My Quad-copter :o)

[Shadow74]

Can't wait for your build tutorial. In the meantime, what do you think of this part list. I'm gonna order it soon. Thanks

Power distribution
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idproduct=21734


12A ESC
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idproduct=11429

Frame:
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__19595__HobbyKing_Mini_Quadcopter_Frame_V1_539mm.html

Control Board
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/...ti_Rotor_Control_Board_V2_1_Atmega168PA_.html

1600kv motor
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__5482__CF_28_05_Brushless_Outrunner_1600Kv.html

Running 8x4 on 2s (1000~1300mah)

Hey Nguyen! good to have you here!

As far as your parts list, it depends on whether you want to build a small/medium/or large size quad copter. For a small quad your parts list looks like it should be okay. The smaller and lighter the frame however, the less wind it can fly in, and the less payload that it will be able to carry. (if you ever wanna do FPV or carry a GoPro)

If you scratch build:

One thing I would consider changing is your ESC. If you are gonna buy everything from HK, the Turnigy Plush ESC's are known to play very well with KK controller boards and multi-rotor aircraft. Most guys who are building their own multi-rotors are using these. If they are unavailable then you can get the 20amp AX esc's from www.lazertoyz.com (thats what I have on all of my multi-rotors and they work really good.)

The other thing to do is get the lowest KV motor that you can find, I fly Park 450 motors from Horizon Hobby on my quad and they are 890kv running 10x3.8 or sometimes I run 10x4.7 props. Anything in the range of 700-900 (give or take a little) will work great. A 1600 kv motor might be a little to high of rpms which could make your quad fly unpredictable.

If you run the larger motors you will want to run a 2200mah 3 cell battery as well.


We will all help you however we can to get ya going. Talk to ya soon!


Cheers!

Eric

 

[nguyen.tran]

Hi Eric thanks for getting back to me. I checked out the motors that HK is bundling with its mini quad kit and those motors are turning ~2300kv, that's why I thought if I'm buying a slightly bigger frame then 1600kv should be ok. I intend to build a smal quad for indoor and calm weather flight, do you think the 1600kv are still gonna work?

 

[Shadow74]

Hi Eric thanks for getting back to me. I checked out the motors that HK is bundling with its mini quad kit and those motors are turning ~2300kv, that's why I thought if I'm buying a slightly bigger frame then 1600kv should be ok. I intend to build a smal quad for indoor and calm weather flight, do you think the 1600kv are still gonna work?

yea, they should be fine for a mini quad, I misunderstood, and thought you were building a bigger outdoor one. I am looking forward to seeing what you get, and vids of it flying! )


Eric

 

[elemental]

Can you recommend an alternative motor to the eflight? I am looking to build a quad this size and am looking for motors, but the eflight prices are pretty steep.

 

[Shadow74]

Can you recommend an alternative motor to the eflight? I am looking to build a quad this size and am looking for motors, but the eflight prices are pretty steep.

yea, the eflites are a bit pricey, but i run them because they are super smooth. the motors that I ran prior to buying the park 450's were the 2830-09 (850kv) from www.lazertoyz.com I had those on my tri-copter and one of my quads, and got 12 min. flights with plenty of power to spare. they fly really nice. here is the link to that motor on their site.


http://www.lazertoyz.com/shop/28XX.htm


I have been dealing with lazertoyz for years, and they have always treated their customers exceptionally well.



Cheers!

Eric

 

[nguyen.tran]

yea, they should be fine for a mini quad, I misunderstood, and thought you were building a bigger outdoor one. I am looking forward to seeing what you get, and vids of it flying! )


Eric

Thanks Eric. Will keep you posted!

 

[Shadow74]

Kits of my quadcopter

Okay everyone, I have been working on this for a while now, and I think I am going to go for it. I also wanted to get some feedback/opinions from all of you guys.

I have had many people who have seen my quad fly, tell me things like...."you should sell kits for those" or "where can I buy one?" So I have decided to give it a go. I am still ironing out the details, as far as whether I should set up my own site to sell them, or go through a distributor who already has a site set up. I had a conversation with www.lazertoyz.com a few weeks ago and they are interested in carrying them, as well as possibly providing a "multi-rotor combo pack" containing the motors/ESC's/lipo's/props/LED lights etc. I also talked with my local hobby shop and they said they would carry them as well.

My plan as of right now would be to start with the Quad-copter, offering a kit version that would be an ARF and offering a RTF rcvr ready version as well. (which would be pre-programmed/set-up and test flown before shipment) We would also offer crash kits and replacement parts. (center sections, pre-drilled arms, bolt hardware packs etc.) Camera kit would also be another available option and would include the boom, and the mounting plates/vibration dampeners/hardware.

My other plan, is to produce an instructional DVD for all the scratch-builders out there. I own a video production company and I am currently creating notes for putting together a how-to DVD for building a quad-copter from start to finish, covering every step of the build in extreme detail. It will include chapter selections so that when you stop working you can come back to the exact place you left off and pick right back up again. I have found (and experienced) that multi-rotors are intimidating to get started into so it is my thought that if a person wanted to get into building and flying multi-rotors, this could be a way that would provide a pleasant experience from beginning to end.

I would also think about including this DVD for free when someone purchased a quad-copter kit.



Okay, so........what are the thoughts you guys have on this? Good, Bad, UGLY? LOL



Cheers,


Eric

 

[colorex]

Excellent! Do you have any idea on the prices?

 

[flyboymaxwell]

YES!!!! if you can do it, why not! I am wanting to get into Multi-rotors real soon but don't know anything about how to setup the electronics. Having a "how-to" video to reference to would help out a lot!

 

[Revj Vegas]

I'm definitely interested in the "how to" DVD

 

[Johntra]

Just an Idea. But instead of making a DVD, you could make a YouTube channel and eventually if you get a plethora of views you could get the ads and what not to make money off of that. Just an idea.

 

[nguyen.tran]

I'm with Johntra on this. I think people hardly watch dvd nowadays, with youtube channel like what flitetest does, you will get wider coverage. just my 2c

 

[voipmonkey]

Okay everyone, I have been working on this for a while now, and I think I am going to go for it. I also wanted to get some feedback/opinions from all of you guys.

I have had many people who have seen my quad fly, tell me things like...."you should sell kits for those" or "where can I buy one?" So I have decided to give it a go. I am still ironing out the details, as far as whether I should set up my own site to sell them, or go through a distributor who already has a site set up. I had a conversation with www.lazertoyz.com a few weeks ago and they are interested in carrying them, as well as possibly providing a "multi-rotor combo pack" containing the motors/ESC's/lipo's/props/LED lights etc. I also talked with my local hobby shop and they said they would carry them as well.

My plan as of right now would be to start with the Quad-copter, offering a kit version that would be an ARF and offering a RTF rcvr ready version as well. (which would be pre-programmed/set-up and test flown before shipment) We would also offer crash kits and replacement parts. (center sections, pre-drilled arms, bolt hardware packs etc.) Camera kit would also be another available option and would include the boom, and the mounting plates/vibration dampeners/hardware.

My other plan, is to produce an instructional DVD for all the scratch-builders out there. I own a video production company and I am currently creating notes for putting together a how-to DVD for building a quad-copter from start to finish, covering every step of the build in extreme detail. It will include chapter selections so that when you stop working you can come back to the exact place you left off and pick right back up again. I have found (and experienced) that multi-rotors are intimidating to get started into so it is my thought that if a person wanted to get into building and flying multi-rotors, this could be a way that would provide a pleasant experience from beginning to end.

I would also think about including this DVD for free when someone purchased a quad-copter kit.



Okay, so........what are the thoughts you guys have on this? Good, Bad, UGLY? LOL



Cheers,


Eric

Great idea Eric but does this mean that we will never see your plans for the camera boom Sad Day
Mark

 

[Shadow74]

Great idea Eric but does this mean that we will never see your plans for the camera boom Sad Day
Mark

Mark,

LOL! no that doesn't mean you won't see my plans.......as promised before.......I will have them available on the forum soon. We have had 3 deaths in our family in just the last 6 weeks.....so with family in town and all that, it hasn't left me with much time. (with what time I have had, I have been trying like crazy to finish my hexa-copter for a shoot in Orlando, Florida at the beginning of March. I am waiting to hear whether or not it is a go, but want to have the machine finished and ready in case they wanna move forward.)

Also, I have made some minor changes to the camera boom mount that REALLY finalized the design, and didn't want to post it till it was finished.

When I get home today, the very first thing I have to do is turn in my availability for shooting with Flitetest, after that if there is time, I will try to get the boom plans and a video posted so you can see how to make one. Then I will work the next few weeks in my spare time to get the rest of the details up. Never fear my friend, I am not gonna leave ya hangin.

I will definitely move forward on the making of kits, for those who don't wanna scratch build. Making the DVD is something I have been creating notes for over the last month or so, but that idea was more up in the air......as I wanted to see if it is something that people would find value in, as well as be cost effective to produce. Johntra, and Nguyen make solid points, that putting up YouTube videos might be the more accessible, and also cost effective way to do it. (we do ALOT with DVD in my business, so I guess DVD is the first thing that always comes to my mind in the way of delivery options, because I operate in that world everyday.)

Thanks for the replies, this is exactly why I asked you guys what you thought, more people's input makes it easier to make decisions......to get a feel for what everyone would like better. Structuring a lengthy in depth instructional video for delivery on YouTube is something I have never done, I know that YouTube has time limits (ten minutes I think). Mapping out each step of the build process to fit into a ten minute "chapter" (video) on YouTube will definitely take some logistical planning and also alot of time. (I know this, just from seeing how much Chad plans, and puts into each Flitetest episode)


So anyway, thanks for the input....will keep you all posted.


Cheers,


Eric

 

[elemental]

How well do you think these motors would work? :http://www.headsuprc.com/servlet/the-1424/2800-series-motor%2C-1.8oz%2C/Detail

 

[Shadow74]

How well do you think these motors would work? :http://www.headsuprc.com/servlet/the-1424/2800-series-motor%2C-1.8oz%2C/Detail

That would be perfect. The 2830-09 is the same motor that I had on my tri-copter, and my quad-copter, that I get from www.lazertoyz.com

Looks like this one is just made by a different supplier, but that wouldn't matter at all. These are great motors for a David W. tri-copter, or my quad-copter design. Run them with a 20amp esc/10x3.8 or 10x4.7props and you'll be set.


Cheers!


Eric

 

[voipmonkey]

Mark,

LOL! no that doesn't mean you won't see my plans.......as promised before.......I will have them available on the forum soon. We have had 3 deaths in our family in just the last 6 weeks.....so with family in town and all that, it hasn't left me with much time. (with what time I have had, I have been trying like crazy to finish my hexa-copter for a shoot in Orlando, Florida at the beginning of March. I am waiting to hear whether or not it is a go, but want to have the machine finished and ready in case they wanna move forward.)

Also, I have made some minor changes to the camera boom mount that REALLY finalized the design, and didn't want to post it till it was finished.

When I get home today, the very first thing I have to do is turn in my availability for shooting with Flitetest, after that if there is time, I will try to get the boom plans and a video posted so you can see how to make one. Then I will work the next few weeks in my spare time to get the rest of the details up. Never fear my friend, I am not gonna leave ya hangin.

I will definitely move forward on the making of kits, for those who don't wanna scratch build. Making the DVD is something I have been creating notes for over the last month or so, but that idea was more up in the air......as I wanted to see if it is something that people would find value in, as well as be cost effective to produce. Johntra, and Nguyen make solid points, that putting up YouTube videos might be the more accessible, and also cost effective way to do it. (we do ALOT with DVD in my business, so I guess DVD is the first thing that always comes to my mind in the way of delivery options, because I operate in that world everyday.)

Thanks for the replies, this is exactly why I asked you guys what you thought, more people's input makes it easier to make decisions......to get a feel for what everyone would like better. Structuring a lengthy in depth instructional video for delivery on YouTube is something I have never done, I know that YouTube has time limits (ten minutes I think). Mapping out each step of the build process to fit into a ten minute "chapter" (video) on YouTube will definitely take some logistical planning and also alot of time. (I know this, just from seeing how much Chad plans, and puts into each Flitetest episode)


So anyway, thanks for the input....will keep you all posted.


Cheers,


Eric

That's sad to hear Eric but as always many thanks for your continued support to all of us

Can't wait for the vids and good luck in making a few quid out of this

Mark

 

[elemental]

What kind of flight times were you getting with your original quadcopter?

 

[nguyen.tran]

Hi Eric,
I have a quick question. I'm ordering more batteries for m quad and I was wondering if a 1000mah 2s 15c is suitable to run a 1600kv motor? They have amazing buddy code discount and it's hard to look away..

 

[Manfet]

Well if they draw less than 1000(mAh)/1000*15(C)/4(motors)=3,75A per motor. Which is kinda unlikely so No.