learner quad that could be built into something bigger?

Bill Lamm

Bill Lamm

Member
is there a good starter quad in the $100 or under range that has good guts for up-scaling frame and motors to a bigger quad?? I am a tinkerer so not afraid to build, but I like up-cycling everything
 
thanks holtnell.. that is some great info.. I was hoping to find that there is an entry level craft that has a good transmitter/receiver, controller etc.. that I could build bigger frame and get bigger motor/blades for as my skills improved.. when I built model planes half the fun was building and modifying..

The more I read the more I see that the low end electronics are not interchangeable enough.. :(
 
Hi Bill you can do anything you want but the way i see it is , if you buy a DJI Phantom that will cost you up to £500 , then if you want bigger in time you can rip the Phantom apart but that will be a shame and a waste of money as the motors would not fly any thing bigger , Now 2 years ago i built a 450 size quad and when i got bored i then made it a 550 then a 666 i used same motors and FCB with ESC so it got bigger at just the cost of the frame
I have now gone back to the 550mm frame still the same ESC and FCB i just changed motors and props for a longer flight times
So now for the hard part take a step back and think, your going to have to go FPV or a FCB that will do way points if not FPV but really what camera do you really want to use and stick to that once you know then i can point you to what build you want to do , and you said it your self YOU LOVE TO BUILD , so there you go build your own even if you buy all the parts you have still built it so its yours
 
I build and fly kites.. I see this sport and/or rockets as what to do when there is no wind.. I do some Kite Ariel Photography for fun with a modified Cannon powershot so I would eventually try strapping that to a quadcopter.. I suspect the FPV route is more $ so chances are I will start with FCB
 
I have been doing my homework.. so I have some questions.. Bear in mind I have resolved my self to getting this together by spring so I will be patiently buying bits an pieces over time.. and I would rather get the cheap controller that I can add to if I need what can bee added..

HobbyKing has all I need and some of it is in the US where its kinda cheap for shipping.. ebay sellers seem to be able to ship cheaper from China, and chances are there stuff is worth every penny :/ but is that true for things like frames and hardware?

do I need GPS and all that fun stuff (down the road) or is the simpler KK controller (or ?) more then enough for my first couple years of goofing around? I like the idea of the 'follow me and auto return' stuff.. I see the value of setting a autonomous pattern for mass picture taking but maybe that is from my KAP experience.. and its not smart to trust auto anything ;)

are the TURNIGY and HobbyKing radios as good as they smell? I would buy a 6 or 8 channel and be happy for ever (LOL) if they are not junk.. I dont think I want to go more then 300 some odd feet away..

I am thinking HK580 frame with camera mount because it is tinker-able and I think I may be able to use a scorpion camera mount I already have.. the center plate looks like it will go to 6 booms as well..

I would rather get a little more motor and prop then run it lower but have room to grow.. is this have a hidden "bad idea" element to it?
 
Hi mate ok start with the frame at that price buy 2 so you have spares they dont do spare parts so this is the only way your have parts, and yes does look like it will take 6 motors so second frame will give you the arms and motor mounts , your have to keep motors an even space or the FCB will play up and do strange things in flight ,As for GPS you dont need GPS just to fly line of sight , but if the quad and camera have a high price fit a tracker so if it comes down you can find it , lots of guys have lost planes ,quads ,helis as they crash and then cant find them https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&r...=7Sc7YBM8EJ2KtGzaMtJaIg&bvm=bv.79189006,d.ZGU
But GPS come into its own if you loose signal or go out of range the quad will return home ,i dont have GPS i only fly as far as i can see ,but the Phantom i am buying my wife will have to aid her flying and when i borrow it i can park it and video my helis
As for motors if you go for a 650kv motor and large props 14x5.5 this will give the lift and flight time on a 4000/5000mah battery , motors and esc are strange things over power them and motors get hot , to small an esc can burn out the esc and motor, running at to low a throttle can make esc get hot too
I use spektrum as its trusted and full range so can go well out of sight HK do the orange 6 channel clone , Turnigy are ment to be good but there are lots of different ones look at the pro its a bit more money but is the best one they do , but if your going long range then you can use a base station with signal boosters , hk are doing a FPV kit for £62 i dont know if its any good
Now for FCB the kk is a good easy board but thats it cant fit anything to it ,but to just fly its great but get the kk2.1.5 or the kk2.1 hard case but get a flash tool too, the hk software is not good , but flash with Steveis code and OMG its so stable and smooth
I hope this help some we all start with what we think we want and then change things as we go ,i have a quad and will fit FPV some time ,the Dx9 i have is because i fly scale helis and need the channels link on this you tube channel Bruce has loads of info like FPV ,cheap china frames how bad they can be etc
 
I am looking at several controllers.. I keep coming back to the KK2.1.5 but its elusively out of stock.. I am patient..

I am also interested in thoughts on a few controllers
this version of the KK2.1.5
the CC3D (with and without barometer and compass)
Naza 32 (+) (or was this one with and without barometer?)
and then maybe save my pennies and get the CC3D's big brother, the Revolution??

I have set my sites on RTF by April 2015 so waiting and spending a little more is an option...
I like the screen on the KK2.1.5 but I am not apposed to dragging a PC in the field
 
holtneil.. I did look at that.. thought harder about the mini version and a kk2.1.5 with built in radio as well, but I am a gluten for punishment so I have a CC3D (found a good price on what I think is not a copy) on the way.. some motors/blades and a 450 frame..

next round of spending will either be ESCs, batts, charger and odd bits of wire or a radio (obviously phase 3 is the other one of those)

radios are driving me nuts.. new or old (Futaba) with new modules?? Spectrum 6 7 8? telemetry or not? or 9X (what variant? and why?)
keep in mind I am looking for the happy balance between grow into it and not get sent to sleep on the porch by the wife in winter

batts are kinda off my radar for now but I welcome wisdom.. However, ESCs and batt charger I am willing to pay more for longevity but if that can be had for less??...

Thanks to all who input..
 
I'm going to be flying with a Spektrum DX6i for two reasons - the first is that I already own one and you can pick up clones of the receivers for under £10GBP (http://www.hobbyking.co.uk/hobbykin...PPM_UK_Warehouse_.html?strSearch=orangerx 615), the second is that the DX6i holds up to 10 presets (Planes (inc. quadcopters bizzarely!) and Helis (Fixed and collective pitch) are supported) and because it is a 6 channel TX will allow for control of the quad on the first four channels and pan/tilt on any camera that I add in future on the last two channels.

The fact that you can pick up a DX6i on eBay for less than £70 is also a good reason to buy one and I love mine! :)

At the moment, I'm going to keep telemetry out of the system as I think it will complicate the initial build, however when I do eventually add it I'll add it as an "additional" not as part of the TX/RX system (and probably powered from a smaller, independent LiPo). That way if I have a radio failure then I can still get telemetry from the quad including altitude (has it crashed yet?) and GPS (where has it crashed?) and I can go and recover it.

Hope that's of some help,

Matt

P.S. here's a vid that someone made of setting up a plane using a DX6i to control the camera as well as the plane:

The nice thing is that you program Quads (apparently it's the same for *any* multi-rotor!) into the DX6i as a plane, so it's easy to do this!
 
I just found
which shows how to connect a Gymbal and controller for a GoPro to the DX6i on a phantom quad so it's a simple setup :)
 
Hi guys the kk2.1.5 will run a camera gimbal and will act as a receiver if you use a satellite receiver , i use the DX9 it has telemetry, but it has voice too and tells you whats going on so no need to look at display
 
I would think 7 is a minimum.. I see a reference to some sort of stable mode or flight mode in most boards and it would be an extra channel... the telemetry as a side to the radio makes good sense.. I am leaning toward the 9xr since its software can be upgraded without soldering to the board..

looks like I may want batteries and ESCs first.. I can play with the CC3D setup without a radio (just not fly it) but I will need batts and ESCs for that..

keep the banter coming.. I have been reading a lot of threads and watching videos.. but as is the case in so many hobbies.. as wee gain experience some things become unspoken truths and noobs like me don't learn the unspokens and have to learn the hard way
 
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