Blade Nano QX with navigation lights

[davethepitch]

Hello all

I just thought i would let you see what the RAM194 Blade Nano QX navigation lights look like fitted and operational.

The two front LED's are white and the right side (starboard) is green and the left side (port) is red "i only know that because i have read it on the instructions" and even though i am colour blind the colours are not a problem as the rear two LED's are flashing so i can see which way the quad is facing.

I purchased these RAM navigation lights because they are plug and play and i could not be bothered to build a set even though i have some LED's (my LED's are a bit to big really) plus i have some resistors and the ability to do it so but i suppose i am just bone idle.

Dave

[Andre LaFramboise]

I got some as well but have not installed yet . How did you secure yours and lost flight time.

[davethepitch]

I have placed my backup LED set and some cut off cable ties that i fastened in the wrong place on the quad onto a scale to show the weight that has been added to my Nano QX.

The LED's and cable ties weigh in at 2.79 grams and adding that to the 18 grams flying weight of the Nano QX makes it 20.79 grams in total.

I am using miniaviation 190mAh lipo's and i have set my timer on my DX6i to 4 minutes and then change to another lipo so i do not over work them and i am not sure how much of a loss in flight time there would be but i think the approximate flight time for a stock Nano QX is around 6 to 8 minutes.

Dave

[ManInAGarden]

Where do you all by these lighting sets? Are they also available for the mQX? I did not find them with google.

[davethepitch]

I am not sure if i am allowed post a link to a retailer but if you type in Ram Quad Lites Blade MQX they are sometimes available on eBay and from other retailers.

The set of LED's on the Nano QX are called RAM194 and if you type in Google ram194 nano led it will give you the retailer with a Tower that i purchased mine from.

I am just waiting for three sets to arrive from the USA for my mQX and 180 QX and have a spare set just in case.

Dave

[ManInAGarden]

Originally Posted by davethepitch

I am not sure if i am allowed post a link to a retailer but if you type in Ram Quad Lites Blade MQX they are sometimes available on eBay and from other retailers.

The set of LED's on the Nano QX are called RAM194 and if you type in Google ram194 nano led it will give you the retailer with a Tower that i purchased mine from.

I am just waiting for three sets to arrive from the USA for my mQX and 180 QX and have a spare set just in case.

Dave

Thank's a lot. With your query expressions I managed to find lights for the nanoQX and also for the microQX. Reasonable prices but postage to Germany somewhat doubles the prices. I think I have to wait for the lights being available over here or make some myself. :-(

[ManInAGarden]

I'm really thinking of making these lights myself now, but one thing is puzzling me. Besides the plugs, the LEDs and wires I would expect four resistors. But I don't see any on your photos. Are there no resistors? Maybe they are hidden in shrink tube?

[davethepitch]

I am not sure if you missed the mQX LED set but if you go to Google and type in L5DBPP02 Ram Quad Lites Blade MQX and you should see where i got mine from and look for the word TowerH.....S.

I have taken a photo of my spare LED set and although there is a resistor on the red power wire i am not sure what the value of it is as it has a black protective coating and i do not know the specifications of the LED's.

I have also added a photo of two of my test circuits that i experimented with a few months ago.

Dave

[shadowhunter]

Originally Posted by davethepitch

I am not sure if i am allowed post a link to a retailer but if you type in Ram Quad Lites Blade MQX they are sometimes available on eBay and from other retailers.

The set of LED's on the Nano QX are called RAM194 and if you type in Google ram194 nano led it will give you the retailer with a Tower that i purchased mine from.

I am just waiting for three sets to arrive from the USA for my mQX and 180 QX and have a spare set just in case.

Dave

do you like your nano qx or your 180 qx better?

[shadowhunter]

debating on the two myself, curious to see what you say

[davethepitch]

After watching a few videos and reading some reviews i decided to try a Blade Nano QX and it has two flight modes which are stability mode (blue led) and agility mode (red led) and there is a big difference between the two modes.

I think the frame seems a bit flimsy and at first i did hit the kitchen walls really hard a few times but the Nano QX sustained no damage at all but i was in stability mode and not in agility mode.

I have tried the Nano QX in agility mode and it fly's like it is on crystal Methamphetamine and it is a serious handful to use in that mode and personally i would need a much larger room unlike my small kitchen.

I put some settings in my DX6i for the Nano qx that i found on a forum and i have made some slight adjustments which others have done.

I guess someone that can actually fly properly (not like me) could really have some fun with this little quad especially in agility mode.

The big bonus for me is with this Nano QX quad i have learned how to fly in circles for the very first time since i started in the hobby how strange is that.

I have tried the Nano QX outside and used 6 lipo's to see how it handled the wind which i did not think would pose a problem but the Nano QX was fighting the wind in forward flight and being blown around and carried away with the slight wind.

It obviously is not heavy enough and it will have to be a pretty calm day or just be flown indoors which is not a problem but at least i know where i stand.

However i can say that my mQX does fly better outside but i have not tried the Blade 180 QX as we have not had the weather and i have only had it almost two weeks.

The Blade 180 QX has three flight modes two stability and one agility and again i am impressed with the quality and the way it handles and another bonus is most of the parts from the mQX fit the 180 QX anyway.

I have not tried the camera yet either as i am waiting for some better weather to take the Blade 180 QX outside for a good test but i am more than happy with it indoors at the moment

Now back to the original question of "which one to have" all i can say is they are both rock steady in hover, fly brilliant and i think the quality is very good and i am glad i am lucky enough to have both of them.

Dave

[Fyathyrio]

Originally Posted by ManInAGarden

Thank's a lot. With your query expressions I managed to find lights for the nanoQX and also for the microQX. Reasonable prices but postage to Germany somewhat doubles the prices. I think I have to wait for the lights being available over here or make some myself. :-(

Making them yourself isn't that hard, and compared to the RAM lights is much better in my experience. Here's my LED journey.

For those that can't make their own, I highly recommend SF Design's stuff. Very light and high quality components used throughout. It's a one man show, and he is closed for the holidays until mid January.

[davethepitch]

Hello Fyathyrio

I have read your LED journey and it is an excellent write up and you will have made a lot of people happy but personally i had a problem watching your final flying video because being colour blind i could not tell the orientation of your quad which is why i chose the RAM LED's as they have two flashing LED's.

I have done several LED setups on quads from 450's to smaller projects but another thing that also concerns me is by using the enamel coated wire for these LED setups there could be a risk of the enamel scraping off and causing a short if not checked after a crash.

I have done a test flight today using the RAM LED's and some 190mAh lipo's which have seen better days and really need replacing and the best flying time i got was just under 5 minutes and then LVC started to kick in but that is fine by me as i do not want to push the motors.

After flying the 5 Nano lipo's i just go over to my Blade 180 QX and finish off flying with 5 new Turnigy nano-tech 650 mAh lipo's and then i have had my fun for the day.

Dave

[shadowhunter]

how did you connect the led lights to the nano qx board?

[davethepitch]

I have not connected mine to the board as they are plug and play so it is just a case of connecting up the connectors.

Dave

[Way2fst4u2]

Does anyone make an SMD LED light kit?

[Fyathyrio]

Yes, they do...and good stuff also...exponentially better then Ram garbage.

[Way2fst4u2]

Originally Posted by Fyathyrio

Yes, they do...and good stuff also...exponentially better then Ram garbage.

On the site it says all made with 3mm LED’s...

[Fyathyrio]

3mm long 1206 SMD LEDs, not the huge bubbles that Radio Shack sells or Ram uses. Check out my post a few comments above where I linked to my write-up, I use the same stuff, you'll get a better idea of what they are.

[Way2fst4u2]

Originally Posted by Fyathyrio

3mm long 1206 SMD LEDs, not the huge bubbles that Radio Shack sells or Ram uses. Check out my post a few comments above where I linked to my write-up, I use the same stuff, you'll get a better idea of what they are.

Thanks...I’m planning on getting some as soon as I get this one motor repaired.