# Quadcopters, drones and remote control aviation



## mecicon

A few weeks ago I found an interesting special on this: http://codeblackdrone.com/ . 

It is a Hubsan X4 quadcopter with video, I have recorded a a few videos, nothing special because it takes a bout two hours of flight time to get used to the remote control if you have no previous r/c experience.

I have already purchased additional batteries and chargers and another vehicle a SYMA X5C-1, I am officially hooked. 

Chime in with your experiences and equipment.

Second flight:
http://vimeo.com/115445492


Tenth flight:

http://vimeo.com/115673551


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## sinclair1

I started a thread in the campfire"drone for Christmas" not many folks seem to be using them yet. I have the phantom with a gopro. 
I have enjoyed it so far


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## mecicon

sinclair1 said:


> I started a thread in the campfire"drone for Christmas" not many folks seem to be using them yet. I have the phantom with a gopro.
> I have enjoyed it so far



I searched and did not find it, thanks.


Phantom, nice.


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## sinclair1

Why does it spin? Does that model not have the gyro and gps?


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## mecicon

sinclair1 said:


> Why does it spin? Does that model not have the gyro and gps?



If you are looking at the video that is "Operator Error."

It has gyro, but you have to put it on level ground first.


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## mecicon

<p>Code Black Drone Hubsan Flight 20 from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## mecicon

Outdoor flight in a 15 MPH wind gusting to 19 MPH

 <p>Outdoor Flight with stiff 15 MPH wind gusts to 19 MPH from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## mecicon

<p>Feb 25-26 2015 GA Snow already starting to melt from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## j_seph

How much flight time do you get per charge? How long to get back to 100% charge?


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## 660griz

I have wanted a drone for a long time. The one I want would cost about $1500 to get going. Then, I read horror stories of them just flying away. Operator apparently did everything right and the drone just went away. $1500 gone. So, I will wait.


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## sinclair1

660griz said:


> I have wanted a drone for a long time. The one I want would cost about $1500 to get going. Then, I read horror stories of them just flying away. Operator apparently did everything right and the drone just went away. $1500 gone. So, I will wait.


I still have my phantom, but some do fly away, but most of it is pilot error. If you don't wait for the signal to lock on GPS and takeoff on your first flight without ever getting a lock, when you lose signal it flys to the last place it was locked, which in the newbie case is usually an attempt to fly back to china. 
I have lost signal a few times and it did just as it was suppose to .....except go around the tree on the way back
There are also methods to how you flip switches to regain control and most never read that far.
Technically you could probably get locked up for flying that close to the high power lines, but I also would be afraid as the GPS on a phantom would never read all six satellites that close to the lines or the gyro could be affected.

Most of my flights are 250 ft high so I take it really serious because you could kill someone.


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## mecicon

j_seph said:


> How much flight time do you get per charge? How long to get back to 100% charge?



Depends on the vehicle 7-12 minutes and recharge times 45-70 minutes.




660griz said:


> I have wanted a drone for a long time. The one I want would cost about $1500 to get going. Then, I read horror stories of them just flying away. Operator apparently did everything right and the drone just went away. $1500 gone. So, I will wait.



Start with a $50-70 unit (baby steps) and work your way up to the larger expensive units. Sinclair is correct most 'fly-aways' are pilot error.

 <p>RC Logger Eye One Xtreme March 7, 2015 Cobb County Sports Aviation Complex from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## 3ringer

Check out Hobby King . They have great prices on equipment and batteries. Make sure you order from the USA warehouse.


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## mecicon

3ringer said:


> Check out Hobby King . They have great prices on equipment and batteries. Make sure you order from the USA warehouse.



Another good source is Banggood.com (slow boat from China).


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## mecicon

Most recent video from the latest acquisition:

 <p>Yuneeq Q500 Typhoon @ CCRC from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## sinclair1

mecicon said:


> Most recent video from the latest acquisition:
> 
> <p>Yuneeq Q500 Typhoon @ CCRC from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


That one looks good, but why you stay so low? Take that baby up to 250 ft


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## mecicon

sinclair1 said:


> That one looks good, but why you stay so low? Take that baby up to 250 ft



I will, first flight and all that.

Thanks.


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## swampstalker24

I just purchased an AgDrone 2.0 made by HoneyComb Corp for work.  Its has a fully autonomous flight planning system that allows the user to just input way points for the auto pilot.  It's also got a duel sensor camera package that will capture the visible spectrum as well as Near Infrared.  Our main use will be NDVI vegetation mapping with a secondary mission of producing highly detailed 3D point clouds and digital surface models.  This is our first UAV project and I'm pretty stoked about it!


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## mecicon

swampstalker24 said:


> I just purchased an AgDrone 2.0 made by HoneyComb Corp for work.  Its has a fully autonomous flight planning system that allows the user to just input way points for the auto pilot.  It's also got a duel sensor camera package that will capture the visible spectrum as well as Near Infrared.  Our main use will be NDVI vegetation mapping with a secondary mission of producing highly detailed 3D point clouds and digital surface models.  This is our first UAV project and I'm pretty stoked about it!



That sounds very interesting, post what you can later.


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## mecicon

*QuadTV*

 <p>"Follow Me" feature of the Yuneec Q500 Typhoon from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


 <p>360° Panoramic view of the Cobb County Sports Aviation Complex at 100' and 200' from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


 <p>Figure "8" fun with a Yuneec Q500 Typhoon from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## mecicon

<p>March 28 2015 a brisk, clear Spring day from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>

 <p>360° view @ 300' from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## BornToHuntAndFish

Very cool. Thx for posting.


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## Big7

Send one over my crib...

See if fails the "double b" "test".. 

Bettin' it don't. Survive, that is.. 

Well, can't shoot a turkey with it.


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## BornToHuntAndFish

In case you're interested, stumbled across this today . . . 



http://www.androidpolice.com/2015/0...r-drone-review-easily-parrots-best-drone-yet/

*Parrot Bebop (Quadricopter Drone) Review: Easily Parrot's Best Drone Yet*

2015/04/02 10:25am PDT


"saw the Bebop at CES earlier this year" 

"Bebop attacks two of the biggest issues of its predecessors head on; namely, size and video quality." 

"Parrot has stepped up to a full 1080p-ready video sensor" 

"Controlling the Bebop with a touchscreen device like an iPad or an Android phone via Wi-Fi Direct gives you a maximum range of about 200 meters, which is just over a hundred feet greater than the drone's maximum altitude." 

"Battery life has actually been pretty respectable - Parrot rates it at 22 minutes, but really, it's more like 15 with a +/- factor of wind and how much you're moving it around. This is still hugely better than the old AR.Drones, which managed a paltry 7-10 minutes at a go." 








AND/OR


http://www.parrot.com/usa/products/bebop-drone/

*Parrot Bebop Drone*


















<p style="font-size: 13px; font-weight: normal; margin: 5px; color: #4A4A4A;">
Bebop
    by Parrot
    on Sketchfab
</p>


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## BornToHuntAndFish

sinclair1 said:


> I started a thread in the campfire"drone for Christmas" not many folks seem to be using them yet. I have the phantom with a gopro.
> I have enjoyed it so far



Here it is . . . 



http://forum.gon.com/showthread.php?t=826731

*Drone for Christmas*

12-06-2014


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## mecicon

Big7 said:


> Send one over my crib...
> 
> See if fails the "double b" "test"..
> 
> Bettin' it don't. Survive, that is..
> 
> Well, can't shoot a turkey with it.



While humorous not an issue. No responsible pilot would fly over someone's property without permission.

Also if a vehicle is 300 feet (or more) in altitude your shotgun is worthless.


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## BornToHuntAndFish

I noticed on Amazon that the DJI Phantom 2 Vision Quadcopter is "Discontinued by Manufacturer".  

Sounds like the new DJI Phantom 3 will be launched soon according to the news item below that I saw today.  



http://www.androidpolice.com/2015/0...t-price-599-ahead-of-phantom-3s-announcement/

*[Deal Alert] Get The DJI Phantom 2 Vision Quadcopter For Probably Its Lowest Price ($599) Ahead Of Phantom 3's Announcement*

2015/04/07 2:44pm PDT









1,371,080 Views

Time = 41-seconds 

Published on Apr 3, 2015

On April 8, 2015, DJI will be hosting three concurrent events in New York, London, and Munich. Watch the live stream on the DJI YouTube channel, starting at 11:30am (New York), 4:30pm (London), or 5:30pm (Munich) to get a view inside these invitation-only events.


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## swampstalker24

mecicon said:


> That sounds very interesting, post what you can later.



It came in last week......  still got alot of paperwork, COA/MOA's to write and get approved before the first flight.  I'm taking a 3 day UAV external pilot certification course in Denver sometime soon, its one of our requirements to mitigate liability risks.  Been messing around with the auto pilot ground station a good bit, using Mission Planner software to create flight plans and trigger the cameras.  Its been a pretty cool learning experience so far and I'm excited to see where it goes.  I'll be using a software package called Pix4D for all the imagery processing, you can check it out at pix4d.com.  It's very powerful software but looks pretty easy to use so far.  Happy Flying!


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## BornToHuntAndFish

New DJI Phantom 3 was announced today, $1259 for model having a 4K video camera with frame rates up to 30fps & $999 for model having 1080 camera with up to 60fps which includes up to 23-minutes of flight time & expected to ship by the end of April.



DJI - Introducing the Phantom 3

Published on Apr 8, 2015

"We’ve returned to the Phantom and have redesigned its core systems to bring you the most advanced, forward-thinking aerial videography solution the world has ever seen. The Phantom 3 takes the look and feel of big-budget professional image capture and puts it in the palm of your hand"


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## mecicon

Just playing around since we have had so much rain.

 <p>Sidewinder Vortex of color, Yuneec Typhoon Q500+ from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## mecicon

<p>Roller coaster from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>

 <p>400' Panorama view from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## mecicon

<p>Ingle's Abandoned Strip Mall Allentown, PA? or Acworth, GA? from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## mecicon

<p>Two Yuneec Q500's in the Air from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## BornToHuntAndFish

*Lily Camera, the Drone that Follows You*

In case you have not seen this . . . 



284,874 Views 

Uploaded on May 4, 2015

The Lily Camera lets anyone create cinematic footage previously reserved for professional filmmakers. The Lily Camera is waterproof, ultra-portable, and works right out of the box.




OR


http://mashable.com/2015/05/12/lily-camera-drone-follow-video/

*Where you lead, the Lily Camera drone will follow*

19 HOURS AGO


OR


http://www.engadget.com/2015/05/12/lily-camera-drone-follow-video-footage/

*This drone follows you down the trail after you toss it up in the air*

9 hrs ago


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## mecicon

<p>Flying in the Shadow from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## mecicon

<p>St Kitts, Turtle Bay from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>

 <p>Nevis: New River Estate, Colonial Sugar Plantation from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>

 <p>St. Kitts: Royal St. Kitts Golf Club Hole 12 (Be The Ball) from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>

 <p>St Kitts, Harris Village Anglican Church from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>

 <p>St Kitts, North Friar's Bay with Tyson the Fisherman from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## mecicon

A compilation of all the footage some never seen before.

 <p>St. Kitts and Nevis: 7 days in 7 minutes from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## mecicon

<p>4 July, 2015: Turner Field Atlanta, GA from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## mecicon

<p>St. Kitts and Nevis: Caribbean Paradise from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## obligated

BornToHuntAndFish said:


> In case you have not seen this . . .
> 
> 
> 
> 284,874 Views
> 
> Uploaded on May 4, 2015
> 
> The Lily Camera lets anyone create cinematic footage previously reserved for professional filmmakers. The Lily Camera is waterproof, ultra-portable, and works right out of the box.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> OR
> 
> 
> http://mashable.com/2015/05/12/lily-camera-drone-follow-video/
> 
> *Where you lead, the Lily Camera drone will follow*
> 
> 19 HOURS AGO
> 
> 
> OR
> 
> 
> http://www.engadget.com/2015/05/12/lily-camera-drone-follow-video-footage/
> 
> *This drone follows you down the trail after you toss it up in the air*
> 
> 9 hrs ago



Ive been looking for waterproof quadcopters.I can tell the wife I bought it or my son


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## mecicon

obligated said:


> Ive been looking for waterproof quadcopters.I can tell the wife I bought it or my son



Look for a Factory Mariner, IIRC.


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## mecicon

*Silver Shoe, Resaca, GA*

A video I did for Silver Shoe Ranch in Resaca.

 <p>Silver Shoe Ranch: "Where Old Times Are Not Forgotten" (Enhanced) from Prince of Vizsla on Vimeo.</p>


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## mecicon

Something I just edited:

https://vimeo.com/178412149


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