Announcing FPV Spec Tricopter Tree Racing Series

[Diviner]

Hey guys.

Many of us are into the multirotor craze, but if your like me, well, it can get pretty boring pretty fast.

We are creating a spec racing series. Our goals

• crashable (under $5 per crash), low cost tri copter
• never be down due to a crash
• never have to wait for a shipment from China or drive to a local hobby store for parts

All participants will host one location (giving them home track advantage) and they set the course. Targeting 3m timed session.

You can build your own as long as you follow the spec.

Series spec required

• NTM 2826 1200kv
• props (TBD, testing various brands now, but they will be inexpensive ie no cf)
• motors centers must be 18" apart
• 3s battery
• A "lost plane" buzzer of some sort. These are under $5. We don't want to waste other racers time locating a downed copter. Active the buzzer, follow the noise, get your copter and get off the course.

Personal Choices

• RX
• Video TX
• flight controller
• camera
• frames
• esc
• tail servo

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BUILD YOUR OWN
Just make sure your motor centers must be 18" from each other and you use the same props and motor. Use any frame material you want, any tail mechanism you want.

We have a cheap wooden tricopter kit available that will match our backup machine.

$80 2 complete frame assemblies (2 bodies, 6 arms, hardware, 2 tail tilt assembly).

Tentative schedule is the first Saturday morning of the month starting in May.

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FAQs

1) Can I use a name brand kit?
A) Yes as long as its a tricopter and the motors centers are 18" apart. You could easily build one with dji arms and a couple of wooden plates.

2) Why a tricopter?
A) they are more stable in fast forward flight, more easily transported, and have less to break. See video below. These things can rip.

3) What if I miss a weekend. Won't that affect the series total?
A) No. We will count your 4 top finishes.

4) Do I need my own FPV goggles?
A) No but it is highly recommended. You could probably use a small monitor. But you will probably want your own goggles. You won't be able to practice well without a set. A low end set of goggles start at $225 with the average price being $300.

5) I have some gear laying around. Can I use it instead of the spec?
A) Sure as long as your motor is spec and you have 8" plastic props.

6) Can I just show up and run timed laps on the set course with my current multirotor?
A) Sure. The series participants will have a 5.8 frequency assign for the day. Just remind us to check your video frequency so we don't kill each others signals.

7) What do the winners get?
A) a parade in their honor with all the hottest ladies in the land lining up for a night of unfettered affection


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Here is a video on how to build an inexpensive tricopter.



Here is a vid of what we are attempting, but I expect our courses to have more "tree flying". But it is up to the event host to make it as challenging as they want.


Race Format

You get at least 3 timed runs. We want a new racer running every 5 minutes. So 6 competitors should take 1.5 hours of actual racing. Get there early as you want for practice. We can have multiple people on the course for practice. For timed runs, only 1 at a time. We want to start racing at 10am and be done by noon so you can get on with family duties, etc. The host is expected to be there with a defined and tested course by 8:30am.

If you can fly a copter with fpv, you are welcome. PM with if you are interested.

[thefokker1]

I wanna race I also have a nice AMA Club Field we can set a track up on w a nice gap in a few trees Its north west of mundelein.

Seems to me you will have more people interested if you didn't limit it to a tricopter of your choice.

If you feel the need you could limit prop, battery size, overall m2m distance, or auw

IMO you prob will not get too many eager participants that need to buy gear. When a person who is at a level of Fpv that can avoid hitting trees will already have a flying rig that they would be willing to race.

Again IMO here. Handicapping is too complicated, and easily rigged. Just have fun and race.

Good luck selling some rtf's

The motor choice is very sub par quality. I graduated away from ntm 2826 1200's 2 years ago and would never go back.

Dave

[Diviner]

Originally Posted by thefokker1

I wanna race I also have a nice AMA Club Field we can set a track up on w a nice gap in a few trees Its north west of mundelein.

Cool. We are planning a get together at my house the weekend after next to assemble and test assuming that all the parts arrive. You are more than welcome help test & advise.

Seems to me you will have more people interested if you didn't limit it to a tricopter of your choice.
If you feel the need you could limit prop, battery size, overall m2m distance, or auw

Edited: Changed the spec. You can show up with anything and run the course. For the actual series however, we all need to be flying the same motor and props.

Originally Posted by thefokker1

IMO you prob will not get too many eager participants that need to buy gear. When a person who is at a level of Fpv that can avoid hitting trees will already have a flying rig that they would be willing to race.

You are right about that. The biggest barrier is guys having to buy goggles. At least 3 guys would be in now if it weren't for the $300 goggles. We have age ranges from 16 to 55 so cost is an issue for some. But the spec hardware is less than the cost of a set of 700 blades.

But . . . all of us currently committed have $1,500+ quad rigs and don't have any other el cheapo quad. No way I am using my autonomous mission quad for tree racing.

Again IMO here. Handicapping is too complicated, and easily rigged. Just have fun and race.

If the guys who commit don't want it, then its out. The group makes up the rules. Of all the guys I talked to, most don't want a handicapping system. I thought some of the less experienced guys would want it. Turns out they don't.

The motor choice is very sub par quality. I graduated away from ntm 2826 1200's 2 years ago and would never go back.

We looked at Sunny sky / t motor, but they are 80% more than ntn. We have to keep costs down. While $30 more doesn't sound like much, it can add up quickly if we put in "good" stuff. Next thing you know we have a spec calling for Graupner CF blades, Naza Ms and suddenly, we have a $500 tricopter that costs $30 per crash. If the committed group wants to change the spec and buck up, then no problem.

My gut tells me that by week 4, we will be seeing some challenging course designs with our fair share of carnage as guys go for the gold on the last timed run. Things could get expensive quickly with good stuff.

[Diviner]

We have made changes based on Fokker's suggestions

Spec has changed (the main post has been modified). So now the "spec" equipment costs about $50 not counting lipo.

• Any frame you want supporting 3 motors
• motor centers are 18" apart
• any tail servo
• any esc

This simplifies the design even further. In fact, we may even pull the 18" on center requirement, but we have to do some more speed testing to see if that really affects lap times.

Any other comments, please chime in.

[Diviner]

Frames for racers Tree Trimmer, D' Barker and Blade Scrapper complete. Equipment coming soon.

[Diviner]

I purchased six 15' tall feather banners that will serve as pylons. This increases visibility and reduces crashes since we don't have to fly as low.

Last weekend I dug in the permanent pole supports. This will ensure consistent course times so racers can track their progress.

The six pylons can have multiple courses.




I usually go to Jersey's Field (a few miles west of Busse) at least once per weekend depending on weather. Stop on by and get some laps times in.

[Diviner]

[Shadow46]

looks interesting.

[Diviner]

The group continues to grow. Last weekend we had 8 guys, 2 of which were new.

This weekend, despite gusty conditions, we had 6 with 2 new guys.

Interest leans towards mutlirotors and half want to start racing.

All the feather banners came in. Here is 5 of the 6. A good run (3 laps) for an average 450 for the "Little Slalom" is 1:15. A 250 quad could break a minute.

This weekend we had multiple people on the course at the same time, which is a gas trying to chase down the guy in front.



The general thread is here
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showt...06729&page=116

Racing info is posted here
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showt...5#post27878536

No plankers or club members ragging about the rules / flight lines / where you can't fly, etc. Nice. Busse it is NOT!

[Diviner]

[ame]http://youtu.be/Ub1kGHGmOq0[/ame]

[Ecaf]

When is the next race?

Id love to come out and watch.

[Diviner]

We choose the best weather day each weekend. We had 7 guys out today, 2 guys were new. Every week we seem to get 2 new guys.

We are probably the only guys in the country who currently have a set pylon course we set up every weekend. Today we had 3 guys running laps.

Current best times.

Little Slalom x4 / Paul "Rocket" / 1:28.4 / 4s-1280kv SS-hq cm 8"
Pretzel x3 / Gregg "Diviner" / 1:28 / 4s-1400 SS-hq cm 8"
Giant Slalom x2 / Gregg "Diviner" / 1:34 / 4s-1400 SS-hq cm 8"
Five Eights x1 / Gregg "Diviner" / 1:07 / 4s-1400 SS-hq cm 8"

Here is a vid from a few weeks ago. Flying on NTN 1200kv 3s-10" nylon slowfly

[ame]http://youtu.be/nwZyebc0kmM[/ame]


Still a lot of tuning work to do as 3 of us prepare our 250's. New equipment / setups every weekend. I suspect it will be another month before everyone has a setup they are comfortable with.

[Diviner]

A course I have been flying over at Harper with my Flip 260

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Jason has joined the racing league. He put this vid together. Next week is round 2.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqjH3V-27K8

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For the next two Saturdays we are having our Rotorcross Racing League. One at Harper and one in Highland Park. These events will be our last for the season so this is the last chance to check out the racing scene. Spectators welcome.

http://www.meetup.com/Chicago-fpv/

Finding performance flyers in the 250 size has been a challenge. The talent is out there, I was just looking in all the wrong places.Since we have joined Meetup.com we have started getting more racers. By the beginning of next season, we should be able to have 4 racers consistently.

This is the course set for Sat.

FPV Racing: Flyover Obstacle // Naze32 Sunnysky 2204 QAV250 // Rotorcross @ Masterblaster (7 min 56 sec)