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Mister Sinewave posted:My Bixler 2 is on the way Flying fpv is actually a lot easier than flying los at least with regards to orientation. The only thing to worry about is that if your link fails and you don't know how to fly los you are totally screwed. That said if you are outside LOS when your link fails you are also screwed if you do know how to fly los so  Unless you have some RTH widget on your plane which probably isn't worth worrying about on a first go. Vitamin J posted:The video is totally worth it: Yeah that does look good. I think I will have to try it. The smallest available gimbal motors I can find are 2206's from HK. I wonder if something smaller and lighter would have enough torque for the mobius. Perhaps a couple of custom rewound micro motors might be the way to go. mashed fucked around with this message at 22:18 on Apr 28, 2014 |
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Apr 28, 2014 22:15
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and I already have the other accessories I purchased.
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Mister Sinewave posted:My Bixler 2 is on the way It's a bad idea. You'll need at least 1 flight to check for CoG and trim and while I suppose you in theory could do that FPV, I suspect it'll be hard to do.
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Apr 28, 2014 22:19
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I'm not going to be completely reckless and put equipment at risk for no reason (well, for no good reason) but I'll be honest, I secretly think "this can't be that hard" and nothing short of seeing for myself is going to convince me otherwise. I may very well end up being the RC version of the hobby-pilot doctor who inadvertently commits suicide by small plane but it'll be much cheaper and less fatal (but possibly about as embarrassing.) I have carefully weighed these risks and decided to do it anyway 
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Apr 28, 2014 22:35
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Mister Sinewave posted:I may very well end up being the RC version of the hobby-pilot doctor who inadvertently commits suicide by small plane but it'll be much cheaper and less fatal (but possibly about as embarrassing.) I have carefully weighed these risks and decided to do it anyway Nah. You're just taking the most expensive route to the same goal.
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Apr 28, 2014 22:38
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The Bixler 2's only $70? Wow. I, uh, might need to get one, assuming I can replace the rx on there.
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Apr 28, 2014 22:54
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Arcturas posted:assuming I can replace the rx on there. Of course. Heck, I'm skeptical that it even comes with a rx. ARF and "kit" means BYO-radio *edit* Yep. The $55 "kit" version (US Warehouse) means bring your own servos, esc, motor, receiver. The $80 ARF (also US Warehouse) just includes the motor and servos. Both are backordered. CrazyLittle fucked around with this message at 23:11 on Apr 28, 2014 |
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Apr 28, 2014 23:07
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I assume ARF means "allegedly ready to fly," or something similar, then? This hobby is going to devour all my money, isn't it...
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Apr 28, 2014 23:20
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Arcturas posted:This hobby is going to devour all my money, isn't it... Yes. You will also start compulsively tracking and tracing every hour.
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Apr 28, 2014 23:48
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mashed_penguin posted:Yeah that does look good. I think I will have to try it. The smallest available gimbal motors I can find are 2206's from HK. I wonder if something smaller and lighter would have enough torque for the mobius. Perhaps a couple of custom rewound micro motors might be the way to go. I've heard that these motors are ideal when custom-wound: http://www.ebay.com/bhp/ps2-slim-motor http://www.olliw.eu/2013/micro-brushless-gimbal/ T-Motor is always coming out with unique designs so maybe they have something perfect already.
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Apr 29, 2014 00:03
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Vitamin J posted:Yeah the 2206s I've heard aren't even really lighter than 2208s, I have some coming to test. Neat. I've looked at how you rewind a motor and its pretty  Doing it to a tiny little motor like those would be really tricky I think. The mini controler Olli has designed looks perfect as well. On an unrelated note I flew my qav250 at lunch and it was awesome. Minquads best quads. The park near work is a little cramped but certainly better than nothing. mashed fucked around with this message at 00:27 on Apr 29, 2014 |
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Apr 29, 2014 00:25
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I am so happy with openlrsng and this cheap as poo poo hardware. My only complaint is the lack of direct support on most openlrs hardware for telemetry out to the taranis and x9r. Anyone do the inverter process to get the orangerx tx to output telemetry? One suggestion for anyone thinking of buying the transmitter module: get a replacement upward facing sma connector holder printed and a case for the rx. http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:223012 http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:223006 The vector is a few days from missing it's anticipated release date. Really bummed to still be flying nazes and shiit nazas without OSDs because all the cool poo poo is on preorder and back order. tehk fucked around with this message at 04:09 on Apr 29, 2014 |
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Apr 29, 2014 04:06
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tehk posted:I am so happy with openlrsng and this cheap as poo poo hardware. My only complaint is the lack of direct support on most openlrs hardware for telemetry out to the taranis and x9r. Anyone do the inverter process to get the orangerx tx to output telemetry? Chuck a kvosd board on your naze. It is really awesome and witespy has the minimosd boards for $11 with additional ADC inputs already added with voltage dividers for additional voltage monitoring etc. I have it setup on my new mini quad and for the price it is amazing.
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Apr 29, 2014 04:20
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Maiden flight trip report! I re-seated my props on the rings I was just barely able to fit on there, and then went outside and tried to take off with auto-level off. It limped like a drunken sailor and tried to take off on only one side. I managed a two-foot tall hop while trying to compensate for the one-side-only take-off with some pitch before landing. I did land on the gear, though, so that's something. I think I need to try auto-level tomorrow, then try to fiddle with the P and I settings to get it to behave properly. I also went through and re-calibrated the ESCs, in case they were kicking in at different throttle values (not terribly likely, but...).
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Apr 29, 2014 04:36
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Nah, auto-level won't fix your problem. Make sure that all four propellers are spinning in the direction listed in the KK2's "show mixer" instructions, and also make sure that the motors turn the correct direction as well. Even without auto-level the stock PID settings should be enough to make it take off without trying to flip over.
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Apr 29, 2014 07:27
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Mister Sinewave posted:I'm not going to be completely reckless and put equipment at risk for no reason (well, for no good reason) but I'll be honest, I secretly think "this can't be that hard" and nothing short of seeing for myself is going to convince me otherwise. Because you seem dead set on trying this FPV the first time out and likely destroying something, I want to give you some advice that I found important when I got into FPV. Find a really safe place to fly with easily identifiable landmarks. I tried flying at a farm once that looked like a big checker board once I got into the air, even though it had a lot of variety on the ground. It was very disorienting, and if it weren't for spotters I would have lost my plane. Also, if your radio link is on 2.4 and your video link is 1.3, you can very easily lose control of the airplane with no warning (ie very little video flicker). So set your failsafes correctly so at least the power cuts when you lose it if you don't go UHF right off the bat. Learning to fly LOS before FPV isn't helpful just in case you lose video link, it's helpful so that you know how to manage the energy of the airplane and get a real-world idea of how it behaves (sinking and climbing) at different throttle and speed settings. It can be super disorienting just having a VHS-quality view from the plane. The general approach with FPV is to build the system up one component at a time. Fly the plane with no video system, make sure it is stable and reliable and you don't blow up the motor/ESC/servos (two of the people I've helped get into FPV have had this happen with their HK-supplied motors and ESC's, even on the recommended equipment). Get a good idea of what flight time you can expect. Then add video and make sure it doesn't cause too much range reduction with the radio link. Make sure it is reliable and solid, then add OSD. Add pan and tilt if you must only after all that stuff is proven and solid. If you have no LOS skills you will be skipping an important step and you're compounding it by being a general noob at modeling. Please don't crash into some old lady's house and create bad press for us.
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Apr 29, 2014 14:08
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CrazyLittle posted:Nah, auto-level won't fix your problem. Make sure that all four propellers are spinning in the direction listed in the KK2's "show mixer" instructions, and also make sure that the motors turn the correct direction as well. Even without auto-level the stock PID settings should be enough to make it take off without trying to flip over. Hmm. I'll double-check that. I think I had all the motors and props on correctly. It's less that it's actively trying to flip over because one or more of the props are providing negative thrust, and more that when I only apply thrust only two of the props start spinning. If I apply a little pitch, I can get the remaining two props to start spinning as well, and then it looks like it's getting level thrust.
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Apr 29, 2014 14:51
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The ReadymadeRC/Feiyu Tech Hero3 gimbal is absolutely amazing. Here's my first real vid from my 650: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjeU0l154OI
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Apr 29, 2014 15:36
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Arcturas posted:Hmm. I'll double-check that. I think I had all the motors and props on correctly. It's less that it's actively trying to flip over because one or more of the props are providing negative thrust, and more that when I only apply thrust only two of the props start spinning. If I apply a little pitch, I can get the remaining two props to start spinning as well, and then it looks like it's getting level thrust. Did you calibrate the throttle curve on all four ESCs? The other thing I can think of is that bad habit of spooling up errors on the gyro compensation. If you sllooooooowwwwlllly try to take off then you will load up the stabilization PID loops with errors once you get to the point where the copter is about to lift off the ground. You're actually better off launching quickly rather than a slow progression. CrazyLittle fucked around with this message at 15:50 on Apr 29, 2014 |
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Apr 29, 2014 15:44
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Arcturas posted:Hmm. I'll double-check that. I think I had all the motors and props on correctly. It's less that it's actively trying to flip over because one or more of the props are providing negative thrust, and more that when I only apply thrust only two of the props start spinning. If I apply a little pitch, I can get the remaining two props to start spinning as well, and then it looks like it's getting level thrust. I just finished up my new baby last night! I got a little excited and took the picture before trimming zip ties and mounting the GPS . I'm a little wary of this QBrain 4-in-1 ESC but I had it and figured why not try it. I'll probably switch back to regular individual ESCs before I load this up with FPV gear. Also my first time using an Ardupilot. 
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Apr 29, 2014 16:42
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Wojcigitty posted:Please don't crash into some old lady's house and create bad press for us. Thanks for the tips, and let me assure you that I am dedicated to putting only my own self & equipment at voluntary risk. I will not be thoughtless. I'm sure you've heard it all before, but while I am a noob wrt RC I know what losing control, radio link, or video feed means and what it would leave me with. Effective planning for failure is in layers and depth, and Intentions & Hopes are not useful plans.
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Apr 29, 2014 18:19
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Vitamin J posted:The ReadymadeRC/Feiyu Tech Hero3 gimbal is absolutely amazing. Here's my first real vid from my 650: Nice. Looks like a cool place to fly.
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Apr 29, 2014 19:20
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I thought I calibrated the throttle on the ESCs, but I don't know if that's the same as calibrating the throttle curve. Specifically, I booted the KK2 board while holding the 1 and 4 buttons, with the throttle on the transmitter at max. After I got beeps from the ESCs I moved the throttle to zero. Then I released the 1 and 4 buttons, then disconnected the battery. I've also done that for each ESC individually, while it was connected to the #1 position on the KK board (to get power to the board). I've run the gyro calibration program on the board when it was sitting on my coffee table. I tried to take off on my driveway, which is slanted, but I'd rather not calibrate it outside for just that reason. I did, however, try to take off very slowly. I'll try a quicker launch this evening if I'm still having problems.
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Apr 29, 2014 19:26
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Arcturas posted:I thought I calibrated the throttle on the ESCs, but I don't know if that's the same as calibrating the throttle curve. Specifically, I booted the KK2 board while holding the 1 and 4 buttons, with the throttle on the transmitter at max. After I got beeps from the ESCs I moved the throttle to zero. Then I released the 1 and 4 buttons, then disconnected the battery. I've also done that for each ESC individually, while it was connected to the #1 position on the KK board (to get power to the board). Did you hear beeps from the esc's when you lowered the throttle? That indicates that it has actually calibrated.
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Apr 29, 2014 20:27
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mashed_penguin posted:Did you hear beeps from the esc's when you lowered the throttle? That indicates that it has actually calibrated. Yep.
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Apr 29, 2014 20:27
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Arcturas posted:Yep. Then they should be calibrated. Not sure why they aren't coming on at the same time. Do your esc's have simonK firmware on them ? If not have you made sure they all have the same settings such as no soft start etc?
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Apr 29, 2014 20:59
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mashed_penguin posted:Then they should be calibrated. Not sure why they aren't coming on at the same time. Do your esc's have simonK firmware on them ? If not have you made sure they all have the same settings such as no soft start etc? Yeah. What he said.
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Apr 29, 2014 23:20
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I've hooked them up to a calibration/programming card, but I'll do it again to see if I screwed something up;.
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Apr 30, 2014 01:05
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Question for you guys doing FPV with gimbals: Does the live feed also come from the gimbaled camera? I ask because it seems like it would be harder to control horizontal motion without using the horizon as a reference. But, if you have a separate camera, you don't know exactly what you're getting on the good camera.
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Apr 30, 2014 01:42
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darknrgy posted:Question for you guys doing FPV with gimbals: Does the live feed also come from the gimbaled camera? I ask because it seems like it would be harder to control horizontal motion without using the horizon as a reference. But, if you have a separate camera, you don't know exactly what you're getting on the good camera. Get a camera switch like SmartFpv's 3 way or a generic 2 way. I use my board camera to get me in position and once loitering I switch to the gimbaled gopro live out. Only issues with doing this is you end up needing an extra channel but channels are cheap now with ppm and configurable rx pin outs.
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Apr 30, 2014 04:41
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Mister Sinewave posted:Thanks for the tips, and let me assure you that I am dedicated to putting only my own self & equipment at voluntary risk. I will not be thoughtless. Would you consider at least flying a simulator? Everyone likes video games and this way you at least have some idea of how control works. I flew my first rc plane by fpv the second battery out, but I had a some years flying helis and racing 1/8 nitro so orientation wasn't an issue. Still ended up losing a elevon when landing because in fpv the ground and 5 foot above the ground look basically the same. I land visually now unless the plane is a belly lander and the quad doesn't have a under slung gimbal.
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Apr 30, 2014 04:53
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I've used and owned RC cars, orientation always came pretty naturally to me. But no aircraft experience unless I count a small gas RC model of an ultralight I got to fly once, which was basically a powered glider from what I remember. Had to be hand-launched, couldn't take off from the ground on its own. I don't think it really counts as flying experience. But even that meagre amount of experience was from 25-30 years ago. Modern RC is a weird mix of "some things never change" (servos, control layout) and "holy crap the new basics everyone takes for granted resemble nothing I remember" (ESCs and programming them, etc)
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Apr 30, 2014 06:19
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I managed to successfully solder the wires+headers in place last night on my Turnigy 9x so I can finally install OpenTX. Highly recommended mod, I am bad at soldering but was able to do it within 30 minutes and my radio booted up fine afterwards. Still waiting on my AVR programmer in the mail though! Next mod on the table is a good replacement for the Turnigy RF module. Maybe I will get a DIY set so the antenna can go out the top instead of out the back.
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Apr 30, 2014 10:48
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Success! I don't know if it was re-programming the ESCs, re-calibrating them, flying when it's light out and I can see, or what, but my second flight was a resounding success. I managed a rough landing that broke a pair of props shortly thereafter...but that's why you get spares. In other news, now I need to figure out how to make a lower/wider set of landing gear for the HAL Turnigy 585mm frame. I'd like to have the center of gravity a bit lower as I start to get more comfortable with landings.
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May 1, 2014 02:05
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Arcturas posted:Success! I don't know if it was re-programming the ESCs, re-calibrating them, flying when it's light out and I can see, or what, but my second flight was a resounding success. I managed a rough landing that broke a pair of props shortly thereafter...but that's why you get spares. make an 'X' with some really long wooden dowels or carbon fiber rods, and ziptie the X to the bottom of your HAL's gear like this: 
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May 1, 2014 04:10
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Finished cleaning up all the wiring on my new toy quad copter: I'm pretty impressed with the sunnysky motors, but time will tell if they're worth the extra cash. Meanwhile I put NTM 28-26 1200Kv motors on one of my DJI clones and one crash destroyed the bearings on two of the motors. Guess it wasn't just fluff when people were saying the bearings in them were crap. Even my DT750 quads can take a better beating than these. If the replacement bearings don't improve their reliability, I'm probably going to dumpster them. 6675636b20796f75 posted:Getting pretty good with SK450. Haven't had any major crashes (plenty of close calls though). I have a little trouble when the forward part of the craft is coming towards me and sometimes a I land it a little hard and then to avoid a hard landing a goose the throttle but that's smoothing out. CrazyLittle fucked around with this message at 06:51 on May 1, 2014 |
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May 1, 2014 06:46
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CrazyLittle posted:
My first motor was a NTM 2826 and it's still alive despite multiple crashes, including a straight nose-on full speed hit into a metal pole.
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May 1, 2014 07:47
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CrazyLittle posted:How're those Turnigy Multistar motors holding out for you? Any crashes yet that would give the motor a good bump? Just one hard crash. Not sure if that's enough to give you a durability metric but so far the motors perform really well.
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May 1, 2014 15:53
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ImplicitAssembler posted:a straight nose-on full speed hit into a metal pole. That really was the best crash  SPOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!!!
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May 1, 2014 17:00
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Is there a concise resource for getting into quadcopters? At least sorting out the terminology and options for various subsystems? I've sorta been fumbling around through a bunch of forums and other odd pages. I know the basics of ESC's, I've downloaded the SimonK firmware. But it's all these one-off parts of the full system that assume you already know/don't care about the rest. Like I need to understand how I'd replace everything from the RF link to the ESC, and I don't even know what to label all the components and software between those two points.
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May 1, 2014 17:43
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Check my posts in the thread for a link to a really easy DIY quadcopter build. If you're willing to wait for the parts linked, it's all plug and play with no soldering. If you're trying to rewire things from the receiver to the ESCs, I'm not sure exactly what you mean. My (admittedly minimal) understanding is that, for a basic quad: The receiver plugs directly into the flight control board almost all the time. The flight control board has: a connection to the receiver, a connection to all the ESCs, and a connection to whatever other stuff you want to move (ESCs/gimbal motors for a motorized camera mount, a buzzer for a battery warning). One of the ESC connections needs to have power. The ESCs connect to the flight control board, the battery, and their particular motor. The battery connects only to ESCs (and maybe cameras I guess?). The motors connect only to their particular ESC.
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May 1, 2014 19:15
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