Best FPV Frame?

A

aSmallHero

Member
Hello All,

Looking to build my first FPV quadcopter. Already completed another quadcopter as practice and even ziptied my go-pro to it, which resulted in a lot of fun. Now I am trying to select what frame I should use and hoped to get some thoughts. I am looking for something that is fairly tough and can have a gimbal attached to it (or already is). I also want the gimbal/camera to be forward facing, resulting in a lower profile. Folding would be a plus (I want to take it backpacking and snowboarding).

Here are the ones I looked at so far... Am I missing some? Anyone have good/bad experiences I should know about?

Also, if I don't get a quadcopter that comes with a gimbal, what ones can you guys recommend (forward facing)? (Looking to spend ~$700 total on this build not including camera)

Thanks for the help guys!

- FPV new guy.

QAV500 FPV Quadcopter Frame -- $189; 500g
http://www.fpvmanuals.com/2012/05/01/qav500/
Pros: Looks nice, isolated section of the frame for camera
Cons: Not foldable, Aluminum arms, Unknown durability

Action Drone 1 -- $460; 508g
http://www.actiondroneusa.com/#!flying-platforms/c2rg
Pros: Has 2-axis gimbal system, Folds nicely
Cons: Expensive, Unknown durability

Flip FPV Frame -- $135; 410g
http://www.hoverthings.com/frame-sets/flipfpvblackorange2.html
Pros: Strong, Good Price
Cons: Not foldable, no gimbal system
Note: I didn’t like the FLIP 360 because although it folds, it does not allow any gimbals to be added to the front and the max prop size is 8 inches.

TBS Discovery Pro -- $599; UNKNOWNg
http://team-blacksheep.com/products/product:202
Pros: Looks Badass, nice 2-axis gimbal system
Cons: Expensive, Unknown durability, no folding

XuGong-10 -- $209; UNKNOWNg
http://www.getfpv.com/multi-rotor-frames/immersionrc/xugong-10-foldable-quadcopter-airframe.html
Pros: Nice, compact design and foldable. Easy servo mount if wanted (not brushless)
Cons: Looks fragile in case of crash
 

BenSkoning

BenSkoning

frozen in the north
Personally I wouldn't go with any of your links. I would go for the Cine-Tank MK1 (http://flyingcinema.com/cinetank.html) it does not have a gimbal but it is not really needed. You have a lot of space and they give you known good values for your FC. It is similar to the tbs discovery but it is not integrated (pro or con depending on your standing).

Hope this helps,
-Ben Skoning
 

Motopreserve

Motopreserve

Drone Enthusiast
+1 on the cinetank. Check out my review in the Product Reviews section.

The he gimbal that they've designed specifically for the Tank is supposed to be released in the next couple weeks. They have been doing extensive gimbal testing over the past few months. It will definitely be forward facing.

Even without out the gimbal - a gopro on the front gets some really stable footage due to the "clean" section design.

The stories of horrible crashes, and then slapping just new props on, and flying again are plentiful. It's truly a tank - but by design without being beastly heavy.

Definitely worth a check.
 

H

haha49

Member
I like the Hoverbot HB8 frame. You can set it up as an H quad or an X because you can adjust the arms it also folds up which is nice. The size of the motors are your choice so it's built to what you want. You can use 8, 10, 11, or even 12 inch props if you want. That's what I'm going to buy for my next frame. So many options to what you want it's durable as well.

http://hoverbotfpv.com/
 

R

RTRyder

Merlin of Multirotors
QAV500 - had one, flys well but the isolation bobbins between the "clean" and "dirty" sections are fragile to the point I would never pick mine up from the top so as to not stress the bobbins. They work well in compression which is how they're setup on the frame, but put them in tension by picking the frame up from the top extending them with the weight of the lower frame and they're likely to rip between the soft rubber and the metal holding the stud, forget about them surviving even the smallest crash landing. On top of that the alloy arms bend easily enough that I always kept a pair on hand, a rough landing that caused the end of the arm to hit before the landing gear was on the ground was sufficient to put a bend in them. Small tweaks you can usually put right by just bending it back by hand but do that enough times and the motor alignment is history. Unlike DJI and their $4.00 plastic arms , QAV arms are about $22 each last time I checked. After crashing mine twice hard enough to bend three out of four arms each time, I repaired it with new arms and sold it, hopefully the new owner has had better luck with it.

Action Drone - never owned one. My take as far as frames go is that if I can't get parts easily, or at the very least make replacements or repair broken ones, then I probably want to look at something else. Nothing like being unable to fly for a week or two because some widget unique to the frame broke and I have to wait for new one from the only source on earth that has them, something to consider regardless of which frame you are thinking of buying, especially expensive ones.

Flip FPV frame - currently have one flying, things are darn near indestructible! I've had a number of different flight controllers on mine and it has flown well with all of them, easy to get it dialed in even with Multiwii and the APM controllers. Currently have a Naza Lite on it and I'm using it as a dedicated FPV quad with only an FPV cam mounted, no GoPro or Mobius. I also have a pair of the Hoverthings Flip quads, non FPV versions. One I use as my main aerobatic quad and it has taken a beating and always survives. I have broken a couple arms on that one but never anything worse and its hit the ground hard enough to bury an arm all the way to the center plate. I use the Flip FPV for tree slaloming FPV style since I know it would take on H*ll of a crash to do any real damage to it.

TBS Discovery - while I don't have the Pro version I have 3 of the plain Jane model with various flight controllers and 3D printed mods. They're a good solid frame regardless of what configuration you have, from stock all DJI gear to custom builds with C/F tube arms and big motors. My only dislike is the limited amount of space to put things between the decks especially if you use the standard battery location, I solve that by hanging the packs underneath on custom made 3D printed battery hangers. My main FPV quad has pretty much been a Discovery frame since they hit the market, I've done just about everything you could imagine with one and crashed one of them hard enough to need a new set of frame plates although I managed to eventually salvage the lower one. I always have at least one ready to go off the shelf, just charge a pack and go fly. The other two are usually in flying condition but I do a lot of experimentation with different flight controllers and arm designs as well as other odds and ends, I consider them to be my test bed frames but do fly them regularly when they're in one piece.

The Xugong - like the concept, may get one eventually although I see similar problems with the alloy arms that the QAV had should it get banged into a tree or the ground.

Seems like new frames hit the market every week so there's no lack of designs and sizes to choose from!

Ken
 

A

aSmallHero

Member
Hello all, thanks for the replies.

Looking at the Cinetank quad frame, as it looks pretty nice without going over the frame budget ($200ish). Also glad to know it can take a hit. I saw the gimbal come out and although it looks nice, it does look a bit fragile (no metal overhang to take the first hit). I could be wrong, but it looks like a crash will hit the go-pro square and bend the gimbal bracket. Maybe I'm being too picky as well.

The hoverbot frame HB8 frame looked nice, but it was a tad expensive and the support/website/spare parts didn't seem to great. Maybe I'm missing something?

@RTRyder, Thanks for the comprehensive review. Noted about the repair costs, thanks for that piece of insight. Think I'm choosing between the Cinetank and the Flip FPV frame.

Couple other FPV questions while I'm here...

Just curious, what's the thought process behind not just having the GoPro do the recording and transmitting that image back? (instead of the second camera I see on most models). Just battery?

Also, if I want a range of 2 miles LOS or .75 miles through trees (not mountains/ground/rock), can I get away with 5.8 ghz with a nice antenna and 500mW power? (Allowing me to keep my 2.4 Ghz transmit system).

Thanks all!


 

Motopreserve

Motopreserve

Drone Enthusiast
The reason people don't often use the GoPro as the FPV camera as well is that there is latency. This could lead to real trouble, since you are relying on the visuals to fly the craft.

The distances you are talking about going are beyond what 5.8 does well (in my research at least). The tree/obstacle deal is a 5.8 killer, and the alternatives (1.3, 900hz etc) require a different transmitter freq than 2.4 to transmit clearly without interference. Again, some people do it with success, but I was advised over and over again to get the 5.8 at first, knowing that distance and obstacles would be an issue, but would be less investment up front, not having to swap Tx etc.

In terms of the CineTank solidity, the owner/designer just had what he considered his worst crash this past weekend. 250ft drop. Broke some props and the 3D printed landing gear he was testing. But that's it. Swapped props, finished the day. I like knowing that, knowing that I will probably do the same some day :)
 
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A

aSmallHero

Member
Good to know, I didn't notice the lag when it sends over wifi before, but can now. Speaking of which, I accidentally left the gopro wifi on by mistake with my 2.4 ghz transmit system, which resulted in my older quad copter taking some core tree samples. Ah, live and learn.

Hmm... after doing some online research, it seems like 1.3Ghz (1280) is the best for my area. I would prefer to skip 5.8 if possible to save the cash. I also have the experience of doing electrical engineering as my day job. Is the jump that big or is it manageable if I take it slow? And since I'm guessing its the harmonics from the 1.3 fpv affect the 2.4 control, what do you all suggest I control it with?

Did some more searching on the CineTank, holy crap, that thing takes a hell of a beating. One of the videos showed it speeding in from a dive and nailing a metal post. According to the vid, it was just an arm and prop replacement away from flying after.
 
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Motopreserve

Motopreserve

Drone Enthusiast
aSmallHero said:
Good to know, I didn't notice the lag when it sends over wifi before, but can now. Speaking of which, I accidentally left the gopro wifi on by mistake with my 2.4 ghz transmit system, which resulted in my older quad copter taking some core tree samples. Ah, live and learn.

Hmm... after doing some online research, it seems like 1.3Ghz (1280) is the best for my area. I would prefer to skip 5.8 if possible to save the cash. I also have the experience of doing electrical engineering as my day job. Is the jump that big or is it manageable if I take it slow? And since I'm guessing its the harmonics from the 1.3 fpv affect the 2.4 control, what do you all suggest I control it with?

Did some more searching on the CineTank, holy crap, that thing takes a hell of a beating. One of the videos showed it speeding in from a dive and nailing a metal post. According to the vid, it was just an arm and prop replacement away from flying after.
Click to expand...

Yep, the crash video/stories are plentiful. And with the boys right down in Florida - I feel comfortable recommending them to someone who knows they may need replacement parts, after some core sampling :)

I was going to go 1.3 myself, but as I said, was convinced to do otherwise. I live in Vermont - and there's nothing BUT obstacles here. But in the end, I figured I'd take it one step at a time, and learn/get comfortable with FPV on the cheaper 5.8 gear.

1.3 "can" be run with 2.4 if you use a filter (can be purchased at the usual FPV retailers). But many people still experience crippling interference while using them...and some not. It's a crap shoot. I think the next choice is 433? I have looked a little into the ezUHF modules for the taranis - but then there is the receiver, etc that go along with it.

I would suggest taking a look at the IBCrazy video series about FPV, and start your serious research after watching them.
 

PeteDee

PeteDee

Mr take no prisoners!
aSmallHero said:
Good to know, I didn't notice the lag when it sends over wifi before, but can now. Speaking of which, I accidentally left the gopro wifi on by mistake with my 2.4 ghz transmit system, which resulted in my older quad copter taking some core tree samples. Ah, live and learn.
Click to expand...

You would not be using the GoPro wifi link for FPVing, the latency from the video output on the GoPro is usable due to quite low latency but it is not used because there is a risk of the GoPro shutting down and leaving you blind.

Pete
 

H

haha49

Member
I like the hoverbot HB8 frame that sucker is rock solid I've seen it take massive noise dives into the ground trees ect still standing. Other frames they went crunch. The difference is it's all carbonfiber or g10.

http://hoverbotfpv.com/

Build it like a F450 and you got a decent fpv flyer with a gimbal ect. The F450 frame breaks easy but it does well. With the HB8 you can put almost any motor on it so you can build what ever prop size ect you want fast and nimble fast motors smaller props want longer flight time slower motors 12 inch props.

Tarot iron 680 looks nice folds up (it's huge) has a good flight time but the frame isn't very good it breaks easy.
 


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