Multi-Impossible, Mōvi_M5/MK Build and Review
- Thread starter Bartman
- Start date
Motopreserve
Drone Enthusiast
Go for it!
You can definitely pull it off, unless you're one of those guys who does crazy stuff like ups and flies to Asia...
You can definitely pull it off, unless you're one of those guys who does crazy stuff like ups and flies to Asia...
Bartman
Welcome to MultiRotorForums.com!!
I just got back from McMaster-Carr with materials to make a mount for the gimbal. I'll have my laptop on my workbench so feel free to drop by, say hello, ask a question, grab a beer from the fridge, play with the dogs.....make yourself at home. I'll probably be in the shop tonight from about 6PM to midnight eastern US time.
INTRODUCTION
Freefly Systems Movi M5
http://www.freeflysystems.com/products/moviM5.php
Camera Compatibility Chart
From time to time a conversation with a vendor or manufacturer about advertising will lead unexpectedly to a product review or a talk about product reviews will land MultiRotorForums.com a new advertiser. Our most recent review subject, the Movi M5 brushless camera gimbal from Freefly Systems, came about because I was shopping for a new gimbal for my aerial-media company (Multi-Media, LLC) and was considering the M5 among others. With the first batch of Movi M5's sold out prior to the first delivery it simply wasn't to be (I had a deadline!) but in a follow-up conversation with Freefly Systems they made the decision to both join us as a site sponsor and to provide a Movi M5 for a product review. So here we are!
The backstory to the Movi M5 lies in the Movi M10 and the backstory to the M10 starts with the Cinestar line of multi-rotor helicopter frames and servo-driven camera mounts. Prior to the Cinestar, camera gimbals were best operated by only the most persistent and stubborn amongst us. Mounts made in any quantity had a great chance of providing beautiful photos and maybe some great video but usually only in short clips of a few seconds at a time. Many an aerial moment has been interrupted mid-clip by sudden sways or jitters of the camera and many a late night has been spent trying to eliminate said sways and jitters. If you just let out a deep sigh it's because you were there! More so than any battery ever did, hope powered many a camera gimbal and half the time it was for naught.
Freefly's Cinestar line of two and three axis camera mounts managed to do better than most that preceded them but Freefly's entry into the market was equally notable for how they presented their products and how they presented the company. Freefly Systems was one of only a few companies in the rapidly growing multi-rotor helicopter and aerial media industry that would attempt to elevate their growing line of products to a level more comparable to prosumer grade electronics. The marketing, the support, the presentation of the product as an integrated system; at the time these were rare additions to the actual product itself and in the case of Freefly their products also happened to work as well or better than anything else available. The Cinestar mounts weren't the end of the story though as what Freefly did next would further distinguish them as an industry leader and the manufacturer of what has quickly become an industry standard.
Fast forward to the release of the much lauded AlexMos brushless gimbal control boards and to the insanity that consumed everyone with a camera hanging from their helicopters. New gear was coming from every corner of the globe and while there were examples of remarkable footage, there were challenges and that often left aspiring users at unexpected dead ends. With this new technology we had a lot of hope in what it might enable us to do but it was developing very quickly and many companies were trying to capitalize on it with varying degrees of success. What was needed was something that just worked.
Enter Freefly. While there were many companies trying to capitalize on the brushless gimbal revolution, Freefly's entrant to the field, the Movi M10, was an instant success that also became an instant standard at all levels of media production.
Both the Movi M10 and its smaller sibling the M5 came with something new that hadn't been seen yet in a production gimbal, the ability to use it as a stabilized hand-held camera gimbal with ingenious operating modes that improved how the gimbals could be used. Carrying the gimbal suddenly became an indispensable alternate mode to flying the gimbal and the potential market was multiplied beyond what just the multi-rotor helicopter community could offer. Freefly Systems had again taken a big step beyond what their peers in the industry had been able to accomplish.
If you're impressed so far, you should be. If you think I'm impressed, I am. In writing this and in looking back at all that we've been through, first as an extension of the RC community and now as our own rapidly growing community of aerial media hobbyists and professionals, it's clear Freefly has provided solutions that have just worked and they're continuing to push the envelope enabling more of our energy to be spent on being creative instead of late night tinkering. Sure, they've gone and started their own forum site but I guess I can forgive them for that.
Back to the review, we're gathered here today with the latest release from Freefly Systems; the Movi M5 brushless camera gimbal. Released on March 15, 2014 it is the second of the Movi series of camera gimbals following on the success of the larger Movi M10. While the M10 can accommodate cameras up to and including the professional-media grade RED Epic and Scarlet, the M5 excels with smaller cameras in the Black Magic Pocket Cinema to Canon 5D range. A more complete range of camera compatibility can be found HERE. Note that we're discussing a range of cameras and not just one specific camera. We'll discuss this again later but it's a major strength and as such deserved a quick mention up front.
INTRODUCTION
Freefly Systems Movi M5
http://www.freeflysystems.com/products/moviM5.php
Camera Compatibility Chart
From time to time a conversation with a vendor or manufacturer about advertising will lead unexpectedly to a product review or a talk about product reviews will land MultiRotorForums.com a new advertiser. Our most recent review subject, the Movi M5 brushless camera gimbal from Freefly Systems, came about because I was shopping for a new gimbal for my aerial-media company (Multi-Media, LLC) and was considering the M5 among others. With the first batch of Movi M5's sold out prior to the first delivery it simply wasn't to be (I had a deadline!) but in a follow-up conversation with Freefly Systems they made the decision to both join us as a site sponsor and to provide a Movi M5 for a product review. So here we are!
The backstory to the Movi M5 lies in the Movi M10 and the backstory to the M10 starts with the Cinestar line of multi-rotor helicopter frames and servo-driven camera mounts. Prior to the Cinestar, camera gimbals were best operated by only the most persistent and stubborn amongst us. Mounts made in any quantity had a great chance of providing beautiful photos and maybe some great video but usually only in short clips of a few seconds at a time. Many an aerial moment has been interrupted mid-clip by sudden sways or jitters of the camera and many a late night has been spent trying to eliminate said sways and jitters. If you just let out a deep sigh it's because you were there! More so than any battery ever did, hope powered many a camera gimbal and half the time it was for naught.
Freefly's Cinestar line of two and three axis camera mounts managed to do better than most that preceded them but Freefly's entry into the market was equally notable for how they presented their products and how they presented the company. Freefly Systems was one of only a few companies in the rapidly growing multi-rotor helicopter and aerial media industry that would attempt to elevate their growing line of products to a level more comparable to prosumer grade electronics. The marketing, the support, the presentation of the product as an integrated system; at the time these were rare additions to the actual product itself and in the case of Freefly their products also happened to work as well or better than anything else available. The Cinestar mounts weren't the end of the story though as what Freefly did next would further distinguish them as an industry leader and the manufacturer of what has quickly become an industry standard.
Fast forward to the release of the much lauded AlexMos brushless gimbal control boards and to the insanity that consumed everyone with a camera hanging from their helicopters. New gear was coming from every corner of the globe and while there were examples of remarkable footage, there were challenges and that often left aspiring users at unexpected dead ends. With this new technology we had a lot of hope in what it might enable us to do but it was developing very quickly and many companies were trying to capitalize on it with varying degrees of success. What was needed was something that just worked.
Enter Freefly. While there were many companies trying to capitalize on the brushless gimbal revolution, Freefly's entrant to the field, the Movi M10, was an instant success that also became an instant standard at all levels of media production.
Both the Movi M10 and its smaller sibling the M5 came with something new that hadn't been seen yet in a production gimbal, the ability to use it as a stabilized hand-held camera gimbal with ingenious operating modes that improved how the gimbals could be used. Carrying the gimbal suddenly became an indispensable alternate mode to flying the gimbal and the potential market was multiplied beyond what just the multi-rotor helicopter community could offer. Freefly Systems had again taken a big step beyond what their peers in the industry had been able to accomplish.
If you're impressed so far, you should be. If you think I'm impressed, I am. In writing this and in looking back at all that we've been through, first as an extension of the RC community and now as our own rapidly growing community of aerial media hobbyists and professionals, it's clear Freefly has provided solutions that have just worked and they're continuing to push the envelope enabling more of our energy to be spent on being creative instead of late night tinkering. Sure, they've gone and started their own forum site but I guess I can forgive them for that.
Back to the review, we're gathered here today with the latest release from Freefly Systems; the Movi M5 brushless camera gimbal. Released on March 15, 2014 it is the second of the Movi series of camera gimbals following on the success of the larger Movi M10. While the M10 can accommodate cameras up to and including the professional-media grade RED Epic and Scarlet, the M5 excels with smaller cameras in the Black Magic Pocket Cinema to Canon 5D range. A more complete range of camera compatibility can be found HERE. Note that we're discussing a range of cameras and not just one specific camera. We'll discuss this again later but it's a major strength and as such deserved a quick mention up front.
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SoCal Blur
Member
Is that a typo on the compatibility chart? The M5 says GH4 where the M10 says GH3.
Bartman
Welcome to MultiRotorForums.com!!
With the Movi gimbals the compatibility chart is more to offer reference to cameras for size information and not specifically model information. if it fits a GH3 then it fits any camera similar in size to the GH3. regarding the GH3 on one list and not the other I'd guess the M5 list has been amended more recently and so it has GH4 which is the latest model. either gimbal could carry either the GH3 or GH4.
Bart
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RyanMcCrae
Member
Good work, thats one big project. What happened with your other build you mentioned, not working out?
Bartman
Welcome to MultiRotorForums.com!!
gimbal was DOA...it's going back for warranty repair....at this point it is what it is.
Motopreserve
Drone Enthusiast
Are you sure you're not designing one of those crop circles they have over in England?
Bartman
Welcome to MultiRotorForums.com!!
Are you sure you're not designing one of those crop circles they have over in England?
you'd think I've been smoking a certain crop judging from what's going on in this thread! here's the bracket to mount the gimbal and I"ll probably sand blast it to give it a satin finish before it gets mounted to the Movi M5. Now to make the parts that it will attach to on the helicopter.
The freefly bracket weighs about 40g and my aluminum piece is about 75g. It's made from .125" 6061-T6 aluminum. As I said, the Freefly bracket is for mounting to one of their Cinestar heli frames but that's not what I"ll be flying so that explains why I've had to make a custom bracket and mounts.
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Attachments
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Bartman
Welcome to MultiRotorForums.com!!
It was an unexpected development to say the least. I had been in touch with Tabb to ask about M5 availability but with them sold out and backordered for two months at the time, I bought a Zenmuse. In a follow up conversation advertising came up and next thing I knew we were also talking about an M5 product review. This isn't the review I had planned but if I can have it flying and ready to go in the timeframe we're looking at then what better endorsement could we possibly offer?!?!
Motopreserve
Drone Enthusiast
Are you cutting the 6061 yourself? Or you mentioned a jet cutter (talk about envy!)? I like the satin look a lot - I get a good "brushed aluminum" look from simply using red scotchbrite pad on a Dremel. Just picked up some fine walnut shell for the blast cabinet - going to mess with that a bit, see what I can come up with.
I love the idea that you're having to make your own mount for the gimbal - this will really highlight how well the gimbal can work outside of its normal comfort zone (standard mount and frame).
Great thread/project that should really put the Movi (and yourself) through its paces.
I love the idea that you're having to make your own mount for the gimbal - this will really highlight how well the gimbal can work outside of its normal comfort zone (standard mount and frame).
Great thread/project that should really put the Movi (and yourself) through its paces.
Bartman
Welcome to MultiRotorForums.com!!
Scott,
I was going to send drawings to the waterjet shop but the part was pretty straightforward (and I don't seem to have Autocad anymore except on my old laptop) so I just roughed it out with a bandsaw and then filed it to the lines and cleaned it up with some sandpaper. The sandblasting will clean it up more and get rid of any marks from the vise and stuff. I've got fine "Black Beauty" in the blasting cabinet which is great for aluminum as it doesn't contaminate the material but it's aggressive if you're not careful.
Moving to the motors, arms, and the rest of the frame today. The Mikrokopter electronics should be here this evening, maybe it'll even fly tomorrow??
Bartman
Welcome to MultiRotorForums.com!!
The camera mount's mount is done for now, here's a short video from last night
and here's a link to the beer featured in the video
http://warsteiner.us
and here's a link to the beer featured in the video
http://warsteiner.us
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Motopreserve
Drone Enthusiast
I'm really liking the ingenuity. I don't think it looks too crude (at least in the video).
The black beauty in the blast cab is great - but I shy away from it because it's death to carbs, and I'm cleaning them enough to keep it to soda (since it dissolves in carb dip). Even the walnut may be an issue, but it'll be easier to blow out of the jet passages etc.
Looking forward to seeing the motors/ESCs, with the camera mount alone weighing 6lbs. What are you expecting for AUW???
The black beauty in the blast cab is great - but I shy away from it because it's death to carbs, and I'm cleaning them enough to keep it to soda (since it dissolves in carb dip). Even the walnut may be an issue, but it'll be easier to blow out of the jet passages etc.
Looking forward to seeing the motors/ESCs, with the camera mount alone weighing 6lbs. What are you expecting for AUW???
Bartman
Welcome to MultiRotorForums.com!!
I forget off the top of my head but I'm going to do a video this morning with the numbers so it'll all be in there.
For the electronics it's going to be all Mikrokopter
Flight Control, MK FC2.5
Navi/GPS (Thanks Dake!)
Motor controllers, MK BL3.2
I2c isolator board (MK Mini8 would also work though it's wired slightly differently)
3DR telemetry to my laptop (Thanks Shawn!)
Spektrum diversity board
Radio, JR 9503 w/ dual satellites (probably not optimal for Mikrokopter anymore but still works great)
Batteries, dual Turnigy Nano-Tech 8000mah, 6S, 25-50C
Homebrew wiring harness with XT60 connectors for the batteries and locking JST plugs for the FC and accessories connections
Motors......was going to buy KDE 4012XF but have some lightly used Tiger MN4012-400 on hand so will have to go with them (more of a time crunch than anything)
Props, Xoar 15x6 PJN and PJN-P initially
Mikrokopter's flight control and nav boards can be used with standard ESC's but the flight performance just isn't as good. With Mikrokopter's speed controllers (BL's, as they're called) though the performance of the system is excellent. The one hurdle is the first time you apply full battery power, sometimes there's smoke, usually there isn't. Make it past that little hurdle though and you're usually going to be good-to-go for a long time.
You'll see a lot of Mikrokopter power boards in the classifieds with the BL's all wired into the PDB's. It's a system MK developed that works great but the soldering and assembly can be tricky and when one fails it's a matter of three to four hours to get the PDB/BL's off of the helicopter so one can be removed and replaced. If you damage the power board when you're removing the one bad BL or if the board was damaged when the BL went bad (someone remind me to post the video of a BL fire I had a while back) the it's a very long night removing all eight (or six, or four) BL's from the bad board so they can be remounted in a new PDB.
Having said all of that, I'm going to be mounting the BL's individually on the frame. It'll be the second time I've done that and I'm much happier with them that way. I'll try to explain it all in a video when the time comes.
Mikrokopter isn't for everyone but it works well if you invest the time to learn it and stick with it.
Bart
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