My 3DR Y6B has gone through several APC 10 x 4.7 props, no fault of the props. I've had several good flights now with no broken props so would like to experiment.
Does anyone know or have a recommendation for good quality CF props to replace the SF and SFP props for a Y6?
Thanks.
I'm basing my curiosity on this:
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Ok, so I ran a few flights with the CF 10x4.7 props, but didn't record the throttle data yet. The mid throttle position to hold altitude is lower, so to me that means the props are putting out more thrust at a lower power draw, feel free to correct if wrong. They definitely have a different sound to them.
In the next day or so I'll get the actual data (CTUN) to see how much it changed.
Unfortunately the copter was acting up in RTL and Land after applying the updates and reloading the frame type back to Y6B default parameters; another issue to address. The descent was too fast as if it didn't know what alt it was at touched the ground and bounced back up.....couldn't disarm because it was in Battery Failsafe mode (part of the test). I hope the GPS isn't glitching or barometer taking a dump; don't see why, it was working fine for over 20 flights. The props are balanced good, so don't know what to think at this point.
Received the CF props today from Helibatics. To be honest, I'm not impressed. 2 or 3 were out of balance pretty bad and the adapter ring was a somewhat sloppy fit. I paid more for these than the Gemfans were; if these are better quality I'd sure hate to see poor quality props.
As much criticism as the APC props get, beyond the excessive flashing that must be removed in the hub area, they really are a pretty good prop for the money.
So now to see how the CF props work. I did Auto Tune before swapping the props out and the results were not very good; the copter is quite jerky. The Y6B RTF parameters seemed to work much better, so I will change settings back to that and start from scratch.
BTW, there was a firmware update today and the Hybrid Mode I believe is now called 'Pos Hold'. Does anyone know what it does? I tried it and the copter seemed to just drift away.
Hybrid mode is no longer a flight mode option. It looks to be replaced by "Pos Hold", but I haven't figured out what it actually does.
Do you have the trims tuned?
I put my Y6 back to Y6B parameters after not liking the Auto Tune results, but forgot to change the x and y trims to my settings so when it took off it pulled hard to the right. The default for Y6B IIRC is .018 for x and -.014 for y, which explains why it pulled to the right and forward.
So I changed the trims back to my tuned numbers:
It is quite windy today so holding in Loiter is a bit of a problem let alone stab. I know there is some tuning to help that but I'm not up to that level of the learning curve.
It depends on how I fly it, and hot and cold can be very subjective. I haven't taken temperature readings, but to my touch the motors and ESC's are warm and never cool (compared to ambient), and not HOT.
When just loitering for 10 minutes or so in still wind, all 6 motors feel about the same temp, so I figured that means one isn't grossly compensating to keep the copter stable and all are relatively equal in power draw.
Now that I didn't answer your question with any definition of what hot and cool is, one description I've read in this forum was one or more motors were "hot enough to cook an egg on". That I would say is definitely hot.
my ESC's are always a bit warmer than ambient temp when power is connected, i'm pretty sure it's the BEC doing it's thing. I'm using afroESC's 30A.
a good rule to go by is, as soon as you land, if it's too hot for you to hold/touch with your bare hands, then something is wrong for sure.
Hi Mike,
For longer flight times it comes down to bigger props.. the biggest you can fit (meaning, the biggest you can fit considering the motor's specs for efficiency) will usually give you longer flight times. IF you wanted to 11" or bigger all around, you definitely cannot do it with the blue 3DR motors.
Hello,
I use graupner 11x5 props all around on my Y6B, driven by 800kv t-motors. they are not CF but composite, much stronger/stiffer than the APC. love the way it flies compared to the APC.
Best,
Raph
I ordered 10x4.7 CF from Helibatics. Whether they are any better or worse than the low priced ones I do not know.
I take it you replaced the stock motors? I've read several accounts that using 11" props on a Y6B puts too much stress on the 850kv motors and makes them heat up. Maybe the 5 pitch requires less torque/rpm? I don't have warm fuzzy feelings about putting 11" props on my Y6, but am still new to the game.
The Graupners must be pretty stiff because compared to plastic Gemfans, the APC is stiff.
yes I did, i changed from the 3DR blue motors to http://www.rctigermotor.com/html/2013/Professional_0912/45.html - there is no comparison. They drive the 11" props without issues, motors haven't gotten more than 'warm', even in 80-90 degree (F) weather. I'm running 4S.
Yeah the APC you can actually flex up and down if you grab it from the rip for example. The Grapners are very stiff and do not flex. With the APC's i used to get a fluttering sound at certain RPMs (yes they were balanced), and whenever i'd try to descent into my own propwash i'd get a horrible wobble, even at very slow speeds; if i wanted to descend, I never would straight down, but instead always had to descend while moving forward/backwards to avoid it. Changing the motors & props completely got rid of these issues.
I'm at the stage where I'm no longer breaking props too. In fact I was considering writing a post asking for tips on upgrades including prop upgrades, so thanks for the post, and the research.
I'm running 3S with the 980 motors. I was planning to buy 10 and 11 inch props the same size as the stock ones, any tips whether I want 4.5 or 4.7 props.
Also does anyone have experience with the new 2014 prop rotation configuration. I've got a 2013 Y6 and I'm using the 2013 config. Is there much difference?
Are there any other upgrades that experienced Y6 (or any multirotor) pilots would recommend? I've got a servo gimbal for still photography with a Canon S100 and NEX5. And I've got these extended legs coming so I can fit a brushless gimbal.
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