Building a new Drone, need advice =)

[Hamk92]

Hi everyone,

I'm building my first drone with primary focus on photography(go pro). I'm wanting to know the most efficient ratio of motor/prop/battery for the longest flight time. Any criticism and help would be greatly appreciated, i'm new to this.

Below is the list of components i have at the moment with links to the item for clarification:

Build list:

LD power pack:
13"x5.5 Carbon fiber props
LD Power 3508-380kv motors - same as the turnigy 3508-380kv motors and sunnysky 3508- 380kv motors
LD power 30A ESCs
https://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct...

Tarot 650 frame - https://www.google.com.au/search?q=...KEwiKjPuShMHKAhUnGKYKHUKHDb8Q...

Gimbal with go pro hero 4:
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/GoolRC-C...295619?hash=item1ea03bd903:g:...

Flight controller:
Pixhawk with telemetry and GPS

Battery:
6s 5200Mah (gives me roughly 10 minutes)

Now i have been reading other forums and the best efficiency is 15x5.5 props with a 4s battery. Could some one please help with working out the most efficient ratio, I want to get about 25 mins flight time if thats possible



AUW = 1450 grams (without battery)

Thanks
Hamish

 

[hexhome]

Your post seeks advice on efficiency, but the items suggested are over the top for lifting a GoPro. A more efficient method would be to reduce the size of everything. Bigger batteries do not automatically result in longer flight times. 25 minutes is a tough but not impossible target. Why pick that number? I find 15 mins plenty. Talking of efficiency, that gimbal price or performance?

Sent from my XT1092 using Tapatalk

 

[Hamk92]

Thanks for the reply. Potentially I want to be able to add a camera on there so not just a go pro that's why I'm kind of future proofing it so when I get to that stage I don't have to fork out more money.

I understand bigger batteries don't mean better flight time. That's why I'm wondering what formula people tend to use to get a good estimate of flight time performance based on other factors such as weight, props and batteries.

The cheap gimball I bought so I could understand how it works I originally purchased it off a friend for $20 so It wasn't to bad for the price the performance is actually pretty good for the price.

Pretty much I'm trying to learn how to find the optimum efficiency so then I can use this for when I want to customise in the future. But I'm definitely up for any suggestions you may have.

Also 25 minutes is good for my sport I play so I can have the drone in position hold and video a half of my sport so the guys can watch it

 

[Rockercopter]

Hello, I have a few interesting posts where guys share their experiences of building drones and discuss the basics of the subject. This one is a good introduction, which covers all aspects of building copters, what kinds of copters there are and briefs you on the key components and their functions. When I read it for the first time, I felt like I had viewed a detailed picture... Well, here it is: http://www.dronevibes.com/en/blogs/view_entry/12927/

And this one, I hope, will help you choose the best components and build the best copter you can afford: http://www.dronevibes.com/en/blogs/view_entry/12946/