Crash affecting frame and propeller

I was flying in FPV, and didn´t realize about this small tree branches hanging close to the quad, so one propeller hit one of them and fell down, crashing against a rock with the arm of the frame. In my opinion braking an arm of this Whirldwild Fy450 is very unusual. This spare part is cheap though, so I had the replacement in a couple of days.

One propeller was also affected, so I had to replace it quick. I bought propellers for DJI, the only available at the local store, and they don´t fit really well into the motor cylinder. So I guess I might have some extra vibrations while recording...

Pitch control test and GPH3 FPV aerial

V009. Recording date: 12-01-2014

On this occasion, I've replaced the Turnigy 9XR transmitter for the Futaba 8FG Super with the R6208SB receiver. Is not that the Turnigy is giving me any trouble (maybe interferences with GPH3 WiFi https://vimeo.com/84377244?), but as I'm improving the equipment of the quad, I preffer to control it with a more reliable transmitter. This radio is excellent, and the settings are so easy and quick to configure. The transmission between the radio and the receiver is much faster with the Futaba, you can definitely feel this when flying.

I have also conected the pitch control of the Tarot T-2D gimbal to one free channel of the receiver, so now I can turn the camera face down using the right slider of the radio. I'm also transmitting the FPV video directly from the GoPro, so I can see exaclty what I'm recording. It takes a while until getting used to FPV trough the camera while it's being stabilized by the gimbal, as you loose reference of the quad position.

I replaced the plastic propellers with carbon fiber ones, so they won't brake on air, and they can help holding the weight (1.7kg) of the quad. I've noticed though, that some turbulences are created when descending vertically unless I do it really slow, or while moving it in any direction.

If you wonder about the crash at the end of the video... I connected the voltage alarm to the gimbal battery instead to the main one!! So it did not have power enought to hold the falling. Just minor damage, but happened to me twice already :O

Setup:

Frame Whirlwind FY450
BL-2830/11 1000kv rotors
20A SK ESC
10x4.5 Carbon fiber propellers
KK2 controller board
GoPro H3 black, 1080x60, N FOV
3300mAh 3S 20C battery
Futaba 8FG Super Transmitter
Futaba R6208SB receiver
Fatshark FPV camera
Fatshark Predator goggles
ImmersionRC 600mw Tx
1000mAh 3S 20C battery for video Tx
Gimbal Tarot T-2D
500mAh 3S 20C battery for gimbal
Plastic landing gear

Controlling the gimbal pitch with the Futaba 8FG Super

I´ve successfully connected the pitch of the Tarot T-2D brushless gimbal to the Futaba 8FG, so I´m able to control that movement with the right slider.  It is really easy to configure it with the Futaba.

I´ll probably control it with another position of the radio, because using the slider with the same hand that controls the forward-backward movement is a bit tricky if you want to obtain smooth movements. The slider is great though, because it allows you to choose the perfect position for your shots.

The gimbal already comes with the wire that connects the gimbal board with an empty channel in the receiver. To control the pitch you only need the white and black ones, connected as in the picture below.

Here is the gimbal attached to these tubes, so I can place it under the quad easily and quick, as you can see in a previous post about the Tarot T-2D brushless gimbal.

This is the video I've followed to have it working, I hope it can be useful to you too:

Replacing the Turnigy 9XR by the Futaba 8FG Super

December 2013. The display of my Turnigy 9XR suddenly stopped working one or two months ago, meaning I was not able to do any additional configuration, or able to move the pitch of the Tarot T-2D brushless gimbal.

I complained to HK about this faulty display, and they sent me back another 9XR for free. However I had to pay tolls, bad luck! Anyway, I´ll keep this new radio for future video purposes.

I´ve purchased a Futaba 8FG Super. Why? Well, I can´t say for sure that I suffered a quad signal lost because of the GoPro Hero 3 WiFi. But as you are adding electronics to the multicopter you prefer to control it with a more reliable transmitter. As there´s a lot of discussions about this, at the end you choose what works for you...

It comes with the Futaba receiver R6208SB

Futaba 8FG Super features and drivers here.

10x4.5 carbon fiber propellers

So! There I go with the carbon fiber propellers from dealextreme.com. They are not probably the best, but I want to try first how the quad behaves with these cheaper ones.

I had to balance them a bit, I use adhesive tape and works fine. And I had also to reduce a bit the size of the adapter rings I have from the plastic propellers. The one that come withing the package are a bit bigger and don´t fit the motor cylinder.

These are going to hold much better the weight of the quad, reaching now 1.8kg, avoiding the propellers to break in mid air and being more precise when flying.

Iconix-x FPV Foldable

I´ve been interested in acquire a new frame to replace the Whirlwind FY450, or as a new quad for maybe using it just for FPV. I had some recommendations, and these frames are the winners:

• hoverthings
• quav 500/400
• iconic-FPV

At the end I decide to buy the Iconic-x FPV with foldable arms, nice when you have to pack so it doesn´t need to much room. I´ve just assembled the frame but I haven´t done anything else with it yet. I hope I can build the quad soon! The quality of the frame is just perfect and nice.

Comparing the Iconic-x FPV with my current Whirlwind FY450, they are quite similar in size, but the Iconic has much more room for all the electronics.

These are some specs:

New FOLDABLE design layout,
Pure Rubber Vibration mounts seperating the 2 levels of the frame.
Custom 6061 Aluminum CNC milled arms
45mm Distro board ( removable)
Deans style plug included
8"-10" Prop choices
Purple Hex cap screws for top plate support
velcro straps for mounting battery and gopro

Here you can see some interesting videos about how to assemble it and other stuff about this frame.

Tarot T-2D gimbal test quad aerial footage

V007. Recording date: 19-10-2013

As I couldn't definitely get rid of vibrations and jello with other solutions (earplugs, moongel, etc), I bought the Tarot T-2D gimbal, also because a camera stabilization system is the only way to go for having good quality aerial (and not aerial) videos.

Comparing this video with my previous tests, the gimbal really makes a huge difference. It makes THE difference. When I saw the video, I was impressed with the results (although they can be much better!), I didn't have to modify the gimbal settings at all, it worked out of the box. I use a 500mAh 3S 20C for the gimbal, lasting around 1h30m.

In one hand I've improved video quality, but on the other hand I've added too much weight to the quad (gimbal + stuff to hold it + gimbal battery + landing gear), going up to 1.7kg, which is a lot, probably for the type of motors and of course for the simple plastic propellers (a few times they broke in the air because of the weight!).

Setup:

Frame Whirlwind FY450
BL-2830/11 1000kv rotors
20A SK ESC
10x4.5 Plastic HK propellers
KK2 controller board
GoPro H3 black, 1080x60, N FOV
3300mAh 3S 20C battery
Turnigy 9XR transmitter
FrSKY V8FR-II receiver
Fatshark FPV camera
Fatshark Predator goggles
ImmersionRC 600mw Tx
1000mAh 3S 20C battery for video Tx
Gimbal Tarot T-2D
500mAh 3S 20C battery for gimbal
Plastic landing gear