FPV Drone Made Of Cardboard

Hi everybody,

I'm a long time watcher of FliteTest, but this is my first time posting here. I wanted to share a project I recently completed - building an FPV freestyle/racing quad from cardboard and epoxy resin. I was very inspired by the FliteTest DIY philosophy and wanted to bring that vibe to quads. I made a video series about our process and materials and am sharing links to that series below. A new video in this series will go up every day of the week so please consider subscribing to my channel if you enjoy the videos. Thanks!

Maiden Flight -
Build Video Part 1 -
Build Video Part 2 -
 

Ihichi Bolls

Well-known member
Neat Flite Test esq project. Great presentation and enthusiasm.

But.....
Cardboard quads...NOT a thing. Great one off project but safety factor is so deep in the toilet Id have to rate this below DJI phantoms on the good for the hobby list.

Its obvious you guys are experienced builders and pilots but most here on this forum are kids and newer pilots in the hobby.

Not recommending this for anyone who has not built more then one quad nor flown for at least a year.

Also this is not facebook or other social media and vids and posts get flagged for language. (Ask me how I know)
 
Neat Flite Test esq project. Great presentation and enthusiasm.

But.....
Cardboard quads...NOT a thing. Great one off project but safety factor is so deep in the toilet Id have to rate this below DJI phantoms on the good for the hobby list.

Its obvious you guys are experienced builders and pilots but most here on this forum are kids and newer pilots in the hobby.

Not recommending this for anyone who has not built more then one quad nor flown for at least a year.

Thanks for checking the videos out! I'm not sure what you mean by safety factor? This quad is plenty strong and has been flown 10+ times, including with expensive HD cameras on board! I trust it like any of my carbon fiber quads. Also by the way I have been flying for under 5 months myself haha, so not sure why this is only for 'experienced' pilots?
 

Ihichi Bolls

Well-known member
Because you are risking your own gear, money, and safety. Telling others to do so who may not fly as well as you do on an untested, unproven airframe puts their money, gear and safety at risk.


Having flown for over 5 years now I have the experience and understanding of these things as I fly anything from a 2 inch FT gremlin tuned like a tiny whoop to 5 inch quads that fly in the 150 mph range.

I do both freestyle and racing and I will go out on a limb that if you crash that thing in any conditions but floaty speed on soft grass its gonna splode and send schrapnel everywhere.

If you have doubts on my experiences look up anything "psyborg" on this forum.
 
This time I'm off chasing airplanes with the home made Cardboard Quad and an Insta360 OneX. We got some incredible surreal views and music by the very talented Neel and the Lightbulbs. Please subscribe if you liked this episode!

Bonus: There is a big horse in the video! Enjoy!

 

Ihichi Bolls

Well-known member
Them 360 cameras really mess with my perception of things.

I can see a need and good use for them though. I can comprehend the zoomed out wide version like normal and even the over head looking down. Its tgat squished up full 360 in one frame that does me in.

Thats a good edit and yeah the music is pretty good too.

Kinda hard to tell with the camera view changes but it looked like the rear left arm was flexing on throttle changes in the turns.

All n all pretty cool.