I built a micro drone that weighs 236g and records HD!

As the title states.

I built a micro class drone that has the ability to record HD footage and can still haul butt around my property! Talk about a tight fit. Some of the tightest soldering Ive done to date. Here is a picture of the drone:



Here is the build info:

Frame: GEPRC GEP-CX3 PRO Cygnet 3
FC: Diatone Mamba Power Tower Mk2
Motor: XING 1408 4100KV 2-4S Motor
ESC: Black Mamba F25HV ESC 25A (30A burst)
Rx: FrSky XM+ SBUS 2.4GHz Mini Receiver
Camera: RunCam Split 3 Nano
VTX: RDQ Mach 3 VTX 25-1000mW
Props: HQ Prop 75mm Cinewhoop 2.95x3.6x3 Tri-Blade

*Recorded on Runcam Split 3 Nano 1080p 60fps

..and here is a quick rip around my yard. I have it dialed in pretty good now. Super smooth!

If you don't mind, may I ask the estimated cost of this build. I would love to have something like this at some point to use for camera shots at productions I work for. Corporate or concert productions will pay big money for camera footage of a professional level these days and I already work in the industry anyway so why not right?

a reply to: RickyD

To build from scratch like I did you could make this for 250 - 300 bucks. But thats just the drone.. you need a radio and FPV goggles too. Which are potentially more expensive. Learning curve is steep too. The electronics side of it all. What pairs up with what. Then the programming of the flight controller ( Betaflight ) is what I use. Then the binding and programming of the radio. Then understanding the frequency's for the video that goes back to my goggles..
Look up FPV drone's on youtube. Tons of videos to learn from.

a reply to: Triton1128

Damn, I can't solder to save my life, shaky hands and bad eyesight. I wish I could build something like that.

But it's illegal to fly them in suburbs around here, and I don't live in a place like yours.. so many of you guys seem to live in huge plots of open bushed areas.. I envy that...

Well done on the project !!

a reply to: Triton1128

Would you ever be open to repeating this for someone else for monetary gain lol? I for one might have an interest in such a thing in the not super distant future!

a reply to: Triton1128

Wow

BRAVO!

a reply to: RickyD

The most expensive initial costs for you will be your transmitter (remote controller) and FPV glasses.
Don’t cheap out on either.
Your going to build a quad and realize, this is awesome I want to build another.
Your gonna want a transmitter that will save profiles - so to speak for each of your drones.

Pay the $250 or probably cheaper in the US and get a quality transmitter.
I spent $250 on mine and got what I considered to be mid-upper tier for my Frankenstein-quads.
It’s a 16 channel Taranis XD9+ by FrSky.

If you have access to a 3D printer, your golden!
If not, you might have to order parts through your local hobby shop.
The RC community is awesome, as Triton will probably attest, we love showing off our creations and sharing builds.

For FPV get quality.
I’m running Fatshark Dominator 2 - very dated by 2019 standards.
The aspect ratio was good at the time - but now, not so much. 4:3 does not cut it. The FoV is too tight I find, but I’m used to them.

My bud has the dom. 3 and it’s 16:9. So much better and clearer.
even if you go with something older like the dominator 3’s you’ll be happy.

a reply to: Triton1128

Awesome job!

I love when you post your vids.

My full time job is drone pilot, so when I’m home now, I rarely fly for pleasure.
I used to think I’d never get tired of flying.
But I fly multiple missions a day, then half the day is spent processing my images into 3D models.
When I get home after my week at work, I just want to laze around the house, or play video games.
I really should Start making more of an effort to fly more on my off time.
After all, that is when I Don’t have to worry about crashing a $10k drone.
And I can fly the funnest and fastest.

Out of curiosity, what is the point of building the smallest drone ever other than to say you did? Wouldn't a larger drone be more desirable since it can carry a bigger battery and they're already small enough for just about anything you could want to do?

a reply to: Macenroe82

I'm pretty good with figuring things out and know a bit about soldering but I am no where near the level of skill to build something like this and have it be reliably working. I would however be more than happy to fund it and pay for the labor hours if they weren't ridiculous lol. Nothing I'm looking at right now but being in the live production industry I could get a lot of work using one if the camera was of sufficient quality...and it sounds pretty fun for a sidr gig that pays decent.

originally posted by: BrianFlanders
Out of curiosity, what is the point of building the smallest drone ever other than to say you did? Wouldn't a larger drone be more desirable since it can carry a bigger battery and they're already small enough for just about anything you could want to do?

Hey Brian,

There are a few factors where a small drone is more appealing.

Say you want to fly in public. At a park or some other populated area. A small drone such as this is not very loud and goes almost unnoticed. If you were to fly a 5" drone or larger. They can be quite loud, and sometimes draws unwanted attention.

A drone this small, (under 250g) is basically indestructible. They can take tons of abuse and still fly. Where as something larger with some heft behind it. One crash and you're out $$$ and waiting for parts to come in.

The last reason is accessibility. I built this small drone specifically to fly around my woods. I wanted something small and agile enough to fly around the woods with the ability to record HD footage.

The bonus, its sub 250g. Which means its not required by the FAA to be registered. Where as larger drones over that weight. Not only need to be registered, but you as a pilot need to be registered as well.

Hope that answers some questions!