Tricopter - Beginnings

by TRIstyle | September 12, 2013 | (6) Posted in Just Fun

Hey guys, check out my 1st multirotor/fpv video! 

I, like many others, was inspired by David's tricopters about a year ago. I had a 2.6hv version flying in January 2013 and began fpv soon after. I've had an awesome time, despite all the crashing and delays. This video shows by best footage so far, taken from about 12 flights over 6 months. I had plenty of time to edit as I waited for replacement parts. 


The pictures are of my latest rebuild (with fancy lighting!). Went for the completely black and super clean look. 

dark and mysterious...


Incorporated the new wiring plan for the back arm that David used in the 2.6hv delux build. 

 

KK2 board, upraded from a cheap KK 1.5 used in the video. KK2 flies so much better! 


didn't like the big logo on the hobbyking GoPro case, so I filled, sanded, and repainted it.

thanks for looking!

 

update

- Find this article & others like it at www.FliteTest.com -

COMMENTS

colflame on September 13, 2013
That looks amazing! What motor are you using? And what is your average flight time? Man thats slick build! :D
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TRIstyle on September 13, 2013
Thanks! most of the shots in the video were with the dt750 motors, but I recently changed to the NTM Prop Drive 28-30S 800kv. But I actually wouldn't recommend them, I've read the Sunnysky 2216-12 KV800 are much better and cost only a little more. With a 4S 3700mah, I can probably fly for 11-14 minutes.
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baddox on September 13, 2013
Really great setup, but there's one problem. Your design and setup is almost identical to mine. I'm working on a mostly pure black tricopter with cable sleeving and a clean look. And I was even thinking of getting a photographer friend to take some fancy pics for me to post. Now, if I post my build, everyone will think I'm copying you!

Seriously though, that's an impressive setup. I've got CF arms as well, but I couldn't work out a good solution for hiding the ESCs and running the cables through the booms. Where the heck are your ESCs anyway?
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TRIstyle on September 13, 2013
Thanks a lot, I'm sorry to get in the way of your plans ;)

As long as you photograph it in a different way i'm sure it'll look unique and awesome. Hell, if your build is based on David Windestål's like mine then we are all just copying him to some extent but still adding our touch here and there.

The ESCs are directly underneath the motors. I modified F-20A ESCs so they have bullet connectors right on the board. That way I don't have to resolder anything if I break an arm. Threading the wires through the booms is always a pain though.

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baddox on September 13, 2013
Man, now I'm thinking I need to wire everything through my booms. Do you worry about ESCs getting broken in a crash in that position? Also, do you have any clear pictures of one of the ends of the boom? I can barely make out how you've got the ESCs set up. Do you have pictures of the wiring between the frame plates as well?
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TRIstyle on September 14, 2013
So you have it set up with the ESCs at the center? For several reasons that may actually be better. 1) more of the weight near the CG means a more agile tricopter 2) I've read you want to keep battery-->esc wires a short as possible to limit voltage spikes which hurt ESCs (the length of the three motor wires does not matter as much) 3) with ESC not under the props, it won't block the airflow and reduce efficiency.

See the article for the new pictures. Sorry I don't have pics of between the frame plates.

So if you found an elegant way of keeping the ESCs near the center, then do it. I just did it this way because I was following the RCExplorer build log... maybe I'll change it on my next rebuild. And your right, the ESC's might not fare well in a crash there.
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baddox on September 14, 2013
No, my ESC setup is just the usual RCExplorer style, with the ESCs zip tied to the sides of the booms. There's nowhere near enough room inside the frame for ESCs, heck, I barely had enough room to fit the wiring harness with my bulky solder joints!
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Cyberdactyl on September 13, 2013
That looks very similar to mine. . .

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v606/Cyberdactyl/Multi-Tricopter/gptri.jpg

https://vimeo.com/74502204
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RC Test Pilot on September 14, 2013
Awesome build and video. Which props do you fly with? Can you tell me the gain settings and self level settings because I'm having a huge problem with mine :(


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TRIstyle on September 14, 2013
Hi, thanks. I use GemFan carbon mix 9x4.7 which they have at GotHeliRC. They're nice and stiff, but the blades and hub need to be balanced. Haven't used graupners or APCs yet so can't compare. I'm afraid I am just starting out with KK2 tuning. I was using an older KK blackboard for the video (and lots of warp stabilizer). Haven't even tried the KK2 auto level yet.
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ghostrider03z on September 14, 2013
Did you stabilize the footage at all?
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TRIstyle on September 15, 2013
afraid so, some shots with warp stabilizer. hopefully wont' need to next time.
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swolrath on September 15, 2013
fantastic job, and video... great flying too..
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TRIstyle on September 16, 2013
thank you :)
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mioh on September 17, 2013
Great video and a beautiful tricopter! I see that self-level is off in the pictures. Do you fly it this way most of the time?
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TRIstyle on September 17, 2013
Thanks! Actually I'm just starting out with the KK2. All shots in the video were with an old KK1.5 blackboard. I'm used to flying without any self leveling but it may be a nice feature to have in certain situations.
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sean.mccurdy9 on October 5, 2013
Could someone help me? Im looking to build my first tricopter but all i have is a basic 6 channel computer tx that I have to program through t6config. Can I run a multirotor on this tx?
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TRIstyle

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Tricopter - Beginnings