© 2010. Issue 210 Mar 11 2010

Competition Winner
Congratulations this week go to Chris Latham winning with the caption "I know I said I wanted this spaghetti al dente but you could rod drains with this".

Thanks to the generousity of last weeks winner (Brian Usher, who donated his last winnings to the Haiti appeal), you actually have won £20 this week, so congratulations Chris, and thank you Brian. Please give us a call to arrange the details.

Weekly Competition £10 prize

Those crocs can be so sneaky, plotting a 4 croc attack, that poor bird really doesn't stand a chance... or does it? Deadline for your caption is Wednesday March 17th. Please send your entries to:
editor2 AT modelhelicopters.co.uk
Entries addressed to anything else won't be seen! Please use 'editor2'.

New Items this week
First this week we have a rather splendid MD500 scale fuselage for the Blade mSR. No, that's not a typo! It comes in Blue, Red or Black with white stripes, or in White or Yellow with black stripes. Here's a black variant in the picture below.

Staying with the mSR for the next item, we have the MIA Tuff Skids which are CNC machined from light-weight G10 fibreglass and plastic molded ultra-miniature TUFF LG parts.

Stepping up a size or three, we have the brand new Eflite Blade SR RTF micro heli package. The softer control response around centre stick makes this a great heli for transitioning pilots. The box includes everything you need to be up and flying after a quick charge of the supplied battery (in the supplied charger).

Combined with the tough, two-piece main frame and lower head speed, the Blade SR is more forgiving and easier to master than most conventional CP helis. Plus, it’s big enough to fly outdoors even if there’s a little wind.

>> Next column >>

The tool no toolbox should be without, here we have a sturdy set of ball link pliers in green, from Mavrikk.

Next up we have an inner shaft and CNC aluminium main rotor hub assembly for the Blade Tandem Rescue from micro heli. It includes a new strong steel innershaft, a bigger and stronger steel spindle shaft and a precision CNC aluminum main rotor hub. This system not only reduces the chance of broken main rotor hub and innershaft but also provides a new great look for your Blade Tandem Rescue.

For all you Century Radikal G20 pilots out there, we have added a new web page dedicated to spares for your pride and joy. Click to view the spares for the Century Radikal G20 helicopter.

The new issue of RotorWorld is out and available to add to your next order with us! Don't go forgetting now...

Here we have a couple of new 2S packs from FlightTech. There is a 2100 2S pack and a 3200 2S2P pack, both are ideal for use as receiver packs, with the larger 3200 capacity pack taking up a smaller footprint by using the 2S2P format.

The new Torsion night paddles for 50 size and 90 size helicopters are powered by an integrated lithium ion battery. Charging this battery is possible with any charger that will offer the following: 1 cell Lithium Ion mode, maximum charging current of 150Ma, maximum charging voltage 4.1V.

If night flying isn't for you, then the new lighter paddles from Torsion will be what you're looking for. These come in a new black finish and are available for the Trex500 as well as 600 and 700 (50 and 90 size) helicopters.

>> Next column >>

The final set of Torsion paddles are these new white paddles for the Trex500. The standard weight gives them great characteristics in the air, being fast, accurate and stable.

No night flying helicopter is truly complete unless it has night tail blades fitted. Torsion have stepped up to fill the massive void in this area with these stunning night tail blades in 96mm and 106mm sizes for 50 and 90 size helicopters. We expect them to feature heavily at the 3D Championship 2010 night flying competition!

Finally from Torsion this week we have the new flybarless main rotor blades. Available for Trex500, 600 and 700, these blades are specifically designed for use with flybarless helicopters and are ideally suited for use with the Align 3G system (and of course, any other flybarless system!).

The next issue of Model Helicopter World has also hit our shelves this week, perhaps you should flip a coin to decide which one to buy, or save yourself the hassle and just get both!

The new Miniature Aircraft Fury 55 has finally made it over to these shores and it looks mighty fine indeed!

We now have stocks of this kit, but it is sure to sell out fast, so get in early to avoid disappointment!

That's it

A fantastic weekend was had at an invitational flyin at Stainburn last weekend. My fleet decided to try my patience with a worn elevator bell crank grounding my Aurora, a shredding of tail blades grounding my Srimok and my Trex600 flybarless giving me no end of headaches (which I think is due to a power issue, but further testing is required) - but even all that didn't stop me having an excellent weekend, thanks to Tim, the host, for doing a stand up job, as usual! Several top pilots in attendance saw some superb flying, and mostly on the new blend of OptiFuel which was performing extremely well.

With the weather forecast looking overcast and windy, I think we'll be lucky to get out this weekend, but should the chance arise, make the most of it!

Until next time, have a week!