For beginner RC helicopter hobbyists, there is a fear at the back of their minds that they may not be able to handle the power and be able to control their brand new RC helicopter. This is compounded by the fact that they, or their parents, have just shelled out a significant amount of money on this purchase. Fear not, training kits can come to the rescue.

Training kits can take various forms such as training stands and other equipment such as foam balls and training skids, which have the sole purpose of helping to increase the stability of your RC helicopter while you first learn to fly. Everybody needs somewhere to begin and try out their RC helicopter outdoors for the first time. There are many obstacles and dangers out there which can prey on the minds of novice fliers.

Training kits can be bought for all sizes of RC helicopter; from the smaller indoor micro helicopters to the larger more complicated models. You can get training stands for specific models of radio control helicopters from the likes of E-SKY and Walkera.

So, fly your RC helicopter without fear and learn to master the art of flying without worrying about your helicopter going out of control with a training kit; you will be flying the helicopter unaided in no time!

When you have invested so much of your hard earned cash on your RC helicopter and all the accessories and parts that go with it, it would not be sensible to just leave it lying around the house or stick in the back of your car when travelling to the field to fly it. As with anything which is intricate and contains many moving parts, it can get damaged if not protected. That is when flight cases can come in handy.

All the main brands involved with the hobby of remote control helicopters produce flight cases, which can be used with specific models. E-SKY are one such brand which makes sure its helicopters can be kept safe and secure when not in use and can be used to transport the helicopter with ease. The flight cases usually contain enough room to also carry the transmitter batteries and charger, etc.

When looking around for a flight case online you need to make sure that your particular RC helicopter model will fit inside the specific flight case. Many high quality flight cases protect the helicopter using pre-cut foam and they are well worth the investment to keep your helicopter safe and undamaged.

As well as the usual full-size RC helicopters available to buy, there are also a number of palm sized and micro remote control helicopters on the market. These 4 channel helicopters are not toys and the helicopter models are still extremely well-built and have enough power for most enthusiasts.

You can get these smaller RC helicopters from the top brands such as Walkera and E-SKY. The helicopters can provide you with many hours of indoor fun and are great for all RC helicopter hobbyists.

Two of the most popular palm sized and micro models you can get are the E-SKY Lama V4 and the Walkera HM 5G6-1 Metal Edition. These packages provide everything you need to fly a micro helicopter. We will look briefly at each model in turn.

The Walkera HM 5G6-1 2.4G Metal Edition is a small 4 channel RC helicopter with a co-axial mechanism. Despite its small size, looks can be deceiving as it is still fully controllable. The helicopter is ideal for use in the home or office and is great for beginners.

The Lama V4 utilises a coaxial counter-rotating head and a 35 MHz radio. This helicopter is also great for first-time fliers and those who want to have some fun without some of the more intricate workings of the more complex models.

Whichever one you go for, you will be sure to have hours of fun with your micro RC helicopter. They are great for indoor flying and who knows, you may become hooked and want to take it up as a hobby with the more advanced models.

In addition to the problems described in the last article, there are many other things that could go wrong with your RC helicopter. If your helicopter starts to vibrate and shake when flying at low speeds, it can look a bit disconcerting. There are a few things you could check out though, to locate the problem.

Again, you should first check the balance and tracking of your helicopter’s rotor blades. Also, you should check that the blade grips are spaced evenly away from the head, and that the blade grips haven’t shifted too much.

You can also check the flybar to measure the distance out from the centre, making sure the paddles are screwed in the same too. Check that the head, flybar or spindle have not been damaged or bent in any way. The main shaft may be bent, but it would have to be removed for you to check this out.

If you have been experiencing shaking when flying the helicopter at a higher frequency (100-300Hz) then there are just a few things that could be causing this to happen. These include;

• The crank shaft or the start shaft may be bent
• The clutch may be damaged or unbalanced
• The cooling fan may not be balanced correctly
• There may be a problem with the tail blades or tail mast
• You may have damaged the pinions or drive gears.

If you have recently purchased an RC helicopter and you excitedly took it outside to get it flying, but everything that could go wrong did, then you are certainly not alone. Sometimes it is hard to figure out why it didn’t go quite according to plan. And this goes for those more experienced too, sometimes. Hopefully, some of these tips should be able to help you get your helicopter airborne.

There are many situations where you may not be aware that your helicopter is damaged or not set up correctly, so here are a few pointers you could follow.

Firstly, you need to make sure that the tracking on your RC helicopter is even and steady. If any of the blade pitch rods is longer than the other than this may cause problems when flying. Also, be sure to check the feathering shaft to see if it is bent or damaged. The paddles need to be level, so check that they are. The centre of gravity could also be out and this will happen if the blades are of differing weights.

If you find that your RC helicopter has started to pull up or dive when in forward flight then you could always check the following which may have impacted upon the helicopter. The pitch in the paddles may be slightly positive or negative and may need adjusting. The other issue that may be affecting the flight is if the helicopter is nose or tail heavy.

If your RC helicopter is still flying unevenly and is pitchy, then you may need heavier paddles or flybar weights could be added.

If you are looking at buying a new RC helicopter and wondering what all the fuss surrounding ones that have a feature called 2.4GHz spread spectrum is, then you might want to read on.

In the early days of RC controlled helicopters you had to ask all your friends what frequency they were going to fly on so there was no interference between copters that might be flying at the same time. Your old copters used to work on either PPM or PCM which meant interference just when you didn’t want it. The new 2.4GHz bandwidth has done away with this though meaning crystals and peg boards can be consigned to things of the past.

A new type of technology called spread spectrum modulation has now been developed meaning RC helicopters can now operate over a range of channels within the 2.4GHz frequency simultaneously. Each transmitter is assigned its own unique ‘set’ to operate at a frequency on the 2.4GHz bandwidth and with so many frequencies available the chances of someone else also operating at this frequency is remote.

This means if you have a copter that runs on the 2.4GHz bandwidth you can fly with your buddies with no problems of interference, and because the commands from your transmitter are processed more quickly on this bandwidth your copter will respond more quickly to your actions.