XAircraft Crashes - How many and how bad?

[mr7o4]

I've been in a bit of a lull with flying my x650 lately...a series of recent crashes:
-Lost control due to solder pad coming loose (signal lead on the ESC, brand new and 45 seconds into flight).
-Lost control due to bird strike shearing prop (almost saved it - but that "redundancy" of the X8 is way overrated if you ask me).
-Lost control due to motor failure (again, X8....)
-Lost control because I was an idiot and tried to land it on the roof of my house...

I know there were others that I can't specifically recall the reason for at this point, but I'm seriously thinking of going to the hexacopter configuration if for no other reason than ease of replacement and wiring. Every time I crash I manage to destroy at least one plastic motor mount, and I'm getting sick of taking everything apart, wiring everything through those carbon fiber pipes (why can't they just make the power leads for the motor one or two inches longer???) and then doing it all over again, really a pain with the X8 configuration. I saw aluminum motor mounts online, but it doesn't look like they make them anymore, which is a shame because those plastic ones have so many weak points.

So, while I wait for spare parts in the mail, what kind of luck have you guys had? How many crashes and what's the worst???

 

[Tomstoy2]

Only one, ( knock on wood ), that was semi serious. 3 with fpv on my f450 when I went sideways into a tall weed.

 

[Bowley]

Totally agree with you on the X650 repair flaf, guess thats the price you pay for having everything neatly enclosed.
I prefer all the gubbin's on the outside myself.
I have had 2 crashes with my X650 one was, I think a bad solder joint done by myself. and the other I'm not quite sure, I think it was that funky thing the Naza does in fast fwd flight in ATTI, where it stops responding to commands, so I had to dump it to avoid flying into someone elses property.
Only one with my F450 flying FPV turned to the right, got the fright of my life when a tree came of nowhere.
More crashes with my Gaui 330 than I care to remember, still flying though...a tough old bird. Use it for sport not AP.

 

[Elliott000]

Multiple heli crashes due to trying more tham im capable of... I crashed my ad-6 on its 4th flight, i dont know why, it just dropped left and went full throttle into the ground. Still building it baxk up but that one almost shut me down... Multiple little hits witg my fpv quad due to my thimbs again

 

[DennyR]

I've been in a bit of a lull with flying my x650 lately...a series of recent crashes:
-Lost control due to solder pad coming loose (signal lead on the ESC, brand new and 45 seconds into flight).
-Lost control due to bird strike shearing prop (almost saved it - but that "redundancy" of the X8 is way overrated if you ask me).
-Lost control due to motor failure (again, X8....)
-Lost control because I was an idiot and tried to land it on the roof of my house...

I know there were others that I can't specifically recall the reason for at this point, but I'm seriously thinking of going to the hexacopter configuration if for no other reason than ease of replacement and wiring. Every time I crash I manage to destroy at least one plastic motor mount, and I'm getting sick of taking everything apart, wiring everything through those carbon fiber pipes (why can't they just make the power leads for the motor one or two inches longer???) and then doing it all over again, really a pain with the X8 configuration. I saw aluminum motor mounts online, but it doesn't look like they make them anymore, which is a shame because those plastic ones have so many weak points.

So, while I wait for spare parts in the mail, what kind of luck have you guys had? How many crashes and what's the worst???

The solder pad coming loose is quite common, especially if it was overheated when the joint was made. I have always used a manifold style wire harness which is the most reliable way. IMHO. It is also easy to incorporate a good quality switch.

 

[Search49]

Multiple crashes trying to learn to fly my x450 pro. 1st crash broken motor brace (M1) Broken landing leg 3 times, Broken motor brace arm (2 times) But still having fun!!!

 

[fotophanatic]

We've got an X650 V4 and between myself and my boss, we've had more crashes than I care to admit. Lots of busted props, motor mounts, boom arms, landing gear and I even managed the bust up the center plates. I have completely rebuilt this thing so I'm not sure I'd even call it an XA anymore! Electronics are the only original XA pieces still on it. The crash that broke the center plates was when I was making a wide bank and sheared a prop and it dove 30 feet upside down straight into the ground. That crash even bent one of the aluminum square tube arms I replaced the round cf boom arms with. I was not a happy camper.

 

[Warlock]

I've been in a bit of a lull with flying my x650 lately...a series of recent crashes:
-Lost control due to solder pad coming loose (signal lead on the ESC, brand new and 45 seconds into flight).
-Lost control due to bird strike shearing prop (almost saved it - but that "redundancy" of the X8 is way overrated if you ask me).
-Lost control due to motor failure (again, X8....)
-Lost control because I was an idiot and tried to land it on the roof of my house...

I know there were others that I can't specifically recall the reason for at this point, but I'm seriously thinking of going to the hexacopter configuration if for no other reason than ease of replacement and wiring. Every time I crash I manage to destroy at least one plastic motor mount, and I'm getting sick of taking everything apart, wiring everything through those carbon fiber pipes (why can't they just make the power leads for the motor one or two inches longer???) and then doing it all over again, really a pain with the X8 configuration. I saw aluminum motor mounts online, but it doesn't look like they make them anymore, which is a shame because those plastic ones have so many weak points.

So, while I wait for spare parts in the mail, what kind of luck have you guys had? How many crashes and what's the worst???

I have had so many crashes I cant count them any more, had another this morning, and again it just flips its self over like it was shot down with 44 magnum. A less than 5 MPH breeze, in a hover about 30 feet up, no reason no inputs from me, it just dives in and breaks things. Took out another boom which are made of the cheapest carbon fiber on this planet. So thin walled any kind of hit will snap them. And motor mounts? Forget it, broke so many I cant count them either. I bought the X-650 V-4, and a little later I did the V-8 conversion. I was told that if it lost a motor for what ever reason the other one on the mount could handle it well enough to land safely. Total BS! Right after the conversion on my first test flight, one of the motors power plug came loose and over it went. It was only 4 feet up and hovering but it still broke a motor mount, and you know by now how much fun that is to change huh? It was my fault all the way for the plug falling out in the first place, but point is, having twice as many motors does nothing for redutancy. You can lift a little more, but flight times are a lot less than the V-4. I have the GPS and compass with auto pilot and it all works ok, but for the come home feature. Hitting the switch for come home is the same as a self destruct switch. I lowered the gain on the return to home from 50% to 30%. Still it will rocket across the sky faster than you would think a quad can the second you hit the switch. But what sucks big time, is that for some reason mine always heads in the wrong direction now! First few times, it was ok. But it was far too "jerky" when come home engaged it's self. But it did more or less come back to me, of course I had not moved from where it took off from. As well I normaly wait till I get the "slow" green flashing light on top of the GPS, showing that I have at least 9 satellites. My compass is calibrated, and the AHRS perfect. I know how to set it up, but Im not having the best luck. As far as worse crash so far, last time I hit come home and saw that again it was not comming my way I shut off come home and that made it rock back ward fast enough to throw it up side down at high speed right into the top of a large tree. Parts flew all over the place, the battery, gps unit, my Go pro camera, were thrown 50 feet away. None of the stuff was hurt because it landed in tall grass 4 feet high lucky for me. But the rest of the X-650 V-8 was wrapped around several branches. Three broken booms, had the wireing only holding the motors on, and the wires were all twisted around the many branches up high in the tree. Im 58 years old. My behind DOES NOT belong high up in a tree crawing out on a limb, hanging by one hand and trying to un tangle the wreckage with the other, but I did it any way of course.:tennis:
No reason to try to carry it down with me even if I could have, so I tossed it to the ground from up there and got my butt down. My X-650 was "Humpty Dumped". But since I have had so much repair practice, I had it fixed in a couple hours. And as luck would have it, I had just recieved in the mail the spare parts I was sure I would need after the last disaster.

 

[Tomstoy2]

Well, I had my 4th fpv crash on the 4th, and I was LOS at the time!

My f450 is a little underpowered, having used everything but the gu344 from my old 330-s. FC is my pos fy91q.
I went to my buddies farm and he wore the goggles.
I shouldn't have gone up in it as the wind was atrocious! After about 5 minutes of getting hammered around by the wind I got throw inverted close to the ground and down she went. Only damage, a broken prop.
No more flying with the 91q. I give up.

Took my Hexa out next and it handled the wind supurb!