Multirotor, multicopter and quadcopter discussion - The Drone thread

Progress at last!
Have now managed to cut out the body, a little fiddly to do.
Shall make the next one out of a more coffin like body instead of this one.
Gotta finish the tilt mech tomorrow and centre the servo. Lots left to do!



She sure is big! :D

Edit: PS: Excuse my ghastly looking foot :D
 
Good thread!

Where do I start? Does anybody know of any links to beginning from scratch? Everyone I have read has suggested that you don't build one yourself to begin with. This kind of defeats the point for me, it wouldn't be as rewarding. I would like to build a cheap, mini quad if I can and then aim to go larger and integrate GPS and waypoint planning.

I am quite switched on with telemetry and GPS (I am an offshore surveyor) and would like to use one of these within my work by way of an inspection and monitoring tool for ROV launches.

Thanks all :)
 
Have a look at the oddcopter site. He goes through a basic build there from scratch and it's very easy. I built mine from scratch (see earlier in the thread) and it flies well, great fun and I get a good deal of flight time out of the batteries as the All Up Weight is only 639g.

Only cost me around £200 in the end with a cheap Tx/Rx combo. Spec below!

The only fly in the ointment is the KK2.0 FC board is currently unavailable as apparently they are awaiting stock of a new version. I suspect Multiwii or any of the other basic flight controllers would be just as good, but more difficult to set up due to lack of LCD on the board etc.

Not sure I'd buy a pre-built one. Quite pricey and you will break it at some point. Also, it looks like the DJI Phantom has a mind of it's own and is quite prone to flying off into the sunset if it feels like it!

F330 Glass Fiber Mini Quadcopter Frame
Turnigy Aerodrive SK3 - 2822-1275 Brushless x4
Hobbyking KK2.0 Multi-rotor LCD Flight
Slow Fly Electric Prop 8045SF (4 pc)
Slow Fly Electric Prop 8045R SF (4 pc)
Slow Fly Electric Prop 8045 SF (4 pc)
Slow Fly Electric Prop 8045R (4 pc)
Hobby King Quadcopter Power Distribution Board
Turnigy Multistar 10 Amp Multi-rotor Brushless ESC 2-3S x4
Turnigy nano-tech 2200mah 3S 25~50C Lipo Pack x3
TX/RX (Giantcod CT6)
Cables, standoffs, Heatshrink etc ?????


Atmel Atmega Socket Firmware Flashing Tool
USBasp AVR Programming Device
Turnigy 2S 3S Balance Charger.
 
Good thread!

Where do I start? Does anybody know of any links to beginning from scratch? Everyone I have read has suggested that you don't build one yourself to begin with. This kind of defeats the point for me, it wouldn't be as rewarding. I would like to build a cheap, mini quad if I can and then aim to go larger and integrate GPS and waypoint planning.

I am quite switched on with telemetry and GPS (I am an offshore surveyor) and would like to use one of these within my work by way of an inspection and monitoring tool for ROV launches.

Thanks all :)

If you have never flown one before get something cheap that you don't mind losing, then progress from there.
 
Still working on the custom Hcopter,done the power distribution,got the motors in place.

Power.jpg

Hcopter10.jpg
 
Progress at last!
Have now managed to cut out the body, a little fiddly to do.
Shall make the next one out of a more coffin like body instead of this one.
Gotta finish the tilt mech tomorrow and centre the servo. Lots left to do!



She sure is big! :D

Edit: PS: Excuse my ghastly looking foot :D

That looks great,what did you use to cut them out and whats with the feet:D
 
Thanks for the advice. I'm planning to spend a bit of dosh on the radio and then build a frame and buy cheap bits to make it fly on a small budget. Probably something very small and wobbly (just like my soldering) but should be a good starter. I'm then looking to go down the DOF F550 route with GPS etc etc. This is where my interest really lies but I'd hate to see a load of money fly off into the sunset!
 
Hello everybody, I'm back with another question.

In terms of transmitter, is there much benefit when it comes to having more channels (for flying a tri)? I get that its for controlling more but how many extra things can you use at once with only 2 hands? I'm trying to decide between a 6 and 9 channel at the moment since in the future I might want to add a gimbal, but I'm not sure I'll be able to control all of it at once if that makes any sense?

For reference I'm looking at this 6 channel and this 9 channel. Not sure that I can justify the price of the more expensive one although it does look a little more substantial.
 
Hello everybody, I'm back with another question.

In terms of transmitter, is there much benefit when it comes to having more channels (for flying a tri)? I get that its for controlling more but how many extra things can you use at once with only 2 hands? I'm trying to decide between a 6 and 9 channel at the moment since in the future I might want to add a gimbal, but I'm not sure I'll be able to control all of it at once if that makes any sense?

For reference I'm looking at this 6 channel and this 9 channel. Not sure that I can justify the price of the more expensive one although it does look a little more substantial.

My advice is to get as many channels as you can afford,i started off with a 6 channel Spektrum dx6i and ran out of channels once i added a brushless gimbal and flight mode switches.
 
Been bitten by the bug (again) after flying my basic £30 indoor heli, and the model chinook ...

But now i want video!

I've been looking at the DJI Phantom Vision 2 that has a built-in camera and transmits to your smartphone... Is this actually any good? The videos look promising.

Is there anything else (inc' all components) that anyone would recommend for an £800 budget?

-Rob


**I know this is also posted in the RC Helicopters thread, but hoping to get as many opinions as possible**
 
My opinion counts for virtually nothing here but I'm in a similar boat to you. The thing that puts me off the vision 2 is it seems a bit too purpose built and can't take too many upgrades or modifications. Correct me if I'm wrong of course!
 
Lights installed along with velcro for battery.

Took her out this morning in 10 mph winds,heres the results:

Full out acro flying.

Propellers graupner 8x5

4s 5000 mah battery = 17 mins
3s 3700 mah battery = 11 mins

Frame weight:

Bare = 800g
3s battery = 1100g
4s battery = 1400g

She flies like a little rocket on 4s,very pleased with the flying times and she will take 9x5 props easily so hope to push for 20 minutes

Hcopter16.jpg
 
Been bitten by the bug (again) after flying my basic £30 indoor heli, and the model chinook ...

But now i want video!

I've been looking at the DJI Phantom Vision 2 that has a built-in camera and transmits to your smartphone... Is this actually any good? The videos look promising.

Is there anything else (inc' all components) that anyone would recommend for an £800 budget?

-Rob


**I know this is also posted in the RC Helicopters thread, but hoping to get as many opinions as possible**


The phantom 2 looks pretty good if the flight times are to be belived,ive seen a video of it hovering for 25 mins but that is very misleading.

You would be better off building one yourself plus you will learn a lot more in the process so you can easily repair it if you crash.


The other alternative is to buy something pre-built add landing legs and a brushless gimbal yourself.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/PF450-Qua...s_RadioControlled_JN&var=&hash=item2a2ddb6e97

Thats if you have a gopro camera allready?
 
I would hold off on the Phantom Vision for the minute. A lot of them have been having battery problems that essentially cause the craft to fall out of the sky. According to DJI it's been fixed in the latest firmware but people are still reporting issues.
The other thing about the Vision is that the batteries are a propitiatory design and cost £110!!

My advice if you want to get up in the air quickly and take pictures / video is to get a mk1 Phantom and a GoPro. You can then install a video transmitter and a screen on the ground for another £100 or so.
 
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