General Good kit choice - 500 size heli
- Thread starter bigone5500
- Start date
Tony
Staff member
those two gyros are pretty much the exact same. IMO, you have a few choices, Ikon, BeastX, bavarian demon, Skookum, VBar as well as many others out there. And these are all authentic, not clones. IMO, the first two are the hottest right now. Geena uses the bavarian demon and loves it. Ikon is under $200 and comes with self level and bailout. BeastX has it, but you have to pay for it.
The Ikon has ports for Spektrum satellites. The BX, I can't remember if it has these ports or not, but you can get the AR7210 or the like and it has a built in Spektrum Rx. I can't remember if you are running spektrum though, so this may be moot. Hope this helps.
The Ikon has ports for Spektrum satellites. The BX, I can't remember if it has these ports or not, but you can get the AR7210 or the like and it has a built in Spektrum Rx. I can't remember if you are running spektrum though, so this may be moot. Hope this helps.
Smoggie
Well-Known Member
I have a KDS Agile 7.2 in my fleet, it's a nice heli, it's very big even by 700 standards. It's similar in overall size to my Goblin 770. It's quite a heavy helicopter but flies really well.
It would certainly be a huge step up from a micro size heli to a 700, but to be honest crash cost for parts wouldn't be that much different between a 700 and a 550. Once you are up in the 550+ size parts are in the same order of cost, some parts such as servos are the exact same in a 550 as they are a 700. What could be a problem is the intimidation factor, a 700 heli really can 'loosen the bowls' when they spool up if you aren't used to them, but again a 550 isn't that far behind. The batteries for the 700 are double the cost of the 550 though because the 700 takes two where the 550 takes one.
To be honest if you dont have an experienced flyer to give you some 'hands on' help then a 450 size might be a good option to transition into the world of bigger helis (or something like the Devil 420 I just did a build review of?). But if you decide to jump straight in at the deep and we will all give you all the help we can, others have done it successfully in the past so it can be done.
As for the flybarless controller, I would recommend one that had 'self level' and 'rescue'.. so that woulde include the Brain2, the Spirit or the Bavarian Axon. The BeastX Plus or the AR7210 also have this feature but only if you pay for the $100 'Pro/SAFE' firmware upgrade. Personally it would have to be the Spirit or the Brain2 (in that order for me).
Tony
Staff member
550mm blades are $63 and 700mm blades are $110+, almost double. Yes, servos are the same, but main and feathering shafts, tail booms, gears, frame halves, landing skids, they are all quite a bit more expensive than a 550. Ultimately it is the OP's choice, and 700's are impressive. But the pucker factor of a 700 is double that of the 550 which is double that of the 450 class.
Boogs
Member
No experience with anything bigger than 300 which is really a true 250, but since you've mentioned getting a DX9, I think the AR7200BX would be a good choice. At 600, you would most likely need to add a satellite RX, seems like I've read that somewhere. The AR is a BeastX and RX in one. The only draw back to the 7200, you'll have to pick up a used one. The new AR7210BX is a fine unit, a bit pricey, especially if you get the cable and upgrade the firmware to Pro.
bigone5500
Well-Known Member
Oops
Tony
Staff member
Yes, if you use any AR style gyro/rx then you are going to need to run a satellite. There is a lot of carbon fiber and aluminum on those helicopters to help block signals and you need the extra receiver to help out. While it is true the 7200 doesn't have bailout, it is one of the cheapest "good" units out there right now but like stated, you would have to get it used. I have two of them here and have no intention on getting rid of any of them. They really are fantastic units.
Boogs
Member
+1
Ken Jackson
Active Member
bigone5500
Well-Known Member
So far, I'm liking what I see in the Trex 550X. I will be doing a lot of looking around and probably change my mind many times before making a purchase decision. It will most likely be late in the first quarter of next year when I finalize my decision. I really want to get this 270 in the air and get some practice with it meanwhile. I just need to find someone to check it out for me. I'm just ignorant with this stuff right now.
bigone5500
Well-Known Member
murankar
Staff member
There are many options out there. I personally chose the goblin 570 (being phased out). It shares parts with the 500 and it has a better flight envelope over the 500. Both helis share lots of parts. From a cost point of view the 570 was cheaper to build.
Since the 570 is being phased out, who knows when. I would suggest the goblin 500 sport. You could also go with a synergy e5 which is a 550 class helicopter. This kit can be stretched all the way to 700 from my understanding and flies best when stretched to 600
I can't really suggest Mikado because of cost and a few other things. It does not crash well. I am not much for align but it will get you a complete in the box. Plus I don't here much from them anyways so I don't know what's going on with them.
I built my 570 for about $1700. I went 12S and used a VBar Neo which ate up a bunch of money. On 6S this kit can be built for around $1200 with decent parts. BK servos, scorpion motor, hobbywing ESC and your spektrum rx. Batteries will be about $100 a piece. On 6S you can go to 5000 mAh packs. Last thing on this kit, on 6S this kit will be light but it will be hard on packs. Target head speed on this kit is around 2100 to 2300 rpm. Almost forgot that on 6S you can get away with 550 sized blades. On 12S I think the disk loading might be to heavy. Never tried it.
I fly mine on 12S and my head speed is between 2000 and 2350. At 2100 I net about 6 to 7.5 minute flights. I have 2 3000 mAh stick packs and 1 3300 mAh stick pack. I have the HW 100 HV ESC, BK 7000 series servos, VBar Neo with the UI sensor, Scorpion 4025 550 (I can't remember the exact motor size, but the kv is correct). Blades are the standard sab blades.
If your looking at a 700 then the Protos Max V2 is going to be the way to go. Keep in mind on a 700 size helicopter the costs go up exponentially. It's going to be a dedicated 12s setup. Motor and ESC are beefier. Same servos as the 570, BK 7000 series.
In the end you will need to figure out what it is you want in a kit.
Since the 570 is being phased out, who knows when. I would suggest the goblin 500 sport. You could also go with a synergy e5 which is a 550 class helicopter. This kit can be stretched all the way to 700 from my understanding and flies best when stretched to 600
I can't really suggest Mikado because of cost and a few other things. It does not crash well. I am not much for align but it will get you a complete in the box. Plus I don't here much from them anyways so I don't know what's going on with them.
I built my 570 for about $1700. I went 12S and used a VBar Neo which ate up a bunch of money. On 6S this kit can be built for around $1200 with decent parts. BK servos, scorpion motor, hobbywing ESC and your spektrum rx. Batteries will be about $100 a piece. On 6S you can go to 5000 mAh packs. Last thing on this kit, on 6S this kit will be light but it will be hard on packs. Target head speed on this kit is around 2100 to 2300 rpm. Almost forgot that on 6S you can get away with 550 sized blades. On 12S I think the disk loading might be to heavy. Never tried it.
I fly mine on 12S and my head speed is between 2000 and 2350. At 2100 I net about 6 to 7.5 minute flights. I have 2 3000 mAh stick packs and 1 3300 mAh stick pack. I have the HW 100 HV ESC, BK 7000 series servos, VBar Neo with the UI sensor, Scorpion 4025 550 (I can't remember the exact motor size, but the kv is correct). Blades are the standard sab blades.
If your looking at a 700 then the Protos Max V2 is going to be the way to go. Keep in mind on a 700 size helicopter the costs go up exponentially. It's going to be a dedicated 12s setup. Motor and ESC are beefier. Same servos as the 570, BK 7000 series.
In the end you will need to figure out what it is you want in a kit.
Last edited:
Smoggie
Well-Known Member
Uri,
I didn't know that the 570 was being phased out, that's interesting. I wouldn't be surprised if they replace it with a heli that's basically the same. SAB did this with the 630, it was discontinued and replaced by the 'BlackThunder 650', but they are basically the same heli, all components are either identical or are interchangeable.
The new Protos Max V2 'Leggero' looks very very nice. It fixes the one main issue with the standard Max V2 (weight). There are lots of great 700's to chose from. I've got a fair collection and in terms of 'bang for buck' the Trex 700X walks away with the prize in my opinion. Being a humble Align it might not get the juices flowing in the same way as some of the more exotic brands out there but this is subjective.
I didn't know that the 570 was being phased out, that's interesting. I wouldn't be surprised if they replace it with a heli that's basically the same. SAB did this with the 630, it was discontinued and replaced by the 'BlackThunder 650', but they are basically the same heli, all components are either identical or are interchangeable.
The new Protos Max V2 'Leggero' looks very very nice. It fixes the one main issue with the standard Max V2 (weight). There are lots of great 700's to chose from. I've got a fair collection and in terms of 'bang for buck' the Trex 700X walks away with the prize in my opinion. Being a humble Align it might not get the juices flowing in the same way as some of the more exotic brands out there but this is subjective.