Have fun and enjoy yourself Mike...We will be waiting.....

Mark

Originally Posted by Microbaba

ROFLMAO mountainsax



This bit was my fave. I had fun writing it, but the interpretations sure give me a laugh. Thanks for being good sports guys.

So when you don't have any lipos, you can use marshmallows instead.

Good Morning all. Looks like a rain day here. One more day for me to rest and recover. Maybe I can see about fixing some of my toys today. Don't really know where to start. So, I will have a couple of cups of Joe, and give it a think. Lee

Quick question....

I am looking to move from my MCX2 to a larger 4 channel coax.

I think I have it narrowed down to either:

Esky Big LAMA
Walkera LAMA 400

What do you guys think? which would be a better step up? Better quality?

My next step (after this) is to a TREX 450, than up to my TREX 600.

Thanks
terry

Originally Posted by TerryE

Quick question....

I am looking to move from my MCX2 to a larger 4 channel coax.

I think I have it narrowed down to either:

Esky Big LAMA
Walkera LAMA 400

What do you guys think? which would be a better step up? Better quality?

My next step (after this) is to a TREX 450, than up to my TREX 600.

Thanks
terry

These are the two most common helis for people picking a larger 4ch coax.
Which one of the two is "better" is almost a philosophical question. You will find a very "dedicated fan-base" for either.

There are a few thing to consider in my eyes, though...
(I have to admit, I feel more comfortable with the 400, but as I said, this is a very debateable subject)

First thing I would suggest to consider at the moment, is the availability... you will be finding a 400(D) MUCH easier ATM that you will find a BOL for sale

Then, there is the price - a BOL is (IF you happen to find one) substantially cheaper than the L400 - however, this is kind of justified, as the 400 comes all aluminum while most of the same parts on the BOL are still plastic.
(this means you would have to put quite a few bucks into aluminum upgrade parts for the BOL to make the 2 truly comparable - a fact that I also mentioned in one of my blogposts ... just dont remember if it was at BOL or at 400 ... ... it is there in greater detail)

The 400 is noticeably bigger than the BOL and has MUCH stronger motors (however, several people did report those motors not to be too durable - a claim that I can really not support ... mine always worked fine ...)

Both can be modded very well and both kind of have their proprietary electronics ... so in the end it really comes down to personal taste ...

Like I said, I have a tendency towards the 400, but other people will most likely tell you different stories - tends to be a very "person based" decision.

E2

E2;

Thanks for the great post! It really helped me.

I think I will go for the 400.

Any idea where it is the cheapest?

Thanks again
Terry

Sven:

Welcome back!

I like your answer here, very good points. I have one question, how are the Walkera electronics. I have the 5G6-1 and the electronics have been giving me a hard time, sometimes it seems that the 4 in 1 is shot and I replace it with a spare. The next thing I know the spare develops the same problems. Putting the other one back in solved the problem.

That has put me off from buying any more Walkera products.

Durk

Thanks Durk,

well, people I am in contact with say that Walkera has come a long way from their crappy electronics from two or three years ago to where they are now.
According to those guys Walkera does not deserve the rep it got from the former bad electronics anymore.
As far as my personal experience goes, I did not have such great problems with the walkera electronics either, in particular on none of my L400's. A friend of mine even openly recommends buying the Walkera 3axis gyro RX instead of ... say a Flymentor system ... as this is cheaper and according to him quite as good. (in particular if you already have other Walkera helis) - he also always promotes the WK2801 8ch TX over the spectrum ones ... (well, I have one with an older firmware that came with the LM3, but I have to admit, I practically never used it, so I cant speak of personal experience here) Anyway, if you look at the pricing, the Walkera 8ch is substantially cheaper than comparable Spektrum stuff ...

E2

Another question:

Since I do not have any 2.4GHz Tx's, does the Walkera Tx support bind-and-fly? Can I use it with other helis as well?
Thanks
Terry

Originally Posted by TerryE

Another question:

Since I do not have any 2.4GHz Tx's, does the Walkera Tx support bind-and-fly? Can I use it with other helis as well?
Thanks
Terry

What's in the manual?
Personaly i believe it's possible, becaus if you replace the rx you must also bind.
But i dón't know your tx.

Westerlee;

I have not bought it yet.... I was just asking

It would be the stock Walkera Tx that comes with the 400.

Terry

Originally Posted by TerryE

Another question:

Since I do not have any 2.4GHz Tx's, does the Walkera Tx support bind-and-fly? Can I use it with other helis as well?
Thanks
Terry

If you buy a Walkera, then it will "off the bat" only bind with Walkera -but that is a general issue still, every company kind of has their own protocol ... Eflite has spectrum, walkera has walkera and esky has esky (question is how long still) and so on. But I know of people who did put Spektrum electronics into their L400 - so it is not that it would not be possible. You basically need to make a decision on which TX you want to use. Saying that you plan to progress on to a TREX450 and then 600, I would expect that you plan on using a Spektrum TX, as these do not come with TX's to all I know

There are two ways (again - to all I know)
1. overall, the L400 is decently priced, even as a RTF model. It will not be devastating to buy another TX once you switch to TREX

2. buy a ARF model for either L400 or BOL and a spectrum (at least DX7) ... but that would be a much more substantial "initial investment" ... and you should be well versed in the RC field, as it would be recommendable if you want to start out with spectrum from the beginning, to also switch the L400 (or BOL) to brushless and boardless.

(3rd way would be to buy a L400 and 2801 for less than 300$ shipped (www.walkeraofamerica.com) - if you live in the continental US. (just make sure to get the newest Firmware [2.3]) - this will leave you almost unlimited room to grow within the hobby [it is even possible to use the 400 (or BOL) as a basis for a heli that can grow from out of the box coax to 3 bladed coax CP ... if you are willing to put the necessary money into it ....)

EDIT:
I apologize, to answer the original question - yes you can use the Walkera TX with other helis, but it will require certain adjustment to be able to do so ...

Quick question...
What batteries are you all using for a Lama V4? I had a couple of the Zippy FlightMax and they seemed to puff up pretty quickly. It could have been due to the stock Esky charger I was using...

Also, does anyone know if a puffed battery can be salvaged?? I have a new charger now and am wondering if it would help or if they are just in need of being recycled.

Thanks,
Ethan

E2;
Thanks

I have a Futaba 9CHS (FM) now. That is what I plan to use with the TREX 450/600.

I actually have flown the 600 before... for a few seconds. I had a heli instructor (great guy) who moved away I had just started to fly the 600 when he left. I am now too chicken to fly it by myself.

So, I am starting anew, by myself. I figure a coax is a good stepping stone to the CP helis.

I have a MCX2 which I have on high rates and fly a lot (I really like it).

As for the Tx, since the Futaba is FM, I was thinking of either getting a 2.4GHz module for it, or leaving it FM, and using the Walkera Tx for a 2.4GHz platform. Seems like it may be more "generic" to get the 2.4GHz for the Futaba.

Thnaks for the help.

PS: Any idea of price for the 400? The cheapest I can find is this one:

http://www.xheli.com/walkeraheli-lama400-black.html

This is the "style" that looks best to me.

Thanks
Terry

Ethan:

I have been using Mystery batteries from Deal Extreme because they were CHEAP. No a puffed battery cannot be salvaged.

I know a lot of others have thier favs so I will let them chime in on that.

Durk