Discussions

Hi everyone. New to this forum and new to the quadcopter world. And frankly, I'm new to the r/c world in general lol

However, I am not new to GoPro videos and the reason I'm here is because I want to take my footage to the air. After much research, I've settled on a quadcopter as the ideal platform. After much more research, I've come up with the following parts list. Gross price is around $260 from HobbyKing.

Weight & Thrust Requirement

Assuming I've done the math right and my weight estimates are close, this configuration may be overpowered and was hoping to get advice on this in particular:

* total estimated weight including GoPro camera and case: 1,725 grams

* thrust required: 3,450 grams

* using 12x6E props at 1,010 grams per prop or 4,040 grams total; well over the 3,450 required (as per the indications on the motor page - see below for link)

Frame

I've opted for the HT-450 quad frame with the Dead Cat conversion kit to accomodate the GoPro. It looks like I could fashion tall landing gears and mount on the underbelly on the HT-450 alone but decided I liked the wider front arms of the conversion kit and placement of the GoPro.

* HT-450 Quad Frame Kit BLACK

* Dead Cat Conversion Kit for SK450 Quadcopter Frame

I'm hoping to use this quadcopter to take a lot of footage over open ocean (approx 50-100 yards from shore) of surfing. I had looked into the "[url=http://www.aquacopters.com/]Project X[/url]" waterproof frame but decided as a beginner, I don't quite trust myself to install compontents into such tight and confined spaces. Another reason why I opted for this frame setup.

Motor & Props

Stability and smoothness are my primary aim here so I can get optimal video footage so I was hoping to use a higher KV motor as I'd read higher KV offered slower but smoother acceleration. But the 1000KV motor I had looked at listed 9 and 8 as compatible props and these did not get me the minimum prop thrust I needed. So I've identified the following 900KV motor:

* NTM Prop Drive Series 28-30S 900kv / 270w (short shaft version)

I've selected these 12x3.8 props since I was having a hard time finding the 12/6 suggested on the motor page above. I'm not too sure how this might throw off my thrust calculation of 4,040 total thrust from 12x6E.

* Slow Fly Electric Prop 1238 (4 pc - Black)

* Slow Fly Electric Prop 1238 (4 pc - Black) Right Hand Rotation

ESC & Battery

The max amp rating on the motors is 20 amps so I picked out this 30 amp ESC:

* Turnigy Multistar 30 Amp Multi-rotor Brushless ESC 2-4S (OPTO)

* Turnigy Multistar 30 Amp Multi-rotor Brushless ESC 2-4S

Is that too much buffer on the amps? Also I had read that at least one of the ESCs had to be non-OPTO (second ESC linked to above). Is this accurate?

I've also picked out the following Turnigy programming card:

* Turnigy Multistar ESC Programming Card

The battery is a 4000mAh 3S 25C. The minimum amp current for all the motors is 72 amps and the battery amp is 100. Again, too much buffer? Any harm in such a buffer on the battery and ESCs? I'm also opting to get this low voltage alarm which seems like a very smart buy for the price as well as a starp, charger, and breakout cable:

* ZIPPY Compact 4000mAh 3S 25C Lipo Pack

* Turnigy balancer & Charger 2S-3S

* On-Board Lipoly Low Voltage Alarm 2s~3s

* Turnigy Battery Strap 330mm

* XT60 to 4 X 3.5mm bullet Multistar ESC Power Breakout Cable

Flight Controller

I really need some advice here. Down the road, I would really like to incorporate gps functionality including altitude hold or minimum, gps homing, etc. But for now, I've picked out this KK2.0 flight controller because I understand it does not need to be hooked up to a computer (controls on an onboard lcd screen), its very affordable, and generally good for beginners. Should I go ahead with this or bite the bullet and go with a more advanced controller that I can then grow into?

* Hobbyking KK2.0 Multi-rotor LCD Flight Control Board

Transmitter & Receiver

I've picked out this transmitter and receiver set mostly due to price. My concern here is when I do incorporate gps features, will this set be able to accommodate those features?  Should I opt for a 6 channel set for future proofing?

* Turnigy 4X FHSS 2.4ghz Transmitter and Reciever (Mode 2)

* Turnigy XR4000 4CH 2.4GHz Receiver for Turnigy 4X TX

Lastly, I know this hobby is not a cheap hobby and I don't mean to diminish that significance by any measure. But I need to be frank that I am very much liking this price point of $260-ish. Of course, I'd initially looked at the RTF products out there namely the DJI Phantom and another that appears to be a identical flyer. So I decided to see if I could make one more affordably but, more importantly, so I understand exactly what is going into this quadcopter and these parts do.

Again, any advice, feedback, or comments would really be appreciated. Thanks.