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So i think i want to get into this hobby, and i'm particularly interested in FPV Mini-Quad flying. Please critique my plan: I currently have a Hubsan X4 107C, which I'm learning to fly with and to gauge my ongoing interest, all good so far... Next Stage is to purchase and build this kit from HobbyKing: - HobbyKing_Spec_FPV250 - £72.59 Extra parts required to finish this kit are a Flight Controller, and a transmitter. - AfroFlight Naze32 Acro - £16.49 - Turnigy 9X - £39.59 At this point i should have built a nice working 250 quadcopter, learning as i go along on how to build and tune it etc... Final stage of the plan would be to add the FPV gear. For which i'm thinking of getting this: - Fatshark Attitude V2 - £197.34 (This comes with a camera and video transmitter) I think this overall plan should give me good overall knowledge on quads, and a mid spec fpv-quad, for not too much cost. The kit would be upgradeable over the long term if i decide to take the hobby any further. Any parts I've missed, or anything else stupid with my plan?
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Oct 2, 2015 11:59
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A Yolo Wizard posted:I think there are so many good rtf or artf kits with a real frame these days that there isn't a good excuse to buying the hobbyking kit anymore. you may need to research more to find uk local vendors, but I'd recommend one from armattan or mini quad bros. Care to suggest some kits in a similar price range from the UK? Some links would be handy. One of the things i liked about that kit was that most of the reviews said it was pretty indestructible.
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Oct 2, 2015 13:46
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A Yolo Wizard posted:I totally forgot about the versacopter being out now. Get that and their powerpack (I'd double check to see if it had the 5v stepdown included, they aren't clear on the store page, but it might be in the build video) Yep new plan is now to get the Versacopter from flite test http://store.flitetest.com/versacopter-280-quad-frame-kit/ With "Power Pack E (Racing Mini Quadcopter)". I'll still need a Flight Controller, Reciever and a Radio/Transimtter. They recommend the Graupner GR-18 (http://store.flitetest.com/graupner-gr-18-9-channel-2-4ghz-receiver/) which has an integrated FC/Reciever/Telemetry. Is this worth it? Or should i go for a naze32 and a separate receiver module? It's all a bit of a minefield when you're starting from scratch!
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Oct 6, 2015 09:39
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A Yolo Wizard posted:I would wait a week right now, because they are going to put up a version with some delrin pieces replaced by g10. other than that, both options for tx/rx seem fine. it looks like the mz-12 and gr-18 bundle will be $200 when it comes out - the naze32 acro, a taranis x9d and a receiver like the d4r would probably be closer to $300 (though you are getting a technically more capable radio there, and you'd have the 2nd receiver bundled with the transmitter) Cool, i can hold off for a bit. Where did you get this information from? To be honest for the radio I'm leaning towards just getting a Taranis x9d + d4r package, which i can get for about £170 and add in a naze32 FC. Will have to see how much room there is in the budget. Are there any advantages/disadvantages to the various naze32 boards?
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Oct 6, 2015 16:24
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Might as well get the full version then I guess.
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Oct 6, 2015 18:00
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A Yolo Wizard posted:https://www.reddit.com/r/Multicopter/comments/3nl2e3/flite_test_versacopter_replacement_parts_on_the/ That link is concerning, perhaps i won't get the frame after all. It seems that it has some design faults.
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Oct 7, 2015 09:30
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This is the problem:  In a crash, half the clamp broke off completely. Think I'll just got a Carbon Fiber QAV250 instead. Maybe pick up a versacopter down the line once they've ironed out the bugs. Slash fucked around with this message at 16:07 on Oct 7, 2015 |
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Oct 7, 2015 16:04
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Which camera do you have? It sounds like the Dynamic Range is set too high? Here's a blog post on how to tune the Sony 600TVL most people use.http://blog.oscarliang.net/sony-super-ccd-camera-fpv-pz0420/ After much research I've put together a parts list that I'm going to purchase to assemble my first quad. With the parts to extend it to FPV in the future. Does anyone care to critique the following build list? https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1RUFXzHLPRtamIzVJm425SCthm8Ym2P7VEtxr6Hc-ZME/edit?usp=sharing I'll try and find a different supplier than HobbyKing International warehouse where possible to try and minimise the chance of getting stung on import duty. Slash fucked around with this message at 14:22 on Oct 13, 2015 |
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Oct 13, 2015 14:18
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refleks posted:Maybe consider getting a frame that isn't unibody. You will crash and break something, the most common one being the arms, and if you break one arm on a unibody you have to replace the whole thing. The frame I linked isn't unibody? The arms are 4mm carbon fibre and separately bolted on.
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Oct 13, 2015 23:42
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Slash posted:After much research I've put together a parts list that I'm going to purchase to assemble my first quad. With the parts to extend it to FPV in the future. Would really like to someone to take a look over this part list before i order, just to make sure i haven't made any stupid and potentially expensive mistakes.
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Oct 15, 2015 09:25
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Wojcigitty posted:Even though you are a beginner I would go for some motors and props with a little more power. You can always pull the throttle back and it really makes the aircraft fly better. Yep that was something i wasn't sure of. I was concerned that going up to 2204 / 5x4 will negatively impact battery life though? And/or require 4s batteries to perform well.
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Oct 15, 2015 14:22
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Mister Sinewave posted:I have a 250 quad that I'd like to retrofit from being a twitch racing flier into a more "robotic" feeling flyer with the more auto-level and auto-hold the better so I can fly and forget while I admire the camera view without constantly actively "flying" 100% of the time, if that makes sense. Can't you just put it in Auto-level mode and turn the stick rates way down?
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Oct 24, 2015 20:04
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Going to order my FrSky Taranis, the price is similar from HobbyKing as it is from Banggood. Are there any advantages to ordering from one than the other? Hobbyking seems to have better customer service?
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Oct 26, 2015 12:50
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refleks posted:I bought mine from http://rclife.co.uk/Taranis-X9D-Plus-Transmitter as did another poster in this thread. Owner was very nice with an issue on my order and it came fast. Thanks for this, that's a good price. I'll get it from there instead, just need to be careful to get an EU firmware receiver as well from what I understand. Luckily they sell the receiver too(D4R-II). Can you recommend me somewhere in the UK to buy some LiPo's and a charger? I would like some 1500mAH 35C 3S or similar 4S, but i can't find any on the HobbyKing UK site, and shipping from International warehouse is expensive due to restrictions on posting batteries. Slash fucked around with this message at 16:59 on Oct 26, 2015 |
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Oct 26, 2015 16:11
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refleks posted:Unfortunately not. I'm not in the UK, I bought my batteries through HobbyKing (EU). HobbyKing EU warehouse as them, didn't think to look there. Still £9 shipping though, urgh.
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Oct 27, 2015 10:21
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refleks posted:Which batteries are you looking at? I'm a bit hosed by being in Denmark, so everything I can get outside the country, but within EU is always cheaper (even with shipping). Ordered these ones instead: http://hobbyking.co.uk/hobbyking/store/__38362__Turnigy_nano_tech_1500mah_3S_35_70C_Lipo_Pack_EU_Warehouse_.html
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Oct 27, 2015 16:39
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Pretty sure my radio has an alarm if it's been idle for too long. Get a better radio?
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Nov 1, 2015 00:28
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So I'm wiring up my quad, the ESC's are the DYS SN20A Opto. Do i need to wire up the ground signal lead, or is it safe to ignore it? I would imagine it could use the Power Ground connection as a reference?
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Nov 2, 2015 10:37
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Nerobro posted:Signal integrity is deeply related to path to ground. Also, the twisted wires shield the signal wire. It "might" work if you don't hook up the ground wire. But it also might not. Most likely, it'll work "most of the time" but you'll get random motor shutdowns in flight and be wondering why the hell your quad keeps doing wacked rear end poo poo in the air. Ok will do. The PDB i'm using does not have pads connecting the Signal Ground to the flight controller, can i just solder it directly to the Ground connection on the PDB? 
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Nov 2, 2015 13:38
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I finished my build!   
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Nov 9, 2015 11:55
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I vote for the Taranis is your budget stretches that far. Can't get a better transmitter for the money.
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Dec 16, 2015 10:52
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Finished my first Scratchbuild. Flitetest Mini Sparrow. Maiden after work tonight if the weather holds.  
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Feb 26, 2016 15:57
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Googly eyes are essential. Although my maiden flight didn't go well, centre of gravity was wrong I think, plus the throw on the elevons(?) are uneven.
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Feb 26, 2016 23:31
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ImplicitAssembler posted:There's no point in autonomy on a mini/micro quad. They're meant to be flown 'manual' via FPV. The newest build of Cleanflight has most of the good changes of Betaflight merged in(Air Mode etc...). I'd stick with Cleanflight for now so you don't have to deal with any potential issues of using Beta software. You can always re-flash to Betaflight in the future if there's a killer feature you're missing.
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Mar 17, 2016 11:11
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Martytoof posted:Christ I'm going to stop ordering from banggood. Their prices are good but I'm not likely to get any of my parts this century. Just pay the extra £1.50 for expedited shipping, normally arrives within a week or so that way. Anyone have any experience with the MicroMinimOSD? I've hooked it up to my quad, connected it to the Naze32rev6 board, VTX and Camera. When i power it up I get the camera picture on my goggles, just with no OSD at all. There are lights on the OSD board, and it's clearly routing the video signal through the board, any ideas what I could have done? I've now updated to the latest cleanflight and also updated to the latest mwosd on the board. Is there something i need to turn on in Cleanflight? Or something i need to configure in mwosd GUI to get something to appear? I assumed that there would be at least a default OSD without having configured it yet.
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Apr 12, 2016 11:59
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Ineptitude posted:I came across an article talking about OPTO ESC's and how this type of ESC doesn't provide power to the FC. It sounds like my ESCs are OPTO's? From what i understand i need a separate connection to get power to my flight controller, the ESCs won't supply it. Am i missing something here? That is correct, OPTO ECS's don't have the BEC to provide the 5V to power your flight controller. if you are using a PDB of some variety it should output a regulated 5V which you can use to power your flight controller instead. ESC's provide a pair or cables to send the signal from the FC to the ESC. Most people only connect the white(signal) cable to the FC, and then either cut off, or solder the black signal cable to a ground connection(I soldered mine to a ground connection to be safe). With regards to my earlier question about the OSD, it would seem that i may have a PAL/NTSC mismatch causing the failure, switching it over in mwosd GUI should resolve it, I'll find out tonight,
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Apr 12, 2016 14:14
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BedBuglet posted:You could get both. HK sells inexpensive goggles that are basically a LCD screen that sits in a foam insert. You can use the screen as a set of goggles or in a hood. I have these and they're great for a starter set of googles. You'll probably want to upgrade to something less bulky in the future, but you're looking ~£75 for the Quanum V2's, compared to ~£300 for a pair of Fat Shark Dominators. So start with the cheap bulky ones until you know you want to invest that much money in the hobby. My minimosd problem was as i thought, switched it to PAL in the config software and now I've got a fancy Fighter Pilot HUD on my FPV feed. With regards to OPTO ESC's, I don't know if you've been out the loop a while or not Bedbuglet but these are the typical ESCs people are using for Quadcopters: (LittleBee 20A)  And is seems that the current most popular PDB is something like this one (Matek 5-in1), which you can mount/stack under your flight controller.  On the ESC you'll see that there are 3 wires to go to the motor, a red and white wire to go to the battery (normally via a power distribution board), and also a Black and White twisted pair of wires, which are the signal wires intended to be connected to the Flight Controller. From that pair of signal wires, the black wire does not actually do anything in a typical set up and you're safe to remove it, or solder it to a ground connection. The modern PDB's often provide 5V and 12V regulated output. You can use the 5V output to power your flight controller, and you can connect the 5V and GND connections from the PDB to any of the +/- ESC connections, which will be empty due to using OPTO ESC's. Easiest way to connect all this stuff up is using male pin headers (link) on the board and then either Servo cables, such as these: link Or single connectors like these: link This hobby is moving on so fast it's pretty tricky to keep up to date with it!
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Apr 13, 2016 10:02
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Google Butt posted:
Looks like your camera is tilted the wrong way(could just be the photo)? You want it angled up not down!
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Apr 22, 2016 11:25
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Google Butt posted:Also, I'm setting up for the maiden flight this weekend. Currently reading about expo, should I be setting it in cleanflight or on the Taranis? Pros/cons? Or should I just leave it alone and play with my rates? Expo shouldn't be needed, just take it easy with the sticks when you first fly!
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Apr 23, 2016 12:49
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Combat Pretzel posted:Re: Soldering 60/40 lead-based flux-cored solder. Lead solder is so much easier to use than the new non-lead versions. This one: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B002L5Y8R8/ref=pe_1909131_77697121_tnp_email_TE_AMZLdp_1
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Apr 25, 2016 15:22
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Philthy posted:So when I've been testing with autolevel modes on (Or flying indoors), all my quads have always slowly rotated left or right. I always thought it was just cheap compasses in the flight controllers. it's available on cleanflight too, but only via the command line IIRC.
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Apr 27, 2016 12:48
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Ineptitude posted:Now that my quad is assembled and i manage to control it with the transmitter, what else is there to do? (except actually flying it) If it flys ok, and doesn't wobble when you punch the throttle then just go out and fly. You can worry about these things later. PID = numbers used to tune the algorithm that the flight controller uses to make the quad do what you're telling it to do. Expo = changes the response to stick inputs so that the they are less sensitive in the middle of the input sticks, and more sensitive on the outer limits of the sticks. Can be used to make it less twitchy when you're making small movements with the sticks.
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Apr 28, 2016 10:50
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dreesemonkey posted:For a friend: Is there a goto entry level charger that can do balancing and is better than the crap charger that comes with RTR RCs? This is the one most people refer to as a "standard 4-button charger". There's a bunch of clones of it around, but they're all basically the same. http://www.hobbyking.co.uk/hobbyking/store/__58285__IMAX_B6AC_V2_Professional_Balance_Charger_Discharger.html I've been using it for 6 months to balance charge 10 or so batteries twice a week. I use it with a parallel charging board so I can plug in 6 batteries at once.
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May 12, 2016 15:32
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dreesemonkey posted:Thanks guys, I think the reaktor is a bit overkill. I'll recommend a 4-button clone as that should be good for him for a while. Something like this: http://www.amazon.com/Hobby-Ace-Bat...c77ad4f3dcbfdcf As long as the batteries are the same type, e.g. 3S Lipo, and are at similar starting voltages (within 0.1 Volts). Then it's completely safe and they just average out the charge across all of them. You can mix and match capacities, as long as the starting voltages are the same. You can NOT mix and match cell counts, i.e. trying to para charge a 3S and 4S could explode  Some people say it's safer to parallel charge, Reading material: http://www.rchelicopterfun.com/parallel-lipo-charging.html
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May 13, 2016 09:42
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Off to pick up an Inductrix tomorrow, and a Night Vapor while I'm at the shop.
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May 27, 2016 16:03
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 Tiny whoop hype! This is great fun, terrifies the cats though. Also here's my current mini size build, just waiting for some parts to arrive from China before finishing it off. KISS FC, KISS 24A ESC, Red rotor OSD/PDB, EMAX RS2205 'red bottom' motors Frame is a TSX220.  Coming together very neatly at the moment. Need to find somewhere tidy to mount the buzzer once I know how the rest of the parts will fit in.
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Jul 5, 2016 09:41
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A Yolo Wizard posted:the flight controller as part of the structure is bad and I don't like it It has long bolts coming up from the bottom all the way to about half way through the upper standoffs, shouldn't be a problem I don't think. I was initially concerned that it might be a weak point so I put in longer bolts.
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Jul 7, 2016 09:05
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patentmagus posted:-lust- Convential advice is against using a 4-in-1 ESC, as if you blow one ESC you need to replace the whole board. I've personally never blown as ESC though so YMMV.
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Jul 13, 2016 13:50
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porksmash posted:Had my first time flying FPV with my own 250 size quad and gear yesterday. What a blast! I don't know why I waited so long. My camera quality is a little lacking and washed out, so hopefully I can get that sorted and be able to see a little better. HS1177(or variations thereof) is the camera everyone uses. If you're camera has a menu you could try changing the settings to improve the picture. For example turning on DWDR helps a lot.
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Jul 18, 2016 14:01
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Finally finished the build:    Album: http://imgur.com/a/O2n6k Frame: Stanton TSX220 Motors: Emax RS2205 FC: KISS FC ESC: KISS 24A VTX: FX795T-2 RX: FrSky X4R-SB Cam: HS1177 VTX Antenna: TBS Triumph HD Cam: XiaoMi Yi Props: Dal 5040x3 v2 Battery: Turnigy Graphene 4S 1500mAH Was a tight fit getting everything into that frame. Hopefully the weather holds and I can maiden her after work.
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Jul 27, 2016 10:19
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