Micro Helicopters at RadioShack

[Azimov]

Haha!! You can't say kokpit.

LOL, yah, the filter caught me. Shows you just how stupid all this "smart" technology really is.

[Azimov]

I just looked the thing over again and I think it survives crashes so well for three reasons, First, it's light as a feather and falls like one too. Second, the light weight matterials are very durable. And thirdly, the rotor blade can be bent almost double without breaking. The copter does come with two extra tail props, so those may be prone to breakage.
I think after I get a few of these, I'll try making a very small two prop airplane just for the fun of it. I'll have a bunch of extra tail props anyways.

[Azimov]

Here's a pic I pulled from the forum Namuna posted. This is the future of at least one of these helis.

[Namuna]

Okay, I've gotten myself TOTALLY hooked on these things and just picked up 2 more last night (for a total of 4). I'm using 2 at home (1 for me, 1 for the wife), 1 is totally ripped-apart for modding and 1 brought into work.

I've been reading a TON of posts over at RCGroups about all the mods and tweaks for this heli and I plan to do a few of them, but to start with I've found these to be the easiest and also the most helpful!

1. Open that Tx and get that throttle spring outta there! Maintaining altitude is SO much easier without it!

2. OIL the Motors! You'll need to remove the plastic covers over the Main Rotor gear, but the oil helps make the heli run MUCH quieter and it's probably good for the motor too...Be careful to apply TINY amounts of oil though, it is recommended to put just a touch on the tip of an XActo blade and apply it to the motor shaft just below the pinion.

3. Run the heli battery until the electronics cuts the power! the heli has an auto cutoff that will turn everything off when the battery gets to a certain voltage. Run the heli until it can't fly anymore, then just hold it and keep running until the cutoff engages. Now let the heli sit for 10 to 15 minutes (to let the battery cool down) before charging again. People have been reporting upwards of 9minutes runtime doing this procedure!

[Azimov]

Okay, I've gotten myself TOTALLY hooked on these things

I'm with ya green guy. These things are just to much fun! I managed a sustained flight this morning, hovering in the center of the room, that lasted at least 8 min.
And these things aren't a Rat Shack exclusive like the Zips, I read that you can even find them at WalMart.

I've been reading a TON of posts over at RCGroups

Same here. I scoured the site last night. I haven't been this stoked since they first announced the Zip SE. I'm loving the flood of mods being posted on these things too. I plan to do the bearing mod as soon as I can get my hands on the tiny buggers.
Here's something you gotta see to appreciate. And it flies too!

[Namuna]

Well, they might've just as well called the PicooZ the MaryJaneZ...This thing was my gateway drug into the bigger helis.

I was so enamored with the PicooZ that I decided I want to go to the next level and go 4channel Heli...So now I've got a Honey Bee FP2 Helicopter (RTF kit) en-route!

[Azimov]

I've been eyeballing the micro helis for some time now. The reason I never bought one was the cost. 300 bucks is just to much moolah to spend on something I know I'm gonna crash the first day. They are beautiful little machines, but the PiccoZ has shown me that initial $300 would blossom quickly as I did repairs.
I've wanted a cool micro heli for years, but I think I'll go through a couple of these cheap ones before plunging in.
What scale is the honey bee? Or roughly how big is it? For me, the tinyer the better. I know there's one called the Pixallito or something that's more my scale.

The Pixelito:

http://pixelito.reference.be/

Now that thing is awesome. The picture at the bottom of the site with the heli on ice is spectacular.

[Namuna]

Here's the product page of where I bought my HB:
http://www.raidentech.com/20nereracort.html

The Rotor diameter is about 20" so the overall size is a little more than that (accounting for the boom and rear rotor).

I got that kit for $90 shipped!

If you MUST be smaller than that and still want full function, there's also the Microns (these will indeed set you back in the $300 range):
http://www.precisionheli.com/

From what I understand the Pixelito is someone's own DIY heli:
http://pixelito.reference.be/

And finally, if you don't mind dual-rotors...Radioshack now also carries the Micro Mosquito. They're a little bigger than the PicooZ, but they're 3 channel:
http://www.radioshack.com/product/in...tId=2255015&cp

[Azimov]

I got that kit for $90 shipped!

That's not bad at all! And it's a beautiful looking machine. Still, I like em smaller.

If you MUST be smaller than that and still want full function, there's also the Microns (these will indeed set you back in the $300 range):

Those are definately more what I would want. But, there's that price tag. Though full function would be night and day compared to the PiccoZ.
I really love that Pixelito. Just plain gorgeous. I may have to try his carbon fiber bending technique on a gutted PiccoZ.
Yeah, I've looked at the ole ugly skeeter. I dunno, I may get one. But for a couple bucks more, I could order a 4 channel Honey Bee.
I'm really glad these micro helis have hit the market. I've wanted a heli since i was a kid, but would never drop the thousands needed to get one.

[Azimov]

I have little experience with Lipos and am wondering if it is better to store the PiccoZ with the battery charged or depleted? I'm doing the charge cycle as explained and draining the battery til cutout by the electronics. Should I charge er up before I quit, or just put the thing on a shelf when the motors cut out?

[Namuna]

You should DEFINITELY throw at least a little bit of a charge in there before shelfing.

Lipos will hold a charge FAR longer vs. nimh. Even so, they still do dissipate over time. But where nimh can just be put through a few charge cycles to revive a battery that's gotten very low...If a Lipo drops below 3.0v (sometimes just a tiny bit lower, like 2.7v at about absolute lowest), they're pretty much TOAST.

The nice thing about the Tx charger (if you haven't already noticed) is that it's got an auto-off feature. So you can just plug the heli in to be charged, then go off about your business. The charger automatically stops when the heli is done charging AND the Tx itself shuts off after just a few minutes after that! Nice feature!

[Azimov]

You should DEFINITELY throw at least a little bit of a charge in there before shelfing.

Thanks for the info. That's what I was thinking, but wanted to make sure.
I've been looking around the net and there are some serious rip offs going on with the PiccoZ. I saw it for $100.00 on one site. And then there's Ebay. I saw several on there going for around 70-80 bucks with 20 bucks to ship it. These things must be very popular to command that kind of price gouging.

[Paul52]

Hi! I bought a Micro Skeeter Heli. today at Radio Shack. When I opened it I saw it had a broken top rotor connection. It still can fly though. I put some epoxy glue on the rotor connection tonight, and I hope it will hold. I am not sure if I will keep it or bring it back to the store. It was not easy to fly, and landed hard when it fell. This copter is made of metal and plastic. Take Care! Paul

[Namuna]

Well, I brought back one of my Picoos (very squirrely flying) and opted to get one of the skeeters.

DOA.

The Heli is completely dead out of the box, not even a little juice like the instructions say and it wouldn't take a charge either.

So now I have to make another trip to Ratshack, but with all the not-so-hot reports about these things, I'm wondering if I shouldn't just return for refund instead of an exchange...$70 is a lot for something so iffy.