General Beginner's help

AThousandCranes

New Member
Hey there! My name is Mira and I'm new to RC aircraft making.
For a project at my school, I've decided to create an Aircraft for Ariel photography. My aim is to make a trainer plane and attach a fpv camera to it. I have conducted some research on what each components are; servos, motors etc however I'm still unsure of how it all combines. Furthermore the fact that there are various different motors/ the terminology is hard to understand.
I would like some help on how to start making. (note: I'm on a very tight budget, I can spend max £80, not sure if it's possible to create an aircraft from this)
Questions: What components do I need? Is there a specific path I must follow?
Where is the best place to buy materials from?
How to design/make plans?

Thank you
 

Smoggie

Well-Known Member
Hi Mira,

Sounds like a fun project but if you are needing 'everything' including transmitter, servos, receiver, speed controller, motor, battery, FPV equipment, charger etc etc etc...... Then I'm afraid £80 is not even close to enough money for such a project. In fact for £80 you would find it hard to buy only the FPV equipment. In ballpark figures you would be looking at around £250 minimum to do this sort of project.
 
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RandyDSok

Well-Known Member
As Smoggie indicated...

If you try to do this as you wrote it... it's going to be far outside of your budget. If on the otherhand, you didn't use the proper words for what you were asking or if you don't mind a minor change in those plans... it may be doable but just barely and you won't be using quality parts/hardware, it would only be a place to start.

First let's define FPV a little... That is short for "first person view". In other words you'd be watching what the aircraft is doing through a monitor or googles ( both are expensive ). If on the other hand you meant or are OK with just taking a movie of what the aircraft is doing, that may be closer to what you can afford since small cameras that can record aren't really all that expensive. FPV equipment that require a video camera, transmitter and receiver along with the monitor and other required equipment is pricey to say the least.

Another issue with FVP... you can't or shouldn't fly that way alone... you need a second person to watch for you, a spotter, so you don't get into trouble just watching through the monitor or goggles which restrict your vision.

As for "making a model" ... There are three directions to take and each probably end up about the same cost once you get everything you need. The simplest is just getting a RTF model... RTF stands for "ready to fly" and it has everything you need included. You would still need to assemble it but you wouldn't need to actually build it from the ground up. Then the next step is an ARF... which stands for "almost ready to fly". An ARF is a model that is already covered but the major parts need assembled and you still must purchase a radio, receiver, servos, motor and a few other minor parts. Most ARF's will have recommended parts suggested so that makes selecting them a little easier. Then there is kit or scratch building where you must get almost everything together and often require that you know which parts are needed for that size and type of aircraft.

A kit will often cost you as much if not more than an ARF model will... so they are more directed at builders that want the enjoyment of doing everything for themselves. If looking to do something like this, check out the RC-Help trainer that Tony has posted here and is available to download the plans for free from the forum "store". There is a build video that can help as well as posts from other users that have built it. The main material that it is built from is a flat foam that is available most everywhere and doesn't cost much. You'd still need to source the rest of the components but suggestions for those are also found in the threads about that airplane.

Once you decide on a direction you want to go in... You still need a lot of time to learn how to fly. You can't simply take off and land without having first learned how to fly. To learn, it's best to find another RC pilot to help but if you can't find one, there are RC flight simulator softwares that you can get that can aid in learning. A flight game is not the same as a RC flight simulator... the games has the flight simplified to make them more enjoyable a simulator tries to emulate real flight and flight conditions.
 

AThousandCranes

New Member
Ah' I see, thank you for your info, thanks for the replies
I was researching and found a site where I could build one under £70, my aircraft does not need to be all fancy, just needs to fly for a bit. As for the fpv camera, I saw a few quite cheaply on ebay, although I think it'd be best for researching how they work more first. As for learning to fly, first I will proceed with the making then worry about flying later. I'll do a step at a time.
This was one of the plans I found online on instructable: http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Build-Your-First-RC-Plane-for-Under-100-Tra/
(all credits to owner)
I was hoping to use this but as for the fpv, i think the only part I'll need to change would be changing the Radio from a 4 channel to a 5 channel (just in case I'll opt for channel: Hobby King 2.4Ghz 6Ch Tx & Rx V2 (Mode 2) one I found on hobbyking)
What are your thoughts?
 

Smoggie

Well-Known Member
That looks like a good budget option as an introduction to RC flying, but FPV would probably double the cost. If you forget FPV for the moment then it looks like a good plan and the plane would be easily capable of carrying a small 'keychain' type video camera if you wanted to do onboard video.

Final cost will be a bit more than shown as in the UK you are likely to be hit with 20% VAT and additional handling fees by UK customs. You also need tools such as soldering iron, modelling knives etc.


To be honest once you add it all up i think it would probably be cheaper to get a 'ready to fly' plane such as this: HobbyKingâ„¢ Bix3 Trainer/FPV EPO 1550mm Mode 2 (Ready-To-Fly) (UK Warehouse)
 

Smoggie

Well-Known Member
I guess for a school project the self build option might work better and get you better marks (if the project is marked?). If the school has all the tools then that certainly helps.
 

AThousandCranes

New Member
Yes indeed. I've been working very hard for this and really hope to make it possible. If you do know any good sites\useful guides for beginners to learn more about RC please do let me know
I thank you sincerely for your support
 
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