For my second full scale build I wanted to make a clone of Mr. Steele's original Apex KISS quad, using the same frame, but with a Caddx Vista for the VTX. The initial idea was to replicate his build as closely as possible, including the way the VTX antenna is mounted, batteries, props, screws, PID tuning etc etc, but since finishing the initial build, I've modified various aspects to better fit my personal preferences. This quad turned out way better than I anticipated. Seeing as this project was quite a bit more complex than anything I'd worked on previously, the build came with some interesting problems that were a lot of fun to solve and helped me better undstand the process of building RC vehicles. I'm now 78 days into this hobby and couldn't be happier that I dove into it as deeply as I have; pure obsession.

There were around 15 days of downtime for me due to some pretty awful, wet and unflyable weather, so I decided to spend some of that time by taking all of my build notes and compiling them into a hand drawn wiring diagram and frame diagram that are easy to follow, information rich and fall in line with the primary goal of creating a DJI clone of Mr. Steele's build.

I'll be doing the same thing for my 6S FETTEC version once it's built and I have find some time to tool around in Adobe Illustrator. In regards to price, it's definitely more optimal, and hopefully it will fly just as well!


IMPORTANT BUILD NOTES

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1. Since this is the analogue version of the Apex frame, the HD FPV Camera requires two 1.5mm spacer in order to mount it to the frame's side plates, otherwise you risk warping/damaging the carbon. The HD counterpart's TPU spacers will not work for this purpose. My solution (see frame diagram) was to glue two of these M2 1mm width nylon washers together, then shave off 0.5mm to make a single 1.5mm spacer. These spacers need to be coupled with M2 6mm cap head screws because anything less just won't cut it. Alternatively, you can get a custom 1.5mm width TPU print made, but I personally wanted the spare parts for future builds.
   
   
2. The VTX antenna mount is a combination of the Apex's metal SMA clamp and the injection molded antenna mount that comes in the Caddx Vista Kit. The SMA clamp is typically placed in between the stack and VTX, but since the Caddx Vista takes up so much room, this is not a viable option. Instead what can be done (see frame diagram) is mounting the SMA clamp in the back, with the Caddx antenna mount joined to it using two M3 10mm button head screws and two M3 nuts. However, the Caddx mount's screw holes need to be converted from M2 to M3 using a rounded file before you're able to do this. If you decide to use an alternative UF.L VTX antenna, which I highly recommend you do, then you also need to add a couple layers of heat shrink to the coax so that it fits nice and snug in the mount; the antenna that comes with Caddx Vista Kit already fits perfectly.
   
   
3. The 6pin JST-SH molex cable that comes with the Caddx Vista Kit required the removal (see wiring diagram) of two wires. I also rearranged the wires for the purpose of correctly color coding the connector. If the only modification is the removal of those two wires, then I see no reason to use a fresh JST-SH connector, however rearranging the wires may damage the small plastic teeth holding each wire in place in such a way that may result in loose wires, so I would suggest using a fresh 6 pin JST-SH connector. I purchased a DIY JST-SH kit just for this purpose; comes with pre-crimped wires too.
   
   
4. All screws, except for the shoulder bolts, are made of out light weight 7075 aluminum. The majority of these can be obtained by purchasing the Mr Steele Light Weight Screw Kit, however I also purchased a pack of 20 M3 10mm aluminum button head screws for mounting the motors, antenna mount and GoPro mount, which consumes exactly the amount purchased. Obviously these are not required, but you will want some extra M3 10mm button heads regardless.
   
   
5. The ESC/FC stack is mounted (see frame diagram) using the frame's M3 10mm countersunk screws, M3 2mm width o-rings, M3 7mm anti vibration standoffs and four M3 nylon nuts (comes with the standoffs.) If you purchased Mr Steele's screw kit, feel free to use the M3 nylock nuts that come with it to hold the stack in place, but after ~35 packs using only nylon nuts with a tiny bit of thread locker added, I've yet to see a single nut budge from its position, even during a hard crash.
   
   
6. The Caddx Vista needs to be mounted using four M2 20mm countersunk screws, however both cap head and button head works fine. Use the M2 3.5mm threaded spacers and M2 nylock nuts that come with the frame to complete the mounting. Although this not required, I also placed four M2 1.5mm width o-rings between the 3.5mm spacers and VTX to supply a softer buffer between the frame and the VTX.
   
   
7. The mount for the HD camera, in this case a GoPro Hero 5 Session, was changed from the ImpulseRC 30° Foam Wedge to a BMC3D 30° TPU Couch Mount. The reason for this change was due to the foam not consistently producing a 30° tilt. The couch mount does add an additional ~13g to the AUW and I may eventually replace it with a sturdier custom cut foam mount using yoga foam, but I still consider it a much better alternative to the foam wedge, plus it looks really really sleek. If you end up getting the couch mount, you will also want to have a ball end hex driver handy, otherwise you're going to have a hell of a time trying to get the front screws in place.
   

CORE COMPONENTS

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• Frame: ImpulseRC Apex (Analogue Version)
  
• Flight Controller: KISS FC V2
  
• Electronic Speed Controller: KISS 25A (40A limit) 32bit 4-in-1
  
• FC to ESC Cable: KISS 6 Pin Jumper Cable
  
• Capacitor: Rubycon 1000uf 50V
  
• Motors: Ethix 2306 1750kv Stout V3
  
• Receiver: TBS Nano RX Special Edition
  
• Video Transmitter: Caddx Vista (Nebula Pro Kit)
  
• VTX Antenna: Lumenier AXII Micro (UF.L/LHCP)
  
• FPV Camera: Caddx Nebula Pro w/12cm Cable (Comes in Nebula Pro Kit)
  
• FPV Camera Lens: RunCam RC18G FPV Super FOV
  
• HD Camera: GoPro Hero5 Session (Used)
  
• GoPro Mount: BMC3D Apex GoPro Session 30° Couch Mount
  
• GoPro Strap: Ethix GoPro Strap
  
• Lipo Strap: x2 Ethix V1 (The V2 broke on me twice!)
  
• Lipo Pad: Custom Cut Dual Lock
  
• Batteries: 6S Thunder Power Adrenaline 1100mAh 100C
  
• Props: HQProp/Ethix P3 Peanut Butter & Jelly 5.1" Props
  
• AUW w/Couch Mount: ~640g
  
• AUW w/Foam Wedge: ~627g
  

CORE HARDWARE

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• Mr Steele Light Weight Screw Kit
  
• M2 1mm Width Nylon Washers
  
• M2 6mm Cap Head Screws
  
• M3 7mm Anti Vibration Standoffs
  
• M3 2mm Width O-Rings (Bulk)
  
• M3 2mm Width O-Rings (Non-Bulk)
  
• M3 10mm 7075 Aluminum Button Head Screws
  
• M2 20mm Countersunk Screws
  

ADDITIONAL HARDWARE

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• 12 AWG Wire (1ft Red, 1ft Black)
  
• XT60H Male Connector
  
• M5 Chrome Aluminum Light Weight Prop Nuts
  
• Assorted Heat Shrink
  
• Thread Locker
  
• 3M Dual Lock
  
• Electrical Tape
  
• Liquid Electrical Tape
  
• MG Chemicals Silicone Conformal Coating
  

WIRING DIAGRAM (DIRECT URL)

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FRAME DIAGRAM (DIRECT URL)

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PID TUNING & KISS GUI BACKUP

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My current PIDs for this build are a slightly modified version of Mr Steele's PIDs. Both the I-Term and D-Term were increased a bit to fix prop-wash and drift. Know that after looking over other KISS PID tunes, Mr Steele's PIDs are pretty aggressive, so just be careful. I'll be toying around with the tune more in the coming weeks, which means these values will likely change.

I am also using the "Idle Up" technique, so take that into consideration when using my KISS GUI backup. If you don't know what that is, it's basically a method that places the motor arming and gyro arming on separate switches, thus giving you two arming switches and allowing you to inspect your quad while the motors are running, but without the gyro spazzing out on you. Here's a video of Mr Steele explaining how to set it up.

NOTE: If there's a grinding noise, try adjusting the YAW filter past 35.

Woogie's KISS v2.0.29 GUI Backup 2021/03/20




FLIGHT FOOTAGE

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ADOBE WORK FILES

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Feel free to use my illustrations for your own wiring diagrams. I have supplied links below; one containing only the components, including frame illustrations, and the other containing all of the diagrams used in this thread.

If you want to change the color of a solder pad, simply press K, select a color from the FILL option (solid box) located on the left-hand panel, then click on a pad. If you want to change the color of the lines, you can either use your A key to select a specific line or your V key to select all the lines of an object/group, then select a color from the STROKE option (outlined box) located on the left-hand panel.

Illustrator: Components Only
Illustrator: Components & Diagrams


CHANGELOG

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• 2021/04/13: Fixed AUW being measured without props and added a note regarding YAW Filter to the PID Tuning section.
  
• 2021/03/20: Fixed an error in the frame diagram. All screws used for mounting the BMC3D Couch Mount were M3 10mm Aluminum, not 6mm.
  

-Woogie