1st build questions and frustrations

[Balmybaldwin]

So, brand new here as ive decided to enter the world of flying objects. First of all I want to learn to fly a quad, with the eventual hope of getting a fully featured camera platorm of the ground complete with fpv etc. Apologies for the lengthy first post!

After a bit of research(although evidently not enough) I have chosen a dji f450 as my frame as this seems fairly versatile. I went for the artf version with motors and escs included.

Tutorials ive seen all say the motors have their direction of rotation marked on them. The ones that came with this kit dont (the ones I have are dji branded 2212/920KV) any ideas? Do I assume they are all the same, and just reverse the connection leads? (speaking of which there are3 all black with no labels)

Does it matter what lead from the motor connects to the u,v and w sockets on the esc? I presume they are 1to1 the way they emerge from the motor? But what about the 2 reversed motors (see above)

Why with £500 of kit have I not got instructions or at least a wiring diagram with any of it?

Ive googled a lot of it inc a step by step video of a f450 build which means I at least know what to solder where etc but I assume that I should worry about weight distribution etc...whats the best way to check cog, and I assume its better for stability to have a lower cog? And does the fc need to be on the cog?

Which brings me to the other boxes ive just unwrapped:
dji naza-m v2 with gps (again no sign of an instruction booklet)
Devo 10 tx/rx
Lipo 3S 11.1v 2250mah x2 (i actually ordered one 3300mah but got these and a y connector!)
a. B65a+ balanced charger

The naza im ok with after viewing tutorial vids, only question is on vertical position in the quad.

The batteries and charger worry me I keep hearing stories of them going into meltdown and taking out a radius of 5 miles. Is there a good dos/donts document around? The "instructions" indicate I should plug in a balance plug before attatching the main power leads to the charger. I assume this is the little white 4pin plug attatched to the battery? Charger itself seems very complicated, and I last did anything rc when nicads were the power source of choice so any help would be apreciated!

Also if some one can point to the relevant regs for the uk i'd appreciate it, I assume flying in fields etc isnt a problem, but imagine they get jumpy if you fly over the local raf base?

I think thats it for now.... time to start soldering stuff

Many thanks

Ed

 

[SoCal Blur]

Tutorials ive seen all say the motors have their direction of rotation marked on them. The ones that came with this kit dont (the ones I have are dji branded 2212/920KV) any ideas? Do I assume they are all the same, and just reverse the connection leads? (speaking of which there are3 all black with no labels)

Does it matter what lead from the motor connects to the u,v and w sockets on the esc? I presume they are 1to1 the way they emerge from the motor? But what about the 2 reversed motors (see above)

Why with £500 of kit have I not got instructions or at least a wiring diagram with any of it?

Many thanks

Ed

Ed,

As far as hooking up the motors to the ESCs, you are correct in your assumption that you make them rotate in the opposite direction by switching two of the wires. It's best to connect bullet connectors to the wires so you can easily switch out two of the wires if you need to reverse the direction of a motor. You won't know which way they will turn until you power them up. Just be sure that the first time you do, don't have the props installed. Then you can just use your finger to tell which way they are turning or you can put a piece of masking tape on the motor sticking out like a flag to see which way they are spinning. If its in the wrong direction, just switch any two of the wires.

Instructions are a luxury - which is why Google search and youtube are so valuable.

 

[FlyGirl]

So, brand new here as ive decided to enter the world of flying objects. First of all I want to learn to fly a quad, with the eventual hope of getting a fully featured camera platorm of the ground complete with fpv etc. Apologies for the lengthy first post!

After a bit of research(although evidently not enough) I have chosen a dji f450 as my frame as this seems fairly versatile. I went for the artf version with motors and escs included.

Tutorials ive seen all say the motors have their direction of rotation marked on them. The ones that came with this kit dont (the ones I have are dji branded 2212/920KV) any ideas? Do I assume they are all the same, and just reverse the connection leads? (speaking of which there are3 all black with no labels)

Does it matter what lead from the motor connects to the u,v and w sockets on the esc? I presume they are 1to1 the way they emerge from the motor? But what about the 2 reversed motors (see above)

Why with £500 of kit have I not got instructions or at least a wiring diagram with any of it?

Ive googled a lot of it inc a step by step video of a f450 build which means I at least know what to solder where etc but I assume that I should worry about weight distribution etc...whats the best way to check cog, and I assume its better for stability to have a lower cog? And does the fc need to be on the cog?

Which brings me to the other boxes ive just unwrapped:
dji naza-m v2 with gps (again no sign of an instruction booklet)
Devo 10 tx/rx
Lipo 3S 11.1v 2250mah x2 (i actually ordered one 3300mah but got these and a y connector!)
a. B65a+ balanced charger

The naza im ok with after viewing tutorial vids, only question is on vertical position in the quad.

The batteries and charger worry me I keep hearing stories of them going into meltdown and taking out a radius of 5 miles. Is there a good dos/donts document around? The "instructions" indicate I should plug in a balance plug before attatching the main power leads to the charger. I assume this is the little white 4pin plug attatched to the battery? Charger itself seems very complicated, and I last did anything rc when nicads were the power source of choice so any help would be apreciated!

Also if some one can point to the relevant regs for the uk i'd appreciate it, I assume flying in fields etc isnt a problem, but imagine they get jumpy if you fly over the local raf base?

I think thats it for now.... time to start soldering stuff

Many thanks

Ed

Blur answered your question on the motors and I will try to answer the ones I know....
NAZA V2 instructions.... Can be found here: http://www.dji.com/product/naza-m-v2/download
NAZA position in relation to COG..... Should be as close as possible. COG is not the easiest thing to check on a quad, especially vertically so I mounted mine as close as I could to the center of the quad on the lower plate. Seems to be okay there.
Batteries and the nuclear fallout.... It DOES happen, BUT, I have never had it happen to me. If you have a hard crash that is when you really want to check it over thoroughly and always suspect it although you could run into one that was just made badly too I suppose. If you take care of the batteries by not running them down to nothing and charge them easily (by that I mean not always doing fast charges and making sure to balance charge them at times) they do pretty well. If I get a battery that starts puffing up, out it goes after being soaked in salt water overnight. Don't leave the batteries for days fully charged either, instead do a storage charge on them so they stay fresh. Do you have a good charger to use?? Ah yes I see you do.... Good.... Just don't charge or discharge without you being around and everything should be good.

I wish I could help on the Devo10 but I use Spektrum....

As for the UK regs, there is a nice gentleman on here with the screen name Ben Kenobi who is very well versed in what can and can not be done. Hope I helped some...!

 

[Droider]

As for the UK regs, there is a nice gentleman on here with the screen name Ben Kenobi who is very well versed in what can and can not be done. Hope I helped some...!

The BMFA has a very good hand book and I would recommend you joint them even if it is just for the insurance. The official document though is this one

CAP658

http://www.caa.co.uk/application.aspx?catid=33&pagetype=65&appid=11&mode=detail&id=5631


CAP722 is also relevant
http://www.caa.co.uk/application.aspx?catid=33&pagetype=65&appid=11&mode=detail&id=415

Flygirl has linked you to the DJI instruction, like most things these days you need a computer to read the instruction wether they come on a CD or a linked download.. I think this game is the world leader in hunt the instructions... thats whey we are here I guess..

Enjoy !

Dave

PS BTW where are u in UK?

 

[Balmybaldwin]

Thank you all so far.

Ive now done my soldering, and got most of the frame together.

When mounting the naza fc, I know it needs to point forward, but I notice the arrow telling me where to point it is slightly off centre on the unit. Do I need to make sure this runs down the centre line of the quad by off setting it slightly or just mount it centrally but pointing in the right direction?

Edit : based in surrey

 

[Balmybaldwin]

Right then, after a frustrating day playing with settings on the pc, I was able to get my quad airbourne this afternoon, and used up 2 lipos

I still have a bit of setup to do, in particular I havent got a hold switch setup yet, and I still need to understand more about the gps and failsafe modes, but so far really impressed with the stability and ease of control.

Only problem ive had so far is loosing orientation when it was about 30m away. So I think i'll add a taillight for my next flight.

I also need to reposition my naza led module as its clearly too low and got a little mud on it. Where do you put yours? And pointing straight down or backwards?

Im also interested in what low battery warnings you lot use... there appears to be some function built in to the naza, but its not easy to tell the colour of led when its in the air.

How can I work out whst my max runtime is?

 

[PeteDee]

Hold switch, more info with what you need this for?

Orientation, fly lots more and add something to the font or back to help.

LED, back of the left or right arm pointing back, at 20 metres you will not be able to see it anyway.

DO NOT use the Naza low voltage settings, either use telemetry or fly to time, just fly for a five minutes and measure how much you have left in your pack and from that work out how long you can fly for and set your timer accordingly.

Pete

 

[FlyGirl]

+1 to what Pete said (Sorry mate, at it again! LOL) and also wanted to mention that on my line of sight sport quad I use orange propellers up front and green in the back. It really helps me keep orientation.

 

[Paul7060]

I have Ping/Pong Ball and flex tube set up Red Arms Red Props in front and White Props White Arms in back . Flying away I find it more convenient to fly with White front. But I am a Rookie flyer with Dyslexia, i am having a great time flying my H-100. For the price it flys real nice, but what do i know being a Rookie pilot

 

[Balmybaldwin]

Thanks for the tips guys.

Had a really good first couple of batteries today, happy with some stable hovering including nose in, a bit scared to let it get too far away so far. Lots of work to do...

Was careful with the batteries, flying about 6 mins per pack, but landing to check voltage through out the lowest I let it get to was 11.5 (on a 3s) after a few seconds on the ground powered down.

Ive ordered a battery low voltage alarm and volt meter thing as well. (ive found a nother money pit hobbie )

Made a few adjustments to the frame layout... added my rear bike light to the back to give me an easy way to orentate, and to balance the weight (and because im now happy to after it not flying off into the distance) my go pro is now on the front.

Take off weight is now 1100g so i'll see how she flys tomorrow if the weather is ok

 

[PeteDee]

+1 to what Pete said (Sorry mate, at it again! LOL) and also wanted to mention that on my line of sight sport quad I use orange propellers up front and green in the back. It really helps me keep orientation.

I put a camera on the front and only fly FPV, when I absolutely have to fly LOS then it is mostly practice, practice, practice to get good at keeping orientation. I do have a basic DJS450 3S hack that I have green props on front and black on the back and as FG said it can help, all my other quads are all black CF or Graupner E-Props.

Pete

 

[Balmybaldwin]

So another fairly successful couple of flights today, including letting it get a bit further away, I found having a light on the back really helped with orientation, and I was happy letting the altitude creep up too.

I did do a bit of tree trimming which wasn't so good, 2 tangle incidents resulting in the quad falling to the floor, thankfully no damage, and probably a result of me getting ahead of myself with the forward flight!

I will eventually go FPV, but for now I want to learn to fly it properly (and I can't afford the additional gear required!)

 

[SoCal Blur]

So another fairly successful couple of flights today, including letting it get a bit further away, I found having a light on the back really helped with orientation, and I was happy letting the altitude creep up too.

I did do a bit of tree trimming which wasn't so good, 2 tangle incidents resulting in the quad falling to the floor, thankfully no damage, and probably a result of me getting ahead of myself with the forward flight!

I will eventually go FPV, but for now I want to learn to fly it properly (and I can't afford the additional gear required!)

What kind of area are practicing in? You said you don't let it get far away from you and you're already trimming trees? It sounds like you need to find a nice, open field to practice in...especially when you're first learning.

 

[Balmybaldwin]

I had plenty of space in front of me, but trees behind, was flying it a good 200m away and over shot bringing it back turning against the wind, better flying site than yesterday with at least 5 marked football pitches. Just think I should stand in the middle!

As I said, just think I was bit overenthusiastic. Think i'll start following a regime of exercises to learn a bit slower.

What sort of windspeed do you consider too much for flying? I could tell today that the wind was causing the quad to battle a bit more today than yesterday when it was calmer

 

[Droider]

SLOOOOOOW Down. You need to keep it in close and low. Just because it will fly 200m away does not mean you should be already.

Practice flying it away from you 10 m ad then back in a controlled manor. Then 10m out and 5m left, then back to middle stop then 5m right. When you can do that and are board sh1t less fly another ten packs doing exactly the same but pushing it a bit further every time. until you are no more than 20m out. When you can do that keeping it the same distance off the ground, about 1.5m, come back and Ill give you your next lessons!

Ignore this and it will end in tears!

Dave

 

[Balmybaldwin]

Right, managed to get another load of flights in at the weekend, following the routine you set out (mostly). Now very happy manoevering it about nose out, and pretty happy nose in too (thank god for all those years of R/C Car driving), what should I be thinking of doing next in terms of progression?

For those asking I'm UK based near Guildford, Surrey (I'm having a look at flying clubs nearby, but most so far seem to be very fixed wing focused (and don't seem to like Helis much)

Thanks for all your help

 

[Balmybaldwin]

Went out just now to have a quick flight, and after about 8 minutes, whilst in atti mode, the power suddenly reduced (landed gently though). My voltage alarm (set for 9.3v) hadnt gone off, and the battery had 11.2v on the meter the battery wasnt warm to the touch (neither was anything else).

Whilst the throttle did work, it wouldnt power up enough to take off. This was the same if I switched to gps mode. However in manual mode, I still had full control over the power and could take off and hover normally.

When this happened in atti or gps modes, the little led on the naza was flashing orange iirc. When I got back home, I checked the naza assistant, and I noticed that the voltage protection switch was on, and the first level protection was set to 11.5v and second level to 11.1v

Am I right in thinking that the protection level 2 triggered? If so, these voltages seem a bit on the safe side? How much lower should I go (running 3s lipos) and how much higher should I set my alarm so it goes off first?

Thanks again!