The $40,000 Bell Helicopter Package, where can it be ordered?

copterman · October 16, 2006

A few years back i saw something on TV that had taken the helicopter industry by storm in the USA, Bell helicopters had created a $40,000 helicopter package which you can buy and they send it to you in a great big shipping crate with a 40 hour dvd pack which teaches you how to build the helicopter in your own garage. It even tells you which tools to buy and that the tools would not cost more than 500 dollars. In the TV series the guy would show you him building it and he successfully finished it and then got a helicopter surveyor to inspect and then it got a certificate for air worthy or something like that. Then the guy got helicopter lessons and his license and started flying about and the heliocpter looked amazing. I think it was just a 2 seater but it was able to fly at around 150 mph which was amazing, that was a few years back and i wonder what companys have built for that price now, or even under a million.

They were seen at helicopter shows all over the world and demonstrated there and the reacitons from people were really overwhelming, that they could have something like this for that price, and the great thing is you have the level of safety from bell which is really great.

Do you know these companys with these helicopter packages? as i cannot find anymore much information on the builders, i have looked at bell, but there was a specific name these helicopters were callled and i have forgotten the name, surely you guys must know.

Any help much appreciated

Many many thanks

Wanna-be · October 16, 2006

do you mean this one: www.rotorway.com ? But that isnt a Bell helicopter

copterman · October 16, 2006

Hi thanks for the reply

it looks like that is the helciopter as i just read on that website it was the helicopter featured in the TV series 'A chopper is born' i just thought it was a bell.

Thanks for that find

Do you know much about these planes, know anyone who bought one, got one yourself?

copterman · October 16, 2006

Do you know any other build your own helicopters like this from other companys?

long2fly · October 16, 2006

Here's one I found a few weeks back.

http://www.helicycle.com/

I found the FAQ on that site rather informative

October 16, 2006

Do you know any other build your own helicopters like this from other companys?

You might find some more in this thread

http://helicopterforum.verticalreference.com/helicopterfor...hl=experimental

I also thought you might find this page useful

http://www.homebuilt.org/kits/kits-acft.html

flyby_heli · October 16, 2006

Experimentals.

I do not own one, nor will i ever do, but i know a couple of people who have owned and built a rotorway and a helicycle. First of all, a couple of scary facts:

-Rotorway uses (or at least did use) an electronically operated governor on a 12V electrical system. In other words if your battery goes dead, the governor stops working.

-The 3 belts that are connected by pulleys and run the tail rotor are about the same thickness as dental floss.

-The guy who designed the helicycle also got killed in one.

-Three of the seven first helicycles crashed in a matter of weeks.

-The governor/ignition system in the helicycle is also (or again used to be) electronically operated.....if your battery dies, your engine dies!!

Ok. As you probably can see by now I'm not a big fan of experimental helicopters. There is just too much stuff that can go wrong. And from what I've heard, by the time you have put it togheter it will have cost you almost the same as buying a nice used certified helicopter like a cheap 269A, 269B, Brantley, R-22, Bell 47....something that has been around long enough to have a proven record!

You can also see a lot of these helicopters for sale with somewhere between fifty and a couple hundred hours on them, and the resale value, or lack thereof, is remarkable. There must be a reason for that, and I for one would never buy an aircraft that may very well be put togheter in a barn by Joe Schmoe and his buddies......

If you want to be a professional pilot, don't go there!!

Just my .02

Flyby

copterman · October 16, 2006

thanks for the replys,

flyby heli that was a great post, thanks.

are there any non experimental helis that you can buy under $100K either built or as a pack that you build yourself, when i say non experimental i mean as in been tasted for commercial use, so it's totally safe?

Also why we are on the subject of kit helis, do you guys know of any airplane kits, either a fully built kit, or a kit you build your self?

much appreciated

thanks

flyby_heli · October 17, 2006

Copterman

Under $100K you have a couple of options as far as certified helicopters go.

You can find a Hughes 269A or a 269B model normally in the $50-$90K range depending on component lifetimes left.

You can also find a Brantley (the one that looks like an ice-cone) pretty cheap, but they are usually harder to find parts and qualified mechanics for.

Between $100-$200K you have a few more options.

Hughes 269C (later called Schweizer 300C) or the Schweizer 300CBI are two good options.

Robinson R-22 is another one. A little smaller and cheaper to fly. (be aware that when the R-22 is 12 years old or when it has flown 2200 hours, whichever comes first it needs a very expensive overhaul.)

Enstroms F-28 series is also in this bracket, but they are more expensive to operate and maintain then the ones above.

Hillers 12E should also be in this price range.

From here on up you move more into the turbine helicopters, and then only your money and imagination are the limiting factors. Turbine helicopters are more powerful and reliable, but also more expensive to operate.

As far as airplane kits. There are litteraly hundreds of different kit makers, and a lot of those have a proven record. Remember airplanes are a lot less complex to build. Try a google search, and I'm pretty sure you will get some results!!

Flyby

Kc135Delta · October 17, 2006

If it were you I would just bite the bit and get either a jetbox (bell 206) or a md-500 if you can afford it.

They will do about anything you will need.

As350 is bigger and i'm not that big of a fan of it, but it is also an option.

67november · October 17, 2006

thanks for the replys,

flyby heli that was a great post, thanks.

are there any non experimental helis that you can buy under $100K either built or as a pack that you build yourself, when i say non experimental i mean as in been tasted for commercial use, so it's totally safe?
Also why we are on the subject of kit helis, do you guys know of any airplane kits, either a fully built kit, or a kit you build your self?

much appreciated
thanks

Hey copterman, a bell 47 can be bought for under 100k and they are far better than the R22's USE the search function and DO your homework.