I feel like the smaller "Blade" series are excellent for teaching hand/eye coordination but sadly they don't do much for teaching you how a "Real" R/C heli flies. The only way to really get good is replacing a LOT of parts or getting a good flight sim and "stick banging". In 2010 I was getting pretty good because there for a while I was flying one of my birds every single day. Then "Life" got in the way and I've not flow more than about 10 hours in the whole year of 2011. When I lived in town my yard was an awesome flying site but when I moved to the country I don't have that luxury any more. It sounds backwards doesn't it? LOL
You may want to look into Phoenix or the other flight sim mentioned above just to keep your fingers active especially if you're going to have any significant "down time" over the next several weeks. Sim flying really does help a lot. It doesn't replace REAL flying but it does keep your fingers "fresh" and you can practice maneuvers you'd never practice with your real bird.
