Have you ever seen a turbine powered RC helicopter? If you have then you understand the attraction. Everyone watches as the whines to life and comes up to speed. Turbine RC helicopters are among the coolest aircraft at any flying field. They are not cheap, but if you bank account will allow you to go in this direction in our hobby, you definitely will not be bored!

Let’s take a look at how these turbine engines work. Most people are surprised when they find out how simple the concept actually is. Even though the process is simple, the engines have to be made with extremely precision, and the parts in the engine need to be able to stand very high heat. Those are the biggest reasons these engines are so expensive.

In any jet engine, air is brought in through an intake. It is mixed with fuel and compressed, then ignited, which produces the thrust. The thrust is from the extremely hot air being blown out the back of the engine at very high speeds. That is why you will never see a member of the ground crew at an airport stand in front of or behind a jet engine that is running. They would either get sucked into the engine or blasted with the hot air coming out the back. Either way, they would be very lucky to live to tell about it.

In our turbine powered RC helicopters, we don’t have to be worried about being sucked into anything or blown away by the exhaust. But the way the engine works is the same, just on a much smaller scale. The only complication is we need to make sure the combustion, and resulting thrust, is heading in the right direction. This is the reason the engine compressor must be spun up to a high enough level before the engine is actually started. This forces the jet thrust in the desired direction.

The fuel situation with turbine RC helicopter engines is a bit more complex. We need the fuel to be in a gaseous state in order for it to combust. But kerosene, which is the most commonly used fuel, is liquid at room temperature. So, the process is started with propane being introduced to start the engine. At room temperature, propane is in a gaseous state so can combust immediately. After the engine is hot enough, kerosene is turned on and the propane is turned off.

The way to control thrust is through the amount of fuel fed to the engine. The engine control unit, or ECU, handles this task for us. Basically the ECU is a little computer that both controls and keeps track of an assortment of engine functions like turbine speed, battery voltage, exhaust temperature, throttle commands, etc.

As you can see, turbine RC helicopter engines are a fairly complicated thing, even if the actual combustion process is pretty simple. These engines normally have safeguards built into them. This area of the RC helicopter hobby is not recommended for beginners for obvious reasons. But once you have gained experience, and want to move up to something that is more of a challenge, perhaps jet powered RC helicopters are something you can try. Remember, you will need to spend some money on this part of the hobby, and it can be addictive. You’ve been warned!

As electric, or battery powered RC helicopters become more and more complex, having the ability to monitor the performance of your components is a very important thing. By monitoring your components, you can tell which might be over-powered or under-powered, or just acting as dead weight.

A good example of how to make your RC helicopter more efficient is to think about a component that is designed to draw up to 25 amps. Let’s say this component is put into a small helicopter that only requires that particular component to handle 5 amps. Well, you are wasting a lot of relative weight in just that one component. But if you do not monitor individual parts performance you would never know that.

The measurements we are talking about in this article deal with a few basic electrical terms:

• Amps is the description of the flow of electrical current.
• Volts is a measurement of the electrical potential.
• Watts are a measurement of electrical power.

In order to measure the electrical current of your RC helicopter, you can insert a wattmeter between the battery and speed controller. This will tell you voltage, current, and power drawn from the battery. Be sure to take the measurement with your helicopter at full throttle. There are small wattmeters available that you can install on your RC helicopter. This will allow you to log electrical data for the duration of flights. These meters are called flight date loggers. Depending on which model you install on your helicopter, you can measure things like current, voltage, temperature, rpm, and more. The addition of other sensors may be required for some other measurements.

Be sure the reading you get for the current is within the rated limits of your motor, battery, and speed controller. If you can measure the voltage as well, you will be able to track the performance of your batteries. As long as the current is below the stated maximum for your battery, you can be sure you have an adequate battery.

Temperature is an important measurement to track on your RC helicopter. The temperature to pay attention to is 140 degrees Fahrenheit. Your motor and batteries should remain under that temperature. Your batteries can be permanently damaged if subjected to higher temperatures. Your motor will at best lose efficiency, and at worst burn up if the temperature gets much higher than 140 degrees. On the other hand, if you motor is too cold it probably means you have overpowered your RC helicopter. The result is an inefficient motor. If your batteries get below 50 degrees they won’t put out as much power as they do at optimal temperatures.

If you have not been keeping track of the electronic measurements of your RC helicopters, you may be missing out on an interesting and important way in which to improve the performance of your aircraft.

You eagerly check the weather reports all week, mostly to see what the weatherman has to say about the wind. You see, you didn’t have to read very much about the RC helicopter hobby to learn that wind and helicopters are a bad mix. The best way to crash your favorite RC helicopter is to ignore that weatherman and go flying on a windy day.

Of course, if you have a mini RC helicopter, you can always try your flying indoors on a windy day. The problem with that is too many broken lamps will result in having your living room declared restricted airspace by your wife!

Many hobbyists consider crashing as just part of your learning curve. But those who take their time and learn RC helicopter flight basics give themselves a much better shot at learning to fly without damaging potentially expensive equipment. The pilot who insists on learning from his mistakes rather than take his time studying is doing it the hard, and expensive way.

Flying a RC helicopter is very different than flying an RC plane. The biggest difference is in the landing. Landing a RC helicopter takes much more control than a plane, so a new pilot is advised to get plenty of practice hovering, and to stay low while getting that practice. Do this enough and you will find your landing learning curve is much less steep that if you start off hovering from any altitude and lose control.

When you purchase your first RC helicopter it will probably include some decent flight instructions. If it does not, do yourself a favor and research your model online and you are sure to find flight instructions specific to your helicopter. Practice each technique over and over until you have a comfort level with them that gives you confidence that you will not crash and burn your first time out. This hobby is much more fun when you can go fly for an extended time rather than have to come home early with your helicopter in pieces. The best option by far when learning to fly RC helicopters is to find an experienced pilot who will show you the ropes and stand by to get you out of trouble your first few times out. This is a great way to learn and you will enjoy the experience a lot more if you are not grasping blindly while trying to learn.

Check to see if your area has a flying club. If so, join it and become an active member and you are sure to find a lot of help with your flight instruction. There are also some pretty realistic flight simulators available. These allow you to practice at home on your computer. they can be a lot of fun and more importantly give you a chance to learn without wrecking any real RC  helicopters.

As your flight skills improve, you will be able to continue to challenge yourself with more complex RC helicopters and more complicated flying techniques. Start in this hobby slowly and take your time learning. You will enjoy it more and your bank account will thank you!

Many people dream of flying an aircraft of their own, but for most people that will remain just a dream. It is very expensive to take flying lessons and rent or buy a plane or helicopter. One way aviation nuts can get closer to living their dream is with radio control models, and the RC helicopter hobby in particular is a very exciting way to have an affordable aviation hobby.

You can buy a ready to fly RC helicopter and be off to the field and flying almost immediately, or you can buy a kit and spend many hours taking your helicopter from a box of parts to a flying machine. Some hobbyists just enjoy building RC helicopters and do not particularly enjoy flying them. They build one, sell it, and move on to the next building project. I even know a couple who build their scale RC helicopter and put them on display, never to be flown.

The point is there is something for everyone in the hobby of RC helicopters, and no one way is the right way. You can mold the hobby around your specific interests and chances are good you will run into people who share those interests. Find enough of them and start your own club, or join an existing one. The world of RC helicopters is a real, growing community.

Once you get into the world of RC helicopters, you will see there are two very different cultures. One is that of the gas or nitro powered RC helicopters, and then there is the group that swears by battery power. Most hobbyists make the choice to go with one or the other, and it is pretty rare to find people who build and or fly both types of RC helicopters.

Both electric and gas power have their advantages. Electric RC helicopters are considered easier to fly and many consider them a beginner’s helicopter. But in general they are less expensive than gas powered versions, and obviously they are much quieter. Gas powered RC helicopters are much more expensive as a rule, but they also have a ton of power and are much closer in their flight characteristics than the electric versions. Just as RC airplanes have airplane parts, RC helicopters will obviously have parts that need to be replaced.

Another option is to go with a mini RC helicopter. These are just what their name implies, miniature versions of full scale models. Some are small enough to fit into the palm of your hand. Most of these mini RC helicopters are battery powered. These are very popular as Christmas gifts.

Whichever entry point into this hobby you choose, take your time to do some research before you spend any money. The internet is loaded with sites and information on all aspects of the RC helicopter hobby, and when it comes to buy, the best deals around are often on the internet as well.

In the radio control community, RC helicopters are gaining popularity each year. You can find an RC helicopter in a variety of sizes, abilities, and ranges of power. But how do you really learn the hobby you are interested in? Well, nowadays it is actually pretty easy! You read websites related to your new hobby. If you want to learn about pump paintball, you go read a pump paintball site. If you want to learn about flying an RC helicopter, you come to a site like this.

The most basic of RC helicopters is really a toy when compared to some of the more serious versions available in hobby stores and online. If you have a child who is expressing an interest in the hobby of RC helicopters, these very basic versions are a good choice, mostly because they are inexpensive. If your child loses interest or crashes it, the helicopter can be easily replaced, or the child can move on to his or her next interest. Just keep in mind these low end versions of RC helicopters do not operate the same as a “real” one, but nevertheless can still be fun.

Recently there has been a growing trend in the popularity of larger electric RC helicopters. There have been big advances in the quality and capacity of the batteries needed for these helicopters, and that is probably the biggest reason for the popularity increase. Just a few years ago batteries were too heavy, and could not hold the amount of power needed for any length of time. Battery powered helicopters are among the quietest of all the vehicles used in the RC world, and that makes them able to be used in some areas where noise might be a problem.

Most RC helicopters sold in toy stores are electric powered, and there is a large range available in terms of quality. If you are serious about getting into the hobby, perhaps you are lucky enough to have a good hobby store nearby. If you do, take full advantage of this. Often you can find someone very knowledgeable at your local store and they can help steer you in the right direction for things like local flying fields and which models might be right for you and your skill level.

Many hobbyists prefer flying a nitro RC helicopter. These have a tremendous amount of power and can also be found on the lower end of the price scale. The engines in these RC helicopters are small, even though they pack a lot of power. These are glow plug engines, meaning they are powered by a glow plug rather than a spark plug like you might find in your car or lawn mower. The fuel used is a mixture of methanol, oil, and nitro methane.

The other type of popular version of  helicopter is the gas powered RC helicopter. While similar in appearance to the nitro helicopter, a gas powered RC helicopter has a completely different engine. These engines are larger than nitro engines, and gas engines are also more expensive.  The fuel is gasoline and oil mixture.

There are a lot of options available when you get started in the RC helicopter hobby. Take your time and read up on all the options, hang around your local hobby store and flying field and learn what you can. There are usually some hobbyists around who enjoy helping others get started, so take advantage of that. Join your local RC club, and more importantly, go to the meetings! There is a ton of valuable information to be learned there.