What can I get with What I'v got?

[R-4-L]

well, I have a Raptor 90 with os.91 c-spec engine and all the 3D gear you'd expect.. (GY611,, S9252s,, Carbon blades, Li power, S9255 on pitch, MPII, Radio Fut 9C Super)

If I was to do some good aerial videography or photograpy, what would I expect from my setup?

Im also thinking of monitoring what i want to shoot via wireless link. maybe operated with a friend using the 7" LCD I'v already got..
I also have a digital miniDV video cam with super-steady shot feature.. which is also very small.

How much can I lift with my heli? would be the most important question i guess! what stuff do I need to make this work?

Thanks!

[DebianDog]

You can lift 6 lbs easy and can "probably" lift 10 lbs. with some concern with the clutch. The biggest problem with glow is the oil residue from the exhaust but..... know folks that have done what this guy did with success.
http://www.helifreak.com/download.php?id=5788

That is a Stator Gator mount :wink:

[DebianDog]

Oh and if you want downlink ability he is a good starter set.
http://www.blackwidowav.com/

[R-4-L]

Thanks dan, its certainly is better to start this kinda business with a gasser isn't it? I don't have much experience with gas engines, but do they generally provide better lifting capacities?

I'v heard alot about that blackwidowav.com site, must be a winner!

stator gator mounts? this is news for me.. i better do some more research..
I'v contacted neural robotics to ask about their product.. they blew me away with a price quote of $35,000 just for the base unit ... hmm, well they do have the very best system ..

about that pic you linked me to , man that guys is smart,. just stick a hose (must be silicone) to get rid of the oil.. and using what?! a Raptor 50 ?!?! lifing all that stuff! thats impressive!

[DebianDog]

Well like anything... it is a choice. Many perfer electric and for about $15,000 you can get a nice system.

http://www.carvecsystem.co.uk/Products.htm

I do not have $15,000 so I went with a $2000 gasser. (Century Condor)

A gasser has more HP and can typically turn bigger blades. As a matter of fact the Bergen have a twin gasser that will lift like 25 lbs.
http://bergenrc.com/IndustrialTwin.asp

Get a Bergen Turbine and lift 30-40-50 lbs who knows for sure?!

Like helicopters there are 10,726,827 ways to do it ;)

[Tom Fiddler]

It's a new entry level mount I produce.
It's $99.95 and you build the frame.

Your 90 will lift about anything out there, Just with the Gassers and Electrics you don't have to deal with the smoke and oil.

[R-4-L]

tom, thanks! I was just reading the details on your website! sounds like a great starter!

i'd guess i'll have to smooth everything out when it comes to cyclic responses and probably get an 800mm blades and lower gear ratio setups for the job. and maybe spin the blades at 1600rpm or less..

needs some thought.. its good news that my machine can handle this stuff and actually create something usefull out of it!

[Tom Fiddler]

Thanks
I am beating up my web site guy right now is I cannot even load a picture to the site right now.

While you will want to slow down the cyclics. I would just play with the head speed and your flying, with the blades you have now. You will want alot of pitch available during your first flights with added weight....trust me!
Until you start really loading the camera setup with all the gadgets available, I don't think you will have redesign your setup.

The biggest thing you will learn from your first video is that you don't fly very well :shock:. I don't mean that in a bad way,it is just that the video will quickly show you where you need to improve. It's alot of fun and quite challanging to get smooth video.

Hey Dan I have not seen any AV from you lately, with your new mount and the Condor. I know how the weather has been though.
That reminds me, I better start getting some!

[DebianDog]

Hey Dan I have not seen any AV from you lately, with your new mount and the Condor. I know how the weather has been though.
That reminds me, I better start getting some!

Well since you know what a pleasure it is to split the frames on a Century product. I am waiting on a part to put the Predator back together. The Raptor is apart too right now and I refuse to have all 3 helicopters in pieces at the same time. Hopefully by the end of the week I will have them all back together.

Then I need to get my video D/L stuff straight and I am waiting on a viewing setup from Mark (so you can see what the heli sees from in front of the radio). Soooo.... I am hoping to have my stuff together ready to video "for real" by April.

I have too many pots on the fire right now. :roll:

[R-4-L]

I may be going a bit further than the original topic, but..

anyone here has some good knowledge about UAV (unmanned aviation vehicles). i am particularly interested in an autopilot system supporting GPS.. a do it your self type..

I saw some links but they all assume full electrical knowledge... i kinda expected that, but there is no actual guide on which topics need to be studied in electronics and what hardware needed to make the project work..

I am thinking about a fully stabilized helicopter using the FMA direct's Co-Pilot system, that is overriden by the autopilot GPS system AND the pilots commands . i'd guess in theory, that should work, but lots of electrical knowledge hardware needed...

any thoughts?

[Tom Fiddler]

I have been following Neural Robotics progress since they bought their first Governor sensor from me.
I can tell you from talking to those guys they have ALOT invested to get to where they are now.
Time , dedecation, and money.
I would doubt that the FMA stuff would even give you a fighting chance im this field.
I have always been for the "Do it yourself" kinda guy, but with Heli's it's a whole new world dealing with UAV's.
Planes would be easier IMHO.
Our brains are more powerful than ANY computor because we can reason.

Good luck!

[WillJames]

Dan, that Kestrel setup may be 15K, but I know alot of people are putting on the long MA boom and changing the ratio and flying the Ion-X as a AP Platform for a lot less $$ than that. Even using round cells on them to save $$.

[R-4-L]

looks like my little photography project is down the drains.. :arggg: :arggg:

I almost went a head and do my order for this mount when I got an email with bad news, I can't practice photography here in kuwait, not without a Media license, Trade license and permissions for photography with written the time/where..

and I can't just do it without telling anyone coz kuwait is a small country and police stations are a few km apart :( :( .. oh well :dontknow

[WayneBrown]

You can't do it as a hobby either?

[R-4-L]

I wasnt really into making money out of it, not for the time being, but NO I can't even do it as a hobby, apparently (I just knew) you can't shoot video or stills in public... this is crazy ! , you can photograph (by hand) anything or anywhere just without people and not near some important places.

but with a helicopter, you can't photograph ANYTHING.. they just refuse anything they don't have knowledge about.. there's a word for that I can't remember !

[DebianDog]

Freedom - We used to have it in the United States too a long time ago. :(