How realistic is the G3 Impala trainer heli ?

[Al P]

I've got a G3 with the included transmitter. I'm getting to where I can stay within the soccer field circle, and sometimes hover a foot off the ground. How realistic is this trainer to one of the new mini electrics like the Honey Bee ? I guess my real question is when are you good enough to invest in the real thing (electric) ?

[kenmalecki]

Al P, When I first started with G2, I couldn't fly the Impala without crashing every 15 seconds. Flying R/C helis is certainly not natural (for most people), and the correct stick reactions to hover, even tail in, take significant time to acquire. After a few weeks, you get to the point where you can hover without crashing a minute or two, but you have little control over where the heli is, it just slides around on its own. This is primarily because most newbies over-compensate. Then, after learning not to over-compensate on the sticks, you get to the point where you can actually direct it around, but you are still keeping it primarily with the tail facing you. At this point, you should introduce a headwind (about 5-7 mph), which will make the sim much more realistic. If you use G3 every day for a 1/2 hour or so, you should get to this point after a month or two. Everyone's different, but that's average. Try not to get too casual with the sim. Even though it doesn't cost you anything every time you crash, pretend that it does. That's the real difference between a sim and the real thing - the "pucker" factor!

After some more training with wind on G3, you should get a Blade CP or Honeybee (same heli), put training gear on it, and hover it 1-2 feet off the ground outside, preferably over grass with little to no wind. It will feel a lot like G3.

If you want an even better training experience, get the Add-On CD #3, and use the Raptor 30 heli. The Impala is fine, but I think The Raptor 30 in G3 flies even more like the real thing.

Enjoy!
Ken

[Al P]

Thanks, Ken for the very informative reply. Exactly what I wanted to know.

I remember the over-controlling part when I was learing to fly fixed-wings. After just a few hours (total time) on the G3 trainer, I can see improvement in that area. After hovering a while, I actually enjoy rocking the heli from side to side like a pendulam. I feel it helps me learn the amount of (over)control needed to correct a situation and bring it back to a hover.

Happy New Year !

Al