Group Build 2014, DJI NAZA/F450 Quadcopter!


Varney

Member
hey all,

First i was planning on building a quad based upon another frame (650 one).
But honestly the more information i was getting here on the forum and elsewhere, the more i saw that i still have to learn.
Its soo much, basic electronics, soldering, flying ...
So for once in my life i decided to do the smart thing and i decided to chime in here and follow this build, as it has very clear yet detailed info available in this thread and in the videos.
This way i have a clear example to follow and a nice place to come too should i run in trouble.

This morning i went ahead and ordered me an F450 kit with the naza-m lite + gps combo wich at first i will use with an old multiplex 8 channel tx+rx (wich i still have laying around from an old heli, so it helps spreading the initial cost a bit) but later on i plan on changing it for a frsky tanaris.
Not sure about the batteries and charger yet , but will definitally be able to choose one with all the info on that topic here.

also ordered me a blade nano to start learning to fly while i'm enjoying the building part of his big brother.
 

Bartman

Welcome to MultiRotorForums.com!!
All very good decisions Varney! You'll be surprised how much what you've been reading will make sense once you've done a complete build yourself.

Maybe it's the fact that airplanes are airplanes and cars are cars so there's an intuitive element that makes them easier to understand whereas multi-rotor helicopters are contraptions that rely entirely on black box magic to function making them harder to really understand?
 

Varney

Member
a lot allready started making sense (compared to when i started the reading) but then again i read and read again, watched every movie that had some instructional quality. but still there is a lot i dont get, and a lot i do understand but only in an abstract way. and i fully agree building it, step by step (babysteps and following your vids) will give me a much better understanding.
for now i summarized it to myself as following :

- learning the basics of how to fly (the nano)
- learning basics of building my own little flying monster, again in steps, focus on learning to solder. not connecting anything without understanding why i'm doing it like that
- learning to configure the naza
- learning to customize the tx
- learn to fly this in manual mode
- learn it in other modes
- dip into fpv

the good part about this ?

Its gonna take ages :) so much to look forward too

now where is my shipment ? :D
 

Varney

Member
Christmas was early this year ...

f450.jpg


Seems i got a newer e300 version , remember i saw a vid somewhere that said there were some difference in the build compared to the one used here in the group build, so ill have to do some checking up before following the guides here.

a quick question, i'm about to go look for the tiny things i need, is there anything i have to pay attention to when buying electrical wire, bullet connectors (like eg size) and solder ? And i need some connector for the battery, is one tye better as another ?
 

Gary Seven

Rocketman
@Varney, in addition to Bart's excellent videos you may want to look at this one by Marionville Multorotors. It's where I bought my F450 and I found it extremely indispensable for my build.
 

Varney

Member
@Gary Seven thanks, thats exactely the video i meant, outlining the difference from the older version. thanks for posting this, saved me tons of time looking for it. had no clue where i ever saw it. Will be a nice addition to barts great guide
 

Varney

Member
Was fun doing this for a very first time, this is my interpretation of the F450 :

f450a.jpg


and under the hood :

f450b.jpg


the receiver, power unit and led arent fixed yet, but this is how i plan to finish it after testing (unless someone sees something very stupid here :) ).
also the gps isnt fixed yet (i know the orientation is off, but didnt have any glue here at work)
havent soldered the cables for the battery yet as i'm still waiting to get the connectors, right now to test the receiver/naza i'm just using clamps to connect battery to power unit.
 


Varney

Member
tomorow daddy , tomorow :)

but thx , didnt think of it. just did a basic naza setup and got everything working, so little varney happy.
Tomorow before i power it up again, i promis to cover them, got the insulating tape right here.
now just being very very happy with the idea tomorow i can fix everything into its place. (just need to check motor directions, havent powered them up yet)
 

Gary Seven

Rocketman
tomorow daddy , tomorow :)

but thx , didnt think of it. just did a basic naza setup and got everything working, so little varney happy.
Tomorow before i power it up again, i promis to cover them, got the insulating tape right here.
now just being very very happy with the idea tomorow i can fix everything into its place. (just need to check motor directions, havent powered them up yet)
Good luck (and have fun) with your project!
 

Varney

Member
and its done, all soldering points covered. everything fixed in place.
this afternoon finishing off the naza setup with the assistant and checking motor rotations.
Then only have to wait for my battery connectors and a sunny sky.
 

Gary Seven

Rocketman
and its done, all soldering points covered. everything fixed in place.
this afternoon finishing off the naza setup with the assistant and checking motor rotations.
Then only have to wait for my battery connectors and a sunny sky.
Hey @Varney, congrats (looks like you and I log on at the same times). On your very first flight, I suggest that you take off in "Atti mode" as opposed to "GPS mode." Have fun!
 

Varney

Member
quick update on my noobyness, today i received my connectors so finally could connect the battery,
ofc after doing so i wanted to go test it. but since im not able to keep my blade nano in the air for 30 sec without crashing i was a bit affraid
but no, all went well, goes into the air so smooth and stays there (thx att mode)
 



eskil23

Wikipedia Photographer
At first i found the sheer size of this thread discouraging, but now I've finally browsed through all 70 pages. I got some good ideas and probably saved me a few future headaches. The parts to my F550 are starting to arrive and I'm going to start to assemble it next month. First I need to get my workbench in order. At the moment I don't have any.
 

Good morning....I'd like to ask peoples advice on using a completely separate power distribution board on a DJI F550 strictly for FPV devices and other things like LEDs. This would be fed from a second LiPo, the other LiPo connected to the built-in power distribution on the F550 lower frame plate and used solely for ESCs and flight control system. How have others built FPV and accessories into their builds?
 

Bartman

Welcome to MultiRotorForums.com!!
the video that shows soldering basics also shows how to scratch a new set of pads from the distribution pads in the lower frame plate.

run a voltage regulator (if you have to) from those leads and you can power whatever you'd like.
 

the video that shows soldering basics also shows how to scratch a new set of pads from the distribution pads in the lower frame plate.

run a voltage regulator (if you have to) from those leads and you can power whatever you'd like.
Thanks Bart, I was planning to do that but then I stumbled across power distribution boards when I was on the Hobbyking website and that got me thinking about other ways of connecting up FPV kit.
Would an 8 channel transmitter be enough for simple FPV?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

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