Cheap Chinese helis

[sportygreg]

I recently had someone tell me that I should get rid of my Dragonfly and get a Eflight blade CP saying that the blade was better and easier to fly.Of course a CP heli would fly better! As for Chinese helis being of low quality-Where are most micro helis made? China,Taiwan,and possibly Japan. Parts from GWS, Hummingbird,Esky,Sabre and even Eflight will fit my Dragonfly with no modifications and the stock motors all come from the same factories with the exception of Mabuchi which comes from Japan. I recently read a Hummingbird manual that says the main motor is good for 50 flights and tail motor for 20 flights! The real difference is in the electronics-some radios,servos,and gyros being more reliable than others.I have had no trouble with mine yet-maybe I'm lucky.The important thing to me is I am able to get started in a great hobby at low cost until I can invest in a higher quality setup-better to have a cheap heli than none at all!

Did you get this DragonFly??

[sportygreg]

Yes,but my manual does not even show a manufacturers' name-it just says Dragonfly. Even the box just says Dragonfly-the only place the name Walkera could be found was the label on the main motor.At least it is the latest version with a head stiffener and real bearings instead of bushings.It is also surprisingly durable-after several crashes the only damage was a chip out of one main blade and a loose skid. The owners manual is a real joke-there are other sources of information like Helihobby and rcuniverse that are more helpful. You can download the manual for the Sabre heli at rcuniverse-the Sabre is identical to the Dragonfly but has a better manual.With careful balancing and trimming the Dragonfly can be made to fly decently-I recommend heatsinks for the motors to make them last longer. A higher quality heli is definitely on my wish list but the Dragonfly is fun to play with and cheap to repair!

Does anyone have any scans of an Honeybee T manual?

Hey Sporty...I agree with your breakdown of the facts. The Walkera Dragonfly 22e that I bought was well made and CP but the electronics were garbage. I'm waiting on a replacement for the radio and transmitter from China as I type this. In the mean time I bought a Blade CP.

[sportygreg]

The Blade is a good heli-when my Dragonfly finally gets junked a Blade is what I want!

[thecheat]

once again I'd suggest the 36, you can get it cheaper than the blade and it's a better heli by far. with a brushless system, and a good li-poly off ebay you can get it for the same price as a blade. plus it comes 3D ready.

[sportygreg]

I like my Dragonfly and have had a lot of fun with it however,if I were to upgrade I would probably stay away from Walkera products because the radios and servos are of dubious quality.The structure of the Walkeras is OK but the electronics[the most expensive parts to replace] are just too prone to glitches.Walkera customer support is nonexistent-have you ever tried to contact Walkera? I have and all I got was inane babble that I could get at the local Chinese restaurant! I did hear recently that Walkera is trying to improve the quality of their products but the proof is in the pudding!