've been preocuppied learning how to fly my Trex XL. A bunch of drivers have Blades and a few of us even fly electric park flyers. But yeah, micro helis do rock because it ain't easy.

rcgroups.com is a great resource for anything that's airborne.

My beloved Formosa before I buried it into the field after one to many inverted passes

rayhuang

iTrader: (5)

Well-thanks to this thread and cash in my pocket to buy myself my own birthday gift I bought the Blade CX. of course I broke the one part that I was told I would break barely 20 minutes of flying in. IT also just spins on axis to the right no matter the trim setting. I read deaper in the manual and found that the main motor proportional mix is probably to blame, but alas I wont get to play again till the new aluminum replacement for the plastic flybar hub/mounts come in in January.

jamescam

iTrader: (10)

I am going out tomorrow to get a Blade CP which will be a gift from my wife to me

Are they really that hard to fly? Any tips?

AdrianM

iTrader: (4)

Ray - I am pretty sure my LHS has that part in stock. Call Charlies Hobbies 813-822-4007 you you want to order one. They have an 8 foot wide wall full of CX parts.

rayhuang

iTrader: (5)

If mine wasnt spinning like a top-I would say the CX is down right easy.

The CP though is going to be a very steep learning curve. as it was explained to me-the little Heli is ultra maneuverable and its light weight makes it very hard and twitchy to fly compared to its much heavier nitro versions. If it has the same flybar hub mount as the CX-buy eveyone they have at $8 a pop. YOu will need them. They will be made out of aluminum as son as they are back n stock. I tried to buy one off of two local hobbyshops, HOrizon and another big heli online shop, all out of stock.

As for tips-heres what my buddy said. The best thing you can buy for your heli is a sim!!

-Adrian Thanks!!

AdrianM

iTrader: (4)

Flying a heli is almost exactly the same level of difficulty as balancing a broom stick on your finger. Once you get it its easy but getting there is another story.

Here are some tips:

The best place to practice is in an empty 2 car garage over smooth concrete. Carpet will grab the rotor and tear things up in a crash. Smooth concrete will let the rotors smack and slide if thinks go wrong.

1. Use the training gear

2. Keep the tail pointed at you at all times at first. All you want to do is get a stable hover about 2 feet off the ground.

3. Once you can do this easily try hovering with the nose to the right. At this point land, turn the heli and take off with the nose right. It's not as easy as it looks as different control inputs are needed.

4. Once you have nose right land, turn the heli and try nose left.

5. Finally try nose in hovering. This is the hardest type of hovering. as controls are reversed. Don't think that because this is no sweat with cars that helis are the same...you have a lot more going on!

6. Take off with the tail pointing at you. When you have a solid hover use the left tail rotor stick to turn the heli nose right. When you have a solid hover use the left tail rotor stick to turn the heli nose left. When you have a solid hover use the left tail rotor stick to turn the heli nose in.

7. Congrats! You have mastered hovering. Now you can start flying around. Try moving the heli in various directions and stopping it and holding a hover.

8. Once you can do this try figure 8's with the tail pointing at you all the time.

9. Now try keeping the nose in the direction of travel and making the tail follow.

If you can do step 9 you are officially a heli pilot!

This process can take from 6 weeks to 6 months. The more you hurry the bigger you parts bill will be.

R/C Anonymous

iTrader: (1)

these electric helicopters sounds interesting what is a good beginner one and how much empty will my pockets be after getting it?

on the lawmower racing>

me and my buddy used to fabricate off-road buggies and a couple lawnmowers in his garage that were scary to drive

nothing like an old lawnmower with a solid rear axle and a Yamaha R6 motor (120+ HP)doing wheelies down a bumpy side road ahhh those were the days