Originally Posted by Jono87

can you suggest a specific esc, motor & prop to get?

Plenty to go on in this thread.

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1687469

Originally Posted by mike_o

Jono,

I have used my ES ll for FPV with absolutely no power problems. It's even "suffering" from a smaller, less powerful motor than the MPX recommendation ( I run a $6, 2826mm, 1000kv outrunner instead of the recommended 2830mm ditto). And I still get very good climb rate of that motor on the stock folding prop.

The video camera and Tx doesn't add much weight, perhaps 60gr, and with a little luck (or filtering) you can run it off the main battery. Or get a tiny 370mAh 3S from HK to separate things. Biggest issue will be increased drag if you are not careful with the video cam position.

Unless, of course, if you plan on filling the plane with OSD, GPS, Autopilot etc, but it sounds as if you're not quite there yet

Thanks mike, il give it a go on the standard power set for now then. I am certainly a long way away from getting technical as i have not yet ventured further than the standard 2.4ghz r/c with a video recorder strapped to the front of the plane

no doubt i will progress there eventually but right now the idea of spending loads of money, throwing it up in the air and flying it away from me is a disaster waiting to happen.

Does anyone know what the standard brushless motor is for the EZ*2 RR? Kv wise? it doesnt seem to say anywhere :/

Originally Posted by Jono87

..Does anyone know what the standard brushless motor is for the EZ*2 RR? Kv wise? it doesnt seem to say anywhere :/

The (brief) Multiplex manual (available online) says: "Permax BL-O 2830-1100", which means it's a 28mm diameter, 30mm long brushless outrunner of 1100KV.

I have the Fatshark Predator package mounted on my ESII! I gave my wife the goggles and RC tx, then walked 650 meters across the soccer fields before the video signal died. The signal from my Dx6i was still flapping rudder and ailerons. I took my amateur radio license test on Saturday, and as of this morning, I'm legal to transmit! Note my new call sign taped to the keychain camera in view of the FPV camera

While mounting the camera on the cockpit, I brought out the hair drier and straighted the fuselage a bit, so I wanted a direct-sight flight to adjust the trims before I tried the FPV. It looks like a bent everything in the right directions - when I had if flying straight and level, the trim settings were almost back to neutral. Its flying quite nicely with the camera and transmitter mounted. I made a picture-perfect landing in the snow.
.
Alas, our daylight hours are diminishing fast! By the time I had it trimmed, it was 4:30 pm and the sun was dipping below the horizon, so no first FPV flight today. I'll be at meetings in Anchorage for the rest of the week, then home a few days before a month in New Mexico and Chiapas. I'm hoping the weather will allow an FPV test flight before I go!

Jono87 - I see the Multiplex Eco 3/1-2000 mah battery is rated just 12C continuous discharge and 20C burst discharge. http://www.electricwingman.com/multi...ah-157231.aspx

The C rating is a measure of how fast you can draw current from the battery. I've been using these from Hobby King https://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/...Lipo_Pack.html with a rating of 30C continous and 40C peak.

Bonus - the Turnigy battery costs $25, vs. $47 for the Multiplex battery.

I'm not expert enough to say how much the lower C rating of your battery affects your power, but 12C is near the bottom of the scale. Search HK for 2200 mah batteries, and its hard to find one rated less than 20C. I bought the 30/40C batteries for a helicopter. I doubt you need a high C rating for the ESII which seems to fly quite a while with no power at all. But I wonder if a higher C rating might give you a little more punch.

I'm using a 2836 brushless motor and stock folding propeller with a Turnigy Plush 25Amp ESC and 30/40C batteries. At half-throttle it climbs like a rocket with a keychain camera, video tx and FPV camera attached. I get flight times of 25-30 minutes.

Originally Posted by mutski

I have the Fatshark Predator package mounted on my ESII! I gave my wife the goggles and RC tx, then walked 650 meters across the soccer fields before the video signal died.

You are quite lucky with your wife: if I should ask the same thing, mine would answer to go and get someone else...

Would you list your set-up for reference: maybe someday I will get one, too.
Do you use an antenna booster too?

Setup so far is the Fatshark Predator glasses with 250mw 5.8ghz tx and unlabeled camera:
http://www.readymaderc.com/store/ind...oducts_id=1129

The video tx is attached with strapping tape. The camera is screwed to a homemade aluminum bracket which is screwed and glued to the canopy.

Also Spironet antennas, since I've read antennas are the quickest way to improve range:
http://www.readymaderc.com/store/ind...ironet&x=0&y=0

Controller is Dx6i with AR6115 receiver. I have no booster yet. However, I'm looking at a patch antenna for the Dx6i to ensure the controller range is greater than the video range:

http://www.rangevideo.com/index.php?...roducts_id=237

Range video also sells a 1 watt 2.4 mhz booster.

Here's some info:
http://rangevideo.com/forum/showthre...nd-booster-amp
http://diydrones.com/profiles/blogs/...A123599&page=3

Right now, I just want to be sure my RC control extends beyond video range so the plane doesn't drop out of the sky. If I get serious about long distance, I may switch to 900 mhz or 1.2 ghz video transmission.


UPDATE - just ordered the 2.4 ghz patch antenna from RangeVideo.

I got my first taste of FPV and returned with EasyStar II in one piece ! Yahooooo!!!!

EasyStar II - First FPV flight! (4 min 54 sec)

I would have trashed my ESII without the help of my tolerant wife, who agreed to be spotter despite the cold. I launched LOS, waited till it was stable, then slipped the video glasses over my eyes. I wasn't prepared for the change in perspective! I was momentarily confused (1 minute into the video); then my wife shouted "Pull up, pull up!" I slid the glasses back and saw the plane dive , killed the throttle and pulled up just in time.

I tried again once I'd regained altitude, then flew smoothly for 10 minutes. It was helpful to have a spotter - I lost my sense of direction several times despite having watched numerous keychain camera vids of the site. I finally started orienting to the shapes of distant hills.

The video signal was good to the edge of the soccer fields, almost half a mile. It flickered a time or two, but I just did gentle turns until it locked in again.

I wasn't brave enough to land FPV due to trouble judging altitude (hints welcome!). I slid the glasses back as it passed overhead, then landed LOS.

Afterward, we did a ground test at the University of Alaska. The video signal was strong at 0.5 miles but barely detectable (lots of snow) at 0.7 miles. The Dx6i still turned the rudder at 1.1 miles. Beyond that, trees obscured the line of sight.

I have a patch antenna coming for the Dx6i. Now I'm pondering how to improve the video range. 5.8 ghz 600 mw transmitter? Switch to 1.3 ghz or 900 mhz? A solid signal for a mile or two would be cool!

Originally Posted by mutski

I got my first taste of FPV and returned with Eas
I would have trashed my ESII without the help of my tolerant wife, who agreed to be spotter despite the cold. I launched LOS, waited till it was stable, then slipped the video glasses over my eyes. I wasn't prepared for the change in perspective! I was momentarily confused (1 minute into the video); then my wife shouted "Pull up, pull up!" I slid the glasses back and saw the plane dive , killed the throttle and pulled up just in time.

I tried again once I'd regained altitude, then flew smoothly for 10 minutes. It was helpful to have a spotter - I lost my sense of direction several times despite having watched numerous keychain camera vids of the site. I finally started orienting to the shapes of distant hills.

The video signal was good to the edge of the soccer fields, almost half a mile. It flickered a time or two, but I just did gentle turns until it locked in again.

I wasn't brave enough to land FPV due to trouble judging altitude (hints welcome!). I slid the glasses back as it passed overhead, then landed LOS.

Afterward, we did a ground test at the University of Alaska. The video signal was strong at 0.5 miles but barely detectable (lots of snow) at 0.7 miles. The Dx6i still turned the rudder at 1.1 miles. Beyond that, trees obscured the line of sight.

I have a patch antenna coming for the Dx6i. Now I'm pondering how to improve the video range. 5.8 ghz 600 mw transmitter? Switch to 1.3 ghz or 900 mhz? A solid signal for a mile or two would be cool!

mutski,

Congratulations!

try finding some landmarks (large buildings/soccer fields/highways) before flying, and rehearse with yourself where and how they are located with respect to your starting/landing area. Check out the area with google maps from various heights and angles.

Maybe you can start with your goggles on? Taking off from the snow sould be an easy feat for the ES

It's difficult to compare ground range with LOS range. My 200mW 900MHz HK provides reasonable signal up to 1 or 2 miles range (with 2 home made 120 degree Y antennas). But if I mount the set-up on a gound test-vehicle...

... I can hardly make it down the driveway of my house, before the signal disappears.

PS: Remember to buy your wife flowers

Originally Posted by mutski

I got my first taste of FPV and returned with EasyStar II in one piece ! Yahooooo!!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSiTK_woU7U

I would have trashed my ESII without the help of my tolerant wife, who agreed to be spotter despite the cold. I launched LOS, waited till it was stable, then slipped the video glasses over my eyes. I wasn't prepared for the change in perspective! I was momentarily confused (1 minute into the video); then my wife shouted "Pull up, pull up!" I slid the glasses back and saw the plane dive , killed the throttle and pulled up just in time.

I tried again once I'd regained altitude, then flew smoothly for 10 minutes. It was helpful to have a spotter - I lost my sense of direction several times despite having watched numerous keychain camera vids of the site. I finally started orienting to the shapes of distant hills.

The video signal was good to the edge of the soccer fields, almost half a mile. It flickered a time or two, but I just did gentle turns until it locked in again.

I wasn't brave enough to land FPV due to trouble judging altitude (hints welcome!). I slid the glasses back as it passed overhead, then landed LOS.

Afterward, we did a ground test at the University of Alaska. The video signal was strong at 0.5 miles but barely detectable (lots of snow) at 0.7 miles. The Dx6i still turned the rudder at 1.1 miles. Beyond that, trees obscured the line of sight.

I have a patch antenna coming for the Dx6i. Now I'm pondering how to improve the video range. 5.8 ghz 600 mw transmitter? Switch to 1.3 ghz or 900 mhz? A solid signal for a mile or two would be cool!

If you don't mind me asking, what ground vidio recorder are you using?

RC-Navigator - no ground recorder. The posted video was from a keychain camera (808#16) taped to the nose. I have no way to record the FPV video signal.

Mike-O - people keep telling me the ground test is a poor predictor of aerial performance, but first try with the present video system seems to match up. The video from the plane was flickering at about the same spot the signal gave out during the ground test.

Nice ground-test vehicle! I presume that's you in the driver's seat? :

What frequency/power is your RC controller?

I work tomorrow, have one day off, then fly to New Mexico, USA for Thanksgiving, then Chiapas, Mexico until Dec. 10. We're leaving just in time. The temperature here is supposed to fall to -37C on Thursday.

Originally Posted by mutski

...
Nice ground-test vehicle! I presume that's you in the driver's seat? :

What frequency/power is your RC controller?

I work tomorrow, have one day off, then fly to New Mexico, USA for Thanksgiving, then Chiapas, Mexico until Dec. 10. We're leaving just in time. The temperature here is supposed to fall to -37C on Thursday.

Hehe - that's Wild Willy in the drivers seat, but it could've been me 20 years ago.

RC WildWilly 2 タミヤ ワイルドウイリー 2 (5 min 17 sec)

My controller Tx is 40MHz Graupner MX16S, which is legal in some European countries, but much less common than 35MHz units, so I get the range of low frq, but none of the disturbances normally/previously found in the 35/27MHz.

Enjoy New Mexico and Mexico! Nice to see that you got a succesful FPV maiden before leaving. You wouldn't have a chance to bring the Easy, would you?

BTW, what happened to the 720p resolution of your 808 #16 cam? It's only available on youtube as 360p...?

Two more FPV flights today, even landed FPV! Wife wouldn't go, so no spotter. I was so nervous I could feel my legs shaking, but it went really well : I got disoriented a couple of times but circled till I saw landmarks. The first landing must have been steep - no track in the snow, just buried the nose. Not too steep though because there wasn't any damage. The second landing was smooth, skidded over the snow till the tail caught. I haven't been home to check voltage, but it seems like my battery only lasted 15 min vs the usual 25-30. At the end it wouldn't climb. I don't have a separate battery for the video system so far. All in all, it was totally cool!

Originally Posted by mike_o

My controller Tx is 40MHz ...which is legal in some European countries......

.. but only for ground based vehicles!