Blade 330S RC Helicopter
Back To The Basics - Again

Blade's 330S Echos The Greatness Of The Original Blade 400

As I state on my Best RC Helicopter Page, there was for a short period of time, a big hole in the entry level RTF market for this type and size of helicopter. With the Blade 330S RTF and the Align T-Rex 450LP ARTF (links to my page on it), we have two great options once again! Which to choose?

As both these reviews and best RC helicopter page indicate, I still maintain that for many individuals, 450 size helis make the ideal first collective pitch helicopter when not over powered and correctly setup as a trainer.

They still have more than enough performance & power to get into aerobatics as your collective pitch piloting skills grow. Or even to get into scale RC helicopters with the many 450 size fuselages currently on the market if scale flying is your long term goal & passion.

The Blade 330S, just like the T-Rex 450LP, both excel at this wide spanning growth potential & varied flying styles while keeping costs at bay for the collective pitch newbie.

450 size RC helicopters are large enough to see at distance and have decent flight times, yet are not too intimidating. They can handle wind better than micro's and the components generally last longer, plus they are easier to work on. They also generally give you the most rotor size to dollar ratio of all heli sizes.

Right Side Up Or Inverted, The Blade 330S Looks Fantastic In The Air!

I get comments from way more people stating that "after flying a larger heli, they will never fly a micro again", than I do stating after flying a micro, they will never fly a large heli again.

In fact, I have never once got that comment unless they were forced into small stuff due to ridiculous and nonsensical RC flying restrictions, but that's another topic. 

To see Blade still recognizing this and staying true to their roots with a great "nuts & bolts" 450 size, easy & economical to live with 3S powered helicopter, should give all beginners new the hobby reason to smile whether the 330S ticks their particular boxes or not.

It should also give all current Blade 450 3D & 450X & 330X owners reason to smile as well since almost all parts are shared so ongoing parts availability & support will continue to be no problem. 

In fact, other than a T-Rex 450 clone based on the Align Trex 450 Pro, I don't think there is a single 400 size helicopter on the market that still has the over decade long parts support that Blade has with their 400/450 platform. 

While some in our disposable, false economy society may see that as a negative and state nonsense like Blade is not innovating (meaning profits are not being maximized), I see it as hopeful optimism for our future.

I despise this constant RC helicopter upgrade game we are all being forced to play and keep our wallets empty. While Blade certainly is also playing, it's refreshing to see a few of their iconic helicopters remain and follow the full size aircraft evolution method over re-inventing a new product every year to maximize profit and no longer offer parts support shortly after for its predecessor. 

Blade 330S Mechanics Are Largely Shared With The The Previous 330X, 450X, 450-3D, even the original Blade 400!

As seen above, the Blade 330S mechanics are identical to the previous 330X from the lightweight & durable two piece plastic frame, to the elevator bell crank servo layout, and power train including main and auto gears, along with belt driven tail drive components front & rear.

Blade 330S Belt Driven, Variable Pitch Tail Assembly

In fact, when looking at the parts list of the Blade 330S, almost all parts are shared with the 330X, many with the 450X / 3D, and even a few with the iconic original Blade 400. There are also a good number of aftermarket parts for this popular architecture so even if/when Blade pulls the plug, parts support for all these models will continue for years to come. 

330S Rotor Head & Swashplate

Blade uses the same rotor head and swashplate on the 330S as they did on the 330X and 450X. The swash is fiber reinforced plastic on the bottom non-rotating half and aluminum on the upper rotating half. A rear mounted anti-rotation swashplate pin and bracket are used.

Traditional washout arms are used over DFC (thankfully) to correctly phase and rotate the swash with the head along with standard threaded adjustable pushrods up to each blade grip for collective and cyclic pitch control.

Blade grips are fiber reinforced plastic to save cost and weight but are mounted to an aluminum head block. A standard head headaxle / feathering shaft is used with adjustable o-ring dampening.

Bright & Easy To See Blade 330S Canopy

The next change is hard to miss on the 330 S - the canopy! 

Blade uses a quality fiberglass canopy with a super high visibility, air-brushed paint scheme, giving you one very pretty and very easy to see bird.

Bright and highly contrasting colors like this improve visual acquisition helping prevent disorientation to such a large extent, I have to wonder why it took this long for some manufacturers to get on board with outstandingly bold paint jobs such as this?

It's one of the least costly upgrades to any RC helicopter that likely has the largest overall impact in both visual acuity and desirability. 

Yes, we should be looking at mechanical & electronic specifications first and foremost as the canopy can always be upgraded (at extra cost), and has little to do with overall flight performance. I would be lying however if I said the out of the box canopy color scheme plays no roll at all in any heli purchase decision I've made. 

We are all different in what our eyes see best. Bright / florescent yellows, oranges, greens & pinks are the colors I personally see best at distance so it's little surprise why I like Blade's color choice on the 330 S.  

One Good Looking Bird!

As with many of Blade's helicopters, the 330S comes in two familiar versions; Ready To Fly (RTF), and Bind and Fly (BNF). Both are "Basic" versions meaning no battery or charger are included with the package so you have to get those separately if you don't already have them.

This is another downgrade from the 330X RTF along with the 450 and 400 versions that came before, which all came with a 2200mAh 3S LiPo and basic 3S charger. 

Why, because Horizon want you to use their proprietary Spektrum SMART batteries and SMART chargers. You don't have to, but they want you to and including an overpriced Spektrum SMART battery & charger would push the cost of the 330S RTF way over their primary competition - the Align T-Rex 450LP ARTF which comes standard with battery & charger and is in my opinion a much better helicopter. 

The 330S ready to fly version is around $550 USD with the BNF version coming in about 80 bucks less. 

That extra $80 bucks for the RTF version gives you the 6 channel Spektrum DXe radio.