Hello all, my name is Chris, I just bought the PV2+ a week ago after seeing my friend with a Phantom 1 (?). Anyway I sprang for the H3-3D gimbal and bought a GoPro because I wanted to use an FPV setup with a 7" monitor.
Well, today was my maiden voyage, which lasted a grand total of about 4 minutes. I was being extremely cautious just getting used to the controls (it's different when you own it, and incur the cost of the damage!). Then I "kinda" lost visual of the phantom as I was flying down my driveway.... the phantom started to ascend rather slowly but not from my control. When I say I lost visual, I could still see it, but I had flown around a rather large tree with branches, etc. Then the drone started to drift back towards me and the takeoff spot, but the trip was interrupted by the tree that I had previously flown around. The phantom dropped about 50+ feet and the camera/gimbal too most of the impact. The gimbal was bent to hell and when I turn it back on, the gears just grind.... so it's another $379 + shipping for a gimbal! I'm glad I have deep pockets or my RC hobby wouldn't last very long!
So for my newb questions:
1). Is line of sight absolutely necessary to keep from losing a signal? I'm certainly not going to be flying behind mountains or anything of that sort, but losing control in my front yard when a tall oak tree between me and my Phantom is a little concerning.
2). Is there a way to get parts, or have this gimbal rebuilt?
3). I "thought" (famous last words) the gimbal was controllable so you could record straight ahead or straight down and anything in between. When my friend showed me his, he had the knob on the back of the controller. My controller does not have that...
Any help/advice is appreciated!
Well, today was my maiden voyage, which lasted a grand total of about 4 minutes. I was being extremely cautious just getting used to the controls (it's different when you own it, and incur the cost of the damage!). Then I "kinda" lost visual of the phantom as I was flying down my driveway.... the phantom started to ascend rather slowly but not from my control. When I say I lost visual, I could still see it, but I had flown around a rather large tree with branches, etc. Then the drone started to drift back towards me and the takeoff spot, but the trip was interrupted by the tree that I had previously flown around. The phantom dropped about 50+ feet and the camera/gimbal too most of the impact. The gimbal was bent to hell and when I turn it back on, the gears just grind.... so it's another $379 + shipping for a gimbal! I'm glad I have deep pockets or my RC hobby wouldn't last very long!
So for my newb questions:
1). Is line of sight absolutely necessary to keep from losing a signal? I'm certainly not going to be flying behind mountains or anything of that sort, but losing control in my front yard when a tall oak tree between me and my Phantom is a little concerning.
2). Is there a way to get parts, or have this gimbal rebuilt?
3). I "thought" (famous last words) the gimbal was controllable so you could record straight ahead or straight down and anything in between. When my friend showed me his, he had the knob on the back of the controller. My controller does not have that...
Any help/advice is appreciated!