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The Helicopter

I considered a Kyosho because I've had good experiences with their cars in the past. I stuck with that choice because I found out that virtually everyone around here has one. That's really important when starting out. You don't want to be the first person to hover your helicopter. It's hard enough even with a heli that's been trimmed by someone who knows what they're doing, and you might find it damn near impossible when it hasn't been trimmed at all. It helps when the people around you know how to fix what breaks, how to trim what needs trimming, and so on. They can also give you tips if there's anything about the kit that needs to be rebuilt for some reason.

I chose the SR-X version because I think it's a given that the bushings in the SR-T will wear out and since I would be buying ball-bearings anyhow, I might as well buy them up front. I'm also a little worried that the bushings in the SR-T might cause more damage as they wear - for example, when one fellow's clutch bell bushing wore out, it tore one of the ears off of his clutch rotor.

The plastic frame should hold up well while I learn to fly (read: while I learn to land). Someone said that plastic is either straight or broken, whereas metal has an in-between bent state that can cause all sorts of problem. Being new to this, I'd rather have it be clear if something needs replacing.

With push-pull linkages on the elevator and part of the aileron control, and ample collective and cyclic pitch range, I've read that the Concept is among the most aerobatic of unmodified 30-size helicopters, so hopefully I will get plenty of fun out of it for some time. Having watched one of the guys at the local field do plenty of crazy stuff, I was not worried about outgrowing it. Having gotten into the crazy stuff myself, I'm now certain I'll never outgrow it.

For the most part, the Concept is a fine helicopter. It has some rough edges, but then again so does virtually every heli on the market today. Sometimes I think Kyosho may have gone a little overboard in the cost-cutting.

• I just bought an aluminum starter cone to replace the plastic one, which was already starting to wear down after just a few flights. I wonder what will fail next.
• Virtually everyone at the field has added the 'optional' larger fuel tank. It's hard to get 10 minutes of flying time with the stock tanks.
• There's too much slop in the tail rotor linkage. Most of it appears to come from the control wire flexing within the guide tube, I think.
• The milling grooves in the stock seesaw are eating away at the insides of the ball links that fit over it. I have just upgraded to a Zeal replacement part, with polished (non-grooved) balls. The adjustability of the Zeal part is also a plus: loops and rolls are somewhat easier when you can do them faster.
• Lighter flybar paddles, while not absolutely necessary, make the cyclic response stronger. I added these near the end of the fifth gallon, and though they took some getting used to, I am having a lot more fun...

Making it fast

I'm using an OS 32sx, Helimax tuned pipe, and Cool Power 30% nitro. This uses every bit of the available pitch range (+/- 9.5 degrees), and could certainly take even more. However, since it climbs out fast enough, I decided not to get the collective-enhancing pitch lever extensions from Ferris and other sources. I figure I'd rather allocate the surplus horsepower to the cyclic demands.

For drag racing, I made up a special set of pitch links - the links that connect to the blade grips and extend down to the mixing base. The drag links are a bit shorter, and they change the pitch range from +/- 9.5 degrees to something like +13 / -6 degrees. I've only raced it five times, but I've beaten two local friends, tied with Vince Hayward, and lost to the specialized drag racers of Ranger and DC Nelson. Not bad for a heli I drag race once or twice a year and 3D the rest of the time.