Introduce Yourself

Well, the toy Chinook arrived. The big Beech tree in the backyard is now well trimmed.

 

I am the "NEW GUY" and I like what I see on the site..Thanks Nick

 

Hi, my name is Garry... I am new to quadcopters/drones, my interest sparked by finding a video of the AR DRONE on YouTube by accident...... I have always had an interest in RC Vehicles mainly cars..... But only because I have never been able to afford a Plane or Copter...... Being unable to work at the moment these quads seem like I might eventually be able to get in to airborne RC's at an affordable price.... I am currently saving towards my first drone, seems silly as they can be brought for around £35-40 from eBay, but money is tight, but soon I will be zooming round my local park.... He he....

 

Hi, my name's Ron and this is my first venture into anything radio/remote controlled, having purchased a Parrot AR Drone just over a month ago, although I will admit to enjoying building and flying a tow launched glider when I was in my early teens - about 50 years ago (there, I've given my age away. Bah!!)

My main reason for getting a Parrot AR Drone is so that I can try out getting a different perspective on historical sites that I enjoy visiting, but I admit that I have a lot to learn.

I've had a few test flights in suitable places - well away from anything hard or fragile - and well away from people as I don't want to damage anything, either mine or anyone elses. In fact the only spectators I've had was a herd of cattle, who just wanted to be in on the picture at a mediaeval village I visited in Lincolnshire .


The log on name of Baxtonmoor comes from the part of my home village that I grew up in.

 

Hey guys,

My name is Simon and I'm from South Africa!
I am 18 years old and I have been interested and involved in quads for about a year now. Because I am a student I don't really have the funds to buy my own so I have been saving up and buying different parts as the money becomes available. I am about to put my first DIY home made frame quad into the air! Just need to make a few final tweeks this weekend and she should be up, hopefully!

I would really love to get this prize!

Great forum and website!

 

Hi all,
My name is Kevin. I am just starting into this hobby. Found this site while doing some research on quads. Looks like I may go for a Syma X1 once I snatch the checkbook from my wife when she is not looking.

 

Hi, my name is James, and I'm from San Diego, California. Been in the RC world most of my life, starting with, and majority 1:10 scale RC cars. The first quad I got was the Traxxas QR-1 (Hubsan Quads X4), using this platform to learn how to fly quads. Next step is to build a DJI F450 fpv set up, or get the DJI Phantom Vision.

 

Just a quick hello from Southern California. I've been flying RC off and on for over 20 years. Lately I've been mostly into gliders and slope soaring. I recently got a Helimax 1SQ. What a blast! So I decided I needed something a little bigger, with a better power to weight ratio, so I got a WL v959. It's a fun little toy too. Now I've decided I want something with a little more capability, and I want to try FPV, so I've been working on piecing together (so far only virtually) a 450 size quad. I think I'll buy most of it from RCTimer with one of their combo deals. But since I haven't ordered yet we'll see.
Lots of study yet to do...
Dave

 

Just got in to drones, glad I found this place.

 

G'day, just got ar drone. Crashed and need repairs, this place looks great.

 

Hello all, Total newbie here. Although I'm a confirmed gadget geek and computer junkie, I've never ventured into the RC area at all. I'm a retired General Contractor currently running a professional property consultation business that includes infrared inspections. I've been watching this drone/quad copter field for some time and considering it as a possibility for a low-cost solution to inspect roofs that I cannot reach via a ladder or that are unsafe to walk on. This seems like a potentially ideal solution.

So… Here I am, trying to do a little research and find out what is workable without breaking the bank. Ideally, I want something that I can control from my Google Nexus 7 android tablet and be able to view and capture videos and stills of the aforementioned roofs. Open to suggestions here but this is definitely not a deep pockets operation. The other consideration is that I don't want to get deep in my pockets for equipment and then have the local powers that be tell me I have to have astronaut certification in order to fly it or that I may not fly it at all above any populated areas. Obviously, I would need to fly above a house in order to get the needed roof pictures.

 

Thanks for the response webman. Already grabbed the book (since it was free, LOL) I'll be reading that tonight in bed. Thanks for the tip about the "keychain cameras". Not sure about the capabilities of that, first time I've heard of them. More research I guess. I did see some mention of the "Director" mode on the AR site the did not explore it. Hadn't thought about the application to my use but now that you mention it I can see that a multi-camera feed and being able to work with that would be very useful. I've also been reading about the hacks/upgrades possible with the AR system to extend control, range and flight time issues. I'm rarely one to leave anything box stock. I'm always hacking things for better functionality. I generally don't give a damn about the looks thing. I'm more about performance.

 

Well I took the plunge! I decided to get this party on the road and threw down some money for a trainer
.http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=400416241355
I also downloaded a flight training / simulator app that was free from the Play Store to mess around a bit. This is going to be interesting, it's not as easy as it looks!

 

By the way, my avatar picture is my big goofball dog Cooper. He's an "Otterhound" A very rare breed with less than 1000 of them in the world. They are an old British breed, originally bred as a pack hunting scent hound to hunt otters. Technically, they are actually an endangered species although they don't do that with dogs. I actually have two. He's the only dog I've ever had that actually sits on the couch. He will actually back up to the couch and sit down. I guess he was extra tired this day because he also rested his head on the coffee table. Is a lazy bum, what can I say? We raise and show these dogs in AKC. Cooper (Aberdeen's Unsolved Mistry) and his girlfriend Shuffles (Wild West's Texas Two-step) are both Grand Champions in the show ring.

They are great watchdogs - As you can see, nothing misses their attention.

 

I am a 78 year old male from Brisbane Aus flying a Naza Quad also a ZeoUAV Quad and loving it always looking to learn new tricks

 

I'm Jeremy, I'm in Omaha, NE. I'm a professional programmer, but mostly web, phones, and video conferencing--nothing like Arduino or robotics (yet).

I got interested in quadcopters tangentially through a spy story I'm writing. Now I'm reading and watching everything I can get my hands on, just about to buy my first (probably a Syma X1). I'm basically an RC n00b: I had a GI Joe Crossfire in my childhood, and a crap Halo Warthog more recently, but nothing that flies.

Found the site through Craig's book, which if you haven't read it is outstanding.

 

Hi folks. This site looks like a great find. I've been into photography and flying from a very early age and have tried loads of ways over the years to bring the two together. Everything from gliders to Paramotors and microlight aircraft. The problem with all of these is high cost. And the fact that my wife really didn't like me running into the sky with a big kite over my head, much as I enjoyed it myself.

I've been researching multi rotors for a few months now and have bought a V959 to learn a bit on. Unfortunately, there was a crucial part missing when it arrived and I am now waiting for a replacement to be delivered. In the meantime I bought a Hubsan Quads X4 and I am having great fun bouncing that tough little thing off walls and trees etc. The intervals between take-offs and impacts are getting longer, so I am improving slowly.

Also, at this precise moment in time there is a box by my desk with a growing selection of parts. Currently in the box are a 500MM Alien Frame and all it's required screws, a multiwii Pro controller and a camera gimble. In the post en route should be a set of 1000kv motors and 30A ESC's, two sets of 1045 props and a tall skid set. I have no real idea what to do when I get it all together ready to build, but I am watching lots of online videos and articles etc