Align T-Rex 450 Sport — First Look 03Feb10
Posted by tanker in Beginner, News, TRex.add a comment
450 Sport
Align recently released its newest heli, the T-Rex 450 Sport. The heli came as a bit of surprise after the fairly new 450 Pro and Super Pro. What is surprising are the amount of changes the Sport introduces. The Sport is aimed at new fliers. It is not simply a 450 Pro with some plastic parts but a new design of its own. The Sport certainly builds on much of what the Pro introduced but it has a number of significant changes geared towards the new flier and the possible crashes those at that stage of their flying may have:
- A new frame design that returns to the split frames similar to the T-Rex 450 SE V2.
- Along with the new frames a new servo layout that is easier to install and replace.
- The relatively fragile Torque Tube and gears have been replaced with a traditional belt.
- A beefier tail case to help it survive damage.
- Thicker main blade and tail blade grips.
- A handful of smaller changes.
450 Sport Frames
All in all the changes add up to a heli that is a blend of the SE V2 and the Pro. It is somewhat lower in cost but is also more durable. It does have slightly less performance than the Pro, but for its target market of beginning and intermediate heli pilots the 450 Sport has performance to spare. If you are new to heli flying and looking for a quality 450 class heli that is more durable and bit more timid than the 450 Pro then this may be a good place to start.
There is also the Super Sport combo package that comes with Align servos, gyro, motor and esc.
Specifications:
Accessories:
Blade mCX Tandem 12Jan10
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mCX Tandem
E-flite and Horizon Hobby have a new mCX RC heli out now, the Blade mCX Tandem. It is a tandem heli very similar in look to the Chinook. It is a bit larger than the coaxial mCX and uses a larger 250 mAh battery. Horizon has a nice video overview of the mCX Tandem. There is also video of an earlier look at the mCX Tandem. Initial reviews of the little heli have been very positive and it is currently difficult to get from many retailers. Looks like this is a another must get indoor heli.
New JR X9503 Radio 12Jan10
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JR X9503
Horizon Hobby just announced a new version of JR’s venerable 9-channel X9303 transmitter the X9503 (available soon). It is essentially identical to the X9303 but now has 50 model memory and a back lit screen. Horizon has a quick video discussing the X9503. It ships with the R921 Rx but no servos. The biggest disappointment is that it does not have the same 2048 resolution as the DX7 SE (and 12X).
Horizon Hobby also has a number of other interesting videos on their various products.
RC Helicopter Magazines 20Dec09
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There are a number of magazines available that cover the RC heli hobby. These are great for not only keeping up on the latest products but are also great resources for reviews and tips and tricks for the new flier and veteran alike.
RC Heli Magazine (http://www.rchelimag.com) — This is a great magazine that covers all RC Heli activities. Great reviews and setup information.
Model Helicopter World (http://www.modelheliworld.com) — Another good magazine. The only problem is it is a UK publication so some of the areas covered, and the ads, are not applicable to those of us on the other side of the pond.
R/C Model Aeroplane / RCM&E (http://www.modelflying.co.uk) — Another UK-based RC magazine. R/C Model Aeroplane is the U.S. version of RCM&E. As far as I can tell the coverage is identical only the name is different. It has high quality reviews and build articles and usually a good amount of heli coverage mixed in with fixed wing. As with all foreign publications the only real problem is that some of the products and almost all of the advertisements are not useful for those in the U.S..
Rotory Modeler Magazine (http://www.rotory.com) — Another dedicated heli magazine that has been around over ten years now. It has some good articles but is not professionally published and, as a result, the editing and writing suffer and the layout is amateurish. You can buy the back issues in pdf format.
Model Airplane News (http://www.modelairplanenews.com) — They have produced some nice heli issues (summer and winter) titled Radio Control Helicopter. Hopefully they will do more. The regular mag usually has some heli coverage as well.
Radio Control Heli Pilot (http://flyrc.com) — Produced by the same folks that do Fly RC magazine, Radio Control Heli Pilot is a special publication dedicated to helis. They have done two issues so far.
Fly RC (http://flyrc.com) — Another primarily fixed-wing RC magazine but they do tend to have regular heli coverage as well.
RC Sport Flyer Magazine (http://www.rc-sf.com) — Another good magazine with light heli coverage. They cover a lot of electric aircraft so there is some useful crossover there as well.
Backyard Flyer (http://www.backyardflyer.com) — They occasionally have some heli coverage and also cover electric flying.
Shape 9.0 Rigid 18Dec09
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Well we have yet another .90-sized electric heli announced. It looks like the Shape Rigid, from Henseleit Helicopters of Germany, is getting close to release. There was video of it back in the prototype stage and now there is some video of what looks like a possible production ready version.
There is also the Rigid Story video parts one and two (dialog is in German but you get the idea).
Interesting design overall but it really needs a different canopy design.
KDE Direct Electronic Pinion Support Upgrade 15Nov09
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KDE Direct Pinion Support
KDE Direct have a new add-on to their T-Rex 700 electric conversion kit. They have now produced an Electronic Pinion Support Upgrade. This is a rather ingenious little device that bolts above the motor and provides a full bearing support to the top of the pinion. The idea is to eliminate lateral flexing of the pinion and reduce wear and possible stripping of the main gear.
Because the Support mounts to the motor mount only and not to the frame it is hard to say how much flex it will actually eliminate but it will certainly help to some degree. As always, KDE provides clear installation instructions.
JR Sylphide 90E 06Nov09
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Ok, this is just starting to get silly now. RCHeliResource.com has shots from the Tokyo Hobby Show that reveal a brand new .90 sized electric heli being produced by JR. No further details yet. At this rate we’ll be seeing a new .90 sized electric every week in 2010!
Infusion 90E 18Oct09
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Who would have ever thought we’d have TOO many .90-sized electric helis from which to choose?! A new company, TSA Model, just announced its own .90 sized electric heli the Infusion 90E. The Infusion 90E is an all new design and TSA Model also has a nitro version as well as a 500-sized model that all share the same basic design. It is mostly of conventional design with a narrow frame and a few unique features like the tail assembly. It uses a shaft driven tail rotor. Like all the .90-sized electrics it runs on 12S but has both packs above the skids sitting side by side.
It will be interesting to see how this heli performs and how TSA Model does against its more seasoned competition.
New Srimok 90E 15Oct09
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Srimok 90E
Well 2010 is going to be the year of the .90-sized electric heli so start warming up your credit card. Kasama just announced their all new Srimok 90E electric heli. Details are light but it is based off their nitro 90 and is a native electric not a conversion. No word on release date yet.
So we now have the Rave 90E, the Aurora 90E, the Srimok 90E, and of course the T-Rex 700 eConversions. And if all of that were not enough, rumors are growing over an official Align T-Rex 700E for 2010 as well.
The big question is, who is going to ship first and how will kit and part availability be?
KDE Direct T-Rex 700 Electric Conversion Kit 09Sep09
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KDE T-Rex 700 E-Conversion Kit
KDE Direct now has a T-Rex 700 Nitro to Electric Conversion Kit available. It is three heavy duty aluminum pieces that converts a standard T-Rex 700 Nitro kit into an electric powered model. Overall it looks like a good design but unfortunately it does not not include a new, lower tooth count, Mod 1.0 main gear that many folks believe is necessary when converting the T-Rex 700 to electric power.
KDE also provides an install guide for their kit. Only very minor frame modifications are needed.
Also see their Electronic Pinion Support Upgrade.
[Updated: 15NOV09]
