Top five reasons why electric RC helicopters are better than gas (nitro).
UPDATE: For the purpose of this article the term gas refers to nitro helicopters. There is a difference between the two but for the most part the average pilot either fly’s electric or nitro.
UPDATE 2: It seems as if this article has ruffled a lot of feathers for those who are into nitro helicopters. I’m not saying i don’t like nitro,or that there is anything wrong with them. I have 2 nitro helis and an electric. However, I am saying that in my opinion I feel that if you want to get into RC helicopters you might be better off starting with an inexpensive electric helicopter. So everyone calm down its not a personal attack.
If you ever wanted to fly a radio controlled helicopter you will find that there are basically two categories, electric or gas (nitro). RC helicopters are a great hobby and appeals to both young and old alike. Gas and electric both have their merits but there are reasons to choose one over the other. Here are my top five reasons why you should choose electric over gas, especially as a beginner.
5. They Don’t Pollute the airUnlike their gas counterparts, electric RC helicopters are quiet, environmentally friendly, and don’t require a flying club to fly. With electric RC helicopters there are no limitations as to where and when you can fly. Even your living room!
4. Low Maintenance
Gas helicopters are messy. Every time you finish flying you must maintain your heli by wiping down elements of the model. These issues are none existent with an electric heli because they are lighter, smaller, and can survive most crashes with no problems. Hauling gas, oil, as well as a complex toolkit is a thing of the past with an electric.
3. They Fit In The Palm Of Your Hand!
Well, a few of them! They can range in size from the micro models, to their larger 60 scale gas model cousins. They are easily able to fly indoors and outdoors.
2. Easy to Fly
Unlike gas RC helicopters, which can stall out in mid-air and be temperamental, electrics have a smooth and predictable power supply. Gas models also require constant attention making sure the engine is tuned perfectly. Electric RC helicopters on the other hand are incredibly reliable, almost never quit in the air, and the motors need next to no tweaking. However, both are subject to less than ideal weather conditions.
1. Less Expensive!
Sometimes substantially cheaper! Gas RC helicopters with their myriad of accessories can set you back hundreds if not thousands of dollars, whereas some electric RC helicopters can fall well under a couple hundred bucks. Moreover, they often come ready to fly (RTF) and can have you flying in a matter of minutes.
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this is the dumbest crap ever. you guys don’t know what you’re talking about.
Well I would have to disagree with you
this is really retarded get a life [ ADMIN what does that have to do with the article?]
this fucking sucks ass [ADMIN well said, very intelligent. ]
What a load of BOLLOCKS. They are both as good as each other, they both have their pros and cons.
Electric can be as and even more expensive than nitro. It all depends on what system you will be running in your machines for the type of flying that you will be performing.
It’s alot easier to dispose of nitro than a lipo battery pack. One evaporates and the other incinerates.
What ba load of crap. The guy that wrote that stuff is surely a total jag….
This was merely my opinion as to why I think electric is better than nitro for people getting into the hobby. Please read “why are radio control hobby people elitists.” Thank you all for making my point about being elitists.
It is just his opinion. The same ol’ what v.s what debate. Fly what YOU want to.
Your articals are all stupid. I seriously doubt you know much at all about RC anything let alone helis… [ADIM] you are entitled to your opinion much like I am. However, you would be wrong about what you think you know about me.
Might be suprized what i already know about you Darren. [ADMIN] I’m sure you can find out a lot on the internet. I’m not trying to hide anything. I am just trying to host a fun website where like minded people can come and enjoy this hobby.
The issue I have with electrics is the cost of the three or four battery packs you NEED to have to give you a good evening of flying. That’s like buying, all at once, all the fuel an engine will use up before the engine wears out. When a motor fries, that’s it. When an engine wears out, you can rebuild it for about half the cost of a new one,, IF you know what you’re doing.
Then there’s the issue of exploding battery packs but I hear that you really have to be careless to have problems. Much like handling liquid fuels, I guess. Pros and con for both. Those who were weaned on electric have trouble with real engines and those of us who are mechanically inclined, find the math, watts, amps, joules,, kind of bothersome.
We of the 60s generation called them glow engines, they used a glow plug as opposed to gas using a spark plug or diesel which used neither. Glow engines most often use fuel that contains nitro methane but not all engines require nitro or use it at all. In Europe, nitro is extremely expensive so they build their engines to run with NO nitro. Could you then call THEM nitro??
How they do that is to increase the compression ratio to regain most of the power loss that no nitro causes. They then have to play with timing and other elements to make the engine user friendly. Often, when European engines are imported to North America, nitro fuel is used and that can be detrimental to the performance of an engine that was designed to run on a no nitro fuel.
BTW, glow fuel contains methanol as the main combustible. Nitro-methane while also a combustible, also contains oxygen molecules that aid combustion. This delivers more power at lower compression settings. Nitro also has the benefit of better throttling. Some performance addicts run 60% nitro in small engines such as 1/2A (.049)
Maybe I’m splitting hairs but I’m a gearhead, can’t help it. See my YouTube videos,, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rt6OYUorx9U
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thanks for the great information…