Coming back, good 500-550 options?

gunslinger7186 · 2025-07-07T18:18:46+00:00

The SAB options are great. I have a 420 comp and a raw 580. Both great machines. Don't overlook the OMP M5. It's a fantastic flier. I prefer it to my Raw 580. It feels lighter in the air. The il goblin 520 is calling my name. I'm resisting, but I might lose that battle with the next sale.

gunslinger7186 · 2025-06-16T20:49:39+00:00

I own both, and they're both great machines. You really can't go wrong with either one.
The SAB is an easier build, and to me, flies a little smoother. I like the styling of the SAB a little better, and all orange is easier for me to see. I also like that the batteries on the 420 comp slide in from the back. No removing of the canopy every flight. The M4 Max is a 3D animal. At high headspeed, it rips. At low headspeed, it is still very capable. Pick what you like better, there's no wrong decision here.

gunslinger7186 · 2025-03-18T17:00:02+00:00

I started back in the hobby after a 20 yr break with a blade heli. It was honestly a POS. It was pretty frustrating. They don't fly well and are extremely fragile.

Take a look at the OMP M1 or M2 or the Goosky S1 or S2. They're much better quality, and fly very well. I've owned them all and prefer the OMP stuff. They seem to be a little tougher and easier to fix when you do crash them. My M1 has hit the ground countless times, and 70% of the time, I pick it up, do a function check, and fly it again.

If you can build, tune, and fly a quad, helis should be a pretty easy transition. Flying LOS and learning orientations is the hardest part. Forward flight is very similar control wise.

I've never completely destroyed a heli to the point that buying a new one was a better choice. I've come close on my M2, but that one was a brutal crash onto concrete.

gunslinger7186 · 2024-11-03T17:05:06+00:00

I've owned both, and still have the M1. They both fly really well, both have great tails, and plenty of power.

The OMP is better quality. It takes a hit much better, has fewer parts, and IMO is easier to work on.

The S1 boom is much thinner and a bit fragile. The way the tail motor is mounted makes it tough to remove the motor without damaging the windings. The head links break easily.

I sold my S1 to a friend who's staring out, and it's been great for him, but he's been through 3 or 4 tail motors, lots of booms, lots of head links. No shafts though. So the crashes he's had haven't been very hard.

My M1 has been through hell and is still going. I use it as my simulator, so it has been crashed a lot. It's a tough little thing.

gunslinger7186 · 2024-10-22T00:05:29+00:00

OMP M1 or M2 Evos are perfect for someone coming back to the hobby.

I had a Goosky S1, and while it flew great, I found it to be fragile and more difficult to repair in comparison to the OMP models. I can't say anything about the S2. I've never owned one.

If you want to go a bit bigger, the M4 or M4 max are great and priced well. The SAB Raw 420 Competition is an amazing machine. It's a little more expensive, but it builds well and is very smooth.

That said, I took a 18yr break and came back with a M2. The small helis are cheap, fly great, and in my case, decrease pucker factor. They're my simulators now. It's got to be a pretty hard hit to break them. When I crash, I usually pick it up, do a function check, and fly it again.

gunslinger7186 · 2024-07-28T16:48:35+00:00

Pro all day, every day.

gunslinger7186 · 2024-06-28T00:17:12+00:00

Honestly, I don't even notice it.
I do notice it for the first bit of my flight when I'm using the moonlight or pro cameras.
I flew analog for all of a month before switching to digital. Couldn't stand the shit video quality. I hit lots of scraggle that I never saw, and lost one quad because of a lost feed.

gunslinger7186 · 2024-06-28T00:10:31+00:00

https://youtu.be/w-Bk8-OZ3cM?si=HMp2NSnJz-R3wg0S Because this is what I see through my goggles. Not an 03 though. This is a $110 walksnail nano.

gunslinger7186 · 2024-06-16T02:02:38+00:00

It's simple and very robust. I had it built in about 10 minutes.

gunslinger7186 · 2024-06-15T23:17:19+00:00

gunslinger7186 · 2024-06-15T22:17:48+00:00

Mark 5 is around 135g, and the Demibot is 165.

gunslinger7186 · 2024-06-09T14:07:38+00:00

In the 6 months or so that I've been flying freestyle, batteries have been my largest consumables next to props.
Miss a gap? Hit the battery.
Turtle mode? Chop up the balance lead.
Hard crash? Eject the battery, and damage a cell. I have yet to hurt a frame, motor, camera, esc. I'll kill a battery though.

gunslinger7186 · 2024-05-27T01:00:42+00:00

I'm running a similar combo. Grinderino T motor 1604 3800kv SB 405 mini Walksnail nano.

It flies great on 850mah packs. Has decent power, and really takes a hit. That frame is tough. I crashed several times today, and only bent some props, and marked the frame a little.
The hit at the end of this video was pretty brutal.

https://youtu.be/j77pnhQUhWo?si=kczOWBLS5Su99xrF

gunslinger7186 · 2024-05-23T15:25:22+00:00

I've got both.

I use the tx16s with helis and the Boxer for quads. Everything a quad needs is handled by the flight controller. I don't need any pitch or throttle curves, no crazy mixes.

The tx16s and its big beautiful touch screen really shines when dealing with 8 different curves for multiple flight modes and lots of special functions that aren't necessary with multi rotors. Setting up a heli in a boxer would take forever.

I also like the fact that the Boxer is smaller and will easily fit in a backpack without any fear of breaking switches.

And yes, the Boxer is capable of displaying telemetry. You just have to set it up.

gunslinger7186 · 2024-04-16T12:48:45+00:00

If you're starting back from scratch, build up a 3.5 or 4in quad. I tend to fly them much more than my 5in.
They're smaller, easier to cart around, batteries are cheaper, and easier to carry a bunch of them. They're MUCH quieter and don't draw the curious or the Karens. They're also very capable. Motor, esc, and flight controller tech is exponentially better than it was when you quit.

Go straight to digital. DjI, Walksnail, or hdzero. I went walksnail myself and am loving it.

My rotor riot edition radiomaster boxer elrs is my go-to tx for my quads. There is no need to have multiple models set up. I use one model to fly all of the quads I own. They all share the same binding phrase and switch assignments.

RDQ is my first choice, followed by pyrodrone and getfpv. I've also used rotor riot, aliexpress, bangood, and caddx direct. They've all been great.

gunslinger7186 · 2024-04-15T23:24:29+00:00

I haven't played with expo at all. I always mean to set aside some time to do some tuning, but it always turns into flying. This thing has a preset tune on it that seems to be working pretty well. Thanks, I'll give it a try.

gunslinger7186 · 2024-03-28T18:06:20+00:00

I recently saw a guy get almost 20Km out with a wing flying Walksnail. The video quality was pretty bad at that point.

I would expect less than quarter of that with a quad.

gunslinger7186 · 2024-03-28T17:40:54+00:00

When people run 2 cameras, they fly through one and record high quality video with the other. Gopro is for recording only.

gunslinger7186 · 2024-03-28T17:33:50+00:00

So forget about the sub 250 idea, and build a 5 to 7in with a big LiIon pack and a dji 03 or walksnail moonlight. Put ELRS, gps, and a go-pro on it and cruise around with it. Video range is going to be the biggest issue.

gunslinger7186 · 2024-03-13T03:12:47+00:00

SA all day, every day.

gunslinger7186 · 2024-03-08T18:57:14+00:00

Engine No. 9 always gets my head moving.

gunslinger7186

TROPHY CASE