Group Build 2014, DJI NAZA/F450 Quadcopter!

[AboveAllAP]

As you noted in the video, mounting the Zenmuse is not provided for. I got a bald spot from scratching my head trying to figure out how to attach the gimbal onto the bottom of my 550.

So I've ordered some square carbon fiber tubes and strips to epoxy together a mount for my gimbal and landing gear. http://ctrl.me/F450-Al-Landing-Gear

I plan to locate the camera forward and have a shelf out back for battery and video downlink Tx.

I have the Zenmuse mounted on my F550. If you want I can post more pictures this is all I had handy.



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Below is how a friend mounted his... not quite as pretty but functional

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[Bartman]

thanks for posting those pictures. a little creativity goes a long way when things like this have to be resolved.
Bart

 

[coreyperez]

To that end, understand that you can hurt someone by flying your new helicopter so you've got to be careful and methodical as you learn to fly it and in the future as you attempt to expand your operating envelope.

All,
I can’t stress enough if you aren’t familiar with flying these types of craft/RCs to invest some money and get one of the little indoor multi-rotor quads. I got a QR Ladybird, and I have learned WELL more than my initial $60 investment. I’ve crashed this thing so many times I’d probably have become discouraged with the entire idea and just given up on the dream had it been my 550 Hex.

I’m coming to you with this idea even after crashing my ladybird so bad I’m now awaiting parts for a repair AND purchased another BNF (Bind and Fly) ladybird as a spare. The takeaway from this is I’m currently out $7, vs possibly hundreds of dollars while learning. PLUS, the mode of flight with this little bugger is 100% manual, thus making the assisted modes of flight a piece of cake (I hope).

I really hope that the initial $60 doesn’t seem like too big of a deal. Consider how much you will really be out if you ball-up your full blown MR!

Just a friendly suggestion…

Corey

 

[jbrumberg]

Corey- I agree 110%. I elaborated at your other post. Jay

 

[Bartman]

Corey- I agree 110%. I elaborated at your other post. Jay

+1...most of the micro quads that are out there are worthy of consideration as a first heli if, for nothing else, the goal is to get airborne and figure out what the sticks do.

i've got a Blade MQX and it's perfect for learning and a lot of fun to fly just for the heck of it.

 

[gringers]

+1...most of the micro quads that are out there are worthy of consideration as a first heli if, for nothing else, the goal is to get airborne and figure out what the sticks do.

i've got a Blade MQX and it's perfect for learning and a lot of fun to fly just for the heck of it.

+1 also! I have zero experience in anything multirotor (for now) except for the MQX but they are great fun just to zoom around with! I've managed some spectacular stunts...cough...crashes with my MQX's but despite that, they are remarkably resilient little fellas!

Spectacular thread and idea for a group build, really good stuff in here - thanks. I'll try to chip in too as I get underway

I think I probably posted a ton of questions in completely the wrong place but if anyone can help me out here I'd be grateful for any feedback!
http://www.multirotorforums.com/showthread.php?16197-Another-UK-er-(run-for-cover!)

 

[COMike93yj]

Thanks Bart!

I gathered as much but wanted you to chime in on this! Your synopsis makes sense but I have a question.....

The Propeller has a TON to do with the "draw" on the entire "current system"......something that folk's don't readily appreciate and I am JUST beginning to comprehend that. WHY WAS I ASLEEP IN EE CLASSES!!!!

There is ANOTHER factor that also plays into account as well as I am learning and that is the ESC (Different subject but still on topic).

I agree with you and use eCalc for my computations and ALSO look at what folks are using for successful builds but I still have reservations on the whole "C" rating on batts....NOT the "C" rating for charging but the "C" rating overall.

From what I understand if a battery that has a 25 -35 C rating means that it can UNDER NOMINAL conditions provide 25C (25 times the mAh) to whatever source needs to draw from it. If the same battery NEEDS to gather some more "OOMPH" it can go up to the 35C rating (35 times the mAh) but it is not ideal.

Did that make sense or am I missing something?

I have also found that the "C" rating is kind of a nebulous thing when it comes to different manufacturers from my calls to folks.


Back on TOPIC for our Group Build....


What would you recommend for our needs (with the "secret" camera stuff you mentioned earlier )

Mike

Thoughts????

Great vids and explanation on the Naza manual......I am not doing that "yet" but well thought out!

Cheers,

Mike

 

[electra96]

Hi folks. I also have zero experience with building/flying these things but I should get my first "learning multirotor" today from UPS. Thankfully I did some reading here and didn't just jump in with both feet after I decided I wanted to try some are aerial photography. Reading here I learned I needed to learn to crawl before I walk. I want to build based on the F450 also so I have sub'd to this thread. I have read all 23 pages and you guys sure know your stuff. I look forward to learning more here.

 

[jbrumberg]

Welcome electra96- Research, research, research, buy a cheap "toy" grade and practice, practice, practice, and while you're at it, "..... and it's perfect for learning and a lot of fun to fly just for the heck of it". Post freely and often and have fun. This is supposed to be fun.


And speaking of fun- It's snowing here today. You know what? I have a little plastic poncho I made from an old plastic shower curtain for my Tx, and I have 4 operational "toy" grade quads that are winterized, and I have 6 600mAh batteries charging as I type.... We are going to go out and play in the snow later. I would not do that with my brand new quad build that is all of 1 day? or 2 days old? How do you age these things? From the first liftoff? From the first crash?

Keep em flying

Jay

 

[coreyperez]

Well after Bart's last video and the discussion about the Naza manual I've opted to download it and print (in color). I'm now going through and doing my initial preview/review of the manual. I did this just to get a baseline of information before I get to that point where I'm trying to run through the electronics step and now I will have better understanding of all the steps.

Thanks Bart!

I've finally got all my parts ordered and enroute to Korea. This includes two different types of Dynamic Balancers for the motor/props.

STOKED!

Corey

 

[jbrumberg]

Good luck Corey. Stay safe and keep us posted. Jay

 

[JoeBob]

Regarding photos from AboveAllAP - Zenmuse to 550:

So THATS what that little bracket is for!
Thank you.

 

[gomotomoto]

Hi Bartman, great stuff here. Thanks so much -- this is super nice to have on hand as a beginner. Quick question for ya on the radio selection. If I'm leaning toward building an dji 550 with a gimble, what would be the minimum number of channels I would need?

Again, thanks so much for putting all the time and effort into this. So helpful. Awesome job.

 

[Crisp image]

Minimum of 6 but that leaves you no room to move. I use an 8 ch and some times would like a few more. Buy once buy right.
Regards
Crispy

Sent from my GT-I9210T using Tapatalk

 

[AboveAllAP]

Regarding photos from AboveAllAP - Zenmuse to 550:

So THATS what that little bracket is for!
Thank you.

Well not really but thats what I used it for :nevreness:. With these builds you often have to come up with creative uses of whatever you have available on hand or what is easily sourced... which will be easily replicated in the event of crashes / damage. A bit of DIY is good also because it gives you more working knowledge of how things go together... off the shelf solutions are great until something goes wrong or you can no longer get them... if you have done it yourself then you can do it again..... and perhaps improve it.

Thats why i like these forums. the knowledge that is freely shared is fantastic. Everyone wants to see everyone else succeed and not make the same mistakes they may have.

 

[coreyperez]

Minimum of 6 but that leaves you no room to move. I use an 8 ch and some times would like a few more. Buy once buy right.
Regards
Crispy

Now hold on... This isn't "You can have any color you want as long as its black" discussions...

There are MANY choices out there. Don't let anybody pigeon hole you into thinking their favorite flavor of apple flavored Kool-aid is the ONLY flavor. I personally usually get the best I can afford. In my instance of radio I opted to get a $50 Turnigy 9XR. Hear me out:

The 9XR has a HUGE following. It can be used with numerous transmitter modules and receivers. So if you opt to change in the future it’s not a huge setback.
Now many people will say “it sucks, it’s this, it’s that, blah blah blah… Not true. If that was the case they wouldn’t be so popular.

My intention was to use it to get flying, get moving and keep costs low. Keep in mind there are better systems (assuming they are better, they cost 8 times more…). But if you were to get an inexpensive 6 channel radio and finally grew out of it, just keep in mind you could always use it for a gimbal controller. That would afford you the opportunity to give the control of the camera to a friend, client, etc.

Really, you probably can’t go wrong with your initial radio. Provided you aren’t doing something like trying to see how far you can fly it away and get it back….

If you just want to get flying for cheap, get on Ebay and pick up an old 72mHz aviation radio (*MODE 2). The only difference is range and you have to watch out for the little antenna wire. But, it will get you flying, and for cheap.

(edited, I said 27mHz earlier, but was corrected by Sledge. Military doesn't really check to see if you are dyslexic any more)

Corey

 

[sledge57]

DON'T buy a 27mhz, it's also used for surface models and CB Radio, on old 72mhz would be better.

 

[Bartman]

you guys are sharp! you must be paying attention and those long hours of surfing multirotorforums.com are paying off!

with the NAZA you'll need
Throttle
Rudder
Pitch
Roll
Flight mode
and maybe
Failsafe

Then, if you also want IOC, or camera tilt you'll need additional channels.

So 6 is the minimum with some ability to program a mix (for the failsafe function) and 8 or 9 in order to take advantage of the more advanced functions.

A turnigy 9X is fine I guess, I don't know a lot about them but if you look at my pics I'm using an Orange receiver which is probably made in the same factory as the 9X if I had to guess.

Like Corey said, it's an ok first radio and will be a perfectly fine radio for a camera operator if you ever decide to go that route.

I've been away so I apologize for yet another pause in the build's progress. I'll try to get it moving again this week.

Bart

 

[gomotomoto]

The 9XR has a HUGE following. It can be used with numerous transmitter modules and receivers. So if you opt to change in the future it’s not a huge setback.

for the purpose of a first build, $50 sounds awesome. If I can't find a FrSky radio this week (out of stock everywhere), I'm going to go this route too.

You guys have inspired me to join in, so can you let me know if I need to pick up anything additional to that $50 9xr, I assume that doesn't come with a receiver? Which receiver did you go with?

 

[coreyperez]

Its got 9 channels.

http://turnigy9xr.com/

From what I understand (forums..) that FrSky version is supposed to be even better. But like every other Ford vs. Chevy, Domestic vs. Import argument.. Its all about what YOU want. I only opted to get the 9xr because of the cost, I didn't plan on flying more than a hundred or so feet away while doing aerial work.

BUT...

I've just recently fell TOTALLY in love with the "Honey Badger" (FPVLabs)... TOTALLY STOKED! If this thing arrives before the rest of my F550 parts, the 550 is going to sit in a box for a long time... L O N G time... This is only enforced by my increasing disgust, distrust, annoyance by DJI FC's and their apparent issues. A fly-away with nearly 2k worth of stuff is absolutely unacceptable. Once I work out the learning curve with the KK board and the Multiwii (I got both for learning on the HB Frame) I may just go their route. Plus, if I can fly manual who needs that sissy GPS fancy pants stuff!

Well, back to FPV component Research!

Corey