Hey everyone! Check out my latest article on building a budget-friendly video quad. Im getting superb results from the Jakub heavy-lift QUADcopter and Yun-1 gimbal.
https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/show....php?t=1949529

Ive been working on an aerial mapping uav and finally got a chance to test her out. The results were quite impressive, even on her maiden mapping voyage. It's powered by an ArduPilot Mega and uses a Canon s95 on a stabilized gimbal.
I was originally using PTGui to stitch, but was turned on to AutoPano Giga, which handles panoramas from multiple viewpoints much better.

The plane is a Skyhunter twin boom on a single 4s 5000 pack

The full resolution image is 350" wide and 650 megapixels

Mapping Mission Ride Along. Ardupilot Mega (2 min 20 sec)

How to trigger a Canon camera with an rc transmitter. CHDK. USB. RCGroups (5 min 14 sec)

A list of channels are available at the top right corner of the website. The 5th one from the left is the fpv channel link, denoted by a pair of video goggles.

The fpv channel is a quick way to see the latest news articles and reviews that relate to first-person-view flying, without searching through the threads.

I'm contributing a lot with news articles and reviews, so keep clicking the goggles to see the latest!

Matt

I'm so fortunate to have a loving wife and our first child, Preston. I hope he will find aviation as exciting as I do. Preston is 2 weeks old as of yesterday. I rehearsed it over and over again, the moment he would come into this world. Up until his birth it was surreal; I had no idea what to expect. Now I have come to the conclusion that I was put on this earth to father this little guy, and allow him to experience all the great things I did growing up. I've honestly never felt this way before, and I'm glad to have joined the ranks of countless fathers who have experienced what I'm just beginning to understand.

HobbyKing's Bixler II review, done from the fpv point of view, is now live!
Check it out by clicking the image below.

I caught this yesterday morning as a thick fog covered the ground. This is the Concourse building (also know as the King and Queen buildings). You're looking at the Queen.

Here are some pictures of my 6x12 from Diamond Cargo. The deal I got on this trailer was one of the best you can find anywhere. Douglas, Ga. is the trailer capital of the US; for some odd reason, there are 3 or 4 factories churning out enclosed trailers there. At first I was a bit concerned because Diamond Cargo does not deal to the public. I went through an broker on ebay. But the ratings were great and the price of $1925 for a new trailer with 16" on center studs, 3/4 ply floor and 3/8 ply walls was too good to pass up.

I opted for a torsion axle with e-brakes, an rv-style side door, brace for an ac unit, and and extra 3" of interior height for a total of 6' 6" inside. My only complaint was that they attached the interior ply panels with a nail gun driven into the metal studs. No issues with them pulling out, but it was impossible for me to unscrew the panels to put insulation in there. Instead, I used reflective bubble wrp insulation and slid it in from the top gap.

The interior build-out took me a good couple of months working in the evenings and weekends. I mounted my roller drawer in the middle and built a work desk around it. Wired for shore power with everything goingthrough an Inteli-Power 4000 Mighty-Mini. It has four 120v breakers, 10 12v fused leads, and charges the deep cycle battery when hooked to shore power.

Im closing in on one year of having this trailer and I love it. Ive been contemplating a solar panel on the roof to keep the...Continue Reading

This was a fun day at the Pecan Patch.

Ultimate Bipe and Zephyr II. GoPro Chase Cam. Southeastern FPV Fly-In (3 min 42 sec)

Heres a link to my youtube channel. In it, you'll find rcgroups.com review videos, fpv and gopro onboard vids, line of sight flying and some gas-powered rc boat racing vids.

Subscribe if you like it!
http://www.youtube.com/user/webdr121?feature=mhee

Thanks,
Matt

The official RCGroups.com review of the RC EYE One is now live.
https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/show....php?t=1762732

My review of the Eagle 5 from apachobby.com is now live!
Click here to read it.

Heres some exposures I shot Friday and Saturday night

This is a 7 minute 45 second, single exposure shot with a Canon 50D, intervalometer, and a Rokinon 180-degree 8mm fish eye lens. That's the Pecan Patch crew in front of the camera, with I think Team Cobra and some of the Hodgehounds stationed to the far left as well.


Same stats as above, but this time it was a 6 minute 20 second exposure.
Hodgehounds, Team Cobra and Team Florida at the far left I think...


Late Saturday night sky exposure at 30 seconds.
...Continue Reading

T6a Texan II (2 min 38 sec)

The official review of the ESM Texan II will be up on RCGroups soon. I love every bit of this very unique aircraft; the way it handles and the sound as it passes is amazing.

The Aquacraft Revolt 30 review is now live. Check it out if you're interested in fast electric racing; she's a missile!

https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/show....php?t=1688045

Heres my latest bird, the ESM Texan II. The model is setup for gas from ESM, but easily converts to electric with an EFlite Power 160 or equivalent (Tacon or Monster Power 160 as well). On 12s 5000, she screams with a 16x8 4 blade prop. The sound is amazing to say the least...sounds like a real turbine at WOT. It has true unlimited-vertical performance and flight times are around 8-10 minutes.

Unfortunately, the ESM V2 retracts have weak gears and stripped out. The V3's have that fixed, but they have not arrived in the US yet. Hopefully next week.

The Texan II is available from Troy Built Models.


heres a flight at SEFF 2012

Troy Built Models ESM Texan II SEFF 2012 (2 min 41 sec)

Lookin' good RCG. On the iPad

I just received the new Aquacraft Revolt 30 for review. I've raced gas-powered boats under IMPBA for years with the Atlanta Model Boaters and always wanted to try the electric class.

What really attracted me to this boat is it's setup for racing p-mono class (up to 36" and 14.8v). It's got great looking hardware and looks identical to the built p-mono rigs. I think the motor might be a little mild at 1800kv though. Most boats are running the Neu 2100kv motors. But, if it turns well we are off to a good start.
I should be getting it wet for its maiden next weekend.

Nestled somewhere between the overpopulated urban-sprawn that is Atlanta, and the vast expanse of open farmland of Southwest Georgia, sits a pair of intersecting grass runways labeled 0GE4: The Pecan Patch. The 'Patch, as it's known by those who frequent this clean cut and hospitable southern strip, is a place right out of a post card. The drive in from the road is shaded by a cluster of mature Pecan trees that give way to a vast expanse of green grass. Beyond the runways lie a field of young pine trees and off-road trails, perfect for low-level FPV sorties.

The Pecan Patch has always been an rc friendly field. With owner Mark Murdock being an avid radio-controlled and full scale pilot himself, you can expect to see (and give way to) full-scale birds from time to time; an afternoon of flying rc is usually accompanied by the occational low-pass airshow from an experimental Fokker Eindecker, or full-stop from a bright yellow Cub. But this year, the big boys were overshadowed by a combination of flying foam, radio waves, and video goggles as The Pecan Patch hosted the 2nd Annual Southeastern FPV Fly-In.

Read the article here
https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/show....php?t=1669904