Micro
Helicopters make great Indoor RC helicopters.
Micro helicopters are the most fun for your hobby dollar,
in the world of RC Electric Helicopters!
The photo shows the
E-Flite Blade Micro CX RTF Helicopter. You will notice that it has
2 sets of rotor blades. This feature is the primary reason why this is the
easiest to fly of all the micro helicopters. The blades contra-rotate. This makes for a very stable electric helicopter, that you can fly in
your living room! These little gems are also known as Micro Coaxial RC Helicopters.
In my opinion these are not toy helicopters, but they are true hobby
grade RC helicopters, with 4 channels of true radio control ( not
Infra red control) and a gyro to help in the flying department. Don't get
me wrong, the toy helicopters definitely have their place and have
introduced a lot of people to flying. They can be purchased for under $30.00 and
deserve a place in the hobby
Micro RC Helicopters-How they work.
As you can see in the above photo, these helicopters do not have a
tail rotor. This is because the contra-rotating (i.e. 1 set of blades rotate
clockwise and the other set rotate counter clockwise.) Rotor blades have no
resulting reaction torque imparted on the fuselage. A conventional single
blade set helicopter uses the tail rotor to counter the tendency of
the fuselage to rotate about the rotor blades.
Each set of blades is driven by it's own motor and these motors can be
sped up or slowed down together and independently. When both
increase in speed, more lift is generated and the small RC helicopter will
climb.( and vica-versa) If the speed of one set of blades is different then
a resultant torque is imparted on the fuselage, giving a turn or yaw command or
if held on, by the pilot, then a pirouette maneuver is the result.
A further control is found in the lower set of blades. Here we have full
cyclic pitch control, via a swash plate-just like the bigger outdoor
electric helicopters! So we can now see how the micro helicopter
can fly and maneuver just like its larger outdoor cousins.
Please note that these micro helicopters should only be flown
outdoors, in a dead calm! The maximum forward speed is quite low
and for these micro RC helicopters to be successful outdoors, there must
be NO headwind!
In order for these micro coaxial RC helicopters to be possible, the
following technologies all had to become available and at a reasonable price-
Below are photos and brief descriptions of a number of E-Flite Blade micro
RC helicopters. You will find that these are wonderful examples of modern RC electric helicopters.
These micro helicopters have a great reputation for dependability
and are super easy to fly in your living room. The prices are very
competitive and a full range of spare parts are available. This last
point is very important as repairs are always required and you do not want to be
grounded, for too long, after the inevitable accident!
The photos and links will take you to Red Rocket Hobbies, where you will find full details and can buy,
from a dependable on line hobby store, who offer the best prices and
full customer service.
The E-Flite Blade mCX RTF Helicopter.
This is the smallest of the Blade series, at 7.5"rotor diameter
and 1 oz, weight, but maybe the most fun! To incorporate all this
technology into such a tiny package is simply incredible! There are 2
RC electric motors, servos, Li-Po battery and a gyro built in.
This gem utilizes the latest 2.4 GHz radio control system and is
completely built and ready to fly. It is test flown and set up at the factory
and comes absolutely complete, in either a RTF version ( with
transmitter) or a Bind and Fly set-up that can use your existing
Spektrum 2.4GHz transmitter.
This is an update of the very popular Blade mCX and features a full,
scale like body. The motors are more powerful and a 120 mAh
li-po battery is featured.
Like the mCX, the 5 in 1 control board contains-the DSM2 receiver, 2 linear
servos, the yaw rate gyro, and the RC ESC,
controlling the 2 RC electric
motors.
Maybe the most striking feature are the flashing, multi coloured strobe
LEDs. Now you can have even more fun by flying in the dark!
Another new feature is the adjustable servo connections to the swash
plate. This feature gives more control response and faster speed.
How is this for something completely different! A twin rotor
indoor micro helicopter. This is a semi-scale model of the Boeing CH-113
Labrador recue helicopter. As you can see it is in Canadian colours
(Hooray!) and is as simple to fly-and as much fun, as the other mCX micro
helicopters.
It is much more than a double mCX, but much of the technology is carried
over. At 2.1 oz. weight and an overall length of 15.5"it is a
little larger and heavier.
Like the mCX2, it comes complete with navigation lights, so night
sorties are possible!
As with the other models it comes 100% complete and has been set-up and test
flown at the factory, The Labrador comes either as a RTF or as a BNF
E-Flite has done it again! The mSR is a micro helicopter with a
single main rotor and a tail rotor-all in a helicopter that weighs 1 oz.
and has a rotor diameter of 7"!
Watch
the video of the Blade mSR and you will immediately see the difference in
performance between a single rotor and a coaxial rotor micro helicopter. This
baby is FAST!
If you have learned to fly with a coaxial and would like to make the
next step to a single rotor helicopter, this is one, inexpensive way to
do it
Despite what I have said previously, regarding tail rotor motors being
not recommended, the mSR uses this type of drive and it works very well!
I believe that the extremely small mass and inertias involved make
this possible.
If you would like more information, or to maybe buy thismicro
helicopter,
Click Here.
This E-Book, by John Salt is a MUST BUY if you have, or are thinking
about buying a Blade mSR.
With 51 pages and 60 photographs, you will learn many tips
and tricks from an experienced RC helicopter pilot.
The price of $7.95, makes this book hard to resist. Click on
the photo at left to see the full details.
