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I imagine if you get an FPV headset it's quite a fun activity. If people can spend thousands of hours playing flight simulators on the computer, surely there's

I imagine if you get an FPV headset it's quite a fun activity. If people can spend thousands of hours playing flight simulators on the computer, surely there's a lot of replay value of doing the same thing with an RC quadcopter through a forest or around your home/neighborhood w/FPV.

dlhavema 7y ago
This. This is the main thing I want to do. I havent bought one yet, but have flown a cool DJI/FPV setup around a local mountain. It was really fun
- newnewpdro 7y ago
  Yeah, it's on my list. Though I'm more interested in getting a powered electric glider w/FPV instead. It won't annoy the neighbors as much.
  - StavrosK 7y ago
    I made my own flying wing for about $300 all in (the controller and goggles are usable with any other open-hardware drone, though). It's really fun, I recommend it, and it's not as loud since it only has one motor.
    - justinclift 7y ago
      Did you document the build or put info about it online? :)
      - StavrosK 7y ago
        No, it is a fairly stock one. However, tell you what, if you want you can follow me on https://www.instagram.com/stavrosware/ https://www.instagram.com/stavrosware/ and I'll document it there (I'm rebuilding it).
    - martin_a 7y ago
      Wow, that is impressive. I thought I would have to spend around double or triple the amount to get started with this. Would be really interested if you could share some details on this.
      - StavrosK 7y ago
        Certainly. I am also rebuilding the wing and another commenter asked for info, so I can post photos and details on https://www.instagram.com/stavrosware/ https://www.instagram.com/stavrosware/ if you want. I bought a Taranis QX7 remote controller (~$100), which is amazing and I love it and you can use it with any other RC vehicle you want. I even hook up the receiver to my hardware projects so I can control them remotely. You also need an FrSky XSR or R-XSR receiver (~$10), a Beitian BN-220 GPS (~$10), a motor and ESC (be careful, get a plane ESC, not a quad ESC, the plane one is larger and has better heat dissipation, ~$30). You need two small servos for the elevons, those cost about a dollar each. You also need a good soldering iron (the TS100 is $35 and is amazing. For the controller, the Kakute F7 is fantastic and costs $45ish. It can fly in modes ranging from manual to completely autonomous (you get a Google Maps interface and mark where you want it to go and it just flies to those points). This may be a bit overkill, as it's the best board around, you can get a cheaper one (or maybe one that is made specifically for planes) no problem, but it's only $10 cheaper. The FPV goggles can cost around $30 for some cheap ones, adjust those to taste. I think that's it for components, although I should probably do a proper writeup if people are interested. There's much info out there already, but it might not be concentrated in one place. Let me know if you have any more questions!
        martin_a 7y ago
        I think the biggest point might be the Wing itself. Did you built that on your own or did you use a pre-made model?
        StavrosK 7y ago
        Oh oops, I forgot about the body. I bought an AR.wing, I think it was $80. I was wondering why the total only came up to about $200...
StavrosK 7y ago
Anecdotal, but the FPV drone pilots I've seen are much more responsible and aware than photography drone pilots (I'm a part of both communities). Photography drone pilots will do all kinds of stupid shit that horrifies me, like fly near people, near obstacles, under trees, in crowded places, etc etc. I blame it on the fact that a Mavic is super easy to get and requires no knowledge, whereas it took me two hours of reading just to figure out how to start my racing drone.

dlhavema 7y ago

This. This is the main thing I want to do. I havent bought one yet, but have flown a cool DJI/FPV setup around a local mountain. It was really fun

newnewpdro 7y ago
Yeah, it's on my list. Though I'm more interested in getting a powered electric glider w/FPV instead. It won't annoy the neighbors as much.
- StavrosK 7y ago
  I made my own flying wing for about $300 all in (the controller and goggles are usable with any other open-hardware drone, though). It's really fun, I recommend it, and it's not as loud since it only has one motor.
  - justinclift 7y ago
    Did you document the build or put info about it online? :)
    - StavrosK 7y ago
      No, it is a fairly stock one. However, tell you what, if you want you can follow me on https://www.instagram.com/stavrosware/ https://www.instagram.com/stavrosware/ and I'll document it there (I'm rebuilding it).
  - martin_a 7y ago
    Wow, that is impressive. I thought I would have to spend around double or triple the amount to get started with this. Would be really interested if you could share some details on this.
    - StavrosK 7y ago
      Certainly. I am also rebuilding the wing and another commenter asked for info, so I can post photos and details on https://www.instagram.com/stavrosware/ https://www.instagram.com/stavrosware/ if you want. I bought a Taranis QX7 remote controller (~$100), which is amazing and I love it and you can use it with any other RC vehicle you want. I even hook up the receiver to my hardware projects so I can control them remotely. You also need an FrSky XSR or R-XSR receiver (~$10), a Beitian BN-220 GPS (~$10), a motor and ESC (be careful, get a plane ESC, not a quad ESC, the plane one is larger and has better heat dissipation, ~$30). You need two small servos for the elevons, those cost about a dollar each. You also need a good soldering iron (the TS100 is $35 and is amazing. For the controller, the Kakute F7 is fantastic and costs $45ish. It can fly in modes ranging from manual to completely autonomous (you get a Google Maps interface and mark where you want it to go and it just flies to those points). This may be a bit overkill, as it's the best board around, you can get a cheaper one (or maybe one that is made specifically for planes) no problem, but it's only $10 cheaper. The FPV goggles can cost around $30 for some cheap ones, adjust those to taste. I think that's it for components, although I should probably do a proper writeup if people are interested. There's much info out there already, but it might not be concentrated in one place. Let me know if you have any more questions!
      - martin_a 7y ago
        I think the biggest point might be the Wing itself. Did you built that on your own or did you use a pre-made model?
        StavrosK 7y ago
        Oh oops, I forgot about the body. I bought an AR.wing, I think it was $80. I was wondering why the total only came up to about $200...

StavrosK 7y ago

Anecdotal, but the FPV drone pilots I've seen are much more responsible and aware than photography drone pilots (I'm a part of both communities). Photography drone pilots will do all kinds of stupid shit that horrifies me, like fly near people, near obstacles, under trees, in crowded places, etc etc. I blame it on the fact that a Mavic is super easy to get and requires no knowledge, whereas it took me two hours of reading just to figure out how to start my racing drone.