Syma X5C Explorer problem - help?

[Patton]

That's the winning attitude needed Captain!

Do you know anyone else with a drone that could fly over the tree and look for it?

This event tell me you do need to learn to deal with wind....or never go up unless it's almost calm until you've mastered a few basics.
I've been flying RC for about 40 years and have owned Schluter helicopters so I had a head start on the drones I suppose which are easier to fly manually imo.
Please believe me, flying in windy / gusty conditions sharpens my skills more than almost anything else.
I'm sure that varies from person to person, but I can tell you my flying skills and confidence skyrocketed
after learning to fly in challenging conditions.

Granted, I had the "basics" down somewhat first. I learned to fly nose IN before the windy flights in case I got turned around.

I used to have that fear down deep that I could lose my drone due to disorientation.
That fear kept me from really enjoying flying AND from getting seom really good photos and video.

Now I can buzz along in the sky spinning the drone 360 degrees and flying it where I want it to go no matter what direction it ends up.
It's kinda funny in a way.
Not sure when it happened, but it just seems that one day I was just totally in control of it and confident.
Seems like the more you fly and challenge yourself stepping out of the comfort zone, the faster your brain wires up
the natural instincts needed to lose all fear.

I really hope you recover that X5C,

 

[captainbob]

We've located it. Like I said, I had two so I flew the other one up close (no wind today) and then when I checked the card at home, I could see it right tucked in, about 70-75 feet up the tree. Now it's located, we are working on a way to get it down so I feel a lot happier. We have some mountain climber friends who are going to climb it tomorrow or Sunday and hopefully, they will be successful. Watch this space...

 

[Patton]

Good job! Finding it puts you half way to check point Charlie.
No rain ?

 

[captainbob]

There was some overnight but it's been dry and sunny here today. There isn't rain forecast for the weekend although it is likely to be windy. We'll try tomorrow morning if it's a) dry and b) not too windy. I'm not sure about what happens if water gets into the quad - can I just dry it out with a hairdryer for instance or will it be ruined?

 

[captainbob]

Quad recovered but bodywork damaged (cracked along one arm) and it actually had standing water inside the body. Unfortunately, my knowledge of electronics is very poor so I don't know if it will be possible to dry it. If not, I will remove the engines, battery, camera, blades etc and use them for spares. So the next few months will be spent trying not to fly my quad into trees and researching my next purchase. I don't have the resources or the electronic expertise to build my own but I would like to move into FPV which fascinates me. Not sure what to buy, whether to convert to FPV or to buy one already set up for it. Any suggestions, advice, warnings etc, greatly appreciated

 

[Jackson]

and it actually had standing water inside the body. Unfortunately, my knowledge of electronics is very poor so I don't know if it will be possible to dry it

Should be fine just make sure it is absolutely dry before you fire it up. Don't rush it.

 

[Patton]

If you can open it, put rice right from the bag all around the wet areas. The rice will absorb all the moisture. If you have a large airtight seal-able bag that the quad will fit into, put the whole thing in there with a lot of rice and wait a few days.
Remove rice before flight.

While it's open you can repair the crack with epoxy.

You can't do FPV on the X5C. Not enough lifting power.
There are many low cost quads that will work. The X8C, Cheerson CX-20, DJI Phantom 1 and many others. Syma even has a low cost FPV quad. But It doesn't get stellar reviews. Depends on your budget. I would say $400-$500 bottom dollar to get into half-decent FPV

To avoid getting into trees going forward, either stay a good 1/4 mile from trees (difficult unless you're in the desert), don't fly unless the winds are calm, or
you must learn to be good at flying in windy conditions.

 

[Jackson]

If you are using prop guards, cut off the tree hooks.

You can't do FPV on the X5C. Not enough lifting power.

http://quadcopterforum.com/threads/adding-fpv-to-the-the-syma-x5-or-actually-any-quad.5416/

 

[captainbob]

Thanks to both of you for your advice and suggestions - love the idea of using rice!!! Not too many deserts in Wales 0- in the UK for that matter but I take your point. I appreciate your interest in my problem. Best regards

 

[captainbob]

Thanks Jackson, I didn't know that's what they were. I will definitely do that and thanks also for the link - very useful.

 

[DJIdude]

Hey Captain,
Don't you give up! NO TREE could claim MY quad and keep it from me!
Get several bamboo fishing rods and tape them together and get that thing down!
Others have purchased 5 or 6 pvc pipes from HomeDepot and taped them together with duct tape.

You can DO IT !!

The silver lining here is you are going to learn to recover your quads from trees! If you have lemons....make lemonade !

Also, you do have to know your own limits. Never do something someone else recommends unless YOU are comfortable.
My flying skills may be considerably better? If you do decide to fly in winds again, please get as far upwind from trees as possible
and also try to keep the quad low to begin with.
It sounds like you made a series of beginner mistakes.
No worries...we all do.
Now go get that QUAD !!

I like your spirit Patton! I totally agree, and I too would never let a tree claim my drone!
So, I've got a story to share with everyone: So, back in February, we had a huge snow of almost a foot (which is strange for Alabama). So, because my Phantom Vision + wouldn't run due to technical difficulties (all resolved now), I decided that I'd fly my Syma X5-C. As I took off, the wind was blowing kind of hard, snow was falling from the trees, and of course, the reflection of the sun bouncing off the snow right into my eyes. (Bad conditions for flying, especially a white drone)! So, I fly for a couple of minutes, all the while taking video. All of a sudden the wind carries it off, and because of all the snow, it was extremely hard to judge distance. So I end up losing it for a sec, and all while the wind is steadily carrying it toward a huge oak tree! I finally figure out where it is, and immediately start attempting to bring it back, but to no avail. Well, after that, I dropped the throttle (bad idea), and the drone plummeted right into the tree about 30 or 40 feet up. Of course I try to fly it out of the tree, but cant due to the fat that the prop guard was hooked around a twig. Finally I ended up getting the idea to tie a brick to the end of some rope, throw the brick over the branch, and yank it real hard, hopefully dislodging the stranded aircraft. After several throws and an entirely worn out arm, I finally get it to swing around the branch. I give it a few yanks, and finally, the drone lets go of the branch and is launched off into the air. Now, plummeting back to the snow-covered ground, the drone is safe. The only damage was a broken prop guard! It also got kind of wet, but after thoroughly drying it out, it is back to flying as good as it ever has! (YAY)!

So, that's my story. And the moral of the story is: to never give up on a stranded drone!

 

[Patton]

Great story DJIDude

Yeah, finding a white bird in the snow could require effort for sure.

 

[captainbob]

Just thought I would let you know I flew my repaired Syma X5C tonight and wanted to say thanks to you all for your suggestions, advice and encouragement - I really appreciate it. Bird flew well and safely.

 

[Patton]

You're welcome. Glad the good folks here could help

 

[ram1000]

My wife keeps flying her's into trees also. I haven't done it yet but I think removing the prop guards will help. BYW her Syma loses power very fast as well and I have not been able to figure out why. I'm using 6 different batteries on it also. Single cell batteries are all just junk!

Oh! and I check my batteries for charge and they are 4.18 or 4.2

 

[Patton]

Not sure. Try disconnecting the camera on hers and see if maybe the camera is draining the batteries too fast.
So are you saying your Syma X5C-1 flies longer on the SAME battery than hers?

I'm having pretty good luck with my X5C batteries so far. About 50 flights on them and going strong.

 

[captainbob]

TBH Ram1000, I wouldn't remove the prop guards because I removed mine and I'm convinced that was the reason mine disappeared into a tree. I retrieved it eventually but I think I was lucky the damage wasn't terminal. With guards on, the quad has a bigger chance of bouncing off anything solid - like a tree trunk or branch. The only thing I did was a suggestion on here, to snip off the little hooks at both ends of each guard and that seems to have had no adverse effect. Jackson and Patton's advice is also well worth reading because since reading their contributions to this thread, I haven't had a problem with trees. As for batteries, I bought a few higher-powered single cell batteries and have found them to be more than adequate. Now have a hexacopter - MJX 600 - which I am very pleased with because I can now explore FPV with it.

 

[sailorsam]

I lost one in a tree behind my house so I feel your pain.
if the lights started blinking before it dropped, I think means low power, so +1 on battery issues. I got one of those four batts / one charger, haven't tried yet.