I wish I had known.... F550 purchase, build and first flights..

[mmurfitt]

Another top tip I read has answered another challenge I/we face, that is of safely transporting our Hexa's to and from flying locations.
The thread I read talked about transporting a F550 in a cymbal case, genius!
At least it would be genius if I didn't have landing gear which makes the total height of my F550 13"...however a little googling later and I discovered you can buy bass drum cases which measure 24" x 14", which would be perfect, so I've ordered one.
The only downside is you have to take the props off each time, but to be honest that's a fair price to pay especially as so far I've been transporting my F550 around in the boot of my car nestled in a massive duvet as well as driving like I'm chauffeuring Miss Daisy.

I'll post back here, hopefully with some photos, when the case arrives. I think I'm still going to need a little padding, but it should all be good...hopefully

 

[Fransvh]

I have some LED's, but I've not fitted them yet, to be honest I don't know where to draw the power from, so I've left them to one side till I figure that part out.
But I got them for exactly the reason you gave as I figured any help I can get is good help

Hi, I have led strips from HobbyKing, motor 1, 2 white, motor 3 red, motor 4, 5 orange and motor 6 green. I just soldered them to the power board on 4s, work well and doesn't get hot.
Works really well for orientation, even in daylight. At night.... WOW!!

 

[mmurfitt]

Hi, I have led strips from HobbyKing, motor 1, 2 white, motor 3 red, motor 4, 5 orange and motor 6 green. I just soldered them to the power board on 4s, work well and doesn't get hot.
Works really well for orientation, even in daylight. At night.... WOW!!

Really? Soldered them straight to the bottom plate power points?
If it's as easy as that then that will be something for me to do at the weekend..

 

[Fransvh]

Yes, soldered the ledstrips staight on the powerboard. Well did a test with a ledstrip on a 4s lipo, let it burn for a half hour. No problems. After installing I isolated all contacts with plasti dip.
View attachment 6987View attachment 6988View attachment 6989

 

[mmurfitt]

Yes, soldered the ledstrips staight on the powerboard. Well did a test with a ledstrip on a 4s lipo, let it burn for a half hour. No problems. After installing I isolated all contacts with plasti dip.

Nice, thanks Fransvh, I'll get soldering at the weekend..

 

[Davidhippo]

I second fransvh's suggestion solder straight onto the power board, that's what I've done, but mine's slightly simpler, green LED strip for front two arms and red strip for the back two arms.

Happy landings.

 

[almphoto]

I have been following your thread, and it has been quite helpful. I am getting ready to build my first F550. I am looking for a list of everything I will need to complete my build.

So far I have:

DJI F550 ARF Kit
DJI Naza
DJI Naza GPS Module/Antenna
Graupner E- Prop 10"X5
Naza FlameGear Landing Gear + GoPro Camera Mount
Hakko FX888 Soldering Station

I am ordering:

HYPERION G3 EX 5000 MAH 4S 14.8V 45C/90C LIPOLY PACK
HYPERION EOS0606I AC/DC Balance Charger
Futaba 8FG Super 2.4GHz FASST 14-Channel Airplane Radio System w/R6208SB

What other things will I need? Connectors, shrink tube, Expandable Braided Servo Wire Wrap, Locktite, Plasti Dip, etc., I don’t have a clue and would rather have it all when I start assembly.

 

[Leslie LP]

Great post and even better idea. I am definately a noob when it comes to the building of one of these multicopter kits.
I think it is easy to watch all those great Youtube videos and rush out and get in over you head. I did not know about FPV until I watched some of the DJI videos about 4 months ago. I did know about mulicopters and did purchase a Blade MQX last year. I did some simple led mod to it and master basic flying techniques and was hoping that they would build a larger model.

The DJI kits can start off in the sub $350 range for the F550 but I think some of us go all in way too soon. I think for some of these models a new radio is justifiable, you will need at least 6 channels and more if you want to use a gimble for a camera. The DX8 was my choice since it also took care of my reciever. I come from a micro Blade Heli background so RTF and BTF litter my collection, so having a reciever is all new. Then there is the battery and chargers that add to the cost.
Like said many times on here, a GOOD SOLDERING IRON is an absolute, look at watts as the best guide. I can only recommend a 65watt, will allow quick and easy tinning of 14gage wire and quickly gives you those shiny silver solder joints on your boards. Those little EC3 are cute but a real pain to clamp down, solder and hookup correctly (that whole male/female large mount small mount can easily be messed up).
I have spent over $1,800.00 on DX8, Hyperion Charger, 2 4S Lipo, 2X DJI F550 kits yes two and Naza N with GPS.
I will wait for my flying to get great and keep reading these forums before I throw a FPV system into the mix.
Having said all the above, when you are in the air and in control of your bird its all worth it and there is never enough battery or good weather.
Oh one more thing, I will be putting my name and contact phone number on my new F550 just in case:highly_amused:

 

[Jim in Massachusetts]

Leslie wrote: " I will be putting my name and contact phone number on my new F550 just in case"

Two ways to look at that. A good way might be:

It comes down unexpectedly and you cannot find or retrieve it. Someone honest finds it, then reads your contact info (and reward notice) and returns it.

Second scenario, it comes down on top of somone's parked corvette, they know who to call for the co$t of repair$.

Third scenario: Anything with a worse than scenario two.

 

[Leslie LP]

Having had one F550 go awol for about 45min before locating it under a tree in front of someone's house. Scenario 2 and 3 have occured to me :highly_amused:.

 

[Higear]

If you are a AMA member and flying at a sanctioned field you have insurance.
This is a good way to learn how to fly safely and get used to your aircraft.
You also have the benefit of other flyers offering advice weather you want it or not!

 

[mmurfitt]

Hey Higear, we have something similar in the UK which offers insurance and indemnity insurance, so while it won't cover the cost of a broken hexa it will cover you if you injure someone...which I guess is more important anyway.

 

[mmurfitt]

More stuff I've learned..

I've been out this morning to fly using 'atti' mode, which I now have a much better understanding of. It makes flying much simpler not having to worry about the altitude of the hexa although there is around a 3-4ft altitude gain from the 'set altitude' which certainly keeps you concentrating when you're only flying 10 foot high (I'm still flying the hexa around 10ft off the ground while I'm getting used to it).
A word of advice when out flying, take your time learning. If you have no experience flying (like me), just practice the basics, sounds simple, but it's so easy to ignore.

Stuff I'm working on..
- I snapped the small GPS rod in a crash, so after asking around this forum I've found loads of guys who've just fixed the gps dish thing on to an arm, so I've done this but not tested it yet...will update when I have.
I- 'm still struggling with setting up my DX8 correctly as at the moment I have the 'atti/manual' mode mapped to the 'Gear' switch, which is rubbish as I need it mapped to a 3 way switch for 'man / atti / gps'. Will update when I've figured this out.

- The intention with my hexa was to have a second person to operate the camera on board, and as such I've been installing a AV TX for the live feed. I discovered the tx had to have 11.1v, so I've bought another battery, a much smaller battery, for this express purpose. I'm reasonably sure I have everything installed correctly but I can't test it just yet as the av leads from the receiver won't plug in to the small 7" screen I'll be using, so I'm asking an AV expert friend of mine to see if he can help me out. Hopefully it'll be working in the next week or two.

I've also fitted some red LED's to the two red arms to help with orientation, I used them this morning and to be honest they didn't make much difference. This is mainly due to the hexa always facing away from me while I'm learning..!
So I'm thinking of fitting a different colour to the two rear arms...I'm just a little cautious about the small load it will put on the batteries, I know it's not a lot...but still..

I've ordered a bass drum carry box to keep my hexa in, it's not arrived yet, but when it does I'll photograph it and post it along with a link for anyone who's interested..

That's all folks, for the time being.

 

[Higear]

Heymmurfitt, I went to the field Sunday and talked to one of the club members that had several fingers almost cut off by a prop and the AMA paid for all the bills.
Well worth the annual AMA dues!

You might put some white leds on the front and the red in the back.
For me the white ones would be more visible.

 

[mmurfitt]

Heymmurfitt, I went to the field Sunday and talked to one of the club members that had several fingers almost cut off by a prop and the AMA paid for all the bills.
Well worth the annual AMA dues!

You might put some white leds on the front and the red in the back.
For me the white ones would be more visible.

Unfortunately I'm pretty sure the AMA won't cover UK residents.. Good idea though.

Can you see the white LED's during the day then?

 

[Higear]

Can you see the white LED's during the day then?

If they were bright enough I think you could see them.
It all depends on how sensitive your eyesight is.

I just ordered some and will try them out.
I hope they will look like landing lights.

 

[kloner]

red lights are best during the day. i tried em all

 

[Leslie LP]

More stuff I've learned..

I've been out this morning to fly using 'atti' mode, which I now have a much better understanding of. It makes flying much simpler not having to worry about the altitude of the hexa although there is around a 3-4ft altitude gain from the 'set altitude' which certainly keeps you concentrating when you're only flying 10 foot high (I'm still flying the hexa around 10ft off the ground while I'm getting used to it).
A word of advice when out flying, take your time learning. If you have no experience flying (like me), just practice the basics, sounds simple, but it's so easy to ignore.

Stuff I'm working on..
- I snapped the small GPS rod in a crash, so after asking around this forum I've found loads of guys who've just fixed the gps dish thing on to an arm, so I've done this but not tested it yet...will update when I have.
I- 'm still struggling with setting up my DX8 correctly as at the moment I have the 'atti/manual' mode mapped to the 'Gear' switch, which is rubbish as I need it mapped to a 3 way switch for 'man / atti / gps'. Will update when I've figured this out.

- The intention with my hexa was to have a second person to operate the camera on board, and as such I've been installing a AV TX for the live feed. I discovered the tx had to have 11.1v, so I've bought another battery, a much smaller battery, for this express purpose. I'm reasonably sure I have everything installed correctly but I can't test it just yet as the av leads from the receiver won't plug in to the small 7" screen I'll be using, so I'm asking an AV expert friend of mine to see if he can help me out. Hopefully it'll be working in the next week or two.

I've also fitted some red LED's to the two red arms to help with orientation, I used them this morning and to be honest they didn't make much difference. This is mainly due to the hexa always facing away from me while I'm learning..!
So I'm thinking of fitting a different colour to the two rear arms...I'm just a little cautious about the small load it will put on the batteries, I know it's not a lot...but still..

I've ordered a bass drum carry box to keep my hexa in, it's not arrived yet, but when it does I'll photograph it and post it along with a link for anyone who's interested..

That's all folks, for the time being.

Hi mmurfitt;
Most hobby shops carry an array of carbon fiber rods. I am sure you could find a replacement for the GPS antenna.

For your DX8 to 3 way switch. Its a combination of which Aux channel you choose to set up as the FM selector. You can remap in the Switch Select menu of the DX8. If you want to use the 2 way Gear switch as a Fail Safe on demand switch you can achieve this my playing around with the Mixing menu.
Good luck with the AV setup. I am not there yet. I am going to wait for them to build a GoPro Hero3 gimbal

 

[mmurfitt]

red lights are best during the day. i tried em all

I have red on the front two arms at the moment, which are ok, I was just hoping for something a little brighter. Although, I'd love to see what it looks like at night with red...however I think I'm a little way off flying at night - I can only just manage flying in full daylight

 

[mmurfitt]

Hi mmurfitt;
Most hobby shops carry an array of carbon fiber rods. I am sure you could find a replacement for the GPS antenna.

For your DX8 to 3 way switch. Its a combination of which Aux channel you choose to set up as the FM selector. You can remap in the Switch Select menu of the DX8. If you want to use the 2 way Gear switch as a Fail Safe on demand switch you can achieve this my playing around with the Mixing menu.
Good luck with the AV setup. I am not there yet. I am going to wait for them to build a GoPro Hero3 gimbal

I may try the carbon rod, my local hobby shop does indeed carry loads of them. I'm going to see if the gps works where I have it at the moment first, just to see...

I've had a look at the DX8 MIX channel a few minutes ago, I've even read through the manual, but I'm still not entirely clear on what maps to what and how the hexa knows what I've mapped in the TX... Got a few hours of Googling ahead of me I think

I'm actually a little surprised there aren't any YouTube videos showing how to set this sort of thing up. I've found one for a DX7, and while he makes available his settings by downloading his config file he doesn't show how he achieved those settings..