$400 to spend, any ideals

Well I have started my studies on building the hexaquad. Spending hours reading up on every part that goes into the bird Well just started of course. how they work , how to match up parts, what to drink after a bad crash, you name it. will be months of reading . And of course talking to you guys. I live in a very small town (about 250 people tops) In a very rural area. if you start talking about rc here , they think soda pop and start looking for an old moon pie. Tulsa is the closes place to find people for a face to face . About 130 miles one way . I have been looking for people around here but so far no luck. oh , the name of the town is Canadian. Well , back to the books .
 
Well I have started my studies on building the hexaquad. Spending hours reading up on every part that goes into the bird Well just started of course. how they work , how to match up parts, what to drink after a bad crash...
Colt_45_Randypo1_500.jpg
 
:) Good morning HD tallrider ,Jackson and all the rest of you guys . A great day for flying for you, hexachoper school for me . I would say Its a bit unfair but Im enjoying the whole process of a build. By the time this bird is done I will know the how and why of it . Something you don't get with a RTF. Besides I get a hexa built to my specs , not some company . Don't get me wrong , there are some great RTF birds out there , but they are just not my cup of tea . I want what I want and I want It now o_O .
 
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Although Colt 45 wouldn't be my first choice, I totally agree with the concept! My crash drink of choice is scotch. Lot's of it. Hey griz. I still believe it would be a big help if you built a cheap 400-500 size quad first. Any mistakes are cheap to fix and it's fun. What you'll learn doing that will save you a lot of grief when you build the Big Dog. Maybe build a 1/3-1/2 scale version of the T960 from scratch out of wood or aluminum. You can learn a lot about tuning and balance, your radio etc. It will also give you something to play with while you charge your $250.00 battery packs.........:D
 
I have looked at the V383-4c and the HK Reaper videos a lot. They are uber cool but with my hand/eye coordination I have trouble brushing my teeth......... I already crash enough.:cool:
 
I agree , building a cheap 400-500 quad first would be a great learning tool, however I am hard headed and my heart just would not be In it . So by checking , then rechecking , taking my time to re-rechecking again , using all available resources , utube, the forum , you guys , company guys , books , magazines , great parts and I ordered the frame late last night:eek: . Also Im going to buy a quad or two to play with while the build is going on . So guys please don't quite on me now .:(
 
No quitting here. Just trying to help. Studying history keeps you from repeating the mistakes of others. That said. It does NOT mean my suggestion is right for you. We are here if you need us. We love spending other peoples money!;)
 
Thanks for hanging in there . Should be an interesting build. Im going first class with everything so I can get the kind of lift , reliability and range I want with this hexacopter.Should be a blast when done. Have you seen a servo lift hook for a heavy lift copter ? I am going to order a hubsan h107 and then a wltoys v666 . Need something to hone my skills on , what little I have. I hope you like a challenge. Got my camera out just to see if it would still take pictures. Will come in handy when asking advice or showing a bubo
 
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Got to thinking, In order to build my hexacopter what do I want it to do. So I come up with a list. Here goes, Altitude hold, GPS position, return to home,failsafe return to home,headless mode, FPV , flight time 20 minutes +, payload 10 lbs + , Radio : futaba 14 channel , communication distance 3 miles + . All this is just a frame work to git started. Do you guys think the NAZA controller is the way to go, which one. In short , WHAT should I have for a heavy lift chopter.
 
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Actually, just about everything listed comes on all the Big Dog controllers plus multi axis gyros, barometers, osd and even sonar is available. dji Naza is great. So is PixHawk, SuperX and Eagle Tree. Rumor has it that dji Naza and PixHawk are getting a complete re-do by years end. They are said to be about at the end of their refinement cycle. You don't need headless mode unless you plan to do flips and fly inverted:eek:. With the KDE power you selected(check out their new props) you shouldn't have any problem lifting more than 10lbs. 20 minute + flight times shouldn't be a problem unless you plan to fly real fast with the max payload. Now, about the 3 miles on the radio. You're going to need help from one of the brains here. That's outta my league. My understanding is you get into professional equipment that requires special licensing to start getting those kind of distances. I think 2.4GHZ is good for about a mile or maybe a bit less. About the same for the FPV. Again, there is professional gear that can go far over the horizon. Currently you need special dispensation from the FAA to fly like that anyway. While you're buying and building the rest keep an ear open for the controller updates. If you can't resist the urge to buy a controller right away then go with the dji A2. At $1300.00 it's the current king of the hill. I still believe some great stuff is on the near horizon. Particularly from the 3D Robotics PixHawk.
 
OK , Ill save the controller till last . what kind of special dispensation from the FAA do I need . Where do I apply ?
 
No need to bother with the FAA then, the rules currently apply to commercial, just avoid no fly zones and don't do anything stupid.
 
Actually, just about everything listed comes on all the Big Dog controllers plus multi axis gyros, barometers, osd and even sonar is available. dji Naza is great. So is PixHawk, SuperX and Eagle Tree. Rumor has it that dji Naza and PixHawk are getting a complete re-do by years end. They are said to be about at the end of their refinement cycle. You don't need headless mode unless you plan to do flips and fly inverted:eek:. With the KDE power you selected(check out their new props) you shouldn't have any problem lifting more than 10lbs. 20 minute + flight times shouldn't be a problem unless you plan to fly real fast with the max payload. Now, about the 3 miles on the radio. You're going to need help from one of the brains here. That's outta my league. My understanding is you get into professional equipment that requires special licensing to start getting those kind of distances. I think 2.4GHZ is good for about a mile or maybe a bit less. About the same for the FPV. Again, there is professional gear that can go far over the horizon. Currently you need special dispensation from the FAA to fly like that anyway. While you're buying and building the rest keep an ear open for the controller updates. If you can't resist the urge to buy a controller right away then go with the dji A2. At $1300.00 it's the current king of the hill. I still believe some great stuff is on the near horizon. Particularly from the 3D Robotics PixHawk.
By the way , what kind of flying are you into ?
 
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