Today I finished the process of swapping out the DYS ESCs on the CineStar 6 for a set of Maytechs and a new power distribution board. After a quick realignment of the motors by eye (the crash having rotated most of them off vertical) and installation of the Graupner 11 x 5 props I first flew it with, it was time for a quick test flight by light of the full moon. Out on the front lawn I connect up the battery and hear the Maytechs sing a very different song than the old DYS ESCs. Right about now I realize that without the AV130 hanging underneath the CoG is going to be off significantly, especially with the oversize 4S 8000 pack sitting up top. Well, it is only a test flight so spin up the AXI's and start taking the throttle up slowly...
First thing I notice is how much smoother it sounds with the Maytech ESCs, they have a refresh rate of 400 Hz and I programmed them for high timing with a 16 kHz switching frequency. As soon as it started getting light on the skids I bumped it up a couple notches and it rose up about 2 feet and just sat there at mid stick. A slight push up and it started to rise slowly, a little more stick and it picked up speed, back to mid point and it stopped. With no wind at all it just sat where I stopped it like it was in a solid GPS position hold but I was only in ATTI mode! A couple quick tweaks of the rudder to both right and left and it smoothly swiveled in each direction. A couple quick jabs on the elevator and aileron got it twitching in each direction, OK the CoG isn't right, best to not do that right now.
I let it hover around out front for a good 5 minutes or so and then landed to check the ESC and motor temps, both stone cold, perfect. It did wobble badly close to the ground trying to compensate for the ground effect but that will go away once I put the AV130 back on. I get the impression it's going to need some retuning of the gains with the Maytech ESCs, it is certainly a lot smoother with no signs of any wobble at all in hover or slow FF where there was a slight but noticeable wobble with the old ESCs in the same modes. I think I'll be able to dial back on the basic pitch and roll and possibly be able to take the ATTI up a bit and still have good stability in the wind, the way the weather has been around here I'll find out soon enough.
The AV130 parts arrived early this morning and that has also been repaired. I decided to wait until the CineStar had a couple test and trim flights on it before reattaching the AV130 again just in case. Tomorrow in the daylight I'll add some weight underneath to compensate for the missing AV and get the gains dialed in again. Once that's done the mount goes back on and it's time to go get some video with the new setup, I might even try using the wounded NEX 5N before it goes off to the repair depot.
Here's a couple pics of the new Maytechs with the power distribution baord, a much cleaner setup than the original build...
Ken
First thing I notice is how much smoother it sounds with the Maytech ESCs, they have a refresh rate of 400 Hz and I programmed them for high timing with a 16 kHz switching frequency. As soon as it started getting light on the skids I bumped it up a couple notches and it rose up about 2 feet and just sat there at mid stick. A slight push up and it started to rise slowly, a little more stick and it picked up speed, back to mid point and it stopped. With no wind at all it just sat where I stopped it like it was in a solid GPS position hold but I was only in ATTI mode! A couple quick tweaks of the rudder to both right and left and it smoothly swiveled in each direction. A couple quick jabs on the elevator and aileron got it twitching in each direction, OK the CoG isn't right, best to not do that right now.
I let it hover around out front for a good 5 minutes or so and then landed to check the ESC and motor temps, both stone cold, perfect. It did wobble badly close to the ground trying to compensate for the ground effect but that will go away once I put the AV130 back on. I get the impression it's going to need some retuning of the gains with the Maytech ESCs, it is certainly a lot smoother with no signs of any wobble at all in hover or slow FF where there was a slight but noticeable wobble with the old ESCs in the same modes. I think I'll be able to dial back on the basic pitch and roll and possibly be able to take the ATTI up a bit and still have good stability in the wind, the way the weather has been around here I'll find out soon enough.
The AV130 parts arrived early this morning and that has also been repaired. I decided to wait until the CineStar had a couple test and trim flights on it before reattaching the AV130 again just in case. Tomorrow in the daylight I'll add some weight underneath to compensate for the missing AV and get the gains dialed in again. Once that's done the mount goes back on and it's time to go get some video with the new setup, I might even try using the wounded NEX 5N before it goes off to the repair depot.
Here's a couple pics of the new Maytechs with the power distribution baord, a much cleaner setup than the original build...
Ken
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But at the same time I trust Andreas that he will adjust the herkules firmware to the needs of the WKM. He already promised. That again can be priceless in my eyes if taken serious. On the other side i dont have a herkules or WKM tattoo on me and will try anything that my budget and seems interesting.
