A QUADCOPTER!!!
Well, I did have a weeny 4" one for indoors already. And had another 4" one a year or two ago....

This all started when a friend 'made' a 600mm Quadcopter, but has no idea about electronics, RC stuff etc.... so I offered to set it up and get it going. That was fun!
I already had helicopters (300, 450, 500) years ago, so I knew how to fly these things anyway, though it was still a bit 'new' and I had not flown a helicopter in over 6 months either.
Buzzing around I then decided to put my FPV gear onto it and learn that.
About that same time I ran into a few guys with quadcopters and seeing theirs (FPV) racing around it made it even more interesting!

So the two sources 'merged' to lead me into getting a 250mm FOV spec racer type. Firstly because of what those other guys had, but also when I saw HobbyKing had a kit for $110 !! Versus 'good' ones can be $250 to $500 ! Yet reviews on the HK one (a Diatone brand frame) were good too.
I also had a KK2.0 flight controller already from a year or two ago, so that meant I would finally pout that to good use too! That was a good excuse to throw into the mix!

The kit turned up on Wednesday.....

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Over the 5 or so years I have had a LOT of batteries! Too many to count really!
Too many failing to count too!

Because batteries cost a lot in Australia, the 'cheapest' way to get them is via HobbyKing Aust, seeing they ship by sea in quantity and then the cost to the buyer is lower by some amount. BUT they do not have any good/great batteries really!
Zippy - very average, if just.
Turnigy Blue - average
Nanotech original - dubious
Nanotech A-Spec original - great! (and costly)
Nanotech A-Spec G2 - I didn't risk buying any because reports on them are poor!

The biggest failure is "dropping a cell", or few.....
If you overstress a battery - running at very high currents, over what it can do viably, AND/OR overheat them - whether puffing or not - then they can be permanently damaged. And fairly easily too!
This is very EASY to do with EDF aircraft!! But still occurs in prop aircraft too - just not as often, seeing they run way less relative power (Current/Amp) levels.

Worse is when they fail for NO reason of over-stress or anything known! And that is too often! This is possibly because the HobbyKing range are NOT very good batteries really. None of them, bar the A-Spec original. Not cell matched well (though they claim they are) and poor QC overall I would say. Thus sub-standard cells get into the total set of battery cells often enough.
So maybe buying TRULY GOOD brand batteries is better????

ThunderPower are supposed to be 'great', and COST a LOT.... but...Continue Reading