??? before first attempt

Step 1. Buy or make a set of training gear. Well worth the $10 or $15 it'll cost you..

Everyone's got their own way of setting blade tightness. What I do (and this also seems to be how most people do it) is tighten the blade bolts just until, when the helicopter is on it's side and the blades are parallel to the ground, the blades won't move in the grips, but if you give the helo a little shake, they will.

At spool up, just pull the blades out and eyeball 'em. Centrifugal force will pull them into proper alignment when they're up to speed.

For the control links, buy a set of ball link pliers and have the shop show you how to use them. The links can be popped off and on many times. Some links are "one way" and will be marked as to which side faces away from the ball.

As for paddle alignment, you can use a pitch gauge or just line 'em up with your Mark-One eyeball.

The switches are for servo reversing. The manual will have the proper switch orientation for each channel.

The servos will center when you power up the helo. Moving them by hand won't hurt the elecronics, but you could strip a servo gear. I've never had one strip moving them by hand, but it COULD happen.

**IMPORTANT** TURN ON THE TRANSMITTER BEFORE YOU PLUG IN THE BATTERY ON THE HELICOPTER!!! UNPLUG THE BATTERY BEFORE TURNING THE TRANSMITTER OFF.*** Remember, transmitter is on first and off last. If you don't do this, the heli could spool up and get away from you.

Finally, see if you can get some help from an experienced heli guy. it is possible to learn on your own, but some experienced help will make it a much easier prospect.

A couple of other things to add, when you turn the transmitter on always make sure the throttle trim and stick are in their lowest position (all the way down).

Before connecting the battery, always make sure the CP is on the ground and clear from foreign objects and wait for the 4 in 1 to arm, 3 red light blinks then 5 green light blinks (this may vary from model to model).

As well as buying the crash kit you might want to get a set of plastic blades as they are a lot stronger than the wooden blades.

There is also a wealth of information about setting up the BCP on here Cheers

Good tip, but I can't think of a single 4-in-1/3-in-1 or ESC that'll arm with the throttle in any position but all the way down.

A bit unclear here.. The battery will need to be connected for the

4-in1/3-in-1 to arm. See your particular model's docs for specifics on LED indicators.

Not a good idea IMO. Yeah, they're stronger than wood blades, but since they are, head parts will be more likely to break in a crash. They're also heavy and some stock ships won't have the "oomph" to spin 'em up. Stick with the $8 woodies from helidirect..

I'm partial to foam blades... they can't even take a slight beating, but they certainly don't damage anything either. After having a CF blade slice my arm (stupid beginners mistake, don't ask) I appreciate blades that break easily :)

hehe, I walked into the blades of my old Schluter JR50 a long time ago. Had just finished up a tank and the heli was spooling down and I just walked over to pick it up. THWACK! right on the shin.. The only damage was to my leg.. :)

"The OTHER Kevin in San Diego" wrote in message news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com...

Yup, been there, done that, except it was on an X-Cell 60. Fortunately, I had let the rotor hub spool down a litte before leaning over to stop it completely. I just got too close and whammo! Instant knot on the front of my leg. I was more suprised than hurt but it certainly got my attention! I don't "even" want to know what kind of damage that blade would have done had it been anywhere "near" flight rpms! :-o

Fly safe out there, Steve R.

This one was at about 2/3 speed.. Just had a brain fart.. "Can't see the blades so they must not be there.." duh...