Before i got in to Multi';s I had a Skywalker setup with Ardupilot, OSD, Telemetry Radios, GoPro mounted on the nose, LRS using Orange modules, 5.8ghz VTx etc

It ran on 4S packs spinning a 9x6 prop and flew well but the setup and tear down off all the ground station kit was a complete ball ache and i got bored of it so it got stripped...



I have a friend who has been considering buying an RC plane to get into the hobby and the Skywalker would make an ideal trainer for him to be buddyboxed on and also i';d actually quite like it back in the sky just to cruise about with without having to concentrate too much...

I had 2 Turnigy 4S 5000mah hard packs for it because they were cheap, but they both puffed in no time but worked fine for ages, now they are toast, i do have a stack (6 off) of 6S 40C 5000mah packs here which have not been used much from my heli ownership, so the plan is to use these to power the ship and get it back in the air...

So the plan for now:

• Fit a smaller prop so the 6S doesn';t fry the motor, i have just ordered an 8x4 to try, will check it out with the ';Wattmeter'; before it goes anywhere near the sky...
• Refit the APM with ardupilot, M8N GPS and power module, but i';m not going to bother with the OSD or telemetry radios at the moment, just set it up for manual, stabilise, loiter and RTH failsafe. Thinking about it i might add the telemetry radio, will decide on that when i start fitting it out again.
• Just before i took it apart i modified it to have flaps so it';d be nice to see these working, manually at first then maybe automatically off the APM if i add an airspeed sensor, i have got one somewhere but i broke it :/
• I have zero interest in fitting the OrangeRX OpenLRS radio again, because i use a DX8 it had to be attached via the trainer port, be powered by it';s own battery and be ';stand alone'; on a tripod or velcroed and cable tied to the back of my DX8, too much effort, i will maybe consider it again if i make the move to Taranis and can have it as a plug in module but that';ll be next year, for now it';s just getting an OrangeRX 7 channel RX that i have sitting here spare, no big deal if it goes out of range as it';ll failsafe and RTH and loiter where i can take back control.
• FPV wise i';m not sure what i';m going to put on it, probably just a FPV cam and little 5.8 Vtx, nice and simple...
• It';ll need a 3S Battery or a step down to power the VTx and LED';s, i';ll also need to get another ';switch'; for the LED';s as that one now lives in my folding quad lol
• I ';might'; make a mount for my RunCam to sit at the front with the FPV camera, ot i might just stick it on the wing, or i might not bother at all, we will see...

So i figured i';d need an FPV cam, a HS1177 should do the trick nicely...



Then i started browsing Banggood, oops... lol

So it';ll also have:

TS5828 5.8G 32CH 600mW Transmitter



Clover Mushroom Antenna (I am starting to collect the Rx version of these as they come in pairs and i have one on my 250... lol)



It looks like i will have an airspeed sensor after all... 



And i grabbed an RC Switch so i can have my LED';s if i want again :) (£4 from Bangood, someone is selling a fair amount of these on eBay a tenner at a time, i might order a bulk lot next time... I wonder if Banggood drop ship...)



And for the sake of £1.34 i grabbed a decent Telemetry radio/OSD Y cable, my last one was home made and a bit tatty, not decided if it';ll get used yet but no harm having it on standby...



I just realised as well that i do have a brand new sonar sensor here for the APM, so i may have to try a mission or 2 with some very well height controlled auto landings... 

Oh and i decided instead of a bodged canopy to hold the camera, i might as well have a proper wooden pod this time, i';ll have all the FPV gear and maybe my RunCamHD on the pod, it can then easily be swapped out for the standard canopy if and when ';training duties'; are required :)

Well Paul I like this thread lol and on the note of airspeed sensor I am looking at printing a sexy looking mount which houses the electronics as well. I';ll grab a pic and see if you want one (I';m sure you will lol) in fact I';ll just throw one on the order anyway

Quote from: Rommie on Sunday,September 27, 2015, 12:59:36
Well Paul I like this thread lol and on the note of airspeed sensor I am looking at printing a sexy looking mount which houses the electronics as well. I';ll grab a pic and see if you want one (I';m sure you will lol) in fact I';ll just throw one on the order anyway

Ha ha, funny, i was thinking about designing something up for that lol

I will at some point probably do a mount for the sonar too, that needs special cables and stuff though so it';ll be a while before i bother doing anything with that...

http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:839979

That';s the one in gonna do for my walker

Yup, thats the kind of thing i was thinking of...

My only concern being the pitot tubes have different ';bases'; where the tubes connect so it may need mods I know the tube i have just ordered looks VERY different at the base to the one i had last time...

Had some bits for the project turn up today:

• Some power cable...
• Some male to male servo connectors...
• Some 8x4 props...

Even though not a lot in the grand scheme of things I ordered these bits from the UK on purpose so they would turn up quickly as they are the essential parts to get the APM fitted in its most basic form (APM, GPS & Power module...) and means i can get started on it this week...

So the plan for this week:

• Get the power module wired in to the ESC and with an EC5 connector on the other end, this will enable me to do some tests on 6S power and test the 8x4 props, this will all be done with a wattmeter inline and me keeping an eye on current draw and motor temps etc...
• I should be able to get the APM refitted and hopefully setup, running it on 6S will also mean it can be ran off my 24v PSU and allow accurate calibration of the power module as i';ll have a nice regulated voltage to power it off...
• I';d like to say that trimming and test flying may be possible, but at the moment i';m not allowed to drive (medical reasons) so i have to wait the outcome of a specialist review which is later on today to determine if I can transport anymore than a 250 in a backpack to the field... lol

No time to do anything today though, off to the hospital very shortly to see a Cardiologist and beg to be allowed to drive again and then taking little on the train down to the O2 Arena to see 1Direction ';strut there stuff'; (i';m thinking headphones and a bar for the evening but we shall see...)

Well today so far i have been individually checking/charging my 6S 40C 5000mah Turnigy blue packs that i intend to use in this, they have sat unused for a few months, I knew one had a slow to balance cell, that';s still on the charger now seeing how long it takes to balance out and if it';s viable for use, and annoyingly one of the other has a completely dead cell...

Realistically though, even with only 4 packs it should be easy enough to get an hours worth of flying time out of this machine in a day before i have to return to charge any packs...

This afternoon/evening i should start getting some of the electronics fitted...

Well, i';ve made some good progress today, gonna leave it now and attack it some more tomorrow...

• APM is in with GPS and Telemetry, Power module seems to have crapped itself which is a shame but it';s still passing power through to the ESC and regulating power to the APM, it';s just not passing the voltage/current data through... I';ll order a new one when i can be bothered and just send it up with a lipo alarm for now...
• APM is all calibrated and setup as much as it can be, annoyingly the first Rx i tried refused to stay binded so that is now in the bin, but i had another spare so thats now fitted.
• Flaps are connected up manually, i';ve not actually flown it since i cut these in and fitted the servos so it';ll be good to see how well they work as the Skywalker does love to glide on when it has a bit of weight to it.

So, jobs on the list for tomorrow:

• Affix GPS in place.
• Affix telemetry radio in place.
• Setup radio failsafe to RTL.
• Fully assemble plane and work out battery position for correct CofG.
• Let it sit outside for a while so the GPS can sort it';s life out.
• Affix new 8x4 prop and do some test power runs with Wattmeter attached
• Double/Triple check that all deflections are correcting in the right direction when in stabilise.

And if all that works out OK i';m going to try for a maiden on Friday...

The wooden FPV pod arrived today, 5 days from china, very impressive http://www.fpvmodel.com/





I';m not rushing with the rest of it, just doing it as time allows, ii know i';m working everyday for the next few weeks so it';s an ';as and when'; project anyway...