Trex 600E in hopes to save on glow fuel?

[pipercub123]

I've got a case of fuel for my raptor 50 SE and I'm hoping that'll last me half way through this season. When the case is gone I'm selling the raptor and a plane to cover a 600E. I fly my plane more because gasoline is so much cheaper and I'd like a way to quit buying glow fuel all together just because of the cost. A gas chopper was in consideration, but they're pricey and so is the cost of a crash fix. I want to stay at a 600mm blade size so the 600E seems great.

The price of the kit is good, except the batteries are expensive which might make me go back to the gasser heli idea depending on the battery life. I plan on getting two 5000 mah packs and that's about $520. It cost me about $130 for the case of 15% which isn't too bad, but I remember when I paid $25 a gallon for 30% about two yrs ago. After getting used to a cheap fuel bill flying gasoline this glow fuel is a big expense.

So, I'm hoping that pack will last for a 10 min flight of mild 3D and will have a lifespan the equivalent of 4 cases of fuel which would bring the costs down to as if I were only paying about $15 a gallon. That's the price I got used to paying for 15%.

I would like to get the pack recharged in 30 min or so. Less would be better, but I don't want to sacrafice battery life for fast charge times. So I'll need a charger that can charge at 10,000 mah. Holy smokes I'm used to charging my planes at 200 mah.


To sum this longish post up. My main question is will electric be cheaper than glow in the long run? Also how will the heli handle. I'm thinking with the lithium pack that it'll be around the same weight of a 50? Another drawback may be the charging. I'm wondering how you can charge a 22.2 v pack DC wise? Will I need to rig up a dual 12v battery system to get a charger supply of 24v or are there chargers that have an invertor to allow charging off from one 12v battery?


Thanks for all the help!

[Edge 540]

I'm flying a 600E superpro for the school right now. (tough job I know) This is for a couple different UAV projects involving radar and autonomous flight. Since I wasn't paying the tab the E was an easy choice. No mess, less field equipment etc. More of a plug and go style which is good when you're tinkering a lot with the stuff under the heli! I REALLY like the convenience. If one case of fuel would last you much of the season though, it sounds like you're more of a casual flier as oposed to the 2 gallon a weekend types. With that in mind the extra expense might not be justified. You also have to consider that if you go E you'll be buying extra batteries so that adds to the cost. The batteries are expensive so we've been very gentle and charging them at .5C. These suckers take a long time to cook. Field charging just isn't going to happen.
I guess no one can really decide for you. The E has some awesome advantages, but the smokey one is still hard to beat.

[SHANERC]

I think that the 50 size elec. would out perform a glow version, and if you can get a case of 15% to last half a season then I dont see how you would save $$$$$. now if you was burning 30% at a gallon a day it may be differant

[RappyMan]

30% Coolpower is over $30 a gallon now. I crashed my Raptor 50 over a year ago & have been meaning to re-build it, but the cost of fuel.... and the $3 a flight fuel cost is making me think about leaving it in the box.

I seem to fly the heck out of my 30% Edge and the electric powered planes... and the nitro stuff stays in the basement.

I picked up a Blade 400 electric chopper, but don't fly it as much as I thought I would. The 600 size is just way more fun and easy to see & control.

[sherman89]

The Glow /electric arguement is a balancing act, they each have their pros and cons. The actual cost per minute of flight over a couple of hundred hours of time comes out to be about the same. Pay me now, pat me later, you will pay me. I am starting to sound like the IRS.

[AllBread]

Check at the Zippy batteries at $120 or so a pop and you're electric costs get much cheaper. Haven't used them myself, but plan on ordering at least a couple for my T-rex 600 since I've heard nothing but good about them. Lot's of exciting new planes coming out that can run on a single 6s 5k battery so I plan on getting more bang for my buck that way. I'd be happy to order up 6 Zippy's so that I can bring a T-rex and a 70" electric plane to the field and fly all day long. Even if the batteries only last a season it's still not bad.

[pipercub123]

Zippy batteries sound good and I'm going to check them out. I saw the ad for their chargers and it looked good. At that price I could afford to get two packs.

[exeter_acres]

you don't have to wipe all those gooey electrons off of an E-heli when you are done

[kregan]

You don't have to run 30%. I regularly mix cool power 15% with cool power 30% without a problem. Another option is to spend 99.00 in parts to convert the Raptor 50 to a E650. I run 12s a123 packs.

[pipercub123]

	Quote: Originally Posted by kregan
	You don't have to run 30%. I regularly mix cool power 15% with cool power 30% without a problem. Another option is to spend 99.00 in parts to convert the Raptor 50 to a E650. I run 12s a123 packs.

That's a good idea and I may look into it before my case is gone. I just got my bird back in the air and managed to burn up a gallon in about three trips to the field. So scratch the one case per season. I may just burn two. I go through phases of flying the heli a lot and than flying my 29% Airwild 260. One thing I'm hoping for is that batteries keep getting cheaper. I don't know if glow fuel will be getting any cheaper though.

[classclown]

At one point, I was burning a gallon of Curtis a day between my Trex 600n and my Raptor 90. I was flying almost every day. As much as I fly, I do crash quite a bit. I never think about the money I spend on gas and parts because I used to sit my ass on a stool at the bars and drink my ass stupid everyday. I was actually spending more money drinking then I do flying. Screw AA meetings, and screw big electrics. No matter how good you are, You will still be crashing and those 5000's are pretty expensive fuel tanks in my mind. I had the Trex 600 electric when they first came out. The power is awesome. But after 6 totals and 6 rebuilds, I sold it. I found that I was being more careful with the electrics and that turned me off. The worst crash I had on the electric 600 had the TP5000 split in half and caught on fire. To top it off, I was only getting 6 1/2 minute flights. Save your money. As much nitro as you burn, going electric would be a waste. Just my opinion and I'm sticking with it. I still drink, just not like I used to, thanks to this hobby.

[kregan]

If you are not doing hard 3d the extra weight of A123's will not hurt. A Scorpion 4025-730 motor is awesome for a 600 or raptor 50 conversion. I run a Castle creations HV85 speed control on 12s1p 2300mah A123's. I get 5 minutes of flying with idle up running 2300 head speed. For just cruising around I use a 1900 rpm head speed and it flies great. Some guys run 14s1p

This is the list of parts to convert a titan 50 to a e550/630

Pinion gear - depends on motor I choose
PV0544 111T Main Gear E620 Price : $?.??
PV0552 Linkage Rod E620 Price : $6.99
PV0554 Elevator Arm Lever E620 Price : $4.12
PV0555 Elevator A-Arm E620 Price : $2.69
PV0556 Aileron Lever E620 Price : $8.55
PV0557 Servo Tray E620 Price : $8.55
PV0558 Main Frame E620 Price : $13.99
PV0559 AL Lower Frame E620 Price : $22.59
PV0561 Bottom Frame E620 Price : $4.89
PV0562 Batt RR Bracket E620 Price : $2.39
PV0574 Motor Mount E620 Price: $14.29
PV ??? Landing gear mount: $3.00 - 4 small plastic L shaped pieces
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	Quote: Originally Posted by pipercub123
	That's a good idea and I may look into it before my case is gone. I just got my bird back in the air and managed to burn up a gallon in about three trips to the field. So scratch the one case per season. I may just burn two. I go through phases of flying the heli a lot and than flying my 29% Airwild 260. One thing I'm hoping for is that batteries keep getting cheaper. I don't know if glow fuel will be getting any cheaper though.

[pipercub123]

Wow, so only 5 min flights can be expected? LOL, that's just enough to start having fun. Also, crashing and burning up both a field and heli wouldn't be too cool. I can just see images of the heli going down out of site. In the meantime I'm looking for it and see smoke, oh there it is! Imagine someone out west causing a wild fire by an rc heli. I'm sure they don't burst into flames every crash, but if they can get a good flame going that's a bit scary.

[Heli8ight]

Both option are good.

I only cwent the electric route because I want to make a scale helicopter and i wanted the most realistic sound and look with out buying a turbine.

For me the electric could also be spooled up indoors, I could maintain the heli in the livingroom while watching a movie if i wanted. And with in a scale fuse it would be smoking all over the place if i went nitro.

But I wouldn't mind a nitro heli actually I have nitro planes and I am sick of carting the fuel around so I probably would not buy a nitro heli but if I could get a 50cc heli like my plane that would be neat. it would sound like ***** though.

[Gandalf_Sr]

I'm building a 600E with the Scorpion 4025-740 (730 was a typo I think), I'll be running 10S with two 5S 3700 mAHr Rhino batteries in series - Rhinos are great batteries, are made by Zippy, and come from HobbyCity.com, they also can be charged at 2S which means 30 minute recharges.

I don't know how much longer I'll get than the 2300 A123s but A123s have a slightly lower voltage than LiPOs so 12S A123 is close to 10S LiPO. Assuming the same voltage, I have 3700/2300 or 60% more capacity so I'm hoping for 7 or 8 minute flights.

You will need a decent LiPO charger but there are great chargers on the HobbyCity web site such as the Turnigy Accucell 8 150W for $60 ish. DO NOT TRY TO CHARGE LiPOs WITH ANYTHING OTHER THAN THE CORRECT CHARGER.