I just recently purchased a set of Fatshark Dominator V3 from Ebay , I got a good deal and for some time I wanted to fly my P4P using the FPV goggles , especially on super sunny days when you can hardly see anything on the tablet...,
I got a sweet deal , I got the goggles  a racing drone and a charger all for 450 bucks including shipping and custom fees...
Well I've never flown a racing drone before , what a suprise it was to find out that I crashed on the first attempt lol, it is absolutely insane how fast the racing drone responds to controls, even hovering is a challange not to mention I am trying in horizon mode lol Acro switch at the moment is coated with HOT LAVA and I am not gonna touch it for some time haha. The drone I got is the Immersion Vortex 285 Pro a larger drone on the scale of racing drones but I love it...
As a matter of fact I got hooked instantly on building my own racing drone, it is just such a cool hobby, something new and exciting...

So what I was trying to say in my heading , we phantom pilots really have no Idea about flying .  I know I know a lot of you will argue but trust me I thought I could fly with 3 years of experience flying DJI lol , in the end I know nothing about flying and it's a shame.

Watched some videos from Rotor Riot , those guys are absolutely amazing, check them out on youtube..

Btw , anyone on here from any drone club in Edmonton, Alberta ?
If there is anyone here from my area please contact me I would like to join in and become a member .

Sayonara for now !

I agree phantoms are relatively easy to fly but don’t be fooled by thinking that just because someone who owns a phantom can’t fly, most people own phantoms because they are fantastic camera platforms.

The Phantom in GPS mode is intentionally easy to fly, but I agree some general FPV skills really do help an awful lot, especially for framing good shots while FPV.

An alternative to a pure acro racing drone for learning unassisted FPV is something like an F550 hexacopter outfitted for FPV. I have two of these, one with a NazaM and the other with a Wookong and with ocusync air units for the video downlink. Both can be flown in manual mode, which gives a behavior more like an R/C helicopter or a very subdued racing drone/freestyle machine rather than the Phantom. But something larger like the F550 is more docile and not so nervous like a tiny racing machine and can handle enormous amounts of wind. I've flown this thing in 30mph gusts and it was still quite controllable (landing was a slight "issue" tho). The flight time is longer also which gives more training time once you get over the crashing stage .
I'm a poor freestyle pilot but here's my F550 with an ocusync air unit at 720p. Up at the rocks, the wind was at least 25mph if not more.... This is all in the Naza's manual mode and the view is straight out of my RE goggles:

What no flips and no rolls ?? haha   JK ,  It is amazing how some people can fly those race quads , simply stunning...  I downloaded a simulator and I drill that till my fingers bleed...
It is a different ball game,  is this ever a crazy feeling when you fly without gps lock , DJI drones are spoiling us lol
I will post some vid in here once I actually go out and fly again, it is so cold in Alberta , so all flying equipment is grounded for now...
I will build my new race quad within next few weeks, got all the components already,  just waiting for the frame to arrive.
Good video btw..., all you're missing here is the speed factor , in the mean time check out this vid for precision flying.

Are you going to post some videos of you building the quad

Yeah it loops and rolls fine, but the rates are very stately and slow in the Naza/Wookong manual mode. Plus, I just don't find loops/rolls very compelling just on a little screen so I don't do too much of it. Yes, the F550 isn't nearly as fast as a racing drone. Even on 4S, the E300 power system doesn't have a really high top speed. I think at max controllable power, it does around 50mph, so a good strafing run has to be done downwind like this. But as you can see, even with an approx 10 to 15mph tailwind, it's not near as fast as a good racer. But that's fine if you're just doing more slow and stately style flying:

AlanHd Posted at 2018-2-21 10:53
Are you going to post some videos of you building the quad

This will be my first one, so probably not as it would take too much time , but I can post pictures at each stage of progress, the airframe first , then PDB board with all motors, flight controller board, then the FPV transmitter and the camera , I am inexperienced at this so this will be a work in progress.
But I will definitely post pictures and the maiden flight when I determine it is air worthy and safe to fly...

luciens Posted at 2018-2-21 10:57
Yeah it loops and rolls fine, but the rates are very stately and slow in the Naza/Wookong manual mode. Plus, I just don't find loops/rolls very compelling just on a little screen so I don't do too much of it. Yes, the F550 isn't nearly as fast as a racing drone. Even on 4S, the E300 power system doesn't have a really high top speed. I think at max controllable power, it does around 50mph, so a good strafing run has to be done downwind like this. But as you can see, even with an approx 10 to 15mph tailwind, it's not near as fast as a good racer. But that's fine if you're just doing more slow and stately style flying:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aR4Jn2ekPBM

Hey for now that is fast enough for me lol, if you guys see me crash the first flight you would laugh...
I went up,  did a bit of yaw and banking then the wind picked up and  started to move the quad away , I  panicked tried to come back and brushed one side over the light post stripping the propellers and then digging my vortex out of a 1.5ft snow bank lol , that was it... about 2 minutes in the air fighting a light breeze lol

Yep, that strafing flight is just right on the edge of control, at about 90% stick. That generally why the view is kind of porpoising because I have it right on the ragged edge of full speed. But yes learning to hover and takeoff and land is the hardest part and unfortunately the part you have to learn first. Again that's what I like about larger copters, they're significantly more stable in the hover and less jittery than a tiny racer.

Another way to practice it kind of sort of, with the P4P, is to put the camera in FPV mode and practice in Atti mode. That's actually more cumbersome than manual mode, and it doesn't do pitch changes, but it's a way to practice hovering in a kind of manual way...

luciens Posted at 2018-2-21 11:49
Yep, that strafing flight is just right on the edge of control, at about 90% stick. That generally why the view is kind of porpoising because I have it right on the ragged edge of full speed. But yes learning to hover and takeoff and land is the hardest part and unfortunately the part you have to learn first. Again that's what I like about larger copters, they're significantly more stable in the hover and less jittery than a tiny racer.

Another way to practice it kind of sort of, with the P4P, is to put the camera in FPV mode and practice in Atti mode. That's actually more cumbersome than manual mode, and it doesn't do pitch changes, but it's a way to practice hovering in a kind of manual way...

Agreed, I may just have to adjust expo settings in Taranis controller or the quad itself ,
I practiced lots Att with phantom and I find it fairly easy to fly, the hard part in race quads is to hold the altitude steady, this is what I found the hardest to do...

I've wanted to do a small racing or freestyle drone too, but I would want long flight times and enough room to put one of my ocusync air units on it. If it weren't for that, I'd probably build one. Seems like the flight times are only a few minutes. The F550 can go up to about 12 mins at wide open throttle and 15 or more just fun flying if I pile enough batteries on it, but I can't see how to do that with a racer yet.....

Well come on in, to the family.
Hello neighbour. Edmonton here. While Not a specific drone club, but RC helicopter pilots who fly drones also, in the mix. O
Please See: www.ercha.ca

You will need to be a www.maac.ca member to join ercha club.

Enjoy your drone, and time well spent, while on the forum. ;-)


RedHotPoker

Right on , hello neighbor lol , checked the website , looks  nice but no drone photos just helis,  when do you guys meet and where during winter times and how often ? what is the area you fly in the summer ?
Very interested to join in.

luciens Posted at 2018-2-21 12:42
I've wanted to do a small racing or freestyle drone too, but I would want long flight times and enough room to put one of my ocusync air units on it. If it weren't for that, I'd probably build one. Seems like the flight times are only a few minutes. The F550 can go up to about 12 mins at wide open throttle and 15 or more just fun flying if I pile enough batteries on it, but I can't see how to do that with a racer yet.....

Agree , flight time is a lot shorter  , it is also flying habits  , but nevertheless it is nothing like DJI flight time, but the fun in the air and the rush of speed and maneuverability compensates for the short flight time.
I can't wait to start flying my vortex , this weekend looks promising but a bit windy.
I will definitely try something ;)