This is my first article on here so please forgive the mistakes :) I would appreciate all feedback and constructive criticism. If you have any questions please feel free to ask in the comments and I will reply as soon as I can.
This is a quick overview of how I built my Micro Brushless FPV quadcopter and where to source spare parts etc. I wanted to share this build as I love this quad; it offers many of the more advanced features that usually only begin to appear at 250 size quads and up. I am not documenting the main quad build as the instructions included on the HobbyKing website are quite good. If there is demand them i am happy to do a detailed build log.
In total it cost me about £100 to make which I dont think is to bad, only slightly more than a Blade Nano and in my opinion much better.
This thing flies realy nice, is very fast and with the lighter batteries is very acrobatic and is more than capable of flips and tight rolls etc. I can't show any videos of it flying as I am currently waiting on a new ESC after a crash landing in a puddle! ;)
This is a relatively simple build requiring only slight modifications. The hardest part is soldering the FPV power connectors to the terminals on the mainboard/into the battery connector.
The quadcopter is configured using baseflight which has much documentation available so I will not cover the baseflight configuration here just yet. However if there is any demand then I will do a separate article on this.
I am assuming that anyone wishing to follow this build has access to the following items:
A good soldering iron with a fine tip
5.8 FPV Video Receiver/Goggles/Screen
A 6ch or better Spektum (or other DSM2 compatible) transmitter. I am using my Taranis X9D Plus with an Orange HobbyKing DSM2/X transmitter module
A small (about 1" x 1/2") piece of double-sided sticky foam to attach the FPV transmitter
Other standard tools such as Screwdrivers, Pliers, Wire strippers and Side cutters
QuadCopter Specs/Features
Integrated 7ch DSM2 receiver
Weight (No Battery): 50G
Low Voltage cutoff
Battery Size: 300-600mah single cell lipo (The sweet spot for me between performance and flight time is a 450)
Flight time (600mah nano-tech 1s): 10-11 Minutes at hover
Control Range: 150m (This can vary greatly based on your surroundings and transmitter)
Video Range: 75m (This can vary greatly based on your surroundings and receiver)
Flight Modes: Acro, Stabilise, Altitude Hold, Heading Hold, Headless mode
Parts List
I sourced all of my parts from HobbyKing and Banggood, but you can find compatible items elsewhere.
Super-X Brushless quadcopter Kit:
QR Ladybird V2 FPV Camera/Transmitter Combo
600 mah 1s Lipo - This is just an example, please use batteries of your choice :)
JST Female Connectors - Optional; only required if you want to replace the stock 5100-2Y connectors. You can use any other connector, these are just my preference.
JST Male Connectors - Optional; only required if you want to replace the stock 5100-2Y connectors. You can use any other connector, these are just my preference.
Clover Leaf 5.8 ghz Antenna - Optional; will improve vtx signal strength/quality. You only want to use one of these if you have a polarised antenna on your video receiver as well.
Spare Parts
Propellers:
3amp ESC from Banggood
Motor (these do NOT come with the connectors so will require soldering):
Option 2 - Not tested, but others have had great success using these.
JST-SH 3 Pin 1mm spacing Male (Used for ESC and motor wiring)
JST-SH 3 Pin 1mm spacing Surface Mount (Used for ESC and motor wiring)
Build Instructions
First prepare the FPV transmitter/camera by removing it from the protective shell and cutting off the connector as close to the connector as possible. Then strip a small amount of wire in preparation for soldering.
If you are going to swap the stock battery connector then now is the time. If you do this you have the choice of soldering the VTX (Video Transmiter) to the connector or the pads on the mainboard. I personally chose to attach it to the mainboard for durability but it's up to you. Make sure that you use a Female connector here, the batteries will have Male connectors. If you choose to attach it to the mainboard it should look something like this.
Once you have soldered the FPV gear on and made any changes to the battery connector you should assemble the quad following the HobbyKing instructions. Make sure that the motors are in the right place as they are pre-wired to be either CW or CCW.
I then attached the VTX with the double-sided sticky foam and hot-glued the camera in place with a slight upwards tilt. Before you glue the camera in place make sure to power it on and check the orientation :)
The board comes with base flight installed. To configure it from a Windows PC you will need to install Google Chrome and download the BaseFlight App.
The only configuration changes I made before flying for the first time were compas/gyro calibration and assigning the ARM function to a switch on my TX.
The binding procedure will vary from TX to TX so I won't even try to cover every eventuality, but if anyone is stuck please msg me and I will be happy to help.
Future Plans and Upgrades
Custom Frames - I will finish my CNC router in the next few months at which point I want to design some custom frames, maybe try a v-tail. Watch this space...
At some point I would also like to upgrade this to 6a ESC's and more powerful motors using the parts below. It should turn this thing into a rocket :D
Before the ESC upgrade I would recommend flashing the controller with CleanFlight as I have had issues with OneShot ESCs while using BaseFlight.
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