Hello. I've recently been very interested in buying a Quadcopter. I'm currently of the age of 14 and have a budget of around $100 living in Australia.

I've looked at a few options but i have no idea whats worth my money and if i could actually fly it and in need of some help, i'm really lost... :P Only previous helicopter experience is with (i think) a 3 channel coaxial, kinda crappy little one i fly around my house, that i just got bored of as i found it too easy. Even though money does matter to me (obviously) i'm happy to spend extra money to get a quality quadcopter so that its... Decent and lasts me a long time.

The Quadcopters i have been looking at so far are...

1) A Syma X1 Quadcopter (costing $35)
2) Husban H107 (Costing $40)
3) Heli-Max 1SQ (Costing me $100)
4) The mXQ. (Costing $120)

If you can find a cheaper pricing somewhere, feel free to point it out.


Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks a lot.

Bump.

A friend of mine loves his Syma RC X1 Aerobatic Quadcopter, which is basically a MQX(which I have). For $35 it's a great little platform to learn on. Just bump the control sticks for the direction you're after and she moves. Move the stick and she really moves, like lighting.
Remember practice is the key. It took me about 3 days before I understood how to fly it. Now I zip all over the places & I'm 54 yrs old.

Originally Posted by flboy286

A friend of mine loves his Syma RC X1 Aerobatic Quadcopter, which is basically a MQX(which I have). For $35 it's a great little platform to learn on. Just bump the control sticks for the direction you're after and she moves. Move the stick and she really moves, like lighting.
Remember practice is the key. It took me about 3 days before I understood how to fly it. Now I zip all over the places & I'm 54 yrs old.

Alright, i think the Syma does seem like a good way to start , thanks for the help!

Would it be worth getting a Syma practicing and upgrading to a Hudsan or something similar when i get better? Or are they all relatively the same kind of level to learn?

Thanks so much for the help!

Hey Thesios!

Love to see this. We're both beginners, me at 34, you at 14. Hopefully we can learn from each other. And you're in the right place, what little bit of info I have is in a large part thanks to the guys here and a few other forums. The people here are knowledgeable and most importantly, willing to share that knowledge!

So to your question, my two cents is that it's all dependent on what you're looking for. Do you want something zippy and acrobatic? Or something smooth?

I have an MQX Blade, and it's the first foray into anything RC (anything beyond toys when I was a kid). It's perfect for me for a few reasons: it's a great trainer for basic piloting and orientation (orientation is the toughest... even seasoned vets get turned around sometimes), and it's a freaking monster when it comes to crashes. I've been flying mine every day, inside and out. I've crashed... a lot. And the thing has in a large part kept on trucking.

The second point is what do you love about this hobby? Do you love to build/repair? Is your ultimate goal to stick a tiny camera on this thing for some budget FPV? Or right now, are you most interested in just getting out there to fly?

The MQX Blade has a variety of mods and upgrades, like just about anything these days. Though I really only know about the Blade, it seems like its an easy model to start learning repair and troubleshooting. So far I've replaced a main gear, an engine, and I've got to replace a boom today. All very easy to actually repair, no-brainer stuff. For all of this, I learned tons about how a craft operates under certain conditions. I think that translates into any other quad-- a sticky engine is still a sticky engine kinda sorta.

A last thing. This hobby can become an obsession. I read these forums multiple times a day, I read about models I never plan on learning, Flight Control systems I'm not even close to being able to approach. I fly my Blade as much as humanly possible, and obsessively research mods and upgrades. I'm debating whether to sell my XBox and all the games I have to fund the next step quad for me. I am obsessed and I love it! So be careful, and at 14 make sure to find a girl that likes this stuff too or you'll never find one.

This might be a good spot to ask another question of the experts out there. For a quad (or octo) lover on a budget, what are some decent knockoff elements to look for? I know, I support the guys that research, plan, execute, and invent this fantastic stuff. I support them, and in fact my next big buy for work is an Ecilop (work) and I'm buying it from the man, because his invention deserves my support.

BUT.

As a beginner, I also need to be able to buy, build, and wreck this stuff on a very tight budget. I've seen people link to some Chinese Knockoffs in the past, and I can't help but believe this is a decent place for guys like us who really have no other way to build something decent. Otherwise, I can't participate in the hobby that encompasses my whole brain these days.

Any suggestions for guys like Thesios and me, that need to learn and crash some stuff before we drop a few grand?

Originally Posted by SeguimArnoldProd

Hey Thesios!

Love to see this. We're both beginners, me at 34, you at 14. Hopefully we can learn from each other. And you're in the right place, what little bit of info I have is in a large part thanks to the guys here and a few other forums. The people here are knowledgeable and most importantly, willing to share that knowledge!

So to your question, my two cents is that it's all dependent on what you're looking for. Do you want something zippy and acrobatic? Or something smooth?

I have an MQX Blade, and it's the first foray into anything RC (anything beyond toys when I was a kid). It's perfect for me for a few reasons: it's a great trainer for basic piloting and orientation (orientation is the toughest... even seasoned vets get turned around sometimes), and it's a freaking monster when it comes to crashes. I've been flying mine every day, inside and out. I've crashed... a lot. And the thing has in a large part kept on trucking.

The second point is what do you love about this hobby? Do you love to build/repair? Is your ultimate goal to stick a tiny camera on this thing for some budget FPV? Or right now, are you most interested in just getting out there to fly?

The MQX Blade has a variety of mods and upgrades, like just about anything these days. Though I really only know about the Blade, it seems like its an easy model to start learning repair and troubleshooting. So far I've replaced a main gear, an engine, and I've got to replace a boom today. All very easy to actually repair, no-brainer stuff. For all of this, I learned tons about how a craft operates under certain conditions. I think that translates into any other quad-- a sticky engine is still a sticky engine kinda sorta.

A last thing. This hobby can become an obsession. I read these forums multiple times a day, I read about models I never plan on learning, Flight Control systems I'm not even close to being able to approach. I fly my Blade as much as humanly possible, and obsessively research mods and upgrades. I'm debating whether to sell my XBox and all the games I have to fund the next step quad for me. I am obsessed and I love it! So be careful, and at 14 make sure to find a girl that likes this stuff too or you'll never find one.

This might be a good spot to ask another question of the experts out there. For a quad (or octo) lover on a budget, what are some decent knockoff elements to look for? I know, I support the guys that research, plan, execute, and invent this fantastic stuff. I support them, and in fact my next big buy for work is an Ecilop (work) and I'm buying it from the man, because his invention deserves my support.

BUT.

As a beginner, I also need to be able to buy, build, and wreck this stuff on a very tight budget. I've seen people link to some Chinese Knockoffs in the past, and I can't help but believe this is a decent place for guys like us who really have no other way to build something decent. Otherwise, I can't participate in the hobby that encompasses my whole brain these days.

Any suggestions for guys like Thesios and me, that need to learn and crash some stuff before we drop a few grand?

I can relate to that so much, haha! The people who make these quadcopters, are fairly bad ass

As for those questions though...

Firstly, i don't want something slow... Though i feel that if i got something to zippy or fast, it would have to be durable enough to cope with the fact that i'm going to crash it... Honestly, its not to much of a worry to me ATM, i don't have a preference, i just want to give it a shot.

And what do i love about the hobby? Honestly, i can't really pin point it. I've always had an obsession with RC Items. I've bought so many crumbly little $20 RC Helicopters its not even funny, i wanted to take it to the next level, so i can get really good at it and just progress i suppose. I'm not a massive fan of fixing and building though. Building, i would hate and is something i will try to avoid as long as possible and repairing i don't mind if its not to intricate, though its just a part of it. What i really love about it is having complete control of something. Whether its racing at 50kmh along the wrong or soaring across the sky, i just find it awesome.

Bump.

Like SeguimArnoldProd, I fly the Blade MQX and it's tough. I crashed it everyday while learning and still crash today because I push it to it's limit
I'm a non-tech guy, but this little jewel is simple to repair. 80% of my crashes, I just snapped the parts back into position. One crash resulted in breaking two thruster booms and the replacement booms w/wires are like $5 a pair. Again it's a plug & play.

After about a month of flying, I bought the DJI Phantom and it's so easy to fly compared to the MQX because of it's GPS. I still fly the MQX every day because it's that fun :-) You'll find out quickly if this hobby is for you and if it is, hide your wallet I'm now flying First Person View(FPV) through the Fatshark camera and this is a total blast.

The Syma RC X1 Aerobatic Quadcopter will be about the same new for $35 compared to buying a used MQX off of Ebay for $70.

So get yourself a small quad, learn to fly and then you'll know better what's in your future.

Originally Posted by flboy286

Like SeguimArnoldProd, I fly the Blade MQX and it's tough. I crashed it everyday while learning and still crash today because I push it to it's limit
I'm a non-tech guy, but this little jewel is simple to repair. 80% of my crashes, I just snapped the parts back into position. One crash resulted in breaking two thruster booms and the replacement booms w/wires are like $5 a pair. Again it's a plug & play.

After about a month of flying, I bought the DJI Phantom and it's so easy to fly compared to the MQX because of it's GPS. I still fly the MQX every day because it's that fun :-) You'll find out quickly if this hobby is for you and if it is, hide your wallet I'm now flying First Person View(FPV) through the Fatshark camera and this is a total blast.

The Syma RC X1 Aerobatic Quadcopter will be about the same new for $35 compared to buying a used MQX off of Ebay for $70.

So get yourself a small quad, learn to fly and then you'll know better what's in your future.

So you'd suggest the Syma X1 too?

Get the X1.
The only downside of it for you may be that the motors are soldered into the main board, so when your replace one you have to either solder it to the board or cut the wires and solder the new ones to them.

A Hubsan X4 is a great machine - but better as a 2nd or 3rd quad. You will likely bust it too easily if it is your first.

The Syma is worthwhile even if you use it for a while, bust it and then sell the TX and all the parts for $20. You will still have learned a lot!

Also, it is only 3-axis, which means you will likely learn a lot more control....the 6-axis models are more stable without input from you, but that can be a bad thing for learning the sticks.

I have a bunch of articles about the Syma, Hubsan and other stuff on my blog - and also a new ebook which I am writing - available free to anyone who signs in for our forum.

Syma article at:
http://droneflyers.com/2013/01/syma-...-less-than-40/

Originally Posted by craigiri

Get the X1.
The only downside of it for you may be that the motors are soldered into the main board, so when your replace one you have to either solder it to the board or cut the wires and solder the new ones to them.

A Hubsan X4 is a great machine - but better as a 2nd or 3rd quad. You will likely bust it too easily if it is your first.

The Syma is worthwhile even if you use it for a while, bust it and then sell the TX and all the parts for $20. You will still have learned a lot!

Also, it is only 3-axis, which means you will likely learn a lot more control....the 6-axis models are more stable without input from you, but that can be a bad thing for learning the sticks.

I have a bunch of articles about the Syma, Hubsan and other stuff on my blog - and also a new ebook which I am writing - available free to anyone who signs in for our forum.

Syma article at:
http://droneflyers.com/2013/01/syma-...-less-than-40/

Just some questions about it, is it really durable enough? And what would be worth getting after i got good at it? Have a go at the Hubsan or...?

The X1 is perhaps the most durable quad out there - especially for the money. You really would have to try to hurt it, especially if you fly over grass. I could tell you stories like getting it stuck up 40 feet in a tree and having to leave it there for 3 days while it snowed and rained....and then getting it back and it still working!!

Lots of good quads out there for 2nd or 3rd quads - right now I am fancying the Micro Q-bot from Hobbyking (see thread here about it) because it uses a genetic R/C controller instead of it's own toy controller. If you have a controller around from your helis, you might be able to use it - this copter flies like a big quad, so I think you can learn a lot from it. I am!

But it takes a little work to get it to bind to your TX, etc...which is part of learning the hobby.

But, yeah, a Hubsan is also a great 2nd quad. In general it is much easier to fly than the Syma, because it is 6-axis, which really means self-leveling and righting. That can spoil you, though!

Each quad has it's good point - and bad points! The hubsan also requires soldering (tiny) to replace motors.

I think you will eventually have 2 or three quads at one time. Micro quads are good for traveling and for the small yards. The Minis are fine for a small park or large lawn, etc.

You will have fun with most all of them!

Alright! It seems like i'll be getting a X1, then. Thanks!

check out the WL V939 Beetle 2.4GHz 4CH Quadcopter RTF
come with two battery,s flys real good
if you dont like the beetle shell just paint it with a black marker

WL V939 Beetle 2.4GHz 4CH Quadcopter RTF (3 min 12 sec)

I found the MQx is the most durable and easy to fly quad. In general, the micro-quads with the gear drive props are much more durable than the direct drive units because a crash can't touch the motors. With the direct drive units, just about any form of impact is against a motor. The way the endcaps are held on, it doesn't take much impact to knock one loose. The gear drive ones are also bigger and easier to see. The direct drive models handle wind better due to higher prop loading.