Well, here’s a breakdown for you.
Typical setup for a Pantera 50 — mine — follows. Format is "retail/new & discounted/used" for prices. Leaving out the transmitter.
Bone stock:
Pantera 50: $199/$150/$100
OS .50SX-H Hyper (or YS 50): $199.98/$150/$80
Mavrikk or Align 50 pipe: $60/$40/$20
Futaba GY401 & S9254 rudder gyro/servo combo: $209.99/$175/$100
3x Hitec HS-5475HB servos for cyclic: $75.00/$63.42/$40
Cheap analog throttle servo: $15
Spektrum AR7000 Rx: $99.99/$99.99/$80
2S2P A123 M1 4600mAh Rx pack: $65/$45/$25 ("build it yourself" rather than "used"…)
Perfect Regulator tail step-down prr-5vgt: $14/$10/$10
Blades, CF, 600mm: $44.99/$35/$20
Recommended upgrades:
AUD3078 Elevator Bearing Set: $11.99
AUD0063 Air Filter: $29.99
PDR0016 Header Tank: $9.99
PDR0003 Fuel Shutoff: $6.99
PDR0004 Fuel Filter: $7.99
Hayes Clunk Line: $4
Multi-Gov Pro: $125
So your total is going to be, minimum, around $475 if you go with all used gear from forum folks or locals, and bone-stock Pantera frame picked up used from some seller online who got one as part of the BOGO deal. All the way up to around $1179 for a mostly-stock config, new, with all the recommended upgrades, and higher from there if you want to go with the big-block conversion or something.
That isn’t counting, of course, building materials that I would expect you to have laying around for any heli:
Green, red, and blue loctite ($18)
Thin & thick CA glue ($10)
Fuel tubing ($10)
Tie wraps ($3)
Foam padding ($3)
Sticky-back Velcro ($5)
Double-sided Velcro straps ($10)
Gasket maker ($6) (just a tiny dab does it to replace the metal gasket between engine & muffler)
Good Allen wrench set ($30)
Dial Indicator ($20)
Grease ($6 for a lifetime supply)
Tri-Flow Lube ($8)
Mini bubble level: $5
Good Lexan scissors: $20
X-Acto knife: $5
Extra X-Act blades: $5
Cutting mat: $10
Building supplies total: $174
Then your flight supplies (guesstimated):
Good 7-channel or more radio: $200+
Starter: $35
Starter battery: $25
Fuel: $22/gallon for 30% Magnum (12-16 flights per gallon, depending)
Heli start wand: $25
Glow igniter: $20
Paper towels: $1
Windex (or denatured alcohol, or Simple Green, whatever): $3.50
Toolbox: $20 (or more $$$ if you go nice and not cheap Wal-Mart brand stuff)
Fueling supplies (pump, attachment, etc.): $30
Flight supplies total: $381.50
You can also find SCREAMING deals on tail gyro/servo combos these days. I mean, crazy, insane, stuff that was $300 just months ago selling for less than $100. I just picked up two brand-new, full-warranty, retailer-provided LogicTech gyro/servo combos that usually retail for $250 for $75 apiece the other day.
This is why I shop sales, shop for used gear, and generally try to keep my stuff nice, but not top-of-the-line. One way or another, you’re going to be into your heli at least $1000 eventually. If you can pick up some used nitro starting stuff from someone getting out of the hobby or getting into electrics, then a used Pantera, and some cheap building supplies from Harbor Freight or overseas, you can save a bundle… but in some cases, you get what you pay for?
So there you have it. The total cost of a decent nitro helicopter. And we wonder why more people don’t want to get into the hobby…