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Digital Jesus posted:This thread seems to be mostly home builds and kits, but hopefully this is the right place... How are the Phantom 3s? Pretty tempted to get one during the current sale. I haven't owned one to know what reliability is like but I've flown a few. For video quality and performance there really isn't anything better for the price. Service is pretty slow.
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Jan 15, 2016 12:55
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They are good. I'd get either the standard if you are cheap, or the advanced if you are less cheap. Also, unrelated, apparently the us is not immune to import fees on this stuff. I chose fedex shipping on my myrcmart order, and just got an $18 duty and processing fee in the mail. I guess it's a FedEx only thing though??? Kinda killed the value proposition of $13 motors. moron izzard fucked around with this message at 15:16 on Jan 15, 2016 |
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Jan 15, 2016 15:12
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A Yolo Wizard posted:They are good. I'd get either the standard if you are cheap, or the advanced if you are less cheap. Depending on what country you're in and where you're located, you can usually clear the shipment yourself so you only have to pay tax and not any sort of brokerage fee. I'm lucky in that the border service agency is right across the street from the FedEx pickup place, so I only have to pay $15 instead of $30.
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Jan 15, 2016 15:27
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I'm in central ky. They added $7 on top of the $11 charged by customs. Unless I can go to the fedex pickup location nearby and pay the non brokerage fee, I think I'll just figure out how to pay this online and stick with ems express next time.
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Jan 15, 2016 15:32
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Digital Jesus posted:This thread seems to be mostly home builds and kits, but hopefully this is the right place... How are the Phantom 3s? Pretty tempted to get one during the current sale. Maybe we could make a thread for Aerial Photography. I fly an Inspire 1 pretty much every day weather permits, I'd love to share some footage.
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Jan 16, 2016 00:42
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My 250 build seems to fly real nice, but my $20 "six" channel HK T6 V2 transmitter feels like it is lacking in a lot of ways. I have no throttle curves to set, and the ones within OpenPilot don't seem to help much. It also only really has 5 true channels, and the 5th is bound to a knob, not a switch, which is also annoying. You can't change them around. It eats 8 AA batteries in about 30 minutes of use. Good god. I'm sort of lost trying to figure out where to go now. How many channels are people seeing themselves using? For now I'm focusing on FPV in the spring and stunting. I may, or may not, move on to a 450 gimbal mounted GoPro if I stay interested in the hobby. I'll also be looking to build a 90m or smaller indoor FPV micro, which all seem to use DSM2 and DSMX Rx built into the micro flight controllers. All the different Tx/Rx options are confusing the hell out of me. I want to be able to use anything I might buy. Ideally, I wouldn't want to go over $250. Is that even possible, or am I looking to do too much? Philthy fucked around with this message at 22:01 on Jan 16, 2016 |
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Jan 16, 2016 21:59
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dvorak posted:Maybe we could make a thread for Aerial Photography. I fly an Inspire 1 pretty much every day weather permits, I'd love to share some footage. Start it, I'd like to at least kinda separate the legal/art discussion from the diy/race discussion. Not that both aren't worth threads, just one's less interesting to me. I don't have the effort to do it myself though.
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Jan 16, 2016 22:07
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Philthy posted:My 250 build seems to fly real nice, but my $20 "six" channel HK T6 V2 transmitter feels like it is lacking in a lot of ways. I have no throttle curves to set, and the ones within OpenPilot don't seem to help much. It also only really has 5 true channels, and the 5th is bound to a knob, not a switch, which is also annoying. You can't change them around. It eats 8 AA batteries in about 30 minutes of use. Good god. Taranis taranis taranis taranis taranis taranis Plus the orangerx dsmx module for things stuck with that kind of receiver (lots of micro fpv setups have separate receivers though, of which you can get a micro frsky one as well)
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Jan 17, 2016 00:00
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I went through two dud orangeRX DSMX modules before I went the DIY route by pulling a radio chip out of a DX5e. Works like a charm! http://johnprikkel.blogspot.dk/2014/07/jr-dsmx.html
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Jan 17, 2016 01:54
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Elendil004 posted:Start it, I'd like to at least kinda separate the legal/art discussion from the diy/race discussion. Not that both aren't worth threads, just one's less interesting to me. I don't have the effort to do it myself though. I've just started a company to do filming with drones in the UK, and if no one has had the moxie to start a filming / art stuff with drones thread by the time I get back from holiday, I'll do it. fake edit: I'm off to Morocco where the King and the security services have banned all civilian drones / UAVs from the country without special permission (which they never give). Sucks as I was going to take a QAV250 with a gopro strapped to the top and do some desert / beach filming!
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Jan 17, 2016 11:49
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A Yolo Wizard posted:Taranis taranis taranis taranis taranis taranis Thanks! The whole OpenTX thing and the compatible transmitters look exactly like what I would want. I was ready to order the X9D and then noticed the X9E, and then found out about the Horus X12S that was just announced: (Transmitter porn)    I'll probably hold off until I can at least see what the cost and actual release is for this. They've got samples out at the AMA shows already apparently. If it's a little more than the E I'd probably wait and save. If it's a lot more, probably just debate between the D and E.
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Jan 17, 2016 18:32
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Simple complete-noob question: What's a good tiny quadcopter for learning the utter basics? I'm looking for something very small (I'm traveling around with just a backpack a chunk of the time these days), but pretty durable. I don't even need a camera for now, just something I can make hover around. I'm fine with something that's indoors only, or outside-capable at very low altitudes and close by. I live in West Africa, so drone legislation isn't any particular concern (accusations of witchcraft on the other hand... and I'm not entirely kidding). The tiny consulting firm I'm working with wants to acquire a really basic camera quadcopter for photographing construction sites and the like from above, but maybe sometime later this year, so I want to get a head start by working on basic flight stuff in the meantime. My gut inclination right now is the Axis Nano drone, since it's pretty small (though not the tiniest) and seems geared to beginners. Two features I think I'd prefer though: is there any alternative which is similarly small, but more durable? And is there any benefit to finding one that I can control with an iPhone, or is having a separate controller usually a better idea?
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Jan 17, 2016 19:50
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Blade Nano QX. I've had mine for months and it's been fantastic for learning the basics, and then getting used to flying without auto-leveling. It's built like a tank, and spare parts are pretty inexpensive (frames are $8, prop sets are like $3). Get it with a bunch of 1S batteries and you've got a great starting point if you want to get into more advanced stuff later on down the line. The RTF version comes with its own TX, but any Spektrum compatible TX should work. I prefer a proper TX to a phone because of the tactile feedback you get for fine motions, especially with auto-leveling turned off.
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Jan 17, 2016 20:05
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Coxswain Balls posted:Blade Nano QX. I've had mine for months and it's been fantastic for learning the basics, and then getting used to flying without auto-leveling. It's built like a tank, and spare parts are pretty inexpensive (frames are $8, prop sets are like $3). Get it with a bunch of 1S batteries and you've got a great starting point if you want to get into more advanced stuff later on down the line. Non-US recommendation would be one of the Hubsan X4 variants (without camera/fpv, it's seriously just a gimmick). The Blade Nano isn't available outside America.
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Jan 17, 2016 21:55
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Syma x5c-1 (if you can find the newest without a camera do that, but you can get the craft as a bnf + the transmitter separately on banggood for $37). Its big and flies wellPhilthy posted:Thanks! The whole OpenTX thing and the compatible transmitters look exactly like what I would want. unless something has changed, the horus isn't using opentx. I'd just get the x9e if you really want a tray style, otherwise the x9d
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Jan 17, 2016 22:12
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Odette posted:Non-US recommendation would be one of the Hubsan X4 variants (without camera/fpv, it's seriously just a gimmick). The Blade Nano isn't available outside America. Seriously? That sucks. I got mine at a local hobby store up here in Canada, but I guess it's North America only then.
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Jan 17, 2016 22:32
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A Yolo Wizard posted:Syma x5c-1 (if you can find the newest without a camera do that, but you can get the craft as a bnf + the transmitter separately on banggood for $37). Its big and flies well Thirding? The X5C-1 - I love mine. The one with the camera can be swapped for a FPV camera and a screen that connects to the controller you get with it for only $50. Here. A Yolo Wizard posted:unless something has changed, the horus isn't using opentx. I'd just get the x9e if you really want a tray style, otherwise the x9d X12S comes loaded with FrTX which is built off of OpenTX, and they'd supplied some OpenTX devs with kits so they can work it all into it. Some info here, use translate. Either way, if it releases too expensive for me, I'll grab one of the many X9s that will probably go up for sale for those who go for it. Three more months of winter left, so I'm not in that big of hurry I guess. Philthy fucked around with this message at 23:15 on Jan 17, 2016 |
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Jan 17, 2016 23:01
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Coxswain Balls posted:Depending on what country you're in and where you're located, you can usually clear the shipment yourself so you only have to pay tax and not any sort of brokerage fee. I'm lucky in that the border service agency is right across the street from the FedEx pickup place, so I only have to pay $15 instead of $30. Ok, for shits and giggles and a weekend of idiot greybeards on rcgroups telling me I should have known about the import fees before making my order, I tried to actually figure out how I would have determined that, working backwards from the codes given on the forms it lists a 4.4% fee on $85(??) for ELEC MOTOR,U/18.65W.DC,BRU 8501.10.4040 and a 6.5% fee on $124(??) for STATORS & ROTORS<18.65, F/ 8503.00.3500 I didnt buy $85 or $124 of anything btw. The one result I found for the first gave a completely different tax that what they gave.
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Jan 18, 2016 03:18
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I just bring my invoice to the cute lady with a gun by the airport and she charges me the regular 13% GST/PST I'd be paying if I bought it at my local hobby shop, then I go to FedEx/UPS/whoever and they give me my parcel. Properly importing stuff into America sounds annoying.
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Jan 18, 2016 04:22
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occluded posted:I've just started a company to do filming with drones in the UK, and if no one has had the moxie to start a filming / art stuff with drones thread by the time I get back from holiday, I'll do it. Do it! I bought a Phantom 3 yesterday! The DJI anniversary sale had me really tempted on the Advanced, and then I found a great deal on Gumtree. Ended up with the Professional model with a DJI hard shell backpack, extra battery, extra props and a bunch of spare parts, for not much more $ than buying the Advanced on sale. Woo!
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Jan 19, 2016 10:50
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I guess here would be about as good a place to put this as anywhere, I'm having some trouble getting the skin smooth on a balsa model I am building. It is my first go around and I'm finding that the tissue paper is getting taut but there are some imperfections, not creases exactly but it is certainly not flat. I'm using a wood glue/water mixture to adhere the tissue at the edges and I can smooth that pretty well, though it can tear a bit if I work it too much. I've seen some people use a glue stick, and I'll probably give that a try just in the name of science, but is it more forgiving? Here's a photo of not my build but one of the same kit (Guillow's Cessna 170) that shows these imperfections on the wing tip and a couple other places along the leading edge:  I realize that some (most) of my problems have come from lack of experience. And I should mention that this plane won't be doing any flying (unless my nephew chucks it around) so I'm not terribly worried about airworthiness but I'd like to know how to fix it should I ever build something I do plan on flying.
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Jan 19, 2016 18:53
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Anyone do fpv flying wing stuff? Multi gp just release some details for flying wing racing that made me interested. I think the flite test mentioned offhand on their last podcast that they were releasing a new one, and I know someone with a teksumo, but that's it. It says the max kv is 2700; how big of a wing would that be used on? Would one of the 20+ 950kv motors (+the 20 amp X rotor esc and the 9x5 thin electric props) I now own be useful?
moron izzard fucked around with this message at 20:43 on Jan 19, 2016 |
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Jan 19, 2016 20:34
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A Yolo Wizard posted:Anyone do fpv flying wing stuff? Multi gp just release some details for flying wing racing that made me interested. I think the flite test mentioned offhand on their last podcast that they were releasing a new one, and I know someone with a teksumo, but that's it. It says the max kv is 2700; how big of a wing would that be used on? Would one of the 20+ 950kv motors (+the 20 amp X rotor esc and the 9x5 thin electric props) I now own be useful? The Banshee copy I'm building is partly with racing in mind. You want as high as kv as practical possible and 950kv is nowhere near enough, unless you go with a 6S setup. I'm more curious about how the races will be started. Self launch? Launch by a 3rd party?.
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Jan 19, 2016 20:50
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ImplicitAssembler posted:The Banshee copy I'm building is partly with racing in mind. You want as high as kv as practical possible and 950kv is nowhere near enough, unless you go with a 6S setup. Should do it like a yacht race. Have everyone in the air circling and then on the go you scream through the start gate wide open 
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Jan 19, 2016 20:53
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ImplicitAssembler posted:The Banshee copy I'm building is partly with racing in mind. You want as high as kv as practical possible and 950kv is nowhere near enough, unless you go with a 6S setup. Bungee launchers would work. I assume that a racing wing would be able to take off from a chair as well.
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Jan 19, 2016 20:58
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I might have to rebuild the micro wing I nade a few years ago and FPV it. Fluttered the poor thing to death in a power on dive. In other news I got the CF from CNCmadness.com, not quite the same quality as Armattan and a bit more expensive but the turn around time is incredibly fast. Just need to mount the ESC's and trim the bolts.    For the stick and tissue guy I always just used a pretty yellow wood glue watered down and it shrunk up nice when it dried.
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Jan 20, 2016 03:27
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A Yolo Wizard posted:Anyone do fpv flying wing stuff? Multi gp just release some details for flying wing racing that made me interested. I think the flite test mentioned offhand on their last podcast that they were releasing a new one, and I know someone with a teksumo, but that's it. It says the max kv is 2700; how big of a wing would that be used on? Would one of the 20+ 950kv motors (+the 20 amp X rotor esc and the 9x5 thin electric props) I now own be useful? Played around with e-calc: Looks like a 2700kv motor, powered by a 4S 2200mAh, swinging a 4.75x4.75 should give you a theoretical topspeed of about 130mph .It'll also suck the battery dry in 2.8 minutes.....
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Jan 20, 2016 04:41
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What kind of motors / would you use in the smallest category? Flite test just released their 735mm one, and they reccomend power packs with 18xx and 22xx motors, but I've seen other smaller (26") fpv wings with recommended 28xx motors and 6" props (3s). Also a large fuckin battery (well, larger than any miniquad - 3700)
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Jan 20, 2016 17:10
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A Yolo Wizard posted:What kind of motors / would you use in the smallest category? Flite test just released their 735mm one, and they reccomend power packs with 18xx and 22xx motors, but I've seen other smaller (26") fpv wings with recommended 28xx motors and 6" props (3s). Also a large fuckin battery (well, larger than any miniquad - 3700) Something like this? http://www.rcmart.hk/product_info.php?cPath=179_198&products_id=6228 A 5x5 on a 3S will give your just under 100mph and over 4 mins WOT on a 2200mAh
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Jan 21, 2016 04:06
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So I'm brand new to this and terrible at money management so I went ahead and coughed up for a full set of FPV racer quad parts. I've flown a Syma X5C for a while now, probably a good 10-15 hours of flying time total, and I wanted something with higher range and FPV...I'm following this guide as it made the most sense and seemed comprehensive: http://learnrobotix.com/uavs/quadcopter-build/fpv-racing-quadcopter/how-to-build-a-fpv-racing-quadcopter.html Any showstoppers I should be aware of, or any tricky parts of this type of build in general?
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Jan 21, 2016 20:15
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Spudalicious posted:So I'm brand new to this and terrible at money management so I went ahead and coughed up for a full set of FPV racer quad parts. I've flown a Syma X5C for a while now, probably a good 10-15 hours of flying time total, and I wanted something with higher range and FPV...I'm following this guide as it made the most sense and seemed comprehensive: http://learnrobotix.com/uavs/quadcopter-build/fpv-racing-quadcopter/how-to-build-a-fpv-racing-quadcopter.html That is about the most bog standard quad build you could undertake. A good start. If that guide won't do it for you there are dozens of youtube videos going over building the same setup.
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Jan 21, 2016 21:41
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Fairly new as well, and the only thing that I can say is these things are incredibly easy to build. So easy you need to double check your wires aren't reversed because these things go together real quick. I've done a little arduino robotics in the past and was expecting a 7 out 10 difficulty, and it was really more like 2 or 3. I have a feeling setting up the transmitter is going to be the hardest part of everything. Well, and not flying them into the ground or trees. Philthy fucked around with this message at 01:16 on Jan 22, 2016 |
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Jan 22, 2016 01:09
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Good to hear! I'm happy to be getting into a hobby that doesn't involve computers (too much). I'll post pictures once I have it together-parts should all be here by next week. One thing I haven't been able to get a clear answer on, with the Fatshark FPV system, is the range going to be similar to the radio transmitter I am using (FlySky FS-T6 2.4GHz)? I also live in a heavily forested area. I am concerned that the range will suffer a lot because of the angles involved. Another question I have is do I have any options with regards to GPS/autopilots with an openpilot cc3d? Does anyone have experience running OSD systems that will give me altitude?
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Jan 22, 2016 16:03
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Spudalicious posted:Good to hear! I'm happy to be getting into a hobby that doesn't involve computers (too much). I'll post pictures once I have it together-parts should all be here by next week. you have to have a barometer on your flight controller if you want altitude. I think most people are putting cleanflight on their cc3d now, and that supports talking to the minimosd in a pretty straightforward manner. fpv in woods is going to require some decent directional antennae. Consider investing in a patch antenna, or helical (I remember ibcrazy saying helical was better for multipath and stuff like the woods)
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Jan 22, 2016 17:22
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A Yolo Wizard posted:fpv in woods is going to require some decent directional antennae. Consider investing in a patch antenna, or helical (I remember ibcrazy saying helical was better for multipath and stuff like the woods) Crosshair is supposed to be even better than helical for multipath and punching through trees, but the radiation pattern isn't as forgiving when you stray outside of the optimal beamwidth. Pairing it with a regular cloverleaf on a diversity receiver should cover all of your bases.
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Jan 22, 2016 18:29
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I have an idiot question. I had just assumed that my multirotor was super fiddly for altitude, just like my little indoor proto-x was so I never thought much of it. I guess I kind of thought that's just how they are unless you have altitude control on the flight controller. But is changing the throttle curve on the stick what I should be doing? Is that what everyone does? I played with mine and set the throttle to look way flatter in the center instead of the response graph being a straight line of 0 to 100%. Haven't tried it yet because freezing but am I on the right track here?
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Jan 22, 2016 22:20
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Spudalicious posted:Good to hear! I'm happy to be getting into a hobby that doesn't involve computers (too much). I'll post pictures once I have it together-parts should all be here by next week. Why do you need altitude? For the most part, 250's are flown so close to the ground that you don't really need it. The full Naze32 does support it(and so does MinimOSD).
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Jan 22, 2016 23:04
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^ - Because when you apply forward pitch, you need to add thrust at a ratio? Throttle curves are certainly a thing, but depending on your FC it might be more of a FC tuning thing than a transmitter thing. Ideally you want your throttle to be linear so that you have more range to play with (I'm putting this poorly, but you should get it). With a curve you are slow slow slow FAST FAST FAST and that makes minute adjustments along your stick harder.
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Jan 23, 2016 01:08
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I get what you're saying about resolution but man, flying already feels like liftoff STRATOSPHERE ok come back down whew gentle now oh ground is getting close wee bit more throttle FIFTY FEET AND CLIMBING and so on. Possibly I'm just not cut out to enjoy flying multirotors if people roll with linear throttles for the control. Maybe I really just want a FC with altitude hold so I can concentrate on cruising lazily around.
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Jan 23, 2016 01:25
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How do you hold your sticks? I felt that way at first until I started doing that weird fingertip grip a lot of people do, and found that helped greatly with finer controls. Worth a shot, anyways.
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Jan 23, 2016 01:27
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