Well written article, thanks! A bit surprised not to hear grumblings about "screws like butter" as that seems to be a common theme among the clones. Of course, I've had the same issues with Align at times also...

I'm looking to get something smaller like this to fly safely near my home, something I can't do with my two 600 size helis. The Blade Mcpx is great right out my door but i want more capability to do a few more things. Had a 450 a long time ago and the size was right. A heli for every occasion!
Pete

Originally Posted by lovespicyfood

Well written article, thanks! A bit surprised not to hear grumblings about "screws like butter" as that seems to be a common theme among the clones. Of course, I've had the same issues with Align at times also...

I'm looking to get something smaller like this to fly safely near my home, something I can't do with my two 600 size helis. The Blade Mcpx is great right out my door but i want more capability to do a few more things. Had a 450 a long time ago and the size was right. A heli for every occasion!
Pete

Pete, you rock. Thanks for the nice comments.

I expected to find all sorts of "buttery hardware" but everything held up to the torquing. The only hardware issues were the ball joints and the lack of washers.

Everything is perfect on this review. Except for the gyro. Ralph should of chosen a better gyro either a futaba or a spartan. Other than that, this is an ideal setup for anyone.

Originally Posted by pitchp

Everything is perfect on this review. Except for the gyro. Ralph should of chosen a better gyro either a futaba or a spartan. Other than that, this is an ideal setup for anyone.

Thanks so very much, Pitchp.

You bring up a valid point. A Futaba or other high-end gyro would have been the way to go (and I may very well go out and get myself one along with a tail servo once I get my eye fixed in a couple of days), but it would have been outside the scope of the review. The trick was to see how well an all-HK build would work. So far, only the gyro has proven to be a weak link, at least where some aggressive flying is concerned.

Thanks for the review, I just happen to be looking at ordering one in the next 2-3 days to replace my old 450 clone which I killed yesterday :-((

I don't agree with some comments about using a better Gyro. You have proved that the low-budget option is more than acceptable which is what an entry-level buyer needs to know.
Put up a post asking experienced hard-core 3D pilots which the best unit on the market is and if you get 20 replies you will have 22 different answers!! The people who know that this Gyro is not up to stick banging have their own personal choice (usually for very sound reasons) and shouldn't need any advice about which unit to use.

Originally Posted by PaulB

Thanks for the review, I just happen to be looking at ordering one in the next 2-3 days to replace my old 450 clone which I killed yesterday :-((

I don't agree with some comments about using a better Gyro. You have proved that the low-budget option is more than acceptable which is what an entry-level buyer needs to know.
Put up a post asking experienced hard-core 3D pilots which the best unit on the market is and if you get 20 replies you will have 22 different answers!! The people who know that this Gyro is not up to stick banging have their own personal choice (usually for very sound reasons) and shouldn't need any advice about which unit to use.

Paul, I think an entry level buyer may want to look elsewhwere as this is a pro class heli. I agree everyone has their own opinions on gyros/ESC's but the HK-450 PRO is not something for first time buyers.

I now have 4 of the HK 450 Pro's all with belt drive. I started out with TT but every time I would even think about letting the tail touch anything stronger than a blade of grass I was replacing the gears. I even switched to Align gears and the result was the same.

We bought two of these as a step up from the 120SR Blades after pricing T-Rex 450 kits at the LHS. To date I think we still have less invested in 4 of these than a single T-Rex would have cost. My local club has a few heli pilots and as soon as they seen that these were not real Align heli's we were shunned and offered absolutely no help learning to set them up and fly them. Through the power of the internet we have managed to get them flying decent (still no aerobatics and certainly no 3D stuff).

For taking the next step up from fixed pitch and twin rotors I think these are the best. A crash can usually be repaired for under $20.00. I have learned what parts to keep as spares and the whole reson for 4 helicopters now was because of being impatient waiting on parts from China. The HK USA warehouse had them in stock so we just ordered 2 complete spare helicopters then put in a $100 parts order from China.

As for some people talking about the 401B Gryo acting funny, pop the cover off and fill it with hot glue then try again, you'll be amazed at the difference. (Another Internet tip).

As for the parts wearing out, my original now has well over 250 flights on it with about 25 crashes of which 3 were very destructive and required more than a fly-bar and rotor blades. Anyway, nothing has wore out yet. I do however put turbine oil on all the bearings and moving parts every time I repair it which here lately has been getting a lot less often. We did take two out of the box and assemble both identical oiling one and leaving the other one dry. The oiled one flys better and longer per battery with the motor and speed controller not getting as warm. So in short, fill the Gyro with hot glue and use some oil on all the bearings and moving parts.

Hi,
Just want to say...
Very very nice review. Well written, full of useful information, a bit of humour thrown in there. Nice! Oh and yeah the Chopper seems like a nice unit! L

Cheers,

P.S. hope the cataract removal thing went well.

Al

Is there anyway that this could be used as a first heli, or is that out of the question.
Rob

Originally Posted by Coyote24

Hi,
Just want to say...
Very very nice review. Well written, full of useful information, a bit of humour thrown in there. Nice! Oh and yeah the Chopper seems like a nice unit! L

Cheers,

P.S. hope the cataract removal thing went well.

Al

Thank you so very much. Not only did the cataract removal go well, I have distance vision the likes of which I've never had before. So, at my earliest convenience, I am going to do some serious flying.

As far as this being a first helicopter, I would say that it is possible only under the supervision of an instructor. One of these equipped with some gentle radio settings and training skids and flown through a buddy box might in fact be a good trainer. The key word here is "might." A comment a few posts up from a user named "Slots" summed up the same question pretty well.

OK, not a beginners hely.
What is a beginners hely, a coax with reduced throws??
ANY CP hely can be tamed (smaller throws, expo, small pitch range) to make it pretty stable.

Problem is, just like the question posed here, is that everyone wants a model that will 'grow' with them. "I am pretty good with my MSR and have 14,279 hours on the sim, will this model help me to learn 3D". How many times have we all read that??

This model seems to be so attractive price-wise that it will attract loads of 'beginners' so we have to accept that and go with the flow.

PS, @ Dismay, great news about your eyes, hope that all works out :-)

Excellent Review...
Congratulations to RCG for such a great review and to turn the heads to clone and cheap reviews in An economic crisis like the one we are seeing today...

Even Futaba, and Align, spartan, are the "standards" in heli, I was in need to fill the gap between going to the sim, and practicing real 3D moves without risking my align 600N pro...

So the key of this review is that clones works well, and is an open window for more heli enthusiasts who see this hobby unaffordable... also, is a good tool for getting a quick learning curve without breaking the bank...

a big hoorrrraaa for RCG, please keep reviewing more clones in the future...!!!

I picked up a used belt driven version of this heli the other week. I'm still going through it to make it air worthy (it was in some disrepair), but so far I am impressed with the quality of this clone so far!

I have had a HK250GT and SEv2 clone before and the quality of this example is noticeably better. Especially happy to see that the screws seem quite good and are not made of butter!

Pete

Originally Posted by PaulB

PS, @ Dismay, great news about your eyes, hope that all works out :-)

Thanks, Paul. The eyeballs are working just great and I'll get this thing in the air ASAP. Between the surgery and moving into a new house, things have been hectic.

I was just looking at the Leadershobby.com helis, and was wondering how those would compare with this HK one, and if anybody has any experience with them.
Thanks,
Rob