AdamG's DJI F450

[AdamG]

Hi guys,

Not as interesting as my Skywalker build, and took way less time, but here is my new addition. I decided i wanted a quad for quick flying without the requirement for 2 people, a field to land in, and something i could fit in a backpack and take on my bike, or on a walk, or even on a flight. I also liked the smooth filming you can do with a gimbal on a quad. Here is the spec:

-DJI F450 Quad
-E300 Propulsion system
-Naza V2 with GPS
-H3-3D Gimbal
-1.2 RMRC 400mw Vtx
-Sony 800 line WDR flight cam
-HK video switcher load of rubbish, didn't work properly. Swapped to a Turnigy video switcher, works perfectly.
-FrSky X8R Rx
-Quanum 12v UBEC
-Low pass filter
-iOSD Mini
-DJI Carbon fibre reinforced props

Sorry about some of the pics being on their side, the image uploader did that to them  :(



Because i wanted quick setup, i decided i would stick with the self tightening props, but got the carbon fibre reinforced ones from DJI. Love how you can put all 4 on and off again in 10 seconds without any tools!

After some advice about flying FPV i decided to get a dedicated FPV cam and a video switcher to go between the GoPro and the flight cam. Great idea, although still having some slight issues which i'm sure i will sort soon. Here is the front/camera setup:



I also really wanted this to fit in a backpack. Got a great backpack off ebay for £20 delivered, and its a 'perfect fit for cabin luggage' backpack. The only problem i had to overcome was the height of the GPS compass, and i managed to find this brilliant folding GPS tower on ebay. Simply unscrew the collar and it folds down:



Here is the backpack... it has EVERYTHING i need to fly inside (and my umbrella on the outside as the sky was a bit grey :laugh:) :



I have (very easily with 4 screws) removed the huge heavy green heat sync that came on the RMRC VTx and mounted it on the back with the antenna facing down, seems to work well, i get 8-10 satellites on GPS, which I'm really pleased about as this seems to be an issue for some people having 1.2 vtx near GPS. As you can see in the pic, there is a low pass filter to stop it interfering with the 2.4 control system... i flew without the filter first and couldn't get more than 60meters away without the failsafe beeping! With the filter on i have been as far as 600meters:



I mounted my 12V UBEC that powers the Vtx and flight cam on the underside, along with the video switcher and my home made LC filter. Video seems pretty clear to me (pic taken before finished):



Below is my wiring diagram, which i need to revisit as i think the ground cables might be causing my iffy go pro live video feed:



The first flight wasn't good! My own fault, i had one motor going the wrong way round as i didn't check that i had connected the ESC to each motor properly... result was a snapped prop (replaced the stock ones anyway).

Really happy with this quad, really easy and fun to fly, and the footage i can record is incredibly smooth and stable. Im getting a 12-15min flight time with a 5000mAh 4S, of which i have 3. The Naza V2 makes this thing so stable, and the failsafe works very well too! I will put a vid together when i have enough worth making a compilation out of :)

[Billy_boy_2010]

Awesome!

You don't do things by halfs do you? ;)

[AdamG]

Awesome!

You don't do things by halfs do you? ;)

Cheers  :D

No I've realised from the past i need to do things right first time... or i will sell, lose money, and restart to do it properly  :laugh:

Seriously though, i am done with spending money on these things, its time to fly! Well... apart from if i end up having to buy a Taranis  :+

[Coyote]

Very nice build Adam :)

[UAV Aviation]

Nicely build Adam 😄

[AdamG]

Thanks guys  :D

So far, when flying this thing around the park etc. I've had nothing but positive comments. People seem to be really interested in it rather than having that 'get your drone out of here' attitude.

[AdamG]

I have decided to by a Micro Dragonlink Rx for this as it appears the range on 2.4 is very limited when running 1.2 for video, even with a LPF on my VTx.

For anyone else considering a similar build, I could only make a distance of about 60 meters without the LPF. With the filter, the furthest I've gone in a really open area is 600 meters, but quite often my fail-safe will even beep at 200 meters  (?)

Will post results with the 433 DL when I install it.