Manual Mode

[ZonComGMZ]

So I'm thinking about switching the 3rd position of the S1 switch to Manual instead of FailSafe should I ever need it. Before doing so what am I to expect? How much different is it than ATTI Mode? Is it like ATTI mode without the GPS Altitude lock? Any suggestions on what I should prepare for before flipping it into Manual mode to test it out (besides making sure I have a lot of altitude to recover)?

 

[Pull_Up]

It's pretty darn different! First off, the throttle is no longer mid-point=hover, it's mid-point=50% throttle - and that's probably not the setting you need to hover. So you need to fly the throttle all the time. Right stick is quite like atti mode except that again you'll need to be constantly flying the stick as it won't just drift with wind, but it will drift full stop.

If you haven't tried flying a micro like a Hubsan X4 I'd seriously recommend it as you'll know how a fully manual, gyro-only aircraft will handle on a small scale - and it will be more twitchy and squirrely than the heavier P2V which makes it no bad platform to learn on.

If you want to practice with the Vision I'd put her up at least 2 mistakes high, have the throttle above centre when you switch out of GPS/atti and be prepared to flick that S1 switch back up pretty quick if you need to!

 

[rfernandez]

+1 with Pull_Up. I am pretty good with flying the sticks but full manual is a handful and your brain must be in sink with the bird when it come back facing you where left is right and vise versa..
Just make sure you get good and comfortable atti first before experimenting with full manual and best experimenting on calm and early morning days. Just saying! :mrgreen:

And for pete sakes stay away from the water when doing so..

 

[FSJ Guy]

I have no idea why they have a full manual mode to begin with. It's just asking for trouble.\

I don't know about you, but I know that *I* can't make the same calculations and adjustments that the microprocessor does in order to hold it in the air.

I have never even TRIED to fly any multi rotor in manual mode. If you do, please video tape it so we can see what happens when you crash. :- p

 

[rfernandez]

Awe come on FSJ Guy.. live a little, he wants to try.. I just want to see the video..
but having said that. When i used to fly cargo we would not hand fly the plane at 35,000 feet, that is what the autopilot is for, air is too thin but it has been done multiple occasions.
is not impossible..

 

[ZonComGMZ]

I just want to have an option to try to recover the bird if the NAZA goes haywire. I had an incident that the P2V wouldn't respond to commands and RTH & IOC HL didn't work either. Luckily I found the P2V with the Radar feature but if the NAZA loses it's home position I might be able to get it land in manual mode. Thanks everyone.

 

[LandYachtMedia]

The good news - Manual mode on the Phantom is easier to fly than any of my single rotor birds.

The bad news - The phantom isn't the cheapest bird to fix if you really tear it up.

If you don't have some stick time on a simulator or with another manual rotor platform I would recommend against using the Phantom to learn on. The amount of fine correction to keep it flying happy you won't likely be prepared for.

Get a manual quad or an intermediate level SR micro-copter, fly that for a while, and you will be much more prepared to flip the switch to MAN on the Phantom. It will be much cheaper to replace a few inexpensive parts on a micro-copter while you lean than replacing a bunch of stuff on the Phantom. Once you develop some stick skills you can sell the bird and get at least half your money back.

 

[OI Photography]

I just want to have an option to try to recover the bird if the NAZA goes haywire. I had an incident that the P2V wouldn't respond to commands and RTH & IOC HL didn't work either. Luckily I found the P2V with the Radar feature but if the NAZA loses it's home position I might be able to get it land in manual mode. Thanks everyone.

It's a good plan to be familiar with manual as a backup option in case you do have to switch to it in an emergency. The main thing to be prepared for is the change in the throttle...unless you have the throttle at 70% or above when you flip the switch you need to be prepared for it to drop suddenly and quickly. Find a big open space (both on the ground and in the air), and get it up to 30-40 feet before practicing switching modes. You can also switch to manual before takeoff, to get an idea of how much throttle it takes to produce more than neutral lift.

The other important think to keep in mind when using manual is that you no longer have some of the safeguards that the other modes may provide, such as a lower maximum pitch...it's a lot easier to get yourself in to extreme and potentially unrecoverable situations.

 

[nhoover]

No way am I trying manual on the P2V. I fly my Hubsan x4 around and it is pretty cool, but parts are super cheap and it crashes pretty well. It can do flips etc. But just plain flying it is harder than the P2V in GPS mode that's for sure.

 

[Venom93corba]

Well I tried to fly manual last weekend. Hell to the NO! Crashed and burned.

Sent from my Galaxy Note 2

 

[pault]

The good news - Manual mode on the Phantom is easier to fly than any of my single rotor birds.
.....

That is encouraging as I can/could keep my T-Rex in a stable hover and do some basic manoeuvres until the inevitable happened and it is now in the loft in pieces

Just one question with the P2V to anyone who has flown in manual, I presume it can quickly recover if you get into a panic but do you think it could recover at say 50' if it got inverted and also is it reasonably easy to stop it from getting inverted ?

 

[LandYachtMedia]

The good news - Manual mode on the Phantom is easier to fly than any of my single rotor birds.
.....

That is encouraging as I can/could keep my T-Rex in a stable hover and do some basic manoeuvres until the inevitable happened and it is now in the loft in pieces

Just one question with the P2V to anyone who has flown in manual, I presume it can quickly recover if you get into a panic but do you think it could recover at say 50' if it got inverted and also is it reasonably easy to stop it from getting inverted ?

Recovery under those conditions would require serious skills and some luck. I doubt anyone that isn't an experienced 3d pilot could pull that off with any certainty. You are talking about having MAYBE 1 second (2 seconds tops) to get into MAN mode and make a correction before it hits the ground. Even then the Phantom is very underpowered compared to 3D birds. If you were flying FPV which means heavy my guess is at best if you did everything perfectly you would only reduce the impact energy some but you would still crash.

I'm not going to give that scenario a test with mine to see.

I've seen video of some incredible recoveries performed by the on board controller. In my opinion you would have the best outcome if you were flying MAN and it got away from you a bit for you to flip it to GPS. And pray to the God of your choice.

 

[pault]

I think I will leave my Sw1 position 3 in Failsafe. If I was to change it to manual it would just sit there daring me to give it a go . The best option for me is to rebuild the T-Rex and crash that again !

 

[Scottrod]

1. Climb to 1,000'
2. Switch to manual mode
3. Flip the phantom upside down
4. Push the S1 switch back to GPS


Now let's see some videos! Lol

 

[ZonComGMZ]

1. Climb to 1,000'
2. Switch to manual mode
3. Flip the phantom upside down
4. Push the S1 switch back to GPS


Now let's see some videos! Lol

You First!