RC Helicopters

If you've never been to a radio control show, you're missing out. There are a number of annual shows like the NEAT Fair in New York and SEFF in Georgia which have an enormous variety of models, vendors, and activities, and give any AMA-registered pilot the opportunity to fly too. You can buy DVDs of last year's NEAT FAir or SEFF 2008 from SKS Video Productions to get a taste of what it's like to go. There are also conventions to attend like the WRAM Show, which is all about shopping instead of flying.

In July Zero RC will be attending the SCCMAS Airshow in Santa Clara, California. If you live in the area, come check it out!

Eagle Tree Systems has announced two new sensors in their line of data logger products. What makes these unusual is that they can be used either with a logger like the eLogger V3 or stand-alone, using the built-in LED display. For convenience the sensors can be powered by a spare receiver channel or a second battery.

I feel really old when I see products like this, because it is easy for me to dismiss it as ridiculous. The same thing challenged my youth when the Sims came out, and I laughed at the idea of a game that simulates your life. RealFlight simulator is a flight simulator for RC planes and helicopters. I can barely control my laughter at this point, but despite my bias it is actually a very necessary tool for the beginning hobbyist.

Pulled straight from the 'what will they think of next category', well known toy maker Silverlit is still riding the success of the award winning PicooZ series of toys with an innovative new twist. The Wingsmaster I-Bird is one of the most fun newcomers to the RC world. This video here shows why this hobby will never reach an end.

Earlier I reviewed the R/C Aerial Reconnaissance from the Intel ISEF. A lot of people may wonder what my fascination was with such an amateur product in comparison to the Pilot View FPV 2400, and a look at the price tag of $549.00 may pretty much sum it up. But for the dent it makes in your pocket, it makes up for in fun. The Pilot View lets you turn any mobile* product into a FPV experience.

Spinmaster is well known, and gets even more respect for this product. Slamming a brand new take on laser tag, some fun key elements place these RC helicopters in their own category. Havoc Heli Laser Battle pits two RC controlled miniature helicopters against one another in an air tag battle. Surprisingly, the idea didn't come out as sloppy as it could've been.

Some people have incredible creativity and imagination. A guy named Iwei has created a family of three robots based on the eCCPM swashplates of an RC helicopter. Check out the photos and other videos of these amazing creations. I like the looks of SwashBot 1, who is both cute and resembles Darth Vader at the same time.

The Align T-Rex 450 series is perhaps the best known of the mini-size electric helicopters. Many reviews are available online, including this thorough one at T-Rex Tuning. In this article I'm going to sum up the positive and negative experiences I had building the 450S aluminum kit, and include a list of tips to help you out.

The eLogger V3 from Eagle Tree Systems is an in-flight data logger which continuously records volts, amps, watts, and milliamp-hours to enable pilots to analyze the performance of their electric power systems. In addition, it supports a wide variety of optional sensors to record altitude, airspeed, component temperatures, RPM, and more.

The 40th annual WRAM Show took place in White Plains, New York this weekend. Organized by the Westchester Radio Aero Modelers, the show draws a crowd from all over the Northeast U.S. This year a major snow storm hit Friday morning, the first day of the show. While this led to several vendors not showing up, most of the big names were there, and audience traffic on Saturday was dense.