Talk to me about Tiny Whoops....!

[Dark1779]

Hi all, new guy here.

I had a 'toy' quadcopter a few years ago ( Syma x 4) and had some great fun with it until the inevitable happened and I lost it

I've recently watched some videos on FPV and its something me and my older kids would love to try. We've lots of areas near us to fly and have seen some people out with quads at times too.

Budget however is limited but I've seen Tiny Whoop kits ( quad, goggles, controller) which seem pretty inexpensive, and I'm wondering if that's a good way for me and my kids to see if this is a hobby we'd like to pursue.

Or is there a better budget conscious way?

I'd appreciate any input or advice you could throw my way!

[ched]

First thing, when you watch people on you youtube doing flips, rolls etc they will have put thousands of hours in to get that good. So don't expect to be great at flying straight away.
That said there are many ways to get started or dip a toe in the water.
Here is a very good complete kit BabyHawk OK so it's about £135 but it has a set of useable goggles, a reasonable transmitter and a good indoor (outdoor with light winds) quad.
This Eachine E013 is a bit more budget at about £50 but includes goggles, transmitter and very small indoor quad.
Then the real budget indoor quad try flying without fpv this one is about £11.
If you really are interested in getting into fpv I would recommend starting with a simulator on a pc/laptop and a real transmitter. Cheap sims are FpvFreerider £8 (free trial version), Velocidrone £15 which is very good and has adjustments very similar to a real quad, or Liftoff £15 but requires more power from computer.
As for a real transmitter well as always a budget tx is FlySky i6x - Left hand throttle £33ish then the sort of 'industry standard'   FrSky x9D at £160 ish or for the gamer FrSky Lite.

Hope that gives you some ideas?

[Dark1779]

First thing, when you watch people on you youtube doing flips, rolls etc they will have put thousands of hours in to get that good. So don't expect to be great at flying straight away.
That said there are many ways to get started or dip a toe in the water.
Here is a very good complete kit BabyHawk OK so it's about £135 but it has a set of useable goggles, a reasonable transmitter and a good indoor (outdoor with light winds) quad.
This Eachine E013 is a bit more budget at about £50 but includes goggles, transmitter and very small indoor quad.
Then the real budget indoor quad try flying without fpv this one is about £11.
If you really are interested in getting into fpv I would recommend starting with a simulator on a pc/laptop and a real transmitter. Cheap sims are FpvFreerider £8 (free trial version), Velocidrone £15 which is very good and has adjustments very similar to a real quad, or Liftoff £15 but requires more power from computer.
As for a real transmitter well as always a budget tx is FlySky i6x - Left hand throttle £33ish then the sort of 'industry standard'   FrSky x9D at £160 ish or for the gamer FrSky Lite.

Hope that gives you some ideas?

This is great thanks!

It was the Eachine E013 that had caught my eye as it's pretty cheap and I could probably afford to get some spare batteries with it.

Are the many of the whoop sized quads not really usable outside?


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[ched]

Most of the whoop size quads aren't really up to outdoors unless you start looking at BabyHawk or Mobula 7 or Trashcan but even the last 2 that can run 2 x batteries for more power can't cope with much more than a breeze.
Even the E013 will work outdoors but with wind it will get blown all over the place, plus the range might be much. When I say range I mean the distance between the quad and the person with the controller. You might get 30m or so.
Spare batteries and a charger that can charge more than 1 at a time is good as flight time is probably only 2-4mins and then it takes about an hour to recharge. This is a budget charger and 6 batteries for about £20. Be aware that multi battery chargers that just power off a computer usb might not be very fast chargers as they can pull 0.5A from a computer port so you might need a phone type usb charger with a bit more current like 2A+.

[Bad Raven]

OK, deeeeeep breath.

I run a school club for 11 to 18's and an adult club and am a member of several indoor groups.

I have over 50 micro quads of various makes (micro in my book being sub 75mm, though only 65/68mm are I feel true indoor micros).

NO micro quads are truly fully suitable for outdoor use in anything other than still air.  By the time they get to the power required you are talking brushless motors, larger batteries, and bigger weight/size than truly suitable for sensible home indoor use. (and much greater cost)

The Eachine E013 "Small Pepper" set is OK, but, and its a really big BUT, the VR006 headset is largely crippled, as it has no adjustment for eyesight, is too short focus to be right for most eyes, and with only a built in battery has very limited duration. Neither the battery life nor the focus issues are quick fixes.

Despite that the set IS the cheapest FPV package. You pays your money, etc.

The Minimum spend on a usable headset is the Eachine VR007Pro, and the minimum spend on goggles is the Eachine EV100.

After a LOT of experimentation, the best/cheapest quad from that experience is the Eachine E011, as this has 7mm motors so can carry a bigger Battery and Camera/Video Transmitter and still give a decent flight time.  I have bought these as low as £8 WITH Transmitter

You will notice that I have not generally said prices. This is because they vary up and down a lot and depend on your VIP discount status with many Chinese sellers, flash sales, etc.  Look on www.banggood.com. 

I normally build a FPV modded E011 for under £30, but have managed it under £20 with the right coupons/sale (including transmitter!!). This comprises the E011 quad, Tiny/LDARC spare camera for a Tiny6/7, and an Eachine TX001 video transmitter.

Then add goggles/batteries/multi charger.

A much more stable beginner option is the E016H, again add the camera and VTX as above for FPV. This has superb height management and auto take off and land!! Quickest way to get a junior or novice adult enthralled!!

Not where I can say more nor show more currently (lucky you)

[Morganan]

I think you have to think about the battery weight if your drone is small, I use 650mah 3S

[Bad Raven]

I think you have to think about the battery weight if your drone is small, I use 650mah 3S

The original enquiry was about a Tiny Whoop of standard 65mm size with the Eachine E013 being  mentioned. Std, that uses 150mAh 1S for its 6mm brushed motors, but can run 260mAh 1S.

NO 65mm quad, especially true to type T.W.'s with brushed motors of 6mm or even 7mm when carrying FPV will manage to happily cope with the weight of a 650mAH, and anyway are 1S machines.

Most of my 90mm brushless run 450-550mAh 2S which keeps them light and agile, with a long enough duration. Makes them great garden flyers.

[ched]

Most of my 90mm brushless run 450-550mAh 2S which keeps them light and agile, with a long enough duration. Makes them great garden flyers.

Garden flying, that sounds like a good idea. What 90mm are you flying?

[Bad Raven]

Garden flying, that sounds like a good idea. What 90mm are you flying?

I have two Eachine Aurora 90 running on 2S 650mAh ACEHE.



I also have the "Yellow Peril" recently posted as a thread, which uses the same stack bought as a spare part.

ALL FrSky.

The only point to note is that this stack's radio WILL freak out through getting swamped if you bring the Tx close to the Rx. Keep them at least an arms length apart. Given that, its a fun thing to fly and the ducts on the Aurora's stop scraggle intruding (usually!!)   

Sorry, no time for links.............

[Skilloutx]

Thank you for the information that has been discussed on this point, which I think is very good.

[Bad Raven]

Thank you for the information that has been discussed on this point, which I think is very good.

You're very welcome, everyone here is helpful.

Times quickly change, and while I still fly the ones listed below, recently more time has gone into the Tinyhawk Freestyle, though this is not ducted. This is astonishingly unaffected by the swirling wind that penetrates my garden below the 2 metre high fence all round. Obviously though the bare props are a risk and a trap point. Because its not ducted it is very VERY quiet, so good for early morning without risking disturbing neighbours/wife.

Last couple of garden sessions I have flown the BetaFPV 65 Brushless, mainly as it sees little other use, as its not stable/slow enough for indoor home. Not a favourite by any means, that one.

I recently built a hybrid from:-

Beecore VTX Flight Controller  (Betaflight 4.1)
FrSky XM+ Rx
Tiny6/7/8 Spare Camera
Tiny8 spare frame
RacerStar 8.5mm brushed motors
Tiny8 spare props and canopy

So basically a Tiny8 85mm frame but with better Rx, FC and much higher kV motors. This is REALLY good around the garden and its ducts allow tiny space high speed greenery contact and bounce off/escape.