My first tricopter

[Rcplaneguy]

Hey all, I was thinking lately about getting my first ever tricopter. I can fly helis ok, will the tri be a good or bad choice? I really want to make good GoPro videos with a tricopter. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

 

[colorex]

I don't have a tricopter, but I've read everywhere that tricopters are easier to fly than helicopters. And they are controlled roughly the same way. So you should do fine!

There is some skill level to building it, though.

 

[juxsa]

I'm a newb to R/C so maybe my opinion will mean less, but my experiance so far with my home built tri is that I would suggest looking at flight board other than the HK flight controller. Although its cheap, I think a better option would be going with a multiwii flight board. I am looking into the Quadrino because its features are pretty damn impressive. But its also damn near 10X the cost of the HK. So far I just cant fly my tri no matter what I do. I think a board with hover/auto-level and auto altitude would be more fun. Again, thats just me.

I am mostly interested in aerial photography so I need a flight board that acts more like a Cadillac and less like a sport car

 

[Tritium]

My newly built mini tri-copter (10" span) is a breeze to fly. Every bit as easy as my E-Sky Big Lama Outdoor 4ch was but without the chance of those pesky blade strike induced crashes so common on coaxial choppers. I am currently working on a MUCH bigger tri-copter (39", 1 meter span) with Hobby King NTM Prop Drive Series 35-30 motors and 50A esc's.

Thurmond

 

[ZWTimm]

RCExplorer has made an article about his tricopter v2.5. A very detailed description! --> http://flitetest.com/articles/The_Tricopter_V2_5_build

 

[UndCon]

Flying Tricopter is a bit more like flying a regular plane but unless you add stability it can be like trying to balance on a soap
Constant drifts requires constant adjustments.

 

[glydr]

As one who flies planks, helis and now multis I can say that if you can competently fly a heli you'll have no trouble with a tricopter. It is somewhat different but awesome fun.

I'm still to get a good gopro vid with the tri (my fine tuning of the PIDs was interrupted by a rx failsafe - see vid 1).

Whereas the Bixler, about half the price and not a bad aircraft for gopro (see vid 2).

Vid 1: Tricopter crash

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWcnxAV8Azs

Vid 2: Gopro on Bixler

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55YB6eLYmYk

I'm still persisting with the tricopter (when I have time to complete repairs) as it will be good for particular photo/ video styles (e.g. where hovering or slowing down will be important) whereas the bixler will be good for other styles (e.g. following another glider over a hill, which I plan to do one morning).

And youtube shows many excellent tricopter vids!

For the record my tri is much like the Windestal version except controlled by multiwii.

Go for it!

 

[dezertdog]

Hey all, I was thinking lately about getting my first ever tricopter. I can fly helis ok, will the tri be a good or bad choice? I really want to make good GoPro videos with a tricopter. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

If you can fly a heli you can fly a tricopter.

Pick a kit and start building!

I currently run the HK KK v3 board with no issues really. It is what it is - a cheap 3 axis gyro controller. I opted to bump up to the APM 2.0 board, but only because of the autopilot features, not due to the HK board not working well.

 

[Tritium]

If you can fly a heli you can fly a tricopter.

Pick a kit and start building!

I currently run the HK KK v3 board with no issues really. It is what it is - a cheap 3 axis gyro controller. I opted to bump up to the APM 2.0 board, but only because of the autopilot features, not due to the HK board not working well.

I now have 2 APM 2.0 boards. I like them a lot. I have one on my quad and the other is planned to go on my big tri copter.

Thurmond

 

[SuperCub92]

Hey all, I was thinking lately about getting my first ever tricopter. I can fly helis ok, will the tri be a good or bad choice? I really want to make good GoPro videos with a tricopter. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

im in much the same boat as u.
I am able to fly a little 4channel fixed pitch heli (mini twister sport) and love the idea of mounting a camera onto a tri and seeing wot happens
so i just jumped in with both feet.. why not.. wot have u got to loose..
if ur determined enough u will succeed at flying it, and fly well..
well that was wot i thought anyway..
if it all pans together that will be another thing all together
but shall keep everyone posted (when my stuff arrives)

 

[liveyourdreamsRC]

Hey all, I was thinking lately about getting my first ever tricopter. I can fly helis ok, will the tri be a good or bad choice? I really want to make good GoPro videos with a tricopter. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

If you are good at building then rcexplorers' tricopter v2.5 is probably best because it is still made of wood and the most recent design. If you want a cheap, durable frame this is it.

However, if you don't want to build but still want to do fast flying I recommend a T-copter. A T-copter is really a tricopter but even more simple! I found this one in the video below for a pretty resonable price seeing how if you want to buy from him it is mostly assembled already.

As for your flying ability, if you have the money for a more expensive board- get it because in cases such as FPV you will want a return to home most likely and with some you can get a really stable copter. But if you can fly a heli around you don't really need one as a multirotor is really easy when you get used to it.