EXI 450 - Training Gear off!!!

This is my second flight with the training gear off. I'm starting to get a little more bold. I'm really tempted to just try to fly some circuits like I do in the sim, but I just can't afford to have a pile of broken plastic and metal pieces now.

I'm on battery 8 without a crash (a new record for me!!)

I put some yellow stripes on the tail blades to make it easier to see. It didn't help much. I need to get bright orange ones like the ones FD has on his ESmart.

Oh! Also, at the advice of a friend of mine, did and auto from about 2 feet today. He said, of the tail ever fails for any reason, hit the throttle hold and try to land - start by practicing autos. It's scary, but I didn't crash! Put the tail blades into the dirt a little, but overall, a success.

Nice flying! That's about the level I'm at with my Belt CP V2 right now. Fun times!

Good job.

Can you 'fly' only tail-in like the video, or can you hold a full 90-degree side hover (both sides)?

If you can't hold a side hover, then my recommendation is continue to practice with a tail-in hover... but make your hover really tight. Don't let the helicopter move around. Keep it about five-to-six feet off the ground, and keep it within three feet of either direction. The tighter you can hold a hover in each position, the better you will become... and starting at a tight tail-in is a good stepping stone to learning side hovers. Right now I know it seems like you're sliding the heli alound with the tail-in (or tail-in flying), but it's basically just a really sloppy hover and gradual cyclic movement (no harshness intended).

Soon enough you'll get it. Just gotta' keep burning through them battery packs like a chain smoker on menthols.

I definitely wouldn't try circuits without learning how to hover in all positions (nose-in preferred). As soon as it comes back towards you and there's no muscle memory of backwards controls, it'll be into the ground within a split second. One thing that helped me with understanding circuits is flying planes first. Control the left/right cyclic like a plane's ailerons, control the front/back cyclic like a plane's throttle (in conjunction with the actual throttle), and just use the rudder control to keep the tail positioned behind the direction of travel, with throttle for altitude.

Keep the vids coming!