So, I've now got a spare room in the house. Which means I can now have a drone lab somewhere other than the dining table. This got me thinking, what were the must-have tools, equipment, and supplies to have in a drone workshop. Anyone want to help build out the list? What do you think you shouldn't go without. 

For the Beginner

• LiPo Charger
  
• Allen Wrenches
  
• Rubber Wrist Band (for gripping motor bells)
  
• Soldering Iron (solder, flux)
  
• Multimeter
  
• Helping Hands (sloscotty)
  
• Lighted Magnifier (sloscotty)
  
• Smoke Stopper (sloscotty)
  
• Screw drivers kit (Phillips, slots, hex) (Oscar)
  
• Epoxy glue (Oscar)
  
• Laptop/Tablet for Configurations (PaulMek, Carl.Vegas)
  
• Anti-Static/Anti-Heat Mat (PaulMek)
  

For the Advanced

• Thrust Stand (Oscar)
  
• Dremel (Oscar)
  
• Prop Balancing Stand
  
• SMD Rework Station (KonradS)
  
• Wall Storage for Tools (Grisha0)
  

For the Pro

• Monitor with FPV Reciever (KonradS)
  
• Bench Power Supply (https://oscarliang.com/diy-psu-lipo-charger-workbench/) (KonradS)
  
• 3D Printer for custom mounts and parts
  

For the Obsessed

• 4x-7x Stereo Zoom Microscope (unseen)
  
• CNC table with Carbon Fiber Cutting Tools
  

Optional Equipment

• Beer Fridge
  
• Ash Tray
  

What else?

Also check out this list from Oscar https://oscarliang.com/tool-spare-multir...equipment/

Helping hands, lighted magnifier, smoke stoppers

I like my anti-static/heat insulation mat for soldering and such. It also has little compartments to keep the tiny screws from rolling around.
And Im thinking about getting a dedicated monitor with a chromecast for watching youtube clips for how-to's and such.

beer fridge and an ashtray

If you have a dedicated workbench, a SMD rework station AKA soldering station with a hot air gun is definately a "level up" when compared to a standard soldering iron and hot air gun. Mostly because it is more convenient, since you can still do all basic work with a normal tool.

Also:

Watching tutorials is more convenient on the smartphone/tablet, but a monitor to test FPV gear not having to fiddle with the goggles is a good thing.

Lab/bench power supply like https://oscarliang.com/diy-psu-lipo-charger-workbench/ . I actually power everything I need from it, including the charger, led lights over the desk, fume extractor fan and stuff I test.

make a nice hanging space for the tools on the wall

(14-Mar-2017, 10:41 PM)DOOBIE Wrote: beer fridge and an ashtray

Is that for the obsessed or the beginner?

One thing I have on my bench, which definitely falls into the 'Obsessed' class:





It's a 7X - 45X stereo zoom microscope. I use mine with a 0.5X reducer which increases the working distance to 165mm and halves the minimum and maximum magnifications.

These used to be horribly expensive, but this one cost me just $250 including shipping via Aliexpress.

The large working distance makes it easy to get your tools under the objectives and the stereo view with two separate objectives gives you perfect 3D vision. It also includes a variable LED lighting ring to illuminate the subject. I inspect all new parts and my soldering under the microscope before I apply power and it has already paid for itself by finding short circuits and other problems which will let the magic smoke out.

I use a lab power supply for powering things as it has a current limiter built in and lets me set any voltage from 0 - 30V. For initially powering a build and flashing ESCs, I always set the current limiter to no more than 200mA which also keeps the magic smoke from getting out if there's a problem.

I referenced the following page a couple of times leading up to getting some of my stuff

https://oscarliang.com/tool-spare-multir...equipment/

I would say if you happen to have an old laptop or computer that's collecting dust but still lives it might make sense to have something to connect to a flight controller configurator with. I cant imagine that it needs a ton of power, just something that can run google chrome (and youtube to konrad's choice)

Beginners - Screw drivers kit (Phillips, slots, hex), Epoxy glue
Advance - thrust stand, Dremel kit

(19-Mar-2017, 03:24 PM)Oscar Wrote: Beginners - Screw drivers kit (Phillips, slots, hex), Epoxy glue
Advance - thrust stand, Dremel kit

And if you want reliable thrust figures, not that awful HobbyKing thrust stand!

Going to add this marvel someone just shared with me. 

https://www.fpvmodel.com/new-multi-funct...g1261.html
Going to grab two of these. One for the bag and one for the bench.

(21-Mar-2017, 03:43 PM)EchoBravo Wrote: Going to add this marvel someone just shared with me. 

https://www.fpvmodel.com/new-multi-funct...g1261.html
Going to grab two of these. One for the bag and one for the bench.

That's pretty cool... I might need at least one of those myself!

(21-Mar-2017, 03:43 PM)EchoBravo Wrote: Going to add this marvel someone just shared with me. 

https://www.fpvmodel.com/new-multi-funct...g1261.html
Going to grab two of these. One for the bag and one for the bench.

That looks awesome!  Im surprised I havent seen more of those around.

Should some method to verify the frequency being emitted by your FPV TX be on this list? I know some folks can do it with their Googles but mine only list a 1-40 channel like a TV. Would be good to verify if flying with other pilots or around other radio equipment. What do folks use for that?