Noob has $700 that must be spent. Please help!

[Time Machine]

Hello everyone.

I am brand new in the Quadcopter world with almost zero experience. I purchased a small $50 quad that I have been practicing with the last few weeks. I am a long time avid RC car guy (been in the hobby since the 1980's), so I feel like I do bring some form of RC experience to the table.

Anyways, I am in the process of selling off most of my RC cars and want to focus on quadcopters. I have a son who is three weeks old and two home mortgages. My chance to buy a nice quad is right now, so this purchase must be made ASAP, as the money might not be available down the road.

I am looking for a quad that is on the larger side, fast, easy to fly, easy to find parts for, and upgradable. I will be flying and doing aerial photography and video. I'm not into FPV or anything like that. I would also like a quad that accepts full size lipo battery like we use in the RC car world. I have an abundance of 2S/3S batteries from 3000mah up to 5000mah. Is there anything like this on the market?

With all of that being said, what is the best bang for the buck? My local Hobbytown USA tried to sell me the Blade 350 for roughly $799, but I didn't have enough knowledge to commit to the purchase.

I would like to purchase the quad now, but not actually fly it until I'm a "pro" on my current cheap quad. I'm a patient guy so I won't be tempted to jump into it too soon.

How should I spend the $700?

 

[Bartman]

have you looked at our Group F450 Build in the Beginners' Lounge? If you're not in a rush then building your own will be maximum bang for the buck.

 

[Time Machine]

Thanks Bartman. I haven't seen the thread, but I will go take a look. It would have to be awful simple for a dummy like me to follow and actually build one, so I'm kind of leaning towards buying one.

 

[Time Machine]

Also, I'm open to spending less. If a couple hundred dollar quad works well for what I need, I'm open to it. It just allows me to buy several...lol

Honestly, I just want something nice that I won't "outgrow" for quite a while.

 

[Motopreserve]

I think Bart is right. If you are looking to get all the things you mentioned - and still keep it in your budget, the group build would be a great way to go.

Keep in mind you need to get a radio as well - so that adds to the overall cost.

 

[Bartman]

Just read your first post again, you'll probably want to run dual 3s packs in series to get 6s power for the help, or dual 2s at the very least.

The first question really ought to be, for aerial media, what camera do you want to fly? Everything else goes from that little detail.

 

[Time Machine]

Thanks for the help Bartman.

I am not into photography and don't plan on getting too involved. I am just interested in getting some pretty crisp video and photos that every noobie is looking for.

I have been eyeballing this Eturbine quad, but I'm not sure it's a good deal or what I need. I love the look of it.

http://www.gearbest.com/rc-quadcopters/pp_244966.html

 

[Motopreserve]

Thanks for the help Bartman.

I am not into photography and don't plan on getting too involved. I am just interested in getting some pretty crisp video and photos that every noobie is looking for.

I have been eyeballing this Eturbine quad, but I'm not sure it's a good deal or what I need. I love the look of it.

http://www.gearbest.com/rc-quadcopters/pp_244966.html

That looks to be an FPV racer style quad. The camera on there would really only be for flight - not exactly crisp.

Do you own a gopro already?

 

[Time Machine]

Thanks Motopreserve.

Now that you mention it, I guess I am confused as to the FPV style quad versus the other types. I better do some research and figure out the basics.

I do not own a go pro yet, I was thinking that it might be a better value to purchase a quad with camera already installed. But that's just speculation on my part.

 

[Motopreserve]

At this point you may actually get a better bang for the buck with a camera that comes with the package. If you add a gopro to the cost of the craft - you're going to quickly be beyond your budget.

While not all FPV racers are the "H" style, many are. I was talking more about the size. If the quad is small, say 180-250mm motor-to-motor or so, that's typically going to be set up to go fast and not carry a lot of payload.

Bart is correct when he suggests figuring out what camera (or even the video quality) you are looking for - and base your research and decision on that.

Might also be worth taking a look in the classifieds to see if anyone is getting rid of something that fits your needs in the budget.

 

[John Doecliff]

A lot of guys start out with a DJI phantom and quickly out grow it. Its on par with the blade 350 they tried to sell you. If your handy with soldering and such I would recommend a flamewheel 450 kit. It's the next logical step. only thing is you need a radio too. You don't have to go with a go pro camera either. There are go pro knockoffs like the SJ 4000 or even the Mobius that are completely fine and 1/4 the cost of a go pro. Don't rule out buying used but admittedly it would be hard if your new to the hobby. You can get a Taranis radio for $200. and probably find a ARF (almost ready to fly) flamewheel kit with a flight controller, motors, ESC's for less than $400. I would suggest going to you tube and looking up the flame wheel 450. There are a ton of build logs to show you how to do everything you need. Its an all around real good quad. Plus there's tons of spare parts available for when you crash and break an arm or whatever.

 

[Motopreserve]

No need to scour youtube, the build thread that @Bartman mentioned will walk you through all the steps.

There are probably a few 1-click options now that we're not available at the time, like the newer DJI propulsion system packages.

 

[Time Machine]

Ok, so I have been on a spending spree this morning, taking advantage of pre- Black Friday sales. So far, I have bought all of this, whether I needed it or not...lol

I got the Quanum Nova RTF for $140

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=68861

I picked up the Fat Shark FPV system on sale for $199

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=68597


I bought a GoPro Hero 3 and an Immersion 600mw 5.8ghz transmitter (for down the road).

So now the fun begins. The FPV equipment was a spontaneous purchase and won't be used for a very long while as I have enough to figure out. I got everything for less than $550, so I still have some room in my budget for things that I might need (such as some mount for the FPV camera that moves with my head movements?).

I'm sure I will be a regular here now as I get totally confused along the way. I might try and find a flyer that is local to me for some much needed help.

 

[Motopreserve]

I think you'll be able to find all the help you need right here on the forum - but it's also fun to have someone local that you can build with.

Make sure you work into the budget some extra props. Best to order them now - so you don't find yourself waiting when you need them.

Seems like you'll have 2 VTX since one came with the Fatshark bundle.

Have fun and fly safe!

 

[John Doecliff]

I second that on the extra props. Consider extra battery's too and read up on lipo battery's cause there's things worth knowing about them. I'm really interested in learning how the quanum nova works out for you. It's a phantom clone type quad but hopefully a good quad for your first. Fly conservatively and it will last a long time, be a daredevil and it won't.

 

[Time Machine]

Thanks John. When I saw that the quad was on sale, I hurried up and scoured the entire interwebz and looked for reviews. It appears to be a rebadged cx-20(?) which received a lot of positive reviews.

For the price, I don't think I could go wrong. $140 doesn't buy much.

I might buy a 250 size quad for the FPV equipment I purchased as I might be trying for a little too much on a single quad.

I will update as soon as everything arrives.

 

[Motopreserve]

Am I correct in thinking that that quad runs an APM flight controller? If so, make sure you starting reading now - there can be a bit of a learning curve with that thing!