I've been reviewing and posting about various drone stuff for about the past year, and I was contacted to help design and build out a new frame that catered to the freestyle pilot who also enjoys cruising. 

The manufacturer saw this build (Adventures of the madly overpowered & unhinged 6s 3" Digital Toothpick.. (rotorbuilds.com) and some IG videos, and allowed me to test a few iterations and make recommendations.

I guess this is kind of like my first sponsorship, but I've not had to hold back on any of my feedback and I wasn't limited in what I could say, so ya'll still get the real deal me

I hope you come along with me on the journey to build a 3" that could replace my 5" 

I. So - what did I want in a micro frame after all ?

1. a frame that was fairly resillient and fit up to 3.5" props (the reasoning was that it would be able to fit 3" props with prop guards for cinematic flying)
   
2. a frame that was balanced and allowed both top/bottom mounting of lipos and regular/toilet bowl mounting of lipos
   
3. a frame that was able to fit whoop sized AIOs, or 2 (20x20) mounting places for regular 20x20 stacks and vistas if wanted
   
4. I wanted it less H and more x, and arrived at a slightly stretched X which helps with performance and allows greater resolution in the pitch axis
   
5. I wanted the kit to come with all TPU and hardware required, so I couldn't be siphoned off for additional parts and money later
   
6. I wanted it to be as capable of a cinematic machine as it was a freestyle monster
   
7. I wanted it to be inexpensive and something that didn't require replacing
   
8. It isn't built to hold a new air unit, but can in fact fit a 30x30 with some prints in the back
   
9. Strong as h*ll --- so it is 4.5mm thick, top-shelf carbon fiber
   

II. So what does it look like after you broke a few and provided direct design input???





III. So what's going in it? 

Photos to come but I'm thinking:

Brotherhobby 1504.5 6s motors or Apex 1607 motors
Aikon 20x20 6s stack
Caddx Vista with OG Caddx Camera

nice looking frame and some printing art :-)
i would like to get a look at the bottomplate

the armguards lools very long, is there a special reason for that?

(15-Dec-2022, 12:13 AM)hugnosed_bat Wrote: nice looking frame and some printing art :-)
i would like to get a look at the bottomplate

the armguards lools very long, is there a special reason for that?

Armguards are made to be skids, soft mounts, and cable organizers...

Here's a look at the bottom plate ...

Congratulations! I imagine it’s got to feel good to know that in addition to the community, a manufacturer noticed and appreciated the time you’ve put into the hobby and wanted your help and feedback. That’s pretty awesome.

Frame looks good.
I love the colors- I’m a big fan of colorful, different builds.
I also love that it’s 4.5mm thick. I crash often and hard, so heavy duty is *good*.

What’s the weight of the frame plus tpu bits and bolts?

I think it’d rip quite nicely with 1607’s.

a few more frames of the frame :

(15-Dec-2022, 03:09 AM)Lemonyleprosy Wrote: Congratulations! I imagine it’s got to feel good to know that in addition to the community, a manufacturer noticed and appreciated the time you’ve put into the hobby and wanted your help and feedback. That’s pretty awesome.

Frame looks good.
I love the colors- I’m a big fan of colorful, different builds.
I also love that it’s 4.5mm thick. I crash often and hard, so heavy duty is *good*.

What’s the weight of the frame plus tpu bits and bolts?

I think it’d rip quite nicely with 1607’s.

Thank you for the comments. I'll grab the one which I haven't built yet and weigh it for you

Nice looking frame! I immediately thought of the Demibot frame with how heavy duty this is!
Would a whoop AIO and Vista fit front/back?

(15-Dec-2022, 05:02 AM)Fiveflat Wrote: Nice looking frame!  I immediately thought of the Demibot frame with how heavy duty this is!
Would a whoop AIO and Vista fit front/back?

yes they do! This was one of the use cases I brought up during design as a typical build, and so it definitely is designed to fit.

(15-Dec-2022, 03:09 AM)Lemonyleprosy Wrote: Congratulations! I imagine it’s got to feel good to know that in addition to the community, a manufacturer noticed and appreciated the time you’ve put into the hobby and wanted your help and feedback. That’s pretty awesome.

Frame looks good.
I love the colors- I’m a big fan of colorful, different builds.
I also love that it’s 4.5mm thick. I crash often and hard, so heavy duty is *good*.

What’s the weight of the frame plus tpu bits and bolts?

I think it’d rip quite nicely with 1607’s.

Just took my spare one out of the package for ya. All tpu pieces, carbon frame, bolts, standoffs = 59 g

Seems like it has similarities to the Micro Apex 3, but manages thicker carbon and longer arms. Guessing it's due to the stubbier body. I'd certainly build on it if I was making another in that ballpark.

(15-Dec-2022, 07:42 AM)Suros Wrote: Seems like it has similarities to the Micro Apex 3, but manages thicker carbon and longer arms. Guessing it's due to the stubbier body. I'd certainly build on it if I was making another in that ballpark.

I could see some parallels. I think everyone is trying to stay light with these smaller builds and I wanted the frame to be more resilient and a little more heavy for flinging purposes. It helps it to achieve a near 5" feel where you can use momentum similarly...

I really like the thick bottom plate.  My only criticism is the tpu camera mount doesn't fit in with the theme of heavy/solid build.  I would be worried that it would be inadequate protection from the inertia of this frame.     Have you given thought to an aluminum cage?

i like tall carbon, the very only pruduct i like form betaflight is a 2,5inch frame with skinny 4mm arms.

the bottomplate looks very bulky to the skinnier arms, maybe there could be something less?
xD i like the tall carbon but bit weights more than my tbs stardust 5inch frame :-) i might be the wrong pilot, nog looking for that inertia

You pretty much described exactly what I am looking for for my first build. Something that can freestyle, add ducts when needed for camera work, and cruise. I have already decided on 3-3.5" and have already listed out the parts I want to use. But this looks very promising. Cant wait to see what you put in it. love the frame.