Next machine?

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davey_b

Member
I first got a wee £20 quadcopter a few months back, only flew it twice the first day I got it before I left it that evening in a bag beside the oven and the wife managed to melt it!

That sparked my interest and so bought a syma X5C-1. Cheap and cheerful quad with a 2megapixel camera.

I'd now like to think about something that can take my gopro clone (sjcam sj4000) and wondering what people's thoughts are? I don't have a lot of money otherwise I'd go and buy a dji phantom. I'd be happy to build one as I'm pretty handy and done a fair bit with electronics over the years but I'm not sure if this would actually be cheaper or give me better value for money.
So I'm looking for something that can take a gopro with a gimbal. At some point in the future I'd probably like to add fpv so something that is capable of being upgraded to that. I'd like rth too.

Any suggestions?

Ta
 

Motopreserve

Motopreserve

Drone Enthusiast
What's the budget you're thinking? That's the key to starting the build.

Plenty of options, and if you're willing to build it yourself, you may be able to save some money.
 


Motopreserve

Motopreserve

Drone Enthusiast
You could definitely put something decent together for that - but you'd have to check to see if the gopro clone would fit the tarot T2D gimbal.

Take a look at the DJI frames (or clones). They are inexpensive, and you can build from there.
 

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davey_b

Member
That's great news if I could put something together for that. I think I'd quite like to build myself so I can fix and update as required.

Is there any sort of beginners guide to what parts need to go into a multirotor?
 

Motopreserve

Motopreserve

Drone Enthusiast
You could go check out the group build threads in the beginner's section that Bartman did. That will have walkthroughs and specifics about all the components. You don't need to follow their choices for products - but you'll get the idea of what's needed, and can start putting a list together for a budget.
 


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davey_b

Member
Had a good read over the last day or so and I'm thinking I might be best to go down the hexcopter route as I'd like the redundancy if a motor fails.

So the ones that stick out are the DJI F550 and the Tarot 680 pro. Just wondering what a completed initial build for these might come in at in UK£? When I say initial build I mean something that I can fly about with a gopro on it.

Further down the line I'd like to put something like an ardupilot system and possibly fpv setup in so are these multirotors able to be upgraded at a later stage?

Thanks
 

Motopreserve

Motopreserve

Drone Enthusiast
They can all be upgraded. Probably no reason not to start that way though. You just need to start putting a list of parts together to determine price to UK. Again, that build thread will give you the basics to base your list on. Then you can pick and choose alternates if you wish.
 

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davey_b

Member
Had a bit of a look and think the Tarot 680 is going to be more around the £500 mark whereas think I could do the DJI F550 for more like £300. Not sure I can justify nearly twice as much at this stage. The thing that got me looking at the Tarot 680 was that it folds up for transport whereas the DJI F550 is pretty big and awkward if you were to put it in the car
 

Motopreserve

Motopreserve

Drone Enthusiast
I just sold a 680Pro. Pretty cool machine - and the folding aspect was key for me. I think it's also a bit more rigid - and can probably handle a bit more payload. But you're not going to lift a ton - so it may not be an advantage.

Good luck and let us know how you decide.
 


Flydigital

Flydigital

Member
I would go for a flamewheel setup. 450 or 550 dji. I was new to RC so it felt challenging but with DJI all parts are pre selected so at least you know it's all supposed to work together. You need to get the 3rd party tx / rx system which is where the learning comes in.
My next one I have been making an octo with pixhawk flight controller. Lower cost and much more programmable. But also more tecchy. Good luck!
 

Flydigital

Flydigital

Member
If your aim is to lift a gopro a 450 will do it just as easily as a 550 so smaller too. 550 I assume would be a bit more stable in the wind. 450= less motors so cheaper and easier to transport.
 

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davey_b

Member
As I was saying I like the redundancy in a hex and as you suggest it might be more stable too.
That's interesting about the pixhawk FC, is that based on a pixac chip? I'm a computer scientist by trade so lower cost and more programmable sounds good. Is that instead of something like a naza?
 

Flydigital

Flydigital

Member
It can do the same functions and a lot more. For example 'circle mode' it has a lot of parameters. So much that it may overwhelm beginners. I think it has some command line programming too. Maybe for automatic flights. A lot of tuning capability and more. Maybe more rewarding than Dji if you want more of a challenge.
 

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davey_b

Member
I like the sound of that.

I'm just getting to grips with all the stuff I'd need. Am I right in thinking that sort of FC gives you all the autopilot features that you get with something like ardupilot? You just plug that FC into the radio receiver at one end and the ESC at the other end (plus a GPS aerial) and you're golden?
 

Motopreserve

Motopreserve

Drone Enthusiast
The pixhawk is the latest iteration of the ardupilot line. Definitely worth getting the latest - since they have added feature I do not believe are available on the older 2.5/2.6 - like auto tune.
 



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