the RC (radio control) and electric rideables thread

[TechTronic9000]

So I have new (old) bird and this is amazing

 

[kamkar]

The parrot disco look awesome, i like the 4G mod, with that you can really explore your area from above.

 

[TechTronic9000]

The parrot disco look awesome, i like the 4G mod, with that you can really explore your area from above.

Well until now I have got 1.3Km high and 1.5km distance, still had signal so probably i won't do the 4G mod soon.

 

[kamkar]

yeah people go far with just Tx/Rx, i think i have seen some go as far as 100 Km using the 2 M band.
We have a repeater for the radio hobbyists here, and with it you can go far on a few watts, but its for talk only, but i assume a guidance signal could use a thing like that too.

You being in a mountainous area dont help for distance.

 

[TechTronic9000]

Cloud surfing with the Disco and the SJ8

 

[old4570]

????????????? No altitude rules for RC ?
I think we have a 300 meter ceiling ...

 

[kamkar]

We do too, they down there probably also do.
I wold be so in trouble too if i had one of these, vuz i would mod it and fly wayyyy out of line of sight.
2 hour flight time dont seem to be a problem with a little creativity.

 

[TechTronic9000]

????????????? No altitude rules for RC ?
I think we have a 300 meter ceiling ...

We have a really f**ked up legislation and it's actually easyer to get permission to fly OVER 150 meters than under that !

 

[TechTronic9000]

Disco in 360°, you need to watch this in 4K otherwise it looks bad.

 

[old4570]

Hobby King had a bit of a sale so I got me a Phoenix 1600 motor glider .
Of course there had to be problems right ? ....
The number one issue looks to be the motor , I did some testing , http://old4570.com/stuff/phoenix.html
Bottom line , I have ordered a new motor .
So while waiting for that , there will be plenty of time to finish the Phoenix ( just need to activate the flaps )

 

[TechTronic9000]

Mini review / overview

The Eachine ROTG01 Pro UVC receiver is upgraded OTG 5.8G FPV Receiver with audio and features two buttons which make possible the search the frequency up or down, it also includes 2 different cables for Type-C and Micro USB. The receiver module sensitivity has also been upgraded in comparison with the old version making it much more better. The new model works with you Android smart phone and also Windows PC ! It has low latency around 100ms and a total of 150 channels with auto search and signal strength display.
Available from: http://bit.ly/EachineROTG01_Pro

 

[Gibson99]

Mini review / overview

The Eachine ROTG01 Pro UVC receiver is upgraded OTG 5.8G FPV Receiver with audio and features two buttons which make possible the search the frequency up or down, it also includes 2 different cables for Type-C and Micro USB. The receiver module sensitivity has also been upgraded in comparison with the old version making it much more better. The new model works with you Android smart phone and also Windows PC ! It has low latency around 100ms and a total of 150 channels with auto search and signal strength display.
Available from: http://bit.ly/EachineROTG01_Pro

i have an older version of one of those receivers. that's how i dvr stuff or show people what FPV is like when i don't have spare goggles. i'd like to get the USB-C cable from this one to see if it would work with my new pixel 2 xl and my current vrx, but they don't sell it separately - only the micro to micro cable... which i already have. course, i could easily use an old phone, but that's just one more thing to carry...

but the fact that this one works on a windows machine... hmm, maybe i could use my wife's asus transformer (windows laptop w/ detachable touchscreen), since it has a micro usb port...

 

[lacibaci]

Yuneec Breeze test flight. Pretty good quality for a cheap drone... (very windy day @ Ocean City)

 

[Gibson99]

Ordered myself a new flight controller (and LEDs and other small parts) for my quad... This should be a nice upgrade from my existing cc3d FC! What do you guys think?

https://hobbyking.com/en_us/holybro...controller-with-osd-and-bmp280-barometer.html

 

[old4570]

Sent for review by Gearbest.com - https://www.gearbest.com/radios-receiver/pp_009561753688.html?lkid=18170896
Discount Coupon ( GBold4570 )

Dimension: 18×17×7mm (L×W×H)
Weight: 2g/ 2.4g (with two antennas)
Number of Channels:16CH (1-4CH PWM from conventional channel outputs, 1-16CH from SBUS OUT port)
Operating Voltage Range: 3.5V-10V
Operating Current: 100mA@5V
Operating Range: >2km
Servo Frame Rate: 9ms (HS—High Speed Mode)/18ms (FS—Normal Speed Mode)

For testing I was sent the Frsky RX4R from Gearbest.com .
I was very interested in this receiver for DLG purposes and it's possible 1s capability making for a very light Rx solution .

RX4R

Please dont forget that the servos always plug into the Rx negative to the middle or signal wire on the outside .
The bind button is very small ( diminutive ) , at first I missed it completely . I needed something to magnify the board with to actually spot it , some one must be getting old or this thing is small .

Voltage Testing

I really wanted to see how low the voltage could go before the RX4R browned out . Factory say's 3.5v and I wont argue with them . But in my tests I got the Rx down to 3.2v with a 500mAh maximum current setting on my power supply . This is the lowest any Rx has gone I have tested so far , especially at the 500mAh setting . Now I thought I might throw some other servos at it from my normal analogue servos . I just received some digital servos from HK so I thought , lets give them a try .

The RX4R browned out straight away .
With the Rx getting 3.2v , the RX4R was browning out with the servos simply connected to it . ( I kid you not )
Increasing voltage to 3.6v the Rx stopped browning out with the servos connected , but any attempt to use a servo caused the Rx to brown out . So it would seem the RX4R does not like the HobbyKing SCM12-5 or SCM9-5 digital servos very much . On the other hand analogue servos seem to behave very nicely at low voltage . ( I would suggest this would need further exploration )

Range testing the RX4R

I was easily able to get the maximum distance of 50 meters with my Taranis Q x7 in range test mode . Even using my body to try and block the signal there were no problems .

Interesting for DLG

My main interest in this Rx was it's low voltage capability as well the ability to give me live Rx Voltage data . Now keep in mind that if you use a UBEC or such you will get the voltage of the UBEC . But if you directly connect a 1s battery , then you can monitor the battery live as you are flying . So as you are having fun , you get live telemetry data on the state of your battery ( voltage ) . You can monitor voltage sag under load and voltage when not doing anything . ( Get some idea of the load the battery is put under ) .

DLG

The RX4R was put into my HK Raven 990 . And from past experience it does not take much weight in the nose to get the CG where the factory recommends . In fact with the RX4R and a small single cell lipo , maybe around 200mAh capacity . The CG is exactly spot on for the factory spec . So for my Raven at least , there is very little in the way of spare weight in the nose for CG . And the flying weight of the Raven comes in at almost spot on for 150 grams . So for models that require the minimum possible weight for CG , the RX4R looks to be the goods . And so far it's 1s capability looks very promising , but I would suggest caution and testing for hardware compatibility .

Now it would be fair to say that the RX4R has far greater capability than what I am looking for at this time .


New FRSKY Receivers 40% More Range // FrSky RX4R , RX6R Range Test [Part 1] (11 min 55 sec)
Here is a very nice youtube video by Drone Mesh .


Now at this time I have no real interest in long range drones , or drone racing etc .
But I do like DLG , and I like the RX4R for it's size , weight ( lack off ) and live voltage telemetry if you chose to go 1s . ( Which I have done )
As mentioned the RX4R will live in my HK Raven for now , and I will be doing updates on things as I play with the Raven .
For a score , it has to be 10 out of 10 for now . Yes ok , what about the Digital servos from HK . Well this is something we always need to check for ( hardware compatibility ) especially when pushing extremes like low voltage . ( 1s )
A lot of issues could be avoided by running a Rx at 5v to 6v but then the live voltage telemetry would be of little use to us .
The Raven does have digital servos ( not very good ones in my opinion ) and I will be doing some tests shortly to see how low I can go with the Voltage in the Raven . ( EMAX ES - 9051 )

Don't forget , there is a Discount Coupon GBold4570 that brings the price down to $29.99 @ Gearbest.com

 

[Gibson99]

What is dlg?

 

[old4570]

Discus Launch Glider

 

[TechTronic9000]

Now this comes as a surprise, because usually when we say JJRC we expect brushed toy models and cheap prices, well not with the X7 smart model. The first things to notice are the brushless motors, GPS positioning system, Full HD 1080p camera installed on a pitch servo gimbal and long flight time estimated to 23 minutes !

The X7 is available in 3 options
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Being an app controlled drone this brings some new advantages such as programmable way-point flying, orbit mode, smart RTH and drone telemetry in real time showing you drone height, distance, signal strength and battery level.

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The new JJRC X7 comes with a large 2S Li-Hv (lithium polymer high voltage) battery with a capacity of 2600mAh that has a 4.35V/cell voltage, this will keep the drone in the air for up to 23 minutes.

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To keep things at check in the box you are going to get this funky charger that uses 5V USB for power input and will independently charge each cell from the pack, making this a new thing as most LiPo batteries use a center tap between cells to permit balance charge.

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Although the X7 is a 5G WiFi based FPV app drone which will rquire and android (or iOS) phone to run, it also comes with a full function transmitter which permits gimbal pitch control, flight modes switch, RTH, auto take-off and land and camera control beside regular stick control.

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The transmitter also has some nice extras such as foldable compact design and a built in rechargeable battery able to keep it running for ~ 5 hours, so there is no more a need for pesky AA cells.

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The camera specs only state 1080p video and it's installed on a vibration killer mount with silicone insulators and contains the tilt servo motor.

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The biggest conn until now is the prop fixation, this quad doesn't use self tightening props and employees rather a regular design and needs nuts and a wrench to lock them. The worst thing is that there are no extra nuts in the box, loose one are you are grounded until you get a replacement that will fit.

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The props themselves seem to be better quality than regular stuff from China, they are rather light but pretty study, resembling the blades of a DJI Mavic. The prop size is: 7335

​

Official specs and features

Description:
Brand Name: JJRC
Item NO.: X7
Item Name: SMART Drone
Controller Frequency: 2.4Ghz
Camera: 1080P 120° wide angle camera (90° adjustable angle by remote controller)
WiFi FPV: 720P
Motor: Brushless Motor
Battery: 7.6V 2600mAh Lipo Battery (Included)
Flight time: About 23-25 mins
Charging time: About 3h
Control Distance: 500-800m
5G WiFi Distance: 200-300m
Wheelbase: 280mm

Quadcopter Size: 237*271*76mm Quadcopter Weight: 480g
Color: Black, White (Optional)

Features:
- Advanced 5G WiFi with 1080P Gimbal Camera 720P FPV; the camera can be tilted 90° with the remote control, allowing to get more angled images. 5G wifi transmission ensures fast high-quality real time video.
- GPS/GLONASS double mode, Provides you with accurate positioning details of your drone. Built in Return-to-Home (RTH) function for safer fly, the drone will automatically return to home precisely when its battery is low or the signal is weak when flying out of range, never worrying about losing the drone.
- Flying distance of up to 500 meters, WIFI distance of 200 meters and a height of 150m allow you to enjoy higher and farther scenery.
- 23 Mins Max Flight Time: The High-capacity 2600mAh intelligent battery yields up to 23mins flight time.
- Brushless Motor: It is quiet but powerful when running. Breakdown rarely occurs and motor replacement is seldom required, which makes your flight more enjoyable.
- Orbit mode: Orbit mode let the drone fly in a circle around a set waypoint and make sure you will get panorama pictures and video.
- User-defined Flight Plan: Open the drone APP, use flight plan at your fingertips, just draw a route on the screen, the copter will auto pilot as per the given path.
- With altitude hold mode function provides stable flight.
- With One key to return function makes it easily to find the way home.
- With low power protection overcurrent protection.

Functions: 5G Wifi FPV, 1080P camera, App control flight, GPS auto return, altitude mode, user-defined flight plan, orbit mode, one key takeoff/landing, Up/down, Forward/backward, Turn left/right, Sideward flight, LED Light

Package Included:
1 x X7 RC Quadcopter
1 x Remote Controller
1 x 7.6V 2600mAh Lipo Battery
1 x USB Charging Cable
2 x Spare Propeller
1 x 10mm Open-end Wrench
1 x 2mm L-type Hex Wrench
1 x User Manual


To be updated soon with full video review and test flight

 

[old4570]

Hmmmm , wonder what protocol it runs ?

 

[old4570]

630mm
So far have 35g invested in it ( and I was trying to build light )
Built from 3mm Depron sold by hobbyking ..
Just wondering if I can bring it in under 50g ?