From Canada with Love . Building the AnyCopter Quad - A noob adventure !

[strangefamilia]

HI, everybody, I'm building a quad from the anycopter frame. I've decided to go with an Aurora 9 from Hitec as transmitter.

It comes with a Optima 7ch receiver that includes basic telemetry. Being a NOOB, i'm pretty sure the telemetry option will help me not going to far on my battery and burning the thing in the air !And the 7 Ch hopefully will give me the option to had a brushless gimbal in the futur ! (pan, tilt ...)


I've ordered the frame from Flite test shop and the TX/RX from Canadian online store http://www.greathobbies.com. Not the most user friendly website, not a lot of choices, but the price was competitive and free shipping for Canada.

So now i'm looking at what else to buy, and since i'm starting from scratch, lot of things have to be wrapped around my head, so maybe you can have a look and tell me if i'm forgetting anything major, you will realize that i try to stay close to the recommendations from the flite test crew :

• 1 Flight Control Board KK2.1
• 4 Turnigy Park300 Brushless motor Outrunner 1380kv
• 5 15 Amp Multi-rotor Brushless ESC 2-3S
• 1 ESC programmable card
• 2 8045 SF Props 2pc Standard Rotation/2 pc RH Rotation (Flouro Yellow)
• 2 8045 SF Props 2pc Standard Rotation/2 pc RH Rotation (Red)
• 1 XT60 to 4 X 3.5mm bullet Multistar ESC Power Breakout Cable
• 1 Male to Male Servo Lead * 10
• 1 PolyMax 3.5mm Gold Connectors 10 PAIRS (20PC)
• 1 HK-010 Wattmeter & Voltage Analyzer

Now i'm still not sure about battery stuff,

I was looking at this one, but it maybe too powerfull for this system ?

• 2 nano-tech 2200mah 3S 25~50C Lipo Pack
• 1 Turnigy A-6-10 200W Balance charger & discharger

If i'm correct, the motors have a Max current of 7A each, that mean 28A in total.
But such a battery could deliver from (2.2A X 25C)/4 = 13.75A to (2.2A X 50C)/4 = 27.5A per motor.
The lower number at 25C seems a bit close to My ESC limit of 15A and the Higher one at 50C will blow them.
So do you recommend changing battery or changing ESC ?

 

[xuzme720]

The battery will only supply what the load dictates. Which means that whatever the motor tries to draw is what the battery will try to supply.
Propped correctly, the motors shouldn't be trying to draw over 7A each, so your max amp draw (7ampsx4motors) should be around 28 amps. The 2200 you list will supply 55 amps or 110 in a burst of less than 10 seconds. This means it will be able to handle up to that, not that it will always put out that much and burn up your gear.
Since you will only need to worry about the battery supplying enough to cover the draw, what you have listed is fine and gives you a reasonable margin of error of about 40%. Only need to worry about that battery if you plan on running a 12 amp or higher draw on each motor.

 

[eagle4]

cool project mate
hey where in canada are you from?

 

[strangefamilia]

Thanks a lot xuzme720 for this quick reply, it all start to make a lot of sense. So even if my set up just ask for 28A, the 55A that the battery is able to deliver steady is not a problem, The battery will just deliver way less leaving a good safety margin for burst demand from the motors.

As you stated, if i choose to go with for motors at 12A each, that will ask for 48A in total (for a quad of course !) starting to be very close to what the battery can deliver on a steady basis, and not really safe.

But i could add 2 others of those 7A motor to create an Hexacopter in the futur and still be safe with a 20% margin or so (7A X 6 = 42A), or just change for a battery a bit more substantial like a 35-50C model. Correct ?

 

[strangefamilia]

Hi Eagle4, i'm moving a lot in the country, but right now i'm close to the border between Ontario and Québec, between Ottawa and Gatineau. I'm quite often in Montreal and in the US, and from time to time, i go to the wonderfull west coast !

Quite hard to find good supplier in QC !

 

[xuzme720]

Thanks a lot xuzme720 for this quick reply, it all start to make a lot of sense. So even if my set up just ask for 28A, the 55A that the battery is able to deliver steady is not a problem, The battery will just deliver way less leaving a good safety margin for burst demand from the motors.

As you stated, if i choose to go with for motors at 12A each, that will ask for 48A in total (for a quad of course !) starting to be very close to what the battery can deliver on a steady basis, and not really safe.

But i could add 2 others of those 7A motor to create an Hexacopter in the futur and still be safe with a 20% margin or so (7A X 6 = 42A), or just change for a battery a bit more substantial like a 35-50C model. Correct ?

Yessir! You are correct. To be honest, unless you are carrying a LOT of weight and therefore at almost full throttle all the time, even the 25-50C battery will be ok for 12A since you will probably only be blipping the throttle to full so the amp draw is going to be less than that 12A per motor. It probably wouldn't be a bad idea to go with a higher C rating, but it isn't strictly necessary if the actual draw is low enough.
Does that make sense or have I confused you more, now?

 

[strangefamilia]

make total sense, thanks again !

 

[strangefamilia]

I'm waiting for parts and stuff, with Christmas around, i'm sure it will take some time, but when it come, i'll make sure to record all the baby steps for the forum.

 

[eagle4]

Hey mate, well once it warms up a bit if you're ever in montreal hit me up, we should have a fly together mate.

 

[strangefamilia]

Sure we'll do !

 

[strangefamilia]

Ready to build

finally got all the stuff today and i ve started to build the frame

Here is the first layout of the frame :


The blue wonder motors i went for :


All the electronic lay together :


Ok so i ll work on a precise step by step in the coming days, hope you will like it.

Take care all

 

[Foam Addict]

That's a huge order! Good luck, and have fun!

 

[xuzme720]

I like what you did with the photos, too! They aren't your normal product shots, for sure!

 

[strangefamilia]

Building the frame

So let's rewind before Christmas,

Got the FliteTest Kit first, it was quite fast delivery coming from the US to Canada. And i was surprise how small the box was. But follow me, i was very happy of what was inside. I started to put the pieces together right way, snapping the feet parts together. Did the first by hand and used a little pliers for the next 3. Not necessary but it help on some stiff joints.

Then i went on drilling the arms using the template from the kit



But quickly realized that i made the mistake of using 1/8 drilling mesh instead of the 7/64 recommended in the video



Luckly for me i realized that soon enough to come up with a plan. The holes going to the center core of the copter are closer together than the ones on the feet (that what the template give you, so the holes on the core and the template are not spaced the same as the holes on the feet).

Having drilled just one side of each arms with the hole spacing from the template (going towards the center) I just had to redrill an extra hole at 7/64 this time and use this end of the arm to connect with the feet.

Here is the set up, using a little dremel for drilling :



And if i cannot be more precise, some detail of the process :



Ok more step by step tomorrow, time to sleep !

 

[cranialrectosis]

Based on the photos, I cannot wait until you are flying with a camera.

 

[strangefamilia]

next step on the frame

After drilling all the holes, it was time for assembly. Contrary of what was stated in the videos, the kit came with provided M3 Bolts and Nuts, so i was able to jump on assembly right away. Making those holes 7/64 made the bolts holding tight in place, and what seems a strong fit of the parts. After doing a couple by hand, i switched the bit to my drill, making sure to bring the torque at the lowest, going slow and finishing the job by hand. It protected my hand from blisters (ahah) and kept the fun going with a nice pace !



It helped to clamp the arms in place




when i was fighting with the tiny tiny M3 nuts to get on the thread



Final touch was to zip tie the motor mount under the feet




Final Product :



bottom plate and battery plate is missing on this picture, but basically, i installed them as it's recommended in the video (i recommend to watch both the quad build and tri build video from FT for complementary informations), first engaging just the bolts of one arm, and then playing with alignment for the others. And before tightening the frame together, looking at alignment of the arms. Next step wires ...

 

[strangefamilia]

Wiring

Funny enough, that was so far the most time consuming step, but mostly to make everything look clean.

I first laid every parts in it's future position on the quad :



I was nicely surprised to discover that the connector on the Laser Toys motor had 3.5mm connector. I originally bought a couple, envisioning doing some soldering as it was mentioned in the FT build vid. So no soldering at all, just plug and play !



The first head scratching moment was the realization that the length of the arms of the Anycopter kit make for the wire of the motors and ESC being to long. I could have cut them and re-solder, but since i had just discovered that the connectors match (by the way, i had to play with pliers on the motor connectors to make them fit properly, standards not so standards ...) i took on my self to be super lazy and not solder at all. So i moved the esc's as close as possible to the center frame, having almost straight wires running from the motors to the ESCs. Good enough for a first build ever.

So the challenge will be to organize all the extra wire pushed into the center frame from the ESC. Coming soon.

Then i took everything apart, and went on with the epoxy of the tiny wires coming of the motors connecting to the more beefier silicon wires. Thanks for the recommendations from everybody from the forum. And even if i was warned, i didn't fully understood what could be messed up in the process. But follow me that was a good learning process.

So 5 min epoxy mixed, first application and i quickly realize that the little plastic stripes i made from a plastic egg container are to big. I should have gone with something like a Q-tip with the fuzzy part removed. But no choice, show must go on. I apply the slimy stuff the best as i can all around the wires and wait.

Result : 3 out of 4 are protected and still spinning freely, but one is stock. And i know understand the warnings from several of you. The epoxy went further and glued the exterior shell of the motor, the spinning part, to the inner guts. No spinning anymore !



So i add to quickly learn how to open a brush less motor, thanks to youtube, you just have to remove the little tab at the bottom of the Laser Toy motor. But the motor wouldn't come apart still. After playing with the Bell for 5 min, it finally split open.



I was lucky to discover that my epoxy application was not so bad after all, just a little extra slided on the side and went to glue the magnets with the inner coils. So i took my exacto knife and clean the mess really gently. Put back all together, gave it a spin by hand, and everything looked as free as the other motors.


While it was drying, i went on and put together the battery plate and mounted it on the quad, and i should have done that before, cause with all the wire dangling, a bit of a pain in the .... hand !

Battery Plate :




Plugged everything back together, throw some zip ties, fought with the cables inside ( i was trying to put the receiver inside too at first), glued the KK2.1 on the foam with a glue dedicated to foam and voila ! ... Almost. The last remaining question was what is the signal and ground pin on my Hitech Optima 7 receiver. Found this pic that saved me



Final product :






Close up on the board



Ok next step tuning the Quad and Maidden flight. Hopefully soon (weather ...)

 

[eagle4]

Looks really good mate. Good luck with the maiden.

 

[Cyberdactyl]

Even though I've seen countless pictograms of the assemblage of a multi-rotor, yours is very entertaining and a joy to look at.

Hope your maiden is care-free and fun!

 

[strangefamilia]

Here is my beautiful first fly and crash ! I quickly got tired of cleaning the snow, so i have taken a little break. But the sun is back and i can't wait to fly again ... and crash again ! Much practice needed !