I've read through the 2-3 threads already about mini R/C Helicopters. I have never owned an R/C model before and I am very interested in these helicopters. I have done some research online and even visited my local hobby shop to look around. I just can't come to a conclusion on what to purchase.

Option 1: Syma s107
I first thought about the Syma s107, but the local hobby shop owner discouraged me from this purchase stating this is an IR toy and if you want to get into the hobby you are better off starting with an RC model. Also, stated you would have to special order parts over the internet for any Syma heli. I have read many reviews and read through the thread here about the Syma and they look just as good and perform just like the RC models except for bright sunlight because of the IR. Still a great price though even if you have some down time waiting on parts.

Option 2: Blade Scout
The hobby store owner said the best option for me would be the Blade Scout to start off with. I left the shop and then did some research about the Scout. This little bird is super easy to control and seems like a viable option, but it is very light and smaller than the other models. Also, I read that the transmitter controls are directly oposite than what the standard RC helicopter transmitter uses. So if I get used to the Scout controls I would have to re-learn the controls if I want to upgrade. Parts are easily available.

Option 3: Blade MCX RTF
A little more expensive, but from what I read I would be able to upgrade the model while keeping the same transmitter that originally comes with the MCX through Bind and Fly technology. Again, parts are easily available.

Option 4: Blade MCX2 RTF
This pretty much tops my budget, but again from what I read I would be able to use the same transmitter with other models through BNF. This model is the next step up from the MCX with a little more power.

Finally, what is the resale value on the Blade models just in case I find out that the hobby is not for me?

Thanks for any advise.

I have a Revell Proto CX (Coax) which is actually made by a company called Nine Eagles as a Solo Pro I think, it has a 2.4 Ghz bind and fly (BNF) style transmitter which if you were to buy another of the same brand minus the radio you could bind your transmitter to either model but only on the helos not the planes which they also make
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store...Warehouse_.html
the one in this link is the Solo Pro II - a Single Blade Fixed Pitch which is the same as the Revell Proto Max, these are 4 channel micro helis (Throttle, Yaw, Pitch and Roll) and take a 3.7 110mah lipo which charges from the back of the transmitter. I just ordered a battery charger and a couple of 150mah batteries because charging the lipos off the transmitter kills the AA's in about 4-5 charges. The Transmitter has dual rates and can be switched between mode 1 and two by changing the antenna on the back with a screwdriver which is provided.
I get a pretty long flight time from it (8 mins.) and I have two batteries, I bought mine from a hobby shop about $70 w/extra battery which I found out online I could have saved a lot on and it cost a lot more than the website above but be aware the website covers warehouses in the US - Australia and Hong Kong so when you look at stuff be sure where it's coming from it could take a month if you order from overseas but the price and shipping are cheap, batteries are only $1.50 versus the $10.99 I bought mine for. These are very stable but not for outdoor use, the slightest breeze will blow it away (it only weighs 27grams) the quality is really good and it comes with the Helo, Transmitter, 4 AA's and one Lipo and is RTF after charging which takes around 20 mins. crashes happen but it is very resilient and could literally be dropped from 6 ft without damage although the fly bar will pop off occasionally and is a real PIA when you can't see anything really small without glasses. I'm enjoying it and if you get comfortable with that it will not be too hard to transition to an intermediate level Helo.

I have a blade Scout CX. It is incredibly stable and easy to fly - perhaps too much, as I don't know how much it teaches for a less stable helicopter.
As far as the controls go, the left stick controls collective, while the right stick controls forwards/backwards and yaw.

The one you describe, would be a 3 channel. Mine is a 4 channel and more expert level Helos can be 6 channel.

I purchased the Blade MCX2 RTF today. I have this thing trimmed and enjoying it very much. I guess I will be purchasing another battery here before too long to have extended flight times.

Coaxial is the way to start (IMO) so the mCX2 was a good move. That said, Blade coaxials are so easy to fly they can become boring rather quickly. My 2nd heli was the CX2 and I bought extra batteries and all the upgrade parts, which was all very cool for awhile, but now I kinda wish I hadn't spent all that on a coaxial!! Oh well, live and learn.....

Some of the Co-axials available can be pretty big with over 20" diameter blades but most of them are only 3 channel, so the most you can do is hover or fly around doing rudder turns and that is boring. The one I have is 4 channel so you can do funnels and such though being small you can only fly indoors but the advantage is you learn to use both sticks and that can be good for training your thumbs. I enjoy flying R/C planes but I'm not so sure I will really ever get anything bigger there are far to many things to break.

The CX2 is 4 channel...the included RX is actually 6 channel and the included TX is 5 channel. Coaxials are just limited in what they can do, regardless of how many channels or how big they are. Coaxials are made to be easy to fly at the expense of capabilities, so I agree that coaxial flight can teach some throttle and maybe a little rudder control, but not much else. 6 channel tail-rotor flight is such a very different experience. Just my opinion, of course....

ps. contrary to what many apparently think, it doesn't take much wind to effect RC helis of any size!! Micro and minis are designed to be flown indoors....outdoors only on mostly wind-free days. I've flown my CX2 in a gusty 1-2 mph breeze and it was a challenge keeping it near me!!

Your right, it is a beginner helo, having 4 channels is an advantage over the 3 channel but being coaxial it will never really be that hard to fly, the company that makes the coaxial I have also makes a single rotor 4 channel which I can purchase minus the Radio and I'll probably get it it's only about 45-50 bucks. But again it's a beginner level with static pitch rotor blades and a tail rotor which is also static pitch, yaw is controlled by variable speed control on the tail. I do believe they can be useful in training your thumbs as I say because all RC planes and Helos have the same stick configuration, mode 1 or 2 dependent. Once you get into the bigger Helos you have gyro and variable pitch, Throttle hold etc. but they still use the same stick configuration.

Blade (the company that makes the CX2) also makes a couple of tail-rotor helis (for quite a bit more than $50!!) and flying one of them is absolutely NOTHING like flying a coaxial heli. So I agree that learning on a coaxial is a good intro to heli flight, but other than throttle control I don't think what coaxial flight teaches translates much at all to single-rotor. Sure they might use the same stick configuration, but the performance of the heli is so different, whatever was previously learned doesn't work anymore. Anyway, I'm not suggesting I'm right and you're wrong, but anyone who thinks mastery of coaxial flight will make the transition to tail-rotor helis quick and easy is in for a very rude, frustrating, and most likely expensive awakening.

BTW, going from coaxial to fixed-pitch is a good move as fixed-pitch teaches more applicable thumb control (as you call it) IMO. You already know what I think of low-priced helis tho, so I'll spare you that lecture.....afterall, there are alot of helis out there and I haven't flown very many of them

Well these are expensive toys compared to an advanced Helo, I have been flying RC planes for a while and I find these a fun distraction but I wouldn't know how to fly a full function advanced Helo nor would I try without an Instructor pilot and the Local RC club is where I would go to find them. The advanced types also require a decent radio and a fair bit of programming on the radio this much I'm aware of and it's not a cheap hobby and whatever you get in a good kit is probably less than the quality of replacement upgrades that can be found with the better models and to be quite honest that's where I would be lost and would be better off with the fixed wings. I've flown sport planes and scale, Piper Cubs and P-51's and I think I'm much safer with those to be sure.

Very cool - I think scale RC is the coolest hobby ever!! When it comes to helis, I simply do not understand the appeal of 3D flight.

I was looking at an easy to fly r/c helo for around the house here. Looked at the Blade mCX RTF, had not heard of the Syma s107. Is this one controlled by an app on a smart phone? We were given a AR Drone by Parrot for Christmas, which is contolled this way. We don't seem to have alot of range with it, and wanted to get something that would give us a more traditional radio. As I read in this thread maybe a 4 channel would be good for "thumb training". It seems that all this drone has done has made us want to get further into the r/c hobby. Thx

BF

I'm pretty sure there is no smartphone app to control the Blade mCX, but I could be wrong. The RTF package comes with a DSM2 TX.

Well, two things you want to consider, there are basically 2 types of minis - an IR controlled Toy and a 2.4 Ghz R/C. By and large you will get better range and functionality out of a 2.4 Ghz Radio but as to which model it depends on how much you want to spend,
this thread has some links and videos http://simhq.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/3470978.html
We have kind of covered the whole range of "beginner" models and I personally find even a 4 channel Co-axial to be more fun than a three channel. I have ordered a wall charger for my batteries from a place called www.HobbyKing.com and they have many different types but I found that what I ordered comes all the way from Hong Kong. I'll be careful to make sure that anything else I might order comes from the USA warehouse in the future but as soon as I get it I'll post about it.

I picked up a Syma S107G for my nephew's Christmas gift, and ordered a spare blade/body plastic kit at the same time. Total cost on amazon.com was under $40, and that thing is FUN! Rugged, too - all structural parts are metal, it's survived some fairly hard crashes and midair contacts. It's not "the best" but I couldn't find ANYONE who had anything bad to say about it on the web. Like was said above, it's a toy, not a serious bird. You can be a total noob with no manual dexterity whatsoever and be having fun with it inside of 5 minutes.

ETA nearly 3 weeks after Christmas the original blades are still on it and in good shape, despite the best efforts of my almost-8-year-old nephew, his 10 & 11year old sisters, and 39 year old father LOL

I ordered a wall charger and 2 160mah 3.7v lipos for my ProtoCX (Nine Eagles Pro) from Hobbyking.com it cost me about $17 USD and came all the way from Hong Kong to Florida in about 10 days. The charger will charge 2 batteries simultaneously in about 20-30 minutes Flight time is nearly doubled and even though the battery is about 1/4 in. longer it did not affect performance. I will probably order this one
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store...Warehouse_.html
I can bind the transmitter I already have to it and save about $30 dollars. This site is awesome, there are all kinds of cool big boy toys and the prices even with shipping are unbeatable.

Think outside the box.

Get one of those big b*stards with an internal combustion engine that will deafen you and take your arm off if its rotor blades hit you.

Imagine the fun of your first flight. It's 0600 and your wife is still sleeping when you fire it up. She didn't even know you bought the damn thing!

She stumbles down the stairs in her nightgown, all bleary eyed just as it screams past, making the windows vibrate ominously in their frames. It shears off the chandelier over the dining room table, and you bank hard and knock over the china cabinet which contained her grandmother's priceless, heirloom dinner service and tea set.

As her eyes go from bleary to four times normal size, you misjudge another turn and it smashes through the bay window and flies across the street into the neighbors garage. You listen for a moment to the sound of rotor blades chewing through drywall, and then it stalls.

The last sound you hear from that direction is the neighbors' German Shepherd inside their garage, yelping as if it had been scalded.

There. Now wasn't that more exciting than some little thing with batteries?

Cheers!

Rick...

You're way out there in the boonies aren't ya Sauron?