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ArduCopter kit - good for a complete newbie ?

Posted by Superwalloon on November 19, 2010 at 12:50am
Hello,

quickly said, I have been looking with a lot of envy to different emerging tri and quadrocopter projects, and ArduCopter really looks like a very complete and evolutive platform. Not being a hard "DIY" kind of profile, I also find complete kits like the ArduCopter Quad "full kit" (presoldered, etc) is really a big plus.

I'm just wondering - having no past history in modelism, having only flown "toys" heli such as the Blade mSR or a Robbe BlueArrow XL (a coax heli), is flying an ArduCopter Quad something in reach to me, or should I best first spent time (months) learning to fly a CCPM heli before ?

I had the feeling reading different articles that the ArduCopter would not be too difficult to fly for someone with a bit of coax experience.

My intend is really to have it as a R/C hobby, flying it around in the area, then attaching a small camera and taking aerial pictures or movies, then potentially move on to FPV and totally automated flights (GPS waypoints, etc).

Thanks in advance for your comments.

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Replies

  • emile December 8, 2010 at 8:13am
    I know you already have ordered your GAUI, but maybe I will help others in their choice.

    I was (and basically I still am) a total newbie. Never, ever have flown anything other than a kyte when I was young.
    I first bought a GAUI attracted by the price, and the fact that there is a huge community behind.

    Meanwhile I started buying ArduCopter electronics as a medium term project.

    Conclusion: GAUI frame is great, I carshed every single flying session, with a little of CA glue (when necessary) copter was back in the air. But I was never able to "Fly it", just trying to hover it....

    Then my AC was ready and I put the brain on the GAUI frame and... it was flying! Hovering, going up and down doing 8 figures and whatever. Only crashes were because of my newbie errors: battery low, bad connections, trees ect.

    The main difference of the ArduCopter compared to GAUI is that when you leave your sticks (and you have a well trimmed copter) everything gets to stall (thanks to accelerometers). While with GAUI you always need to counter correct every move.

    Probably I will never get to be a good pilot, but believe me: I am having so much fun now!!
    Plus you get GPS, Barometer, Sonar, Magnetomenter and so on!

    P.S.
    For the extra features working, have a peek into this blog: http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1286011 worth having a go until the official group releases their code!

    Happy flying!
    Emile
  • Richard Gosling December 8, 2010 at 4:45am
    yes Arducopter suits you - very similar to the dual prop heli you fly around your living room. However Arducopter looks the same whether you look at it from the front or back or side. It is very easy to lose orientation of this beautiful insect once the sun or low light comes into play. Just make sure to mark the front bar with something easily seen from 100 metres away or you'll lose it. Can you read the newspaper at 10 metres? Hope that helps.
    Regards,
    Rich
  • Moderator
    John Church November 21, 2010 at 8:02am
    Guys,
    If you have any electronics or robotics background, programming knowledge, are a logical thinker or can follow instructions you'll be fine and I highly recommend ArduCopter. The thing about Arducopter is that you will definitely need to be able to think for yourself (be a real problem solver) if you want to dive in right now. The project is moving ahead in leaps and bounds, and may one day be a plug-and-play toy. But as the theme goes, it is DIY. Concluding, have confidence in yourselves and give it a shot! If you're willing to learn and experiment safely, you're good to go.

    As far as learning to fly a heli first, if you're good on your mSr orientation-wise, you have what it takes. Heck, you can even practice driving an RC car toward you if you feel like you need some experience. :)
  • Tad Pole November 21, 2010 at 5:29am
    I am by no means an expert in RC stuff. I started flying planes about 3 years ago (first was a easy star - which I HIGHLY reccomend) and have moved through to funjets, easy glider, twister, and a merlin. Odd, they are all multiplex. I too decided to risk a dab into the quadcopter-ing, and would be curious what people think. Is it a good place to *Start*? I sort of thought that it would be a challenge in the set up area, but there seem to be numerous programs to assist in checking that the servos do what they are supposed to. No risk, no fun!
  • Superwalloon November 21, 2010 at 3:36am
    I guess my question must be puzzling ;-)
    Anyone could kindly advise whether AurduCopter Quad Full Kit Presoldered would be a good start for a quad newbie, or if I should head first for quads such as the Gaui 330X-S in a first step ?

    Thanks in advance
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