Any
T-Rex helicopter pilot
will love this little
helicopter. After
reading so many good
reviews on the E-Flight
Blade MSR, I had to find
out what all the hype is
about. My curiosity got
the better of me, so I
ordered my own BNF Blade
MSR. The helicopter and
accessories are securely
packed inside a small
box, and won't get
damaged during harsh
shipment handling. With
a 180mm main rotor
diameter and 28g all-up
weight, the Blade MSR
must be the smallest and
lightest r/c helicopter
I have ever owned. Very
nice...
|
Technical and
Designing Review |
E-Flight
manufactures two
versions of the Blade
MSR kit. One kit is RTF
with
transmitter included,
while the BNF (bind and
fly) version comes
without a transmitter.
Although the supplied
transmitter of the RTF
kit works very well, I
went for the BNF
MSR kit so that I can
fly it with
my Spektrum DX7
programmable
transmitter. With a
programmable transmitter
you can program so many
variables, and
personalize the MSR
helicopter flight
performance to suite
your skill level.
The
following is a list of
some of the Spectrum
DSM2 equipped
transmitters and modules
that will bind to the
5-in-1 Blade MSR
receiver.
• E-Flight
LP5DSM
• E-Flight
HP6DSM
• ParkZone Vapor
Transmitter
• JR X9303 2.4
• JR 12X 2.4 |
• Spektrum DX5e
• Spektrum DX6i
• Spektrum
DX7/DX7se
• Spektrum
Modules
|
|
The overall
design and
quality of the
Blade MSR is
exceptional
good, and you
won't be
disappointed.
Binding the
Spektrum DX7
transmitter to
the Blade MSR
receiver is
quick and easy.
To keep the
weight down,
E-Flight's
factory
installed a
5-in-1-control
unit that
combines the
DSM2 receiver,
motor ESC’s,
mixer, gyro and
two linear
servos all on
one single
circuit board.
Very
impressive...
The two linear
servo's are
linked to the
90º swash for
elevator and
aileron control.
Although they
are small, the
servo's are
precise and
centers very
good.
E-Flight's
unique rotor
head design
gives the Blade
MSR superb
stability. The
flybar and
paddles are not
perpendicular
with the main
rotors, and
makes the design
different
compared with
the conventional
rotor head
setup. It is
this flybar
offset that
gives the MSR
its self
correcting
stability. Great
feature for
beginners. All
parts are made
out of plastic
accept for the
graphite main
shaft and tail
boom.
The Coreless
brushed main
motor drives a
plastic main
gear, and gives
the MSR plenty
of power with
this perfect
gear ratio. The
tail rotor is
directly driven
by a powerful
micro Coreless
brushed motor,
and yet again,
power is no
problem. The
plastic landing
gear and battery
tray is one unit
that fits
securely to the
bottom of the
main frame. The
LiPo battery
position ensures
for a perfect
CG, and LiPo
battery removal
is fast and
easy. No need to
remove the
canopy for LiPo
battery changes.
Included with
the Blade MSR
kit is a
Celectra 4-Port
1-Cell 3.7V LiPo
charger. You can
charge four LiPo
batteries at the
same time. The
charger can be
powered by the
supplied 6V
AC/DC Power
Supply, or four
D-size
batteries.
Excellent
feature...The
Blade MSR is a
perfectly
designed little
helicopter, and
I can't find any
designing
weakness on it.
|
Included in the
E-Flight BNF
Blade MSR
Kit |
• Blade MSR
Helicopter
• Two 120mAh 1S
3.7V 14C Li-Po
Batteries
• Celectra
4-Port 1S 3.7V
0.3A DC Li-Po
Charger
• AC to 6VDC
1.5-Amp Power
Supply
• Mounting
Accessories &
Screwdriver
|
Not Included in
the
E-Flight BNF
Blade MSR
Kit |
• No additional
equipment other
than your
favourite DSM2
Compatible
Aircraft
•
Transmitter is
required to
complete your
Blade MSR BNF.
• If you choose
to make your
Celectra 4-port
charger
portable, you
may install
•(4)
optional D-size
Alkaline
batteries.
|
E-Flight BNF
Blade MSR
Kit
Setup |
There are just too many
variables and settings that can be adjusted to go through all of them in this
review. The
setup and
settings are
very easy, but I
recommend that
you buy the "
Getting The Most
Out Of Your
Blade MSR
" e-book written
by John Salt. In
this e-book all
the setup
procedures are
covered step by
step with
colourful
illustrations. I
found this
e-book to be
very helpful,
and it surely
shortens the
setup time.
|
Flying the
E-Flight
Blade MSR
Helicopter |
What a nice
little
helicopter to
fly. The Blade
MSR has to be
the best fixed
pitch 4-channel
helicopter I
have ever flown
up to date. It
is very stable
like a co-axial
helicopter in hover flight, but
very fast and
maneuverable in
forward flight.
The two linear
servo's performs
flawless. The
controls are
precise and
the Blade MSR respond to the
slightest of
inputs.
I was
really surprised by the
effectiveness of the
tail motor. Give full
right rudder, and the
Blade MSR will pirouette
lightning fast to the
right. Left rudder
pirouette speed is a bit
slower. It is amazing
how well the gyro works
throughout the whole
flight. The nose doesn't
start drifting left or
right as the LiPo power
starts to run off. It is
rock sold till the end
of the flight.
Flight
time is about five and a
half minutes, but my DX7
transmitter timer is set
at five minutes. That
way the LiPo battery
will not discharge
fully, and the lifespan
of the LiPo batteries
will be prolonged.
Transition into forward
flight is good, but be
aware that the
Blade MSR can pick up
speed really fast.
Slowing the MSR down
from forward flight is
fast with no bad
oscillating effects.
This
helicopter is ideal for
practicing nose-in
hovers, backward figure
eights and circuits. A
lot cheaper than
crashing a T-Rex
helicopter. Due
to its small size and
light weight, the MSR
produces very little
down thrust, and makes
it ideal for indoor
flying in small areas. It
takes about 30 minutes
for the LiPo battery to
be fully charged with
the Celectra 4-Port
Charger. I'm sure that
all R/C helicopter
pilots will fall in love
with this little
helicopter from day one.
Awesome...
|
Reason to buy
the
E-Flight BNF
Blade MSR
Kit |
• The Blade MSR
flies
exceptionally
good
• Can be flown
indoors and
outdoors
• The MSR is
very crash
resistant due to
its light weight
• Spare parts
are easily
obtainable
• The gyro works
perfectly
• You get a high
performance
fixed pitch
helicopter for a
good price
If you
want the coolest little
4-Ch helicopter on the
market, I recommend that
you hurry up and get
yourself one. You will
have hours and hours of
exciting fun.
Happy flying...
