So, awhile back, I had the idea of making my own UAV, and never really got anywhere with it past the initial flight exp I was able to receive on a co-workers one, which was minimal, but created some level of interest.
So, I am leaning to getting a DIY kit from 3DR (Specifically, the 3DR ArduCopter Quad-C Frame) with the slightly more powerful motors and the 11X47 props and the uBlox GPS which puts me right at the top of my price range.
That said, I still need a (radio) controller, and don't want to spend too much over $200 dollars. I have heard some good things about the futaba 7C's, but the biggest thing my research has turned up is I should find controllers with failsafes for when the signal dies, and apparently the 7C does not have this feature?
Basically, my main question is what should I be looking for as far as controllers go for about 200 bucks, and is the kit from 3DR ok for a guy just starting?
Replies
The FrSky Taranis is slowly becoming available; mine has finally shipped from Aloft Hobbies after being on the waiting list for several months! :-)
I've had and used a top-of-the-line Futaba since about 1992 - The 9ZHP. It was the "cats meow" and still has many more features than I can use. Since switching from 50MHz ham modules to the FrSky 2.4GHz radios it's been great with never a glitch.
However the features of the Taranis along with the quality of the FrSky modules purchased for the Futaba won me over, and I love the built in telemetry and customizable voice announcements. It looks to be a great radio and I can't hardly wait to get it in my hot little hands next week!
So after some additional looking around and reading reviews, the 9xr with the Frsky DJT module from Hobbyking looks pretty good, however it seems I still need a battery and charger. From what I understand due to the weight tradeoffs etc, ~2200 mAh is the capacity I should be looking at, but beyond that I don't know what makes a battery or a charger "Good." I have read I should be looking for one with a leveler as well, such as one of the (Imax?) ones from hobby king, but I don't know what battery to get with it.
Look at the 9xr with Frsky DJT modules. Its has telemetry in it, open source and a very nice setup. turnigy9xr.com