WLtoys Large V912 4CH Single Blade RC Remote Control Helicopter With Gyro RTF

BE SURE TO READ THE UPDATE AT THE END OF THIS ORIGINAL REVIEWAfter gaining enough experience with the large "Hercules Unbreakable" that I could use up the battery without crashing, the time had come for me to take on a greater challenge. Having to constantly counter the unpredictable turbulence this helicopter generated in our small front room was very good training, so I felt certain that I was experienced enough to move outdoors.For those who don't know, the "Hercules Unbreakable" (and most all other coaxial helicopters) won't handle even a light breeze with the standard tail rotor, but by modifying the blades (I used cuttings from an old credit card glued to the bottom side of the blades that exactly doubled their surface area) it can handle winds up to about 5 mph with no problem. Well my modification worked absolutely great, only to discover that the transmitter binding with that helicopter would drop out at around 25 feet. Needless to say, that was a disappointment, but the Hercules had served its purpose and it was time for me to move up to something better.After watching several YouTube videos of people flying different types of these electric helicopters I decided on the V912. In being confident that I could master its 4 channel transmitter and speed through one careful step at a time, I ordered one and that's when the real disappointments started.I was like a little boy at Christmas time when the delivery was made, but instead of charging the battery and jumping right into a test flight I followed the advice of others, put batteries in the transmitter, let it bind with the helicopter, and checked it out to see right off that the swashplate was not level. Then I saw the reason why....The jerk who was assembling that helicopter installed the right servo arm a notch high of center, then instead of correcting it, he/she screwed the adjustment all the way down in trying to compensate, slapped on an OK sticker and boxed it up. If not for those who took the time to offer advice, I would have tried to fly that helicopter and it would have crashed, but thanks to them I was able to return it undamaged for a full refund. (Note: The helicopter would have required disassembly to reposition the servo arm of which I was not going to attempt on a new one.)In thinking that the first one was just a matter of bad luck I ordered a second one to be disappointed again in discovering right off that its transmitter was defective. Naturally I didn't try to fly that one either and I got a refund, but my biggest mistake was in not selecting another one where free shipping was offered because I had to pay all the costs of shipping.In summary, I can't say whether these V912 helicopters are good or bad because after placing two orders I still haven't had the chance to fly one, but what I can say is, there is CLEARLY no quality control at all in the production of these things! More than that, the first one I received was DELIBERATELY packaged, knowing he/she had made a mistake in assembly that would render it unusable! That falls directly in line with people's dogs being killed by the additives those Chinese put in the dog food for the sole purpose of cheating on the protein content!I'm not going to say that you shouldn't buy one of these, but I am warning that if you do, order one that is backed by Amazon so that you can get a full refund. Don't make the mistake I did in ordering from an outside supplier who will not reimburse you the cost of shipping if (when) you get one that is defective....For me ....I'm done! I really wanted one of these helicopters, but apparently it's not meant for me to have one.Good luck toward whatever you decide.....UPDATE 9/27/2014:Well in February I changed my mind, placed a third order, and I suppose that old saying "third time is a charm" is right. I had to change my rating to five stars because I have been flying this #3 helicopter for a little over seven months now with no problems, and it's still flying great on the original battery. (I'll have to replace the battery before too long now because it is finally showing signs of age, but I certainly can't gripe after "I can't even guess" how many times it has been recharged.)I thought I was ready for a four channel helicopter, but believe me, going from a three channel coaxial to this one was an all new learning experience. It survived multiple minor crashes with only a few scratches though, until I finally reached the point where I could handle it properly.I'm not going to ramble about how much fun this V912 turned out to be after I got good enough with it to take it outside. I'll just say that I'm amazed that it has lasted for over seven months, so far, when I didn't think it would last very long at all when I ordered it. Now I don't fly it every day, nor do I fly it when the temperature outside is above about 75 degrees because both the battery and motors produce heat that can literally burn it up in hot weather. Early morning is the best time to fly anyway because that is the most calm part of the day, and flying in strong winds just isn't much fun, at least it's not for me. I also allow about an hour for the battery to completely cool before recharging, which might be the reason I haven't already had to replace it.I treat this V912 with care, store it in it's original box, and it has served me better than I would have ever dreamed it would. I can't verify they are all like this one, but if they are they're well worth the price.Good Luck!

After reading a lot of reviews both here and on RC groups I decided to go for the V912. The Heli itself is very good, I really enjoyed the day, yes one day I spent with it. The controller looks nice, the helicopter flies great but then the let down...quality. I used it for about 5-6 flights and everything was working great and then the transmitter started acting up. If you power it on the LCD back light would come on but nothing else. If you let the transmitter sit for awhile it would come back on and show the display and bind to the helicopter, but turn it off and then on again and nothing. It seems to be the power switch causing the problem. It is too bad that there are so many quality issues associated with these products because they are actually very good and a lot of fun while they last.On the plus side Amazon's customer service is awesome! It is not their fault that some products have poor quality control and I understand that, but Amazon backed it up all the way an made good on it.Update: Let me first start off by saying that Amazon's customer service is a model for how it should be done...period. I called them about the issue and they price matched another one and shipped it out 2 day so I would have it by this weekend. The new heli arrived today as promised!Now on to the heli. This thing fly's fantastic right out of the box. Everything is working perfect as far as the transmitter and the heli itself. Still a little quality issue though, the front LED light stopped working, it's not a big deal because I don't use it anyway but it is still a quality issue. WLtoys has a fantastic product but they really need to work on their quality, once they sort that out this this heli would be perfect. It is a lot of fun for sure so I would hesitate to buy oneUpdate II: O.K so the second heli has been flying fantastic and then all of a sudden the quality gremlins rear their ugly head once again. The heli is flying along no issues and banks hard right dive and slams into the ground. At first I thought I might have done something so I picked it up and set it level turned off heli and TX to reset gyro etc. Take off flying fine and then fly's almost out of sight and down field I bring it back down but it is acting like it is controlling itself and then hard right and dive. So either the RX or the gyro has gone out. This time it could have been not good had I not been out away from people. As it is it crashed into the top of a box van truck luckily not the windshield. I bought extra spare parts but I didn't buy spare RX pcb's nor should I have to replace them when they are new and haven't been crashed prior to having issues.