An Old Fool With a Yen For The Sky

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ChrisMohrSr

Member
I am an 84 year old retired photographer. I was born in Brooklyn, New York and worked as a public relations representative for Rockefeller Center, Inc.
I moved my family to California in 1965. One of various positions I had in California was as Film Librarian for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
in Pasadena until they moved the Film Library up to northern California to save it from NASA cutbacks. I am a 3D aficionado and have been using the same
Stereo Realist camera since 1952 to shoot over four thousand stereo slides. My end goal is to eventually do some FPV aerial videography.

I have a WLToys V949 quad and a WLToys V959 quad, neither of which I can get to hover. I also have that Walkera MX400 which keeps tipping over every
time I attempt to get it off the ground. This is the bird I wanted to use for FPV aerial videography eventually, but I haven't enough knowledge of rc aircraft to
figure out what is wrong and no one seems to be able to give me any real help or advice.

I have just aquired (perhaps foolishly . . . and, after all, there is no fool like an old fool) an AeroSky 550 Hexacoptor and that is going to be the subject of my very first
post.


 

ChrisViperM

ChrisViperM

Active Member
Hello Chris

First of all, you are not foolish....you are a hero !!!

While lots of people already calculate their retirement at the age of 50, your spirit seems to be of a youngster......keep that up.

The WLToysV949 and V959 don't seem to be very well known copters in our forum, so you might not get a lot of help here, the Walkera MX400 I am also not sure about.....but check out the videos for your copters:

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Walkera+MX400&aq=f

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=WLToys+V959&aq=f

Some are rubbish, but if you did enough, you will find some helpful set-up videos there.


In general, all the advertising leads to the conclusion that this hobby is just about buying the toy-box, plugging in the battery and lift off into the sky. Since you got no experience at all with RC-stuff, it might take some time tackle it, but with your sipit you should be able to manage.

As for your specific problem with the MX400, first step would be to read the manual....not once, but 10x. If there is any words in the manual you don't understand (like ESC, Stabilisation Mode,...) stop reading the manual and use Mama Google until you have a clear understanding what these words mean....that's the hardest part, 'cause in the beginning every answer will arise 3 more questions.....don't get frustrated, we all had to go through this.

If your MX400 keeps plipping over, you might have set the wrong flight-mode (Manual, Altitude, Gps), the wrong blade could be on the motors (some turn left-CCW, some turn right-CW)....but the manual would tell you more, or you might have any switch on your Transmitter in the wrong position. If you have a chance, try to find a hobby-shop which is selling these copters and let them explain to you how these things work.

For the V959 I found a good review which might help you to get some background info: http://droneflyers.com/2013/03/review-wltoys-v959-2-4g-4-axis-4ch-rc-quadcopter-with-camera/


Also try to find some videos about general technical basics on Mutirotors:




....also here:

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Basic+Quadcopter+Tutorial&aq=f

....and here: http://myfirstdrone.com/


I hope I could get you going at least the first step....a lot to follow, but you are a great and should manage



All the best...



Chris
 
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Bluerex

Bluerex

Member
Welcome ChrisMohr :tennis:
I addition to ChrisV's very practical suggestions, I would also think about purchasing a good flight simulator. When I first started crashing (i mean flying) copters I spent more time repairing than actually flying. The sim was a couple of hundred bucks well spent. I have tried a couple but Aerosim suits me best http://www.rc-drones.com/flightsimulator.php

Charles.
 

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ChrisMohrSr

Member
Hi Chris,

Thanks for the videos. I am just about fed up with the Chinese Multirotor Vendors.I have two WL Toys V949 quads and one WL Toys V959 quad.
I have not been able to gain control of any of these quads. I would normally chalk it up to my incompetence and lack of coordination except that I have been
able to master the flight characteristics of a little black toy helicopter belonging to my grandson after a few minutes of application. This state of affairs
caused me some confusion until I read a post wherein the contributor stated that these WLToys quads are not as well manufactured as their descriptive ads
would suggest. Maybe only one out of ten is manufactured to the necessary tolerances needed to make it airworthy by radio control. What made me believe
more firmly in this assertion was watching a video wherein the contributor flew a V959 all around his basement recreation area to the extent of complete hands
off operation of the transmitter.

This began to make sense of my inability to make any one of my three machines achieve a respectable hover no matter how I maneuvered the sticks or applied
the countless suggestions I received from the various forums. I try to do adequate research before purchasing a product, but no matter what I do or who I
choose it seems I must end up dealing with China. AND, there's the rub. All these guys seem to adhere to the same business practice. Poor communication,
incomplete or downright WRONG instructions, some instructions in Chinese and most of the time a seemingly complete indifference to the customer's needs.

Maybe I should change my moniker from foolish old man to grumpy old man.
 

C

ChrisMohrSr

Member
Bluerex said:
Welcome ChrisMohr :tennis:
I addition to ChrisV's very practical suggestions, I would also think about purchasing a good flight simulator. When I first started crashing (i mean flying) copters I spent more time repairing than actually flying. The sim was a couple of hundred bucks well spent. I have tried a couple but Aerosim suits me best http://www.rc-drones.com/flightsimulator.php

Charles.
Click to expand...

Hi Charles,

I long ago bought a simulator and became quite proficient at using it, but found out that no matter how skilled I became with the simulator I still could not get my quads to perform even a bad hover.
 



Bluerex

Bluerex

Member
ChrisMohrSr said:
I still could not get my quads to perform even a bad hover.
Click to expand...
It sounds like it is hardware+flight controller that is letting you down. "Some" Chinese gear is quite good, some of it is as you say is rubbish - sorting one from the other can be a long (expensive) and frustrating process. There is an unfortunate correlation between cost and flyability - the cheaper (dare I say "toy" level) copter can be flown well, but it always seems that a higher skill level is required. The trick is to find a decent flight controller to manage the flying process for you.
Flight controller choice is almost a matter of religion and once committed we tend to keep to a brand or family of products. As a personal preference I like the DJI range of controllers BUT it depends on local support and also how comfortable you are at a degree of DIY construction.
If I was starting over, I would seriously consider something like a TBS Discovery with a Naza controller. While I am not endorsing some of the antics that TBS get up to, the Discovery is a great bit of gear, and they have a good distribution network so the support should be there when you need it.
Just my 2c as they say, Your Mileage May Vary

C
 

kloner

kloner

Aerial DP
na, theres millions of em. Your not too far from us. We fly out in Carlsbad alot off the cliffs over the ocean. if you ever wanna see how it's done or got any questions hit me up and we will meet up out there.
 

C

ChrisMohrSr

Member
Bluerex said:
It sounds like it is hardware+flight controller that is letting you down. "Some" Chinese gear is quite good, some of it is as you say is rubbish - sorting one from the other can be a long (expensive) and frustrating process. There is an unfortunate correlation between cost and flyability - the cheaper (dare I say "toy" level) copter can be flown well, but it always seems that a higher skill level is required. The trick is to find a decent flight controller to manage the flying process for you.
Flight controller choice is almost a matter of religion and once committed we tend to keep to a brand or family of products. As a personal preference I like the DJI range of controllers BUT it depends on local support and also how comfortable you are at a degree of DIY construction.
If I was starting over, I would seriously consider something like a TBS Discovery with a Naza controller. While I am not endorsing some of the antics that TBS get up to, the Discovery is a great bit of gear, and they have a good distribution network so the support should be there when you need it.
Just my 2c as they say, Your Mileage May Vary

C
Click to expand...

Fifty years ago I built my own television set. I was quite handy with vacuum tubes, resistors and capacitors. I am 84 years old now, and just don't have the time nor the patience to get into the technology of multirotor aircraft. I just feel that when I pay for something to perform a certain function, as advertised, that something should do just that. I really don't think I should have to study up on technology that I have already paid others to incorporate into the product for which I am paying.

But that's just me.
 

C

ChrisMohrSr

Member
I would LOVE to do that kloner, but I'm pretty well restricted by arthritis and can't drive more than a moderate distance. I can't drive at all at night anymore because my night vision is about gone. Truth is, with all the kooks on the road these days, I'm pretty paranoid about driving at all.
 

bensid54

bensid54

Member
You have likely thought of this already but here goes. I have a Blade QX that is super easy to fly when set up per instructions using my Spectrum D6i radio and I find with that little machine that it MUST initialize on dead level ground or it will fly on a list or some of the blades won't spin. Plug it in let it sit for a minute on flat level ground and that little guy is a perfect flyer, it also doubles as a flight sim because you can pile it up and it will fly again without repairs almost all the time. Maybe you might want to start out on one of those then go big after you master that. I too have RA and ostio but you find find a good quad is more finger friendly than a CCPM RC helicopter.
 
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Z

Zelon

Member
Hi Chris
Welcome to the hobby.Don't get frustrated.It takes time.
+1 on the Blade Nano Qx.A beginners dream and for people who already fly just tons of fun.
You can pick a RTF for $90.00 and I think you would be pleasantly surprised at how easy it is to fly.
A better option would be to get a BNF and a DX6 radio for a few dollars more.This would enable you to tame it down until you get your feet wet.
It's a tiny little guy ,so no problem flying inside your home.
Good luck. mike
 

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