Dart 250 build, break, rebuild....

[ChavasRegal]

So although I';m still waiting on my frame to arrive from goodluckbuy I thought I';d get started on the build.

Build Spec.

Frame: GLB Dart 250
Flight Controller: KK2 1.5 on Stevie';s v1.19s1 pro FW
Motors: XT-Xinite 1806 2400kv
ESCs: XT-Xinite 12A on SimonK FW
Rx: Turnigy IA6 6ch 2.4Ghz
Props: Andoer 5030s
Battery: Turnigy nanotech 1300mah
Radio Tx: Turnigy TGY-I6


So far I';ve Flashed the KK2 to Stevie';s latest firmware and calibrated my Radio.

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Soldered the Bullet connectors to my motors and heat shrunk them with the aid of the wife';s 2000w hair scorcher.

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I';m unsure of the quality of the motors or esc';s, as this was my first build I opted to keep the budget tight as I';m sure there will be a few crashes with the intention of upgrading in the future.

[ChavasRegal]

So finally my Frame arrived and after popping it on the scales it weighs in at a whopping 142g.

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After a quick inspection my initial though were quite positive, the arms look quite strong but the plates are relatively flexible.

On to the build, first job was to attach the XT60 connector / plate and the included switched LED';s to the PDB
followed by the power outlets for extra gear.

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Soldered on the ESC';s

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Quick test of the LED';s, nice and bright 

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Just had enough room to fit the arms at the side of the ESC';s in hindsight maybe  should have offer up an arm first and shortened the ESC wires a little more  but it all fit snugly and managed to get the wires through the little tunnel without issue.

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A this point I got carried away and forgot to take more pictures, but I did assemble the clean cage and fit the FC and RX.

I';ll post and update later.

[flybywire]

Looks like a tidy frame CR.  THe only thing i would suggest, is to swap out the KK board with a 32 bit FC like CC3D (£21 from HK) or Naze (£16.49 for acro v).  You might get on ok with it (some do) but I didn';t like any of mine, and found the CC3D to be infinitely superior, both in performance and setup/configurability.  the 32 bit boards are about half the size too, which is fairly important on a 250 size frame I think. 

[ChavasRegal]

I was considering a different FC, but I opted to the KK out of convenience, my PC is in the cellar and is a bugger to get to atm, I';m using this build as a practice and in the near future I intend to build myself a better spec';d quad, oh and tidy the cellar

[ChavasRegal]

Managed to get my motors installed after a bit of faffing, only had M2x6mm screws and with the arms being 6mm had to source some more, quick trip to Maplin and came back with a selection box, the shortest being M2x12mm  out came the Dremel and ground them down to 8mm.

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Props on ready for its maiden tomorrow... hopefully 

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[ChavasRegal]

Well I took the quad up for it';s maiden yesterday but the wind soon put a stop to that  not to be deterred I attempted again today, needless to say it was a bad idea as the wind was just as bad and the light was fading, all this accumulated in a spectacular crash about 100m away after a gust of wind took the quad  and not even my noobish skills could regain orientation enough to bring it home, after a Usain Bolt beating sprint  in the straightest line possible of the direction of the crash I saw my quad sitting at the foot of a tree  but still had to go searching the undergrowth for my LiPo as it had been thrown free.

All in all I learned a valuable lesson, but fortunately the only damage was to my props and pride.

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[Beaver2206]

Bad luck, though chalk another one up to experience.  Good job finding it!  Was it fast?  Is that part of the reason it went AWOL?

[ChavasRegal]

thanks, the main reason was the wind, I was a few circuits of the field and was quite sheltered but I gained a little altitude and it was off, it was quite fast AUW is 442g with a 1300 LiPo, I';ve not had it opened up all the way yet as I';m not that confident, even less so now

It';s all experience.

[fruitsalad]

im awaiting a 250 dart frame..
going to be starting  mine at weekend..
got a spare set of dys black motors,12a escs,and a naza lite waiting for it..

[ChavasRegal]

It';s quite a nice little frame, tough little bigger, I doubt the arms will be breaking any time soon.
Where did you order yours from?

[fruitsalad]

looks a smaller version of my hoverthings flip fpv frame..
thats a tough frame too..
i got plenty assorted sized hex bolts,screws,nuts bla bla...

[forest]

looks good enjoy

[ChavasRegal]

since my last update I';ve made a few modifications to the quad, I';ve replaced the KK2 with a Flíp32 (which was a steep learning curve) and added a GPS module.

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so took it out for the maiden and after a settings mishap ended up like this.

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Total damage:
2x Props
2x Nylon bolts
1x 15mm Section of motor cable and a banana plug.


Here is the Crash caught by the wife on her phone.


http://youtu.be/XOUw563hxTc

And a few more for good measure.

http://youtu.be/3_4bmu1ywQk

http://youtu.be/4EJ6vyouL3E

[Nige]

Nice 1 CR I';m proud of ya..

Great to see it in the air.. love the eathing tape ballast.. or are you trying to start a new fashion trend lol..

Looks great mate.. now get some FPV gear on it and the fun really begins.

Nige

[ChavasRegal]

Its a new trend mate, all the kool kids are doing it


FPV needs to come soon, I';m itching to get it on.

[fruitsalad]

oh dear..not too bad a damage..
mines up n ready,test flown in my kitchen..

[ChavasRegal]

Well the quad has been out on a few more test flights this week with only a couple of minor crashes, I even mustered up the courage to flip to horizon mode (after setting my rates finally) and trying a few flips and rolls, was impressed with the results and the big cheesy grin it produced.

Big thanks to Nige who kindly sent me an LED strip so that I have a tail light to help me keep orientation with the quad 

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Impulse buying resulted in me purchasing a Sonar module for a whopping £2.50 and got round to installing it tonight, due to the shoddy weather I';ve not had chance to test it properly, hopefully that will be done this weekend.

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[ChavasRegal]

Well happy valentines folks.

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[dockman]

Bummer dude.

That was either an epic crash or some of the parts are not as strong as they should be.

[ChavasRegal]

Was pretty epic, it had had worse tho, must have landed just right.

[forest]

sonar hey?  cool i must read up on what it does i would guess at having a hand on keeping it at a fixed height? 

im not going  to say  shame about the crash cos it all part of it ive flow 8 batterys over tow days and the first day there was loads of crashes, today not so many ive found flying over heather is the best way to stop the damage :)

[ChavasRegal]

Well some of my bits arrived and after a little tinkering were back to a state where flight might be possible.

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[forest]

sweet , that is a mad frame with the fc deck on jellos  ive not seen that before

how was the sonar? ive not had a chance to read up on it , ive been trying to get the pids right for my woody 450 and its not flying well at the mo , still it all learning

[fruitsalad]

here my dart 250
so far running pretty good,just awaiting mini vtx and cam from china to fit to it..

[ChavasRegal]

here my dart 250
so far running pretty good,just awaiting mini vtx and cam from china to fit to it..

Hey fruit, do you have many problems with the top cage detaching easily with the battery on top?

[fruitsalad]

not so far only had a few tests around the garden,but looking at getting the legs extended and putting battery underneath.

[ChavasRegal]

My last crash literally ripped through the frame where the jello';s mount, think all the weight up top was a contributing factor. Already had a top frame on order luckily.

Like you I';m looking to put the battery underneath.

[fruitsalad]

those balls just dont look strong enough for my liking..
looks a weak point,extra half inch on the legs should be enough to strap a lipo underneath..

[Nige]

My last crash literally ripped through the frame where the jello';s mount, think all the weight up top was a contributing factor. Already had a top frame on order luckily.

Like you I';m looking to put the battery underneath.

Why dont you do away with the jello mounts.. you could mount the FC on some sticky foam pads to eliminate vibration.. that way you cut out the weak point altogether.. Most 250 frames dont have clean mount as they call it and do fine.. its over engineering a problem that doesnt exist if you ask me..

Nige

[ChavasRegal]

It is an option, I was thinking of getting a new frame and doing a bare bones build using only the lower section of the dart (tarot 250 style) using the HC kk2.