I took Hugnosed' advice and swapped from the tri-blade Gemfan Hulkies to some quad-blade props.

These are Avan Micro 2x2.2x4. 2.2" is a signifanctly lower pitch than I was going for- but if these don't work out I’ve got a bunch of bags of my usual 2" quad blades- Gemfan 2035BN-3.




Hrmmm. Y'know what? I seem to have been wrong about pitch, depending on the naming scheme. If something is say, 3x3x3, it is a 3" prop with a 3" pitch and 3 blades. That's correct, but...

My understanding was that with naming schemes like XXYY, like 2035, it corresponded to 2" prop (XX) with a 3.5" pitch (YY).
But I just checked Gemfan's site, and for their 2035BN-3 quad blades, they have the pitch listed as 2.43". The tri-blade hulkies are 2040, so I thought that meant 2" prop, 4" pitch- but they list the pitch on the hulkies as 1.87".

For a moment I thought maybe that was per blade pitch, but, that doesn't add up- with the 2040 hulkies, 3 times 1.87" is 5.61.

So... Hell, my world just got rocked and I no longer think I understand something that I thought I did.
I mean, my understanding of pitch, how it relates to thrust, amperage draw, etc., is still correct- apparently I've just been misunderstanding what manufacturers meant when they labelled something xxyy.

So, as long as these motors have enough torque to spin them (they do), these quad blade 2.2" pitch props will be creating more thrust at any given rpm than the Gemfan Hulkie 2040 tri-blades, that apparently are only a 1.87" pitch.

Cool, that means my hover throttle percentage should be lower. Significantly higher amp draw, but *well* within the esc ratings on this aio.

It's hard to tell from reviewing the last couple videos I've posted in this thread because I don't do a lot of hovering, but, it looks to me like my hover point with the Hulkies was around 40% throttle with a CNHL 650mah 2s?

Let's take it for a flight and see what happens. I'm now expecting to hover at low to mid 30% throttle. If I can hover in the high 20% throttle range, that would be awesome.

This was a run with a battery that was less than fully charged:



Cool, we're hovering around 30%. Fresh battery would probably be in the high 20% throttle to hover.

I need to change some settings in betaflight.
I initially used a pretty agressive tune preset- but that preset does *not* like it when a prop is slightly bent, chipped, or a motor shaft isn't perfectly straight. I crash far too often to avoid any one of those things.

If you watch when I first take off, you can see the throttle start to try to runaway- it takes a bit to ramp up, and then once it does, it wants to keep throttling up and takes a moment to throttle back down. I have battery sag compensation on, it's not my throttle being too sensitive- it's a lag between when I throttle up and when I throttle down. It's significantly worse with a freshly charged battery- I'll end up bouncing off the ceiling of my carport multiple times before it levels out.

I think I need to either remove that preset or tune it down. Can I tune it down by adjusting the master slider? I don't have any experience tuning.

I also want to play around with some other settings:
-Increasing jitter reduction factor to 12 from the default of 7. I think this will make my slow stick movements smoother even if my fingers are shaking, but still allow me to throw my sticks and do quick movements.
-Changing my stick center sensitivity. Depending on which way I go, this should also help me with slow smooth movements.
-Adding a bit of throttle expo at my hover point. I stopped adding throttle expo a while back because I got better at throttle control, but I think it might be useful to start using it again- I think it would give me more resolution around my hover point, and also allow me to catch myself at hover without wildly overcorrecting because my throttle would be less sensitive around that point.

I can't make any changes in betaflight until I either replace the broken usb port or update to elrs v3 so that I can connect to bf via wifi.
Screw it, I'm gonna update tonight. I wanna change settings on this bird.

I just updated my happymodel es24tx module to elrs v3.2.0, so, if I wanna fly this bird or any other- I've gotta update its rx to elrs v3, or if it's an spi based rx, update to a version of bf that supports elrs v3. It took about an hour to compile that bastard.
Dropped the elrs v3 lua script onto my transmitter.
Flashed this bird with elrs v3.
But.. apparently I also need to update my tx16s firmware to make things work.
So, I guess I'm finally gonna update my tx firmware to edgetx.
There's probably gonna be a hell of a lot of cursing while I figure out how to make things fly again.
I'm not gonna touch my transmitter firmware until Monday night after doing some research and figuring out what the hell I need to do.

Maybe sometime next week I'll be back in the air. Hopefully.

it might be a couple weeks before I'm back in the air. I really hope not. At this point, I'm regretting trying to update anything because I could have had more flights tonight if I didn't touch firmware.

Whelp.
While trying to update to EdgeTX even though I backed up everything, I managed to wipe all of my models.
Then I couldn’t find them again.
Then I managed to find an old opentx backup and opened it in EdgeTX and wrote those.
Screwed up something along the way.

So screw it, I primarily fly ELRS. I’m gonna wipe the thing, start fresh with no models, and create a new model.
If I want to fly a plane or something that isn’t ELRS, I’ll just have to create the models as needed.

Looks like the first part of my evening is going to include a lot of cursing.

Oh, also, the ELRS v3 lua script still isn’t working, and that’s what prompted all of this in the first place.

So, in a couple hours once I’ve had a drink (or two):
Wipe.
Fresh install.
Calibrate battery and sticks and pots.
Setup new ELRS model. (Hope I can remember how to do this)
I gotta try to remember all of my global settings.
Gotta remap my sounds.
Gotta figure out what is wrong with the ELRS lua.

I feel like a beginner all over again.

Before I wipe this thing, I’m going to try reflashing my ELRS tx module.

I’m thinking it might be an issue there.

Edit- yeah… y’know what? I flashed my tx module via usb. I didn’t move the damn jumper into the correct position, or, I didn’t move it back afterwards.

No wonder the lua script wouldn’t load on opentx.
I probably could have just stuck with opentx.
Oh well, I’m committed to EdgeTX now, so I’ll reflash my tx module with the jumper in the correct position, and then place it in the normal operation position when I’m done, and see if that fixes it.

I’m feeling kinda stupid.

I wouldn't worry, this TX stuff with updates, models and elrs luas is a pain in the arse at best.

(31-Jan-2023, 03:10 AM)ph2t Wrote: I wouldn't worry, this TX stuff with updates, models and elrs luas is a pain in the arse at best.

Yeah, it really is.

After a couple hours of chasing my tail, doing fresh flashes of edgetx, jumping on the elrs discord, etc., it turns out that I had the wrong baud rate set for my external elrs module.

Whatever it defaults to is too low. I increased to a baud rate of 1.87M and the lua script started running like it should.
Jumped up to the highest setting, and it's still good.

Anyhow, I managed to transfer all of my models and sounds and global settings over to edgetx.
That's good, because, I really didn't want to remap all of that shit.

I'm officially on edgetx, but it still says, "welcome to opentx" when I power up. That's a good thing, it means all of my sounds transferred over.

The damn jhemcu sp24whatever rx on this buzzbee doesn't want to go into wifi mode- which means i can't flash it over wifi.
Whatever, screw you jhemcu.

I was able to flash the happymodel ep rx on my subatomic and fly it- so at this point, my tx is good to go. I just need to update all of my other birds to elrs v3, and hopefully most of them won't be like this damn buzzbee and require me to flash them via an ftdi adapter..

I do want to get this buzzbee back in the air, so, I'm about to do some disassembly.

Screw this.

This damn JHEMCU SP24S RX has been a PIA since day one.
If the manufacturer can't be bothered to work with the ELRS devs, then I can't be bothered to troubleshoot and betatest your crappy hardware that you sell as a final product.

A ceramic antenna ELRS receiver from just about any manufacturer is what, $13?
Don't waste your money on this JHEMCU one.

I've got other elrs rx's on my shelf.
Let's put a GEPRC Nano ELRS RX on this thing.
Guess what? This RX is actually supported. I didn't get a warning in ELRS Configurator telling me that the manufacturer didn't work with the developers of this open source hardware. Yeah, if you're gonna try to make a buck off of something you didn't develop, at least take the time to work with the folks who created it.

Applied power, went into wifi mode, flashed elrs v3.

I'm connected to my transmitter. That means we're good to go on elrs v3.
Let's try to connect to betaflight via wifi. I need to lower my D gain so that it stops trying to fly away when I throttle up.

If this works, dude... being able to change betaflight settings via wifi would be so damn cool.
Whelp. that didn't work. Let's try reflashing the rx with my home wifi settings so that I don't have to disconnect and try to connect to the elrs wifi network.

Hrmm. Chrome is bringing up a new screen that shows me that elrs v3 is loaded, but won't let me click on anything.
Okay, let's try microsoft edge. I don't think I've ever used this crappy browser... but hey, I can update the firmware on my rx with it.
Cool.
Can I now connect to betaflight via wifi?

No. Hrmm.
Well, I can connect to my TX16S that is now running EdgeTX and ELRS v3, so, that's progress.
I can connect and fly.

But, I cannot fly this bird again until I figure out how to connect to betaflight via wifi- I no longer have a usb port, and my motors are getting way too hot and it's trying to flyaway. I need to bring my D term (d gain? d something.) down in order to safely fly this thing.

But hey! I'm flying on EdgeTX and elrs v3!
Yeah, I still haven't managed to connect to betaflight via wifi, but, this geprc elrs rx connected to my tx after the first flash- and it keeps going into wifi mode when it is supposed to.

For you fellow music lovers, tonight's soundtrack was Suicidal Tendencies. It was some appropriately angsty music for software/firmware aggravation.

I’ve never actually done it, but I just remembered that I can change pids through stick commands on the osd menu. Time to see if Oscar has a tutorial for that.

I do still want to get the whole connecting to betaflight via WiFi through ELRS rx thing working though.

Alright. Time to make this thing fly right.

I used stick commands to get into the osd menu.
https://oscarliang.com/betaflight-osd/
Thanks, Oscar.
D gains was set at 1.0. I don't know what that represents, I'm thinking 1.0 based off of my master multiplier p/d gain slider?

I brought D gain down from 1.0 to 0.8.


My face is in that photo and the red coloring from the cam makes me look diseased. Whatever, the second half of my nickname/handle is leprosy.

Hey, it's no longer trying to fly away on take off and my motors are landing cold!
I'm not a tuner. I don't undertand it. But...
Man, I gotta say, on the video I uploaded previously on this thread when it wanted to fly away on take off, and my motors came down burning hot- I could tell the difference in how this bird flew. It felt locked in, it responded directly to my stick movements.

So, tuning is worth the effort. I'm gonna have to put some effort into learning how to tune.

Anyhow, it flew fine with d gain at 0.8. It didn't feel as locked in, so I increased it to 0.9.

Let's try flying this bird again!

Yes! It it responding directly to my commands. The crappy flying is a direct result of my bad flying skills.
I crashed after a minute and a half- but motors were only slightly warm, and it didn't try to fly away on take off.



Cool. I'm glad it's flying well again. I've gotta put some time into learning all of this pid stuff, because I want all of my birds to fly locked in like this.

As a side note, these Avan quad blades are great in the air, but, in freezing temperatures, they can't handle a hit at all without losing a blade. To be fair, most plastics don't do well at or below freezing.

SWEET 

First flight of the night.

The first part of the flight is a bit of just cruising, as well as some range checking- I'm in the process of updating my fleet from ELRS v2 to ELRS v3, and I've been having my transmitter call out "telemetry lost" near the busses. I think I've solved that- it could have been one of a couple things:
-On ELRS v2, I was running 50mw to 100mw on my transmitter. I decided to bump it up to 250mw when I updated to ELRS v3- this tx module doesn't have a fan, it's possible it was getting too hot. I've dropped it back down to 100mw.
-It could be the crappy jr bay module that came with this tx module. It sits a little loose. After some messing around with it, I managed to give it a nice snug fit.
-Could have been random interference last Saturday night.
 
Regardless, I'm not getting that call out on my radio anymore. Cool beans.

For the second part of the flight, I decided to work on tightening up my turn around that electrical post between my shop and the boathouse.

I knew that I needed to start my turn before I wanted to make it, but, I guess I didn't realize just how far before my turn I needed to start it. I'm getting there slowly, still have a long way to go. It's a little unnerving hauling butt sideways or backwards. If you watch when I start my turn as I approach the post, you can see my brain try to fight it- it shows up as micro corrections as I'm flying sideways and then backwards. 

But hey! I think my flying is getting a bit smoother. Or at least, while flying, I feel like it is more reacting to my stick movements and going where I want it to, and less like I am reacting to it.

This thing is flying pretty good and hovering around 30%, which makes it nice and snappy. I don't feel like it's lacking power anymore- it's amazing how much of a difference the right props can make.
Hugnosed_bat, thanks for suggesting the switch to quad blades.

I thought about doing some post processing to adjust the brightness and contrast to make it look a bit more like it does through my goggles, but, then I remembered that I don't know what I'm doing when it comes to video editing.

Also, my laptop doesn't really have the processing power or ram to do it.
Also, the built in dvr in Fatshark goggles is absolute crap, and I'd be better off eventually getting a cheap external dvr if I want better recorded video.

This bird is getting rebuilt tonight.

With the ducts, it didn't have enough thrust on 2s with the 1104 7500kv motors. So, it's getting some 1202.5 11500kv motors. Should give me somewhere around 35% more thrust, if my drunk math is correct.

It's also getting a different aio fc. The one that was on it has been used and abused, and lost its usb port. I'm not in a hot air mood tonight.

So, it's getting a DarwinFPV 15A 1s-3s ELRS AIO, as well as whatever vtx I previously had attached to that aio.
This aio had an unfortunate incident where the elrs antenna u.fl jack ripped off the board.

I soldered a 29mm wire in place of it. I wasn't 100% sure that I measured my wire length right, but, after doing a range check, I'm getting full bars 50' away with two cinder block walls in between me and it. Cool, good enough for me. Those weird bubbly bits on chips is conformal coating. This picture made me realize that I didn't do as good of a job soldering on those motor plugs as I could have- that bit that I put a green line down? Yeah, I didn't apply enough heat to those pads when I origirnally soldered the plug in place. I'll have to remember to fix that if I ever use this aio on a build with motor plugs in the future.



I'm gonna flip this board over and direct solder the motor wires, because I don't want to remove the motor plugs on the aio.
Man, I don't know why my vtx wires are so ridiculously long, but, whatever, I'm using a pretty short vtx antenna, and it'll allow me to position my vtx near the back of the quad. I'm not looking to rewire more than I have to tonight- this quad is being rebuilt for igow challenges, and it's going to get plenty more bench time.

I just went back in and fixed the poor solder job on the pads on that motor plug- even if I'm not using plugs for this build, I know me, and my memory is crap- I won't remember to do it in the future, so I might as well do it now.
We're almost to summer, but, this is the PNW- we're gonna get random rainstorms, and since I'm currently using this build for igow, I need to be able to fly even in the rain, so we're gonna go over all of those new joints with conformal coating.

These motors are short- 1202.5, so, 2.5mm stator height. I'm going to mount the prop guards below the arms. That should give me enough clearance so that my props aren't hitting the prop guard supports, without having to use motor risers.



Alright! All that's left is telling Quicksilver that I flipped my fc over, then reordering my motors because I flipped my board over, checking/fixing my motor direction, strapping some things down, putting the top plate back on, and then... I'm ready to do some matty flips and juicy-whatevers to pass week 5's igow4 challenge.

Hi Lemony,

Nice whoop FC adapter; simple, sweet. 

Later, iFly 

Alright.

Did some wire routing for motors, etc., added some strain relief for my vtx antenna and battery conector.



Told Quicksilver that my gyro is flipped over. Reordered my motors, because after flipping the aio, left was right and right was left. Recalibrated my accelerometer. Double checked my motor direction, I'm running props out- only needed to switch direction on one motor.
Reattached the top plate, put props on. This thing went on a pretty serious diet. With the original ducts, the 1104 7500kv motors, an external ELRS rx, and a larger vtx, I think I was at 94g or 96g dry.



Now we're at 76g dry. That's still real heavy for a 2" 2s, but, this is a basher. Somewhere around 20g weight savings is pretty damn good. Between that weight savings and the higher kv motors, this thing should have significantly more thrust, or, "ummph factor". :P

Time to take this bird for a flight, and try doing some trial runs for the week 5 igow4 challenge.
For some weird reason on Quicksilver, after every hard crash this thing decides it wants to switch a motor direction?
I dunno why. But, I switched back to BF, and it can handle a hard crash now.

Damn, dude, matty flips are hard. It's all about timing.

Best way to nail Matty Flips is to go into Freerider and load up Open Air Cafe and just pick one of those beams and just Matty Flip it over and over until you get it down. Then watch the HeadMazta video and try again.