Quad-Copters?

[xjohnx]

Any of you guys play with Quad-Copters or the like? I recently ordered a Quanum Nova along with a brushless gimbal for my GoPro and am looking for any tips/tricks you may have.

If you're not familiar with this model, it looks very similar to the DJI Phantom that I'm sure a few of you have seen already. One benefit to the Quanum Nova over the DJI Phantom is that it's based off of an open source flight controller, so new features are being added all the time.

You can preprogram a flight path by GPS coordinates, speed, elevation, etc and the drone will fly itself. I'm really looking forward to using this feature at an autox, where I can program the drone to go to position 1 and hold for X number of seconds while I get a video of the car at the beginning of the course, then have it automatically move to the next position to get footage from a different angle.

Here's a sample video from one of them, in case you guys were curious.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R55XLc1iWHg"]Hobbyking Quanum Nova Cheerson CX-20 Swansea Bay Slow Mo GoPro Gimbal - YouTube[/ame]

[WesleyG]

I'm into helis, but going to look at a quad soon, looking an building up a dji flame wheel, or even maybe a hobby king kit, don't know yet

[n2oinferno]

Stay relatively low, and way the hell away from the paths of aircraft. I read yesterday that the FAA is actually looking into banning first-person-video flying, which has become a hobby lately. A lot of people get all pissed about regulations being passed, but they don't see the reports that pilots are filing because there are drones buzzing about in the sky then they're up there in a plane now.
http://imgur.com/a/zXQBS

It's a fun hobby until someone gets killed because of it.

[xjohnx]

Originally Posted by WesleyG

I'm into helis, but going to look at a quad soon, looking an building up a dji flame wheel, or even maybe a hobby king kit, don't know yet

Nice, I was looking at the flamewheels too. I actually may build a F550 next. I also ordered a decent Taranis radio/receiver to use on my Nova knowing that I could migrate that over to whatever I end up going with next.

Originally Posted by n2oinferno

Stay relatively low, and way the hell away from the paths of aircraft. I read yesterday that the FAA is actually looking into banning first-person-video flying, which has become a hobby lately. A lot of people get all pissed about regulations being passed, but they don't see the reports that pilots are filing because there are drones buzzing about in the sky then they're up there in a plane now.
http://imgur.com/a/zXQBS

It's a fun hobby until someone gets killed because of it.

Agree completely, I don't see myself going over 100 ft, much less the 400 ft limit set by the FAA.

[Takumi788]

Man, I would love to get into this. I am addicted to my GoPro and this seems like the next level.

Any pointers for a beginner pilot? What quad-copter to buy?

[xjohnx]

Originally Posted by Takumi788

Man, I would love to get into this. I am addicted to my GoPro and this seems like the next level.

Any pointers for a beginner pilot? What quad-copter to buy?

The DJI Phantom seems to be the most popular model out right now, but htey're a little pricier and don't have quite as many features.

I went with the Quanum Nova from HobbyKing, much cheaper, better features, etc. I'd give that some serious consideration. The link below should have everything you need to get started (you'll need to add a battery/charger). Also, the go-pro mount is a static mount as opposed t a gimbal so the footage won't be quite as smooth as the demo video i posted above, but a decent gimbal can be found for as little as $100.

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...y_to_Fly_.html

[wheelhaus]

I'm into aerobatic/3D helis, used to fly 450 size and 600 size electrics a lot, just not quad copters yet. The Curtis Youngblood Stingray 500 has caught my eye, though... That thing looks like it'd be a riot.

[k0tkmnd]

for fun starter quads i'd look into something like the blade mqx or nano. full setups for <$200/100, small enough to fly indoors and less likely to break during crashes. the mqx size also flys good outside. most damage i've had is messing up the lexan canopy and bending a prop (which i just straightened out and kept flying). the newer versions even have small cameras.

start w/ something small & durable with basic stabilization to learn to fly on.

once you can fly well, then its how deep into the hole you wanna go.

dji phantoms / blade 330 - out of the box set up with lots of features, but little tweaking, camera ready.

diy kits - pick your frame, motors, props, speed controls, batteries, and main controller board, build it all, program the board, tweak the settings till its perfect.

i've got a mqx for when i just wanna fly quick, and a hobbyking flamewheel 330 copy that i built (and have yet to get flying right). i'd like to try fpv/camera stuff, but i want to get what i've got flying first.

[Tt3Sheppard]

Originally Posted by xjohnx

Any of you guys play with Quad-Copters or the like? I recently ordered a Quanum Nova along with a brushless gimbal for my GoPro and am looking for any tips/tricks you may have.

If you're not familiar with this model, it looks very similar to the DJI Phantom that I'm sure a few of you have seen already. One benefit to the Quanum Nova over the DJI Phantom is that it's based off of an open source flight controller, so new features are being added all the time.

You can preprogram a flight path by GPS coordinates, speed, elevation, etc and the drone will fly itself. I'm really looking forward to using this feature at an autox, where I can program the drone to go to position 1 and hold for X number of seconds while I get a video of the car at the beginning of the course, then have it automatically move to the next position to get footage from a different angle.

Here's a sample video from one of them, in case you guys were curious.

Pretty awesome! What happens if it falls out of the sky due to malfunction and hits someone/something?

[xjohnx]

Originally Posted by Tt3Sheppard

Pretty awesome! What happens if it falls out of the sky due to malfunction and hits someone/something?

depends on the fall, but the most common things broken are landing gear and props, replacements for both can be found for under $20.

I too am looking at adding an FPV kit. I'd really like to buy a transporter3d (which would allow me to use my oculus rift instead of fatshark goggles), but the price for the transporter3d is too rich for my blood.

I'll likely add an FPV kit soon (apparently if i go with the LCD mount, it's legal, it's only illegal when you use goggles that prevent the pilot from having a direct line of sight on the craft.) Should be able to find/piece together a kit for $200ish.

[STV3]

I know nothing about quadcopters really. I actually just last week bought a little cheapo one for $50 off amazon and I must say, after a few days of playing with and getting used to controlling it, it is a lot of fun.

Think its made by Husban or Hasban or something like that. Def some cheap Chinese company, but its pretty solid for what it is.

I can def see myself doing some research and getting into this.

[xjohnx]

Originally Posted by STV3

I know nothing about quadcopters really. I actually just last week bought a little cheapo one for $50 off amazon and I must say, after a few days of playing with and getting used to controlling it, it is a lot of fun.

Think its made by Husban or Hasban or something like that. Def some cheap Chinese company, but its pretty solid for what it is.

I can def see myself doing some research and getting into this.

Hubsan X4? The general advice I've read online is to start with one of those and then move up to something larger once you're more comfortable. Great choice.

[Takumi788]

^Can you attach a go pro to the Hubsan X4?

[xjohnx]

Originally Posted by Takumi788

^Can you attach a go pro to the Hubsan X4?

nope, not nearly enough power. They have some Hubsan X4's with built in FPV available, but the video quality is pretty crapy.