Yes... I am... for sure!...

 

Yep, post away! We can learn from you too.


Citizen #186

 

Please do. I love following build threads. Good way to see stuff you may not have come across before. Or even better, offer some help when you do.

 

Like you mate we all can't wait to see pics of progress, completion and the maiden any probs beno we will help and we will probably learn from you to buddy.

 

And I have the same quad as you so I can help if needed

Citizen#024

 

Great, thanks for the interest guys. I'm on it.

 

Your on nothing where is the pics and an update. Dam family

 

Build log still coming, I wanted to get it built first. Just test hovered, all good. I'll try and get the log up by the end of the weekend.

Cheers,
Ben

 

Come on BEN!

 

Hurry up! Show us something dude.


Citizen #186

 

Waiting.. Waiting.... Come on man.. I think he is having too much fun flying it..

 

I thought I’d do something a little different, instead of step by step build log I decided to mix it up a little and talk more about my experience – perhaps this will turn into more of a discussion rather than me just posting a couple of pictures of items going together.

Where have I come from

I’ve been flying RC Heli’s since 2007 and I’d consider myself fairly proficient. During this time I’ve gained MAAA bronze and gold wings along with Instructor rating. However with the arrival of my daughter my hobbies had taken a back seat. I’ve had quite a number of different model during this time, starting out with a Blackhawk coaxial heli and at one point up to an 800 electric with a few nitro helis in between – currently I have 2 x 700’s and 1 x 450. I’d consider myself an average pilot with interest in both 3d and F3C, but generally enjoy stuffing around at the field and relaxing around friends.

The Quad

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to ride shot-gun with Jase (5Fidy) and from that moment I knew I wanted to give it ago myself, plus it’d give me the needed drive to get back involved in the hobby, maybe with a little twist.

So after considering a number of models and viewing/reading/researching as much as possible I decided I’d build a Team Blacksheep Discovery Pro. From the integrated design, to the performance characteristics I saw it as a model which could archive the missions I had in mind – long range exploring with stable video capture.

Spec’s

- TBS Discovery Pro

- TBS 1000Kv motors

- TBS Bulletproof 30A ESC

- TBS 69 FPV flight camera

- Taranis X9D

- Various VTx & VRx

- NAZA V2 GPS / Mini iOSD

- GoPro Hero 3+ Black





I had preferred to purchase locally though it seems impossible to find anyone with all that I needed in stock, therefore placed my order directly with TBS and waited and then waited some more. After 3 or so weeks I received my order and the build began.

Due to a change in radio technology I needed to first become acquainted with the Taranis X9D, next perform the needed mods to eliminate the constant hum which emitted from the built in speaker – basically disconnect the headphone jack and install a shielded cable to feed the speaker, then swap the radio from mode 2 or 1. The Taranis gimbals aren’t the best so I needed to disassembly and fine tune a little to get them to centre with leaving play, I wasn’t all that impressed.

The build of the model went together without issue, a little more than the average soldering was required though I’m happy to fine tune my skills a little more plus it gave me the excuse to buy a new soldering station. I was going to write more regarding the build however there are hundreds of other thread/videos and when compared to a standard RC heli build it’s pretty much straight forward.



My first issue came when I tried to calibrate the speed controllers, however I quickly discovered the receiver was DOA and no matter what I tried it wouldn’t initialise, this now meant I couldn’t proceed because the next step was to attach the top plate and with it in place the speed controllers would be no longer accessible. A couple days later I got a replacement and could proceed with finalising the build, as I’m a little particular about keeping everything clean and functional the cable management and item placement took me another couple of days. I pretty happy with the final outcome, though the cable to GPS is bugging me.

What surprised me was the effort needed to become accustom to all the different systems I needed to interface of which I had zero experience. First up was getting my head around the OpenTX platform, channel assignment and model setup and all the various mixers, I quickly realised this isn’t just some cheap and nasty radio but rather very feature packed – with crappy gimbals and shielding. Seeing as I’ve been using Spektrum/JR since starting the hobby the whole idea of S.Bus/PPM was completely new, however dam impressive and it really simplified the build.

Next up was the DJI Naza, I experienced a couple of gotchas – first up my channel assignment wasn’t right as I’m use to the channel sequence going Throttle/Aileron/Elevator/Rudder and had setup my radio this way to keep it familiar, however after wondering why my throttle channel was playing up I quickly realise my throttle channel on my radio was effecting the Naza’s rudder. Therefore it was easier to match the Naza then use old faithful. Setting the channel modes had me stumped for a while, mainly due the DJI software I wasn’t quite sure about the repeating failsafe options and the drop down box, though all that was needed was a quick couple of mixes to adjust travel and all was set. I’m still not sure about the gains and how they will affect the model, I basically programed in the recommended settings and figured I’d go from there.



The Fun Part

So on the Friday night just gone at around 1am the build was complete, and as we all know every build needs an immediate test hover – a quick trip outside I was happy, GPS locked in and the discovery was hovering without drift, I was tempted to fly it around the court but thought better of it.

Saturday afternoon I had a chance to get out to the Melbourne heli club and really let the model stretch it legs. First up was ensuring RTH was working correctly – a couple of bounces on landing but all in all I was happy, I hit a switch and the Naza took over, it brought the heli back to where I took off from and then proceeded to land without my input. Over the course of the next few hours I had a chance to really test the capability of the model, sometimes flying a little too far away, other times a little too high, but by the end of the day I had a huge smile on my face and I knew it was money well spent. Plus I also had a chance to get a flight in on my 700 before the sunset – all in all a great afternoon.

Apologies for the guys who wanted more pictures then words, I can provide them but I feel those threads are a dime a dozen, I thought I’d be a little different and try and explain the journey. I’m happy to respond to any questions or for this to lead to greater discussion.

 

Very nice machine mate was awesome to see it fly. As for the to far away thing 2.5 km
Was a wicked first day test. About the to high thing mmmmmm at least the police chopper
didn't see you that's cause you were heaps higher than them. You should be very happy
your gigga. Now you need some goggles. Hehehehehehee

 

Don't say that to loud, I don't want anyone (me) getting in trouble.