PV takeoff and Landing.

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Yes and no. What you describe is a work-around for mediocre piloting skills.

What you need to do is to learn to actually fly the Phantom FROM the ground (at takeoff) and TO the ground and beyond for the landing. You should be making stick corrections at ALL TIMES till motor shut off. Unless the ground you are landing on is extraordinarily uneven, you ought to be able to have it settle in without tipping over every time. By continually making the correct stick input even after the landing gear touch down you will have NO issues with tip-over. Honestly, it just takes a bit of practice. It's skills like that that distinguish a good pilot from a poor one.

If you want to become an excellent pilot w/o banging up your Phantom, spend $35.00 for a Syma X-1 (micro quad) or similar indoor quad of your choice and fly it around your garage or basement a couple of times every day. Since it is a "manual only" copter, it demands your full attention when flying every second. It FORCES you to be a good pilot - or crash. There is no in between. It is the best quad training in the whole world. (Spoiler alert- the Syma is just about indestructible). In any event, your Phantom flying skills will be infinitely improved by practicing on a manual only bird!

As an added bonus, the Syma is friggin incredibly FUN to fly!!

PF
 
PF, that's a great idea. I think I'll pick one of those up to start playing with.

To the OP's original question, what about using a rubber floor mat? You can roll it up and tuck it under your arm.
 
Khakis1999 said:
In the beginning, we just took off on grass and we had the occasional tippers. On landing, we had tip overs. These tip overs take a toll not just on the props but the Motors. You see, there is a shaft that spins and when you tip over you slightly bend this shaft effecting performance. Some of you have built plywood takeoff and landing ramps but this is to heavy to be portable, take work to make and are silly looking.
I hereby offer my simple solution to never have a tippover. Launch from the top of your case. When your landing, grab the landing gear midair and shut it down. Problem solved ?

You're never shy with your opinions, I'll give you that. It's interesting that you always state them as if they were undeniable facts, though. :roll: This is meant to be constructive criticism. If it's not taken that way... I'll somehow get by.

-slinger
 
When landing did you execute the CSC? or just pull the throttle lever down until the motors turn off? The CSC has been reported as a bad way to turning off the motors when landing, making the PV2 tip over.
 
PhantomFan said:
Yes and no. What you describe is a work-around for mediocre piloting skills.

What you need to do is to learn to actually fly the Phantom FROM the ground (at takeoff) and TO the ground and beyond for the landing. You should be making stick corrections at ALL TIMES till motor shut off. Unless the ground you are landing on is extraordinarily uneven, you ought to be able to have it settle in without tipping over every time. By continually making the correct stick input even after the landing gear touch down you will have NO issues with tip-over. Honestly, it just takes a bit of practice. It's skills like that that distinguish a good pilot from a poor one.

If you want to become an excellent pilot w/o banging up your Phantom, spend $35.00 for a Syma X-1 (micro quad) or similar indoor quad of your choice and fly it around your garage or basement a couple of times every day. Since it is a "manual only" copter, it demands your full attention when flying every second. It FORCES you to be a good pilot - or crash. There is no in between. It is the best quad training in the whole world. (Spoiler alert- the Syma is just about indestructible). In any event, your Phantom flying skills will be infinitely improved by practicing on a manual only bird!

As an added bonus, the Syma is friggin incredibly FUN to fly!!

PF

I just bought a Hubsan X4 for that exact reason. I couldn't keep it in the air for a minute when I started, but I'm quickly getting the hang of it. It requires some practice, for sure... And I agree, you really should know how to take off and land this thing.

-slinger
 
demianmoura said:
When landing did you execute the CSC? or just pull the throttle lever down until the motors turn off? The CSC has been reported as a bad way to turning off the motors when landing, making the PV2 tip over.

I meant to mention that. If you execute a CSC upon landing you are guaranteed a tip-over. Just hold the throttle down below 10% and the motors will stop in 3 seconds, sometimes a bit less. Good point to have mentioned, demianmoura!!!

PF
 
gunslinger said:
PhantomFan said:
Yes and no. What you describe is a work-around for mediocre piloting skills.

What you need to do is to learn to actually fly the Phantom FROM the ground (at takeoff) and TO the ground and beyond for the landing. You should be making stick corrections at ALL TIMES till motor shut off. Unless the ground you are landing on is extraordinarily uneven, you ought to be able to have it settle in without tipping over every time. By continually making the correct stick input even after the landing gear touch down you will have NO issues with tip-over. Honestly, it just takes a bit of practice. It's skills like that that distinguish a good pilot from a poor one.

If you want to become an excellent pilot w/o banging up your Phantom, spend $35.00 for a Syma X-1 (micro quad) or similar indoor quad of your choice and fly it around your garage or basement a couple of times every day. Since it is a "manual only" copter, it demands your full attention when flying every second. It FORCES you to be a good pilot - or crash. There is no in between. It is the best quad training in the whole world. (Spoiler alert- the Syma is just about indestructible). In any event, your Phantom flying skills will be infinitely improved by practicing on a manual only bird!

As an added bonus, the Syma is friggin incredibly FUN to fly!!

PF

I just bought a Hubsan X4 for that exact reason. I couldn't keep it in the air for a minute when I started, but I'm quickly getting the hang of it. It requires some practice, for sure... And I agree, you really should know how to take off and land this thing.

-slinger

I love my little X4. First time you crack hovering nose-in you'll feel like a champ! You really get to see how a quad with no flying aids needs almost constant input from all controls. Bit of a hand/eye/brain workout at first for sure.
 
PhantomFan said:
If you want to become an excellent pilot w/o banging up your Phantom, spend $35.00 for a Syma X-1 (micro quad) or similar indoor quad of your choice and fly it around your garage or basement a couple of times every day. Since it is a "manual only" copter, it demands your full attention when flying every second. It FORCES you to be a good pilot - or crash. There is no in between. It is the best quad training in the whole world. (Spoiler alert- the Syma is just about indestructible). In any event, your Phantom flying skills will be infinitely improved by practicing on a manual only bird!
PF

Another option is to use an RC flight simulator such as Real Flight 7. It is more pricy at about $170 but cheaper and less aggravation than a serious crash with the Phantom. It is very realistic and has a couple of quadcopters in the fleet of models which are a little harder to fly than the Phantom when using the default settings. You can build your flying skills and try new stunts knowing that all you have to do is press reset to repair the model after a crash. It helps with learning orientation (I'm still working on this) without taking a chance with your Phantom and the battery never runs down (there is none). I find it more fun than flying the real models because you are relaxed and not worrying about crashing it. You also don't have your wife saying "Don't fly that in the living room, I'm trying to watch TV". :lol:
 
Just got an x4. Seems like a great little craft, although I haven't got it fully trimmed and calibrated yet. It will certainly help improve my flying - until I master this, there is no way I am flying my PV on manual! I checked the PV on manual the other day (at sufficient height to give me time to recover!) and it's not for the faint-hearted.

It was great advice to get a small quad to learn to fly with and it was so cheap I got my son one so he wouldn't feel left out!
 
I had to do some trimming on the transmitter of the Syma X-1, and because it was so significant in 1 axis, I used electrical tape to secure a tiny section of lead solder to two of the arms. I could then center the trim. I've been wondering if a tiny shim under one side of the control board might solve the problem better, although 1/100 of a gram isn't likely to have affected the flight time. In any event, spend whatever time is necessary trimming and (believe it or not) be sure to balance the props! The vibration will drop considerably, and the gyros will work far more accurately. DEFINITELY worth the few minutes invested.

These mini quads are incredibly tough and competent fliers! I was actually quite shocked at how it took my early abuses and still came back for more. When it is dark, cold, windy, or when I just want to have fun or seriously train my brain for nose-in flying, I whip that puppy out and take a few back to back 10 minute flights. Never fails to put a smile on my face.

I've also had the X-1 outside in my back yard on particularly windless days. It is a total hoot!!! Doing a coordinated turn (rudder, aileron and forward stick combo PLUS a tiny bit of "up") was a real challenge. I soon discovered to leave off 80% of the aileron input. I think the quad MAY have some kind of algorithm that adds aileron - almost like a mixer would - but maybe it's my imagination??? <SHRUG>

PF
 
Is there any notable difference between the Syma X1 and the Hubsan X4? Do you like one over the other?
 
PhantomFan said:
The Syma is significantly larger. Check out the youtube videos. Here is the Hubsan. It fits (literally) in the palm of the guy's hand. Also, I don't care for the transmitter. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhWI1m6WIWk

Here is the Syma on Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6ou6Hq_fRE
The Syma transmitter is almost a "real" transmitter, seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYEDRwi98Vk

As always, the choice is yours. I got mine (X-1) on Amazon for $33.88 including shipping.

PF

The Hubsan X4 is kind of a bear to fly. Does the Syma also need constant stick attention? Tend to drift a bit?

-slinger
 
I have the blade nano qx and mqx which both work great as trainer quads. Spot landings, nose down flying, and general depth perception when flying are all things I took from a month of casual flying. With the nano qx you are able to switch between stabilization mode and atti mode (also very useful to see just how much input it requires). You can end up spending a lot of time flying them around doing rolls, dives and other fun things. Just my 2c I would 100% recommend a "mini-quad" to train on.
 
Does anyone know if you can pair the Blade Nano QX with the original Phantom transmitter? Instructions? Thank you.
 
Khakis1999 said:
Phantom fan what's the flight time on the x1? I ordered the UFO on Amazon for training and my gf to use while I fly the PV. Happy Thanksgiving.

For hovering - nose in, tail in and gentle flying around the basement - 10 - 11 minutes.

Happy Thanksgiving to you as well!

PF
 
Coming from the opposite side of things, being an R/C aircraft pilot for 10+ years I never really made the connection that some folks were buying DJI Phantoms not having flown non-aided craft and "upgrading" to the gps aided copters and such...

I will definitely second, third, or forth the notion of a non-aided quad at a minimum before moving to the Phantom...

I personally have or have had all the quads listed above and to be honest the Hubsan X4 H107L and 107C have been the best trainers for friends...

The Syma quads just seem unpolished, their build quality and simplicity seems lacking to me (just my opinion) and require more than just removal from the box and charging of the battery to fly. The X4 on the other hand literally comes out of the box and into the air...

One thing to help with getting the controls mastered; whack out the trims on the remote and proceed to take off, fly, and land as if they weren't. When you can master flying the un-aided quads in any circumstance you are ready to fly a phantom, and recover from just about any issue besides ones that cause you to physically lose tx link, or physical issues with the quad.

Also I would recommend an in air pre-flight about 2-3ft off the ground before each session to insure all controls and hardware are functioning before you are 200ft away, I know it's not the most fun you ever had but it will save you down the road. This isn't as much of a requirement on these little guys as it is with the 700 size helis but it's still a good habit to get into...

Insurance is also something to look into, especially if you plan to be around people, not for the quad but for liability...
I'm not sure of AMA's thoughts on quad copters and the like but it would be a place to start, I personally have a Travelers umbrella policy written specifically for R/C aircraft I'm flying as well as an AMA membership for flying at sanctioned fields...
Personally I think it should be required to even own one, far less legal "noise" when the operator has liability coverage...
It's gotten me out of "debate" with the local PD when on public park property as to the legality of flying there (obviously no one around, and a defined safety line)... It's a lot easier to hand them your proof of liability coverage, show him your name address and phone number on all your aircraft, and your AMA card than to sit there arguing with the officer that has no idea what the hell he is talking about telling you to stop and leave... I prefer to be able to tell them off rather than comply with their do as I say not as I do, greater than thou attitude...
 
Regarding Vision take off and landing - I'm not an experienced pilot (some skills but not too much), my partner definitely had zero skills before flying the Vision. Result? Smooth take offs and landings on roughly 30+ occasions in various weather conditions and on various different surfaces. Not a single tilt, not a single flip. And yes - we don't cut the motors, we just land and hold the thrust stick down until the motors power off. Software was updated to the latest version before the first flight (did the update on the 19th of November), no propeller balancing was carried out, compass adjustment done as indicated in the manual (for all flights maybe 3 times so far).

Seriously - either something is wrong with the unit that does tilt or we have a very luck unit indeed ;-)
 
Actually, I think the OP actually was erroneously performing a CSC upon landing with the motors still turning. Depending on the CSC (s)he chose, the craft would fall off to the side, front or back. The correct maneuver to stop the props without tilting once on the ground, is to NOT touch the right stick at all and simply press and hold "max down" on the throttle.

PF
 

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