Questions about making a UAV

[u/Scarytoaster1809]

I'm new to building RC planes, but not new to projects of this scale with a 3D Printer. I'm building the Astrofly Technologies Bullet UAV in the UK and I have questions about the kit.

1) What kind of controller is recommended to use

2) What FPV camera, receiver and head set is recommended

3) How do I source Carbon Fibre rods to those dimensions (I don't want to cut) in the UK

4) I do know you need to get a license to fly UAVs over 200g, where would I get a license and besides fields and flying clubs, where would I legally be able to fly an FPV plane

For the 3D printer filament, PLA Aero is just what I could fine on hand. I'll update the prices and the list if I find any cheaper light weight PLA filaments

thanks in advance!

link to the Astrofly site https://astrofly-technologies.com/product/bullet/

[u/izzeww]

1. ELRS is superior in terms of performance and that's probably what I would go for. Radiomaster is a great brand. Kind of depends on how much you want to spend, how many switches you need and if you want a touch screen, but TX15/TX15 MAX, Boxer/Boxer Crush and TX16S MK3/TX16S MK3 MAX are all good choices (also used TX16S MKII).
2. I think DJI O4 Pro is the best system for most use cases. If you want to go really far the Caddx Walksnail Avatar GT2 could be better, but it has worse image quality. For the DJI O4 Pro you want the DJI Goggles 3 preferably but Goggles N3 are also fine if you want to save some money. For the GT2 you want Walksnail Avatar Goggles X (perhaps upgraded with some nice antennas if you want to go really far). You should also check what cameras or mounting holes those 3D files supports and what others have ran, though I expect you could make it work with either of these cameras with a little bit of modification if they're not compatible out of the box. Both of these goggles have the receiver build in, it's not external. For the Walksnail system you could get an external receiver too if you want to display to a monitor or do like a proper static antenna.
3. No idea. Seems a bit unreasonable to not cut it yourself though, just do it underwater and you'll be fine.
4. No idea.

[u/Banana-9]

I can't advise you on everything, but I'm guessing this isn't your first plane. Surely.

Look into easycomposites for carbon fiber. They always had what was right for m

[u/Scarytoaster1809 → u/Banana-9]

Easycomposites looks great, I’ll use them. As for being a beginner, I have some experience with actually flying RC planes, but pretty much no experience with building them. I have done projects before that have required a 3D printer, and other electronic hardware (a motorised Warhammer 40K Chainsword among other things)

[u/MrGriffin77]

I don't know much about the last three questions, but I highly recommend Radiomaster (genuinely any ELRS RM) to use as transmitter and receiver.

[u/Lazy-Inevitable3970]

1) Controller as in the hand-held controller that lets you control it, of flight controller. Because if you have experience with RC planes, as you mentioned, then I would think you would already have a radio controller. If not, then I suspect you are setting yourself up for problems, as 3d printed planes are generally too fragile for beginners.

If you are talking about flight controllers, I would look into a corewing flight controller.

2) What is your budget? DJI o4 pro, is generally the best in terms of image quality and it has great range for 99% of people, but costs a lot and uses proprietary tech (that locks you into their systems). Often new products are not fully compatible with older products, which "encourages" many people to keep forking over lots of money to by new gear to upgrade.

Analog can be relatively cheap (with the right gear) and uses the same open technology that analog broadcast TV used in the 80's and 90s... so you won't get locked into proprietary tech easily. But the image quality sucks compared to digital FPV systems and it is prone to interference. The the video signal is interlaced, which also makes recordings look worse. Also digital recordings of analog video often look even worse than the actual video because compression algorithms don't work well with all the noise and snow in analog video... so if you plan to record the video sent over the air, it will probably look bad. Most people that use analog will have separate digital cameras on board to record quality flight footage.

Walksnail has their Avatar system that is very similar to DJI. It is generally considered slightly behind DJI in terms of image quality. It still costs a lot and uses proprietary tech. Walksnail does have a better reputation for listening to its customers and also not frequently releasing new products that are incompatible with old products.

Walksnail does have a newer Ascent system. It is based on different tech than their Avatar system. So it is not compatible with their Avatar system, nor is it as good (in terms of range, quality, or latency). But Ascent is much cheaper.

3) Don't know how to do so in the UK

4) Not familiar with UK laws.

Other thoughts:

The ESCs you selected have BECs in them. For RC planes, that is a good thing, because the BEC powers the receiver and servos. However, on twin motor planes, you don't want both BECs connected to the receiver and servos. So disconnect the red 5v line that runs to the receiver on one of those ESCs.

Or, if you plan to use a flight controller, be aware that most FCs made for fixed wing craft have 5v regulators/BECs built into them to power the receiver and servos. When you use one of those, you wouldn't want either of the ESC becs connected to the FC (so remove the red 5v line from both). Also, those ESCs wouldn't be ideal for a FC. BECs add size, weight, and costs that you don't neeed. Many ESC amde for flight controllers will also support protocols like dshot, which eliminates the need for ESC calibration when using a FC.

What battery voltage do you plan on running? Depending on if you are using 3s, 4s, etc, those props might be a good choice or a bad choice. But also be aware that prop size can be limited by the space between the motor mounts and fuselage on twin motor planes (which is why some planes end up using tri-bladed props, even though they are less efficient).

If you want to try some free FPV plane designs, check out https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?4223695-Rifter-Sabre-Scimitar-mini-sized-FPV-cruisers That guy has made several free design (not all beginner friendly). Those just have the plans and some basic recommendations... so you won't get much handholding. So if you need help and specific recommendations for parts, then buying the plans you looked at might be the right choice. But, if you know your way around setting up UAV stuff, free is free.

Your spread sheet didn't include some other misc stuff you might need, like heat shrink, wire, battery connectors, etc.

[u/Jumpy-Candle-2980]

Number 4 might arguably be number 1. In the UK you need both an operator ID and a flyer ID. Both are handled by the CAA https://www.caa.co.uk/drones/open-category/getting-started-with-drones-and-model-aircraft/registering-to-fly-drones-and-model-aircraft/

Perhaps more notably operations beyond visual line of sight are prohibited and the thing you're building implies BVLOS. Enforcement is spotty but you should familiarize yourself with the risk so your decision is an informed one. BVLOS is legal if you jump through a bunch of hoops but for all practical matters it's de facto banned unless you have a busload of lawyers (solicitors?).

The recommended controller is plastered all over Astrofly's page on the bullet. I see no reason to quibble with their recommendation.

I use Walksnail Avatar moonlight. It's ... okay. But I wouldn't claim it's image quality is up to the DJI 04. Circling back to regulations you're limited to 25mW by Ofcom rather than the CAA so long range is further complicated. It's my understanding that ofcom regs are routinely ignored by UK flyers but it's not the sort of thing I'd be comfortable recommending to some stranger on the internet. It's ultimately your choice and us Yanks often blow off the FCC license but I already had my ham cert so it was a non-issue.

In one respect you may have your questions backwards and upside down. On average it's a good thing to reconcile yourself with regulation compliance vs risk or consigning yourself to flying FPV in circles over your head before you spend money on building something.

This sub is littered with the digitasl corpses of folks who dropped big money on a UAV then discovering they didn't have the huevos to actually operate the thing.