QuadCopter recommendations?


 

Clint

TVWBB Olympian
I have a few helicopters (tons of other RC stuff too), but a friend / biz-associate with a friend (in town for the weekend) stopped by late friday night - they brought a half gallon of Seagrams VO and a half gallon of Tanqueray..... we had a good old time.

the new guy, we'll just call him the professor, brought a Husban X4. I was able to fly it around under a little control, and he showed me some 3D moves that were very interesting.

V911 heli: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B009SE5DRO/tvwb-20

Husban X4 quad copter: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00CP5NSGG/tvwb-20

Long story short, I have 2 of the V911s here, and an upgrade kit (on a fast food tray, with the good one in pieces)....but I haven't flown them around for nearly a year. I also have a 450-sized heli kit that's in pieces, waiting to be put together, but even after I get it together it'll break super easy and I haven't flown the sim forever either.... (one easy "crash" and the traditional helis require some serious attention from what I understand).

Then I saw the Traxxas LaTrax Alias Quadcopter @ Tower Hobbies.

I just wish my $$$$$$ & energy were both unlimited - is that really too much to ask?


(I ordered the Husban)
 
The first gen DJI Phantoms had a lot of "flyaways" never to be seen again. I believe that the newer models have addressed that situation.
 
do you think the FC40 is one of the problematic ones??? It sure seems like a good idea right now! I like the idea of ME having this stuff, not so much anybody else......

https://store.dji.com/product/phantom-fc40

My first RC plane, I lost sight and control of it the first time out---I found and was able to repair it (cheap foam V tail plane 12+ years ago), I'd sure hate to lose a nice drone. A helicopter (full sized, dunno who) flew above my house today, at about the same height I think I'd have a drone....it might not even be legal to fly around here....I'll have to ask my neighbor, he's a pilot and also he has some quads too that I have yet to see fly.
 
Hi Clint,

...it might not even be legal to fly around here....I'll have to ask my neighbor, he's a pilot and also he has some quads too that I have yet to see fly.

Thank you and all those who follow the FAA rules regarding model planes and these quad copters.

Just finished watching a couple of on-board videos. While they were a joy to watch, the 400 feet above ground limit was exceeded all too often.
When I was actively flying, we would commonly cruise at 190 mph (airspeed). During our approach to an airport, we reduce speed to about 160 mph.
Colliding with a quad copter at that speed could be disastrous for those on-board the aircraft.

The videos listed below involve bird strikes, generally large birds. Although much lighter, damage to the aircraft and injury to its occupants very likely will result when colliding with a typical quad copter due to the speed differential.

http://abcnews.go.com/WNN/video/camera-captures-moment-bird-strikes-cockpit-22644642

A little more graphic... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQRFMlGswNI

Again... Thanks Clint.

Bob
 
Thanks for the videos & reminder how serious this is.

When I first got interested in flying (friends & neighbors have planes), I hadn't realized how serious everything is taken. I've flown a couple of times with them.... lots of regulations.

I got the husban today, I kind of like my little heli (the 911 linked above) better so far - they fly nearly identically, so far.
 
Depending on where you live you can always call the local FAA "FISDO" and they will be happy to give you the rules on RC aircraft and drones. It is a big issue and asking is better than paying a fine.
 
Apparently the flyways are still an issue with the new Phantoms as well. Not much fun to watch your money just fly away with no control.
DJI pretty much will do nothing for you. If they stood behind what they sell their reputation would be better. The return home feature
only works sometimes.
 
This market is teeming with enthusiasts - I've watched some build videos where the people are adding these same features with off the shelf hardware from hobbyking etc.

I'll probably just build a simple one, 450 sized, and play with that. The quads are a little strange to me, it's hard for me to tell which direction is the front, unlike a helicopter- I like switching between the two though because it seems to close the gap.... (found the same thing with dirtbikes...probably everything else too).

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=450+quadcopter
 
the ground crews are going to need to set up with spectrum analyzers to check for the FPV drones....or something.

That could cause a tragic situation - those planes / rescue workers face enough challenges without dealing with this.
 
Good catch, Rich.

I wonder how many actually believe Amazon will ever fly drones.
Maybe in their dreams, but that's about it... Thankfully !
 
I LOVE my little Estes Proto X quad. I fly that thing all over the house and have even chased the neighbors cat with it. My next one will be full telemetry w/streaming video. I also want to try an R/C plane with telemetry and video.

I had bought a R/C helicopter a couple of years ago and almost never fly it anymore. Just not as fun.

Russ
 
that estes is cool - I've enjoyed the Husban X4 outside too, it flies respectably even in mild winds (up to probably 12 mph) in expert mode. I've watched a few builds, and have shopped a couple kits....not smart enough to piece it together just yet.

anyone have a good rec on a larger RTF quad? I'd even go kit, but that might just end up in another pile that never gets built....

The latrax alias might be just the ticket, but if anyone knows of a good 450 sized or a clone I might prefer that.
tower hobbies has this one http://www.youtube.com/embed/QdO9E2FkmNA seems like it'd be a good one to fly in most any conditions....

...which heli do you have, Russ?
 
Thanks to this thread I started poking around on Amazon.
I always wanted an RC plane when I was younger, going back even to the gas powered planes on a tether.
Was surprised at the low cost of some of the helicopters, and had to buy this one.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00DPK11Y6/tvwb-20

CAM00298.jpg


It came yesterday evening and I've already gotten my $19 worth out of it.
(actually it was free, I took them up on their $70 gift card offer by getting an Amazon credit card)

Probably get bored with it in a couple of days, or I might get the $16 model for more flying time, since they only go for about 7 minutes per half hour charge.
 
I've got this little guy in red:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00762BMOI/tvwb-20

It's a lot of fun, but is a bit of a franken-copter now, as I crashed it A LOT learning to fly it. Fortunately, parts are incredibly cheap on eBay. You may have to wait a week or two for shipping from China, but you'll only spend a dollar or two. We have friends we vacation with once or twice a year and he has one too. We can both fly inside with no radio issues.
 
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Good catch, Rich.

I wonder how many actually believe Amazon will ever fly drones.
Maybe in their dreams, but that's about it... Thankfully !


Amazon usually does what is says that it will do. The publicity would be an amazing boost for the company.
So while they may start in their dreams, they will turn those dreams into reality if legally possible. So far
their track record is not one of failure.
 

 

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