So Confusing!

[Cyberdave]

Hi, Newbie here!
Looking for a quadcopter that I can test the water with to see if I like them. (fly fixed wing at the mo)
Looking at Blade QX200 (as it';s brushless) but there are a lot f other makes on the market - it gets confusing.
I';ll be using my existing DX7s TX unless the quad comes with its own.
If you were entering the market what would you choose? budget max is £150.

Thanks
Dave

[guest325]

If you';re only dipping your toes in the water you can';t go far wrong with a Hubsan x4 or a Twister quad, both come with tx, only problem is if like me you fly mode1 they are as rare as hens teeth. I had a Twister mode1 from Steve Webb models, but if you';re mode2 there';s plenty available almost anywhere. If you go down the HH route with your dx7s there';s no issues but as usual for HH spares are expensive.
Good luck - hope you find something suitable!

[Jumpy07]

Personally.. starting off if it was me.. a DJI 450 clone frame with a simple flight controller..  Crius or similar.. with SimonK ESC';s..  2212 1000kv motors .. on 3s lipos 2200mah/2500mah


£150 might be tight..  but you might be able to get one second hand ..


Your TX will be fine...

[nub]

aye its very easy to get confused in this hobby

£150 is a bit of a tight budget to build something, personally i wouldn';t go the QX route but that';s just me, each to their own and all that jazz but it would get up in the air.

i started with a hubsan then a DJI F450 kit and KK2 controller.

anyways the forum HF.

[Oakie]

As you already have TX and flying experience The 450 route would be a better match for your skills. Second hand is good and there are other members of the forum that pop their quads up for sale when they may wish to upgrade.

The small quads that you may get with a remote won';t feel very nice compared to the DX you have, so in my opinion the combi-quads that you can buy would probably do you no favours for getting a taste.

Welcome to the forum

[kilby]

If you are already flying other things then I suspect you wouldn';t be too satisfied with the QX or blade route.

The 450 sized frame is a nice size to fly and has very good upgrade path.

The Blade Nano QX is great for indoor flying sessions when the other options are limited

[cgcrute]

You could build an FPV250 (hobbyking) with RCX/ZMR motors and a Naze32 Acro board for well under your budget if you already have a TX. You could probably even get a Mobius too!

It';s a smaller frame but much bigger than the Hubsans, very stable, and most importantly for learning robust! 5030 props can be had for less than £2.50 for 4 which is a major bonus!

[teslahed]

If in doubt buy a hubsan X4 to learn the basics with. You can master the basic controls and nose in flying without spending more than £30 total this way.

It';s just a shame the controller is a bit poor.

Or if you are feeling adventurous buy one of these;

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__50460__Turnigy_Micro_X_Quad_Copter_DSM2_Compatible_with_FTDI_Tool_MWC_Multi_WII_BNF_.html

it will bind to your existing spectrum controller and should be a bit more acrobatic and lively than a hubsan for a similar price - although you';ll have to learn more to get it tuned and flying well as it';s based on multiwii.

Either is assuming you want to test the water with something cheap before spending more cash.

If you want to get into fun and acro flying then a mini 250 sized quad as recommended above is a great way to go - just requires more investment of money and time and energy to master.

[Cyberdave]

What do you think about this for a starter quad?  http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__45169__Turnigy_Micro_Quad_V2_PNP_ARF_Includes_KK2_0_LCD_Flight_Control_Board_UK_Warehouse_.html

[orfordness]

I have a rctimer 450 flamewheel clone i "have" to sell following the acquisition of my Tarot 680.
if you have a dx 7 it has a 6channel orange rx so would be almost pnp...

more details if you';re interested Steve

30A RCTimer ESC';s flashed to SimonK firmware
960kv rctimer motors
8" Carbon Fiber props
APM 2.5 Flight Controler
GPS neo6
led lights front and rear
landing gear available if you wanted it.

Steve

[teslahed]

What do you think about this for a starter quad?  http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__45169__Turnigy_Micro_Quad_V2_PNP_ARF_Includes_KK2_0_LCD_Flight_Control_Board_UK_Warehouse_.html

hard to go wrong for that price.

If it was me i would replace the props with something slightly nicer. The ones it comes with are push to fit on the motor axles. I would get some proper prop adapters and then use regular props that fit on the prop adapters rather than sticking with the push to fit ones that it comes with.

You could learn most of the basics with that and the KK2 flight controller it comes with, whilst cheap and simple, actually does perform well and is used by a lot of people. Because it doesn';t support GPS and other advanced automated stuff it would force you to learn to really fly the thing. Also not a bad thing that in my opinion.

Because of the way the motors and ESCs solder to the frame itself, once you snapped the frame you';d have some tricky repair work to do. Fly it over long grass and soft ground to get the most use out of it.

[flybywire]

I would say deffo with a mini quad, i';ve just done a self build so i know the bits add up to around the £100 mark with frame, 12a esc';s 1806 motors & cheap cc3d FC or Naze 32.  If you have the 6 channel radio you';re halfway there!

If you like it (you will) another £100 or so will get you into fpv, which for me is the real treat.

Good luck, and welcome to the hobby.

Andy

[Cyberdave]

Thaks for all of your advice guys, in the end my mind was made up for me.  A friend told me that a mutual aquaintance had started flying quads and had quickly progressed on to very sophisticated model.  His first quad was the DJI Phantom V1.1.1 and it was up for sale.  I nipped round and sure enough he still had the quad (he was going to list it on ebay that evening!)  In the end we agreed on £220 which I thought was a good deal.  I picked it up last night and flew a battery through it this morning before work. It flies beautifully and having the self centering throttle, GPS and RTH functions are all great safety nets to help me get the feel for things.  I';m well impressed! 

[nub]

i';m not a fan of the mid stick throttle, glad your enjoying purchase, don';t forget about manual mode