I have a Raptor 30 that I am starting assembly and was wondering what type of gyro and servos I need to use....the radio will be a 8103 jr on 72mhz.This is my first cp chopper and I am really not sure which direction to go......I want pertty good stuff but need to keep the cost down as much as possible,any sugestions??

So many to choose from. The least expensive I think are the Align 620 and 650 for tail, I like Futaba BLS servos, more expensive but I like the 451 for cyclic and 251 for tail, JR also makes great servos....just choose the price your willing to pay and then choose the servo that fit your budget.

Team Synergy, Canada

If you want zero tail issues get a Quark & BLS251 combo,you will never need an upgrade unless you go FBL,there is a used Quark on here now for $80,and a new 251 for $100,can't beat it IMO

I like the align 750 and the futaba 9254-should be able to pick up both used for under $70.
I also like the align servos because they have metal gears which
Means when you crash there is less chance of the gears stripping.
The 9254 has plastic gears that can be replaced

Hood HeLi

thanks guys.....will those work fine with the jr8103?? this "BIGGER" heli thing is a little out of my relm....

Yes. Everything called out so far is for full sized helis
Take a look at the nitro for sale forum and see what others have in their helis.

Hood HeLi

wasnt real sure if you could swap brands of this stuff and it still work on the 72mhz radio....how about governors....I have been hearing that I can fly with or without one,but if you dont have one doesnt the left stick control throttle and pitch in one motion?? do i need to put a governor on it or will I be fine without one

I have a raptor 30.

You pick up ds610 servos for cyclic cheep and they are more than than effective. Align ds650 for the tail. Futaba 401 gyro on the tail.

I am running a GV-1 Govner on the 30 but it really isn't needed. Yes if you don't use a gov. The left stick contols collective and throttle. You set throttle curves to determine how much throttle is needed at a particular pitch.

If you want a better gyro /GOverner use a gy701 it combines both into one unit.

Man is so anxious about his future that he does not enjoy the present. - Dalai Lama

Standard Spektrum servos are dandy fine; as recomendad a Futaba 401 gyro to start with is perfecto and a 9254 tail servo is again the right choice.

Your first heli will teach you how to hover, do circles and lazy eights, loops, stall turns and how to repair it !

Once you learn all basics then, you will be ready to invest more into this hobby.

Save your extra money for crash kits and glow fuel and have fun !

MANCHA

Futaba 401 would be a great choice for a used inexpensive gyro that is easy to setup and runs great on that heli. The best part is so many people can help you set it up. For the tail servo I've ran a lot of different servos on the tail of a Raptor. l've been surprised at the solid performance I can get out of an inexpensive quality standard servo. You don't need a $100 servo.

Team Grand RC

Hmmmmm...it sounds like u just made ur first step in to quicksand......I remember when I got my first nitro......nexus 30.....from that moment I have never seemed to escape...I have come close but no luck

My Sponsor:VISA

I love the helicopter stuff....I started out with nitro airplanes at about 13-14 and flew about 2 years and got pretty good at areobatics and lost intrest.....took about 9 years off and was walking through the mall one day and saw a smoking deal on an extra 300 profile plane with motor and servos and had to have it...at the time I lived on a golfcourse in Sunset Beach and had a hell of a runway after 5:00 in the summer....long story short I crashed and total lost my profile 300 on its second takeoff when a sand trap got me.....threw thew stuff in the closet and never thought anything else about flying again.Last summer I went fishing in one of my old buddies pond and his son was flying his huge nitro chopper around us and I told my wife I think I could learn to like them.A few day later we were walking through walmart and my little boy guided me down the toy isle as I saw it.......an Air Hog mini heli...oh hellllll!!I gotta have one....Loooong story short that is where I got into the helicopter thing.Since the first air hog Ive had a couple of the mini 4 channel syma choppers,a small v4 lama (100.00 heli with 200.00 worth of mods)and a big lama,and one of the huge 3.5 channel choppers from the mall that flys for a total of about 3 minutes on a full 4 hour charge.All of these I learned to fly pretty good basically in two flights or less and now the only enjoyment I get out of them is landing on pepsi cans(which gets old fast too!!)so today I made the decision to get somthing that may challenge me a little and give me plenty of different options in flying...I honestly think Ive found somthing I like btw thanks for all the help guys,I know Ill have a ton more questions before its all said and done

Chris Evans

I can say I learned to do flips rolls loops and auto's with a Raptor using $30 servo's on the swash and not much more on the tail and wood blades. Don't need to have an all metal/CF heli with $100/ea servos for any of that. I do like the higher end stuff but when you are first learning you want to keep the cost of crashes down.

Best advice is to find a club with experienced heli pilots and ask for some help. 2nd best place to put some money is an R/C simulator for your computer.

Team Grand RC

Whoa....hold on thar....

Read what this fellow is wanting to get airborne. A Raptor 30, flying a 72 MHz receiver that may be FM, or possibly a PCM RX.

Everyone is trying to make this guy go out and buy killer, fast, expensive, high-torque digital servos that really would be a waste of his money.

For collective, elevator, and aileron, the Hitec HS625MG at $31 a pop, the Futaba S3010 at $25 a pop, and even the JR DS811 @ $48 would be absolutely more than adequate for making the heli airworthy and can handle all the Raptor 30 can dish out. (Ron at Heliproz South has 23 of the DS-811 in stock, and it would be more than adequate for the Raptor).

For the tail, a Futaba GY401 and Futaba S9254 would be a great combination and would keep track of the tail very well.

Stick a decent 1500 - 2200 mah 4.8V nicad pack in it for power (something like this):

http://www.horizonhobby.com/product...pack-SPMB1500NM

and just go learn to fly with the Raptor.

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A governor is not necessary, and may or may not buy you anything with a Raptor 30. The 8103 wasn't designed with a governor in mind, and really doesn't have the programming built in to do a governor justice. It would have to be run out of channel 5, the gear channel, and would be somewhat awkward to engage, but could be done.

Just set up decent pitch and throttle curves, forget the governor at this point, and fly the pants off the Raptor. Enjoy it and don't spend a fortune outfitting it with electronics that you wouldn't really gain any advantage by having them.

Save your money for parts and repairs. BTW -- since you're flying an 8103, you might want to consider at least a new TX battery pack, and perhaps having Horizon Service center replace the Lithium backup battery that's buried deep down inside. Lord knows that radio has been around a long long time. I still have mine, and keep it around for when I go out and fly planks. Nice radio, all things considered.

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Dave

* Making the World Better -- One Helicopter at a time! *

Team Heliproz

Yeah,just go and get an inexpensive Futaba gyro,401s,and even 520s can be had very reasonable these days with flybarless prevalent.
Lower end digital servos would be cheap bought used,and no governor is needed.
You could outfit the heli for less than $200.00 easily.

I do'nt crash,I just rearrange parts.

hadnt exactly bought the radio yet....my buddy has a 8103 at a smoking deal....I had also considered a spektrum dx6i ....what do yall think.I had a 8103 in my airplane days but didnt know how to use all of what it can and will do anyhow...around here I dont think the 2.4 vs 72mhz is a big deal...nobody flys and the only time I ever had a plane fall out of the sky because of interferrence was when someone at the old flying club powered up thier transmitter on my same freq. when i was flying.I have also committed to a 50size vibe too and will be flying it with the same head

The Raptor will fly fine with std servos and a 401 with a decent servo on the tail. DX6I is OK but you may out grow it. If you can get one cheap then it wouldn't be bad. I would stay away from 72mhz personally. I agree with the above that you don't want to sink a ton of money into the Raptor until you know you want to stick with the hobby. If you have deep pockets then it doesn't matter.

Scott, GySgt USMC
Fort Worth Thunderbirds
MA Fury 55 BeastX, JR Vibe 50 3G, T-Rex 550 3GX

The DX6i is not a bad 2.4 GHz radio, software-wise it's close to the 8103 as far as progamming and functions. It will take you awhile to outgrow the DX6i, and if you're going to fly electric helis, the 6i will go a long way.

The 8103 is probably the better radio as far as construction and "feel". You COULD buy a 2.4 GHz "AirModule" for that 8103 and move it into the 2.4 GHz world if you want to.

There is nothing wrong with 72 Mhz. To just "stay away from it" for some nebulous unstated reason is silly. As with the rest of the early part of this thread, people just tend to jump into insisting on the latest, greatest, most expensive technology because they really don't know anything else.

Tens of millions of trouble-free flights happened in helis, planes, sailplanes over the past 30 years, the technology is not dead. It's just not "cool" today. Since there are fewer people USING 72 MHz, the chance of a shoot-down (small anyway during the past 30 years) is remote.

The features of either the 8103 or 6i are not difficult to understand. Exponential, Dual-rates, and the gyro sense menu setup are easy to understand and use. You'll easily learn to use the features once you have a reason to do so.

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Dave

* Making the World Better -- One Helicopter at a time! *

Team Heliproz

JR 8103H

I upgraded mine with this FCC approved gadget after extensive research...LINK

Working flawlessly on my gasser. They also have a telemetry version but I only would care to monitor my engine temp if anything when it comes to IC.

I can turn off radio and back on and this thing just connects instantly. My fellow spectrum buddies are speechless of such. No clue how fast futaba binds compared to spectrum.

Failsafe, just place stick and switches where you want them, press the FS button and done. Has a low power range check as well.

Best of luck.

Futaba 401 would be a great choice for a used inexpensive gyro that is easy to setup and runs great on that heli. The best part is so many people can help you set it up. For the tail servo I've ran a lot of different servos on the tail of a Raptor. l've been surprised at the solid performance I can get out of an inexpensive quality standard servo. You don't need a $100 servo.

Exactly how a old beater 30 Rappy I still fly is setup. The 401 is great for most everything unless you're doing badazz 3D and hell , the cyclic servos on mine are several several year old Futabas

I think I have $50 tied up in the used 401 and tail servo and $30 for the cyclics ..

What goes up....ALWAYS comes down .