Newbie.... Finally got a Phantom

Pilot-Werx · Apr 11, 2016

Long time lurker of the board and have always wanted a Phantom. While into Brookstone this weekend they had a Phantom 2 on the shelf. A person had purchased it and returned when they found out they had to register it. Although it does not have the gimbal, I figured i could not go wrong when they sold it to me for $170 new in the box.... What a blast this thing is!

Now to find a gimbal for my hero4 black.

J Dot · Apr 11, 2016

Pilot-Werx said:
Long time lurker of the board and have always wanted a Phantom. While into Brookstone this weekend they had a Phantom 2 on the shelf. A person had purchased it and returned when they found out they had to register it. Although it does not have the gimbal, I figured i could not go wrong when they sold it to me for $170 new in the box.... What a blast this thing is!

Now to find a gimbal for my hero4 black.

Hello,
Welcome, and CONGRATS!
I have a P2v, and love it!
There are plenty of gimbals out there,
If you go CHINA gimbal route ( most on eBay and such are going to be China gimbals ) I can help make you some plug n play wiring, unfortunately you will have to open bird to hook to naza and motherboard.
2nd option
Rotorpixel gimbal ( can house go-pros ) but double check with them first ( not sure if all go-pros are the same? ) but also requires a ( vision ( not plus ) cable set, and you still have to open bird. But with cable sett his will be plug n play ( much nicer gimbal with ACTUAL Alexmos SimpleBGC boards and firmware, can be updated, and they promise a 3rd axis coming soon? But who knows.

Just wanted to shoot some options your way, and glad to help!

Again Congrats, and Welcome!

Take care, Fly safe!
J Dot

Sinisalo · Apr 11, 2016

this is the best gimbal you could get to go with your setup:
DJI Zenmuse H4-3D Gimbal for GoPro HERO4 Black CP.ZM.000145 B&H
If you don't want to spend that much you could look up this 2d brushless gimbal, my son has this one on his XK Detect X380 and it works good but is not nearly as good as the H4-3D gimbal:
Eachine Light-2D Brushless Gimbal w/Motor&Controller For DJI Phantom

jason · Apr 11, 2016

+1 on the H4-3D gimbal as they are made for the P2 simply take the 8 pin connector and plug it into the gimbal. For any of the other gimbals on the market you need to open the shell to make connections to the Naza-M module and mounting instruction are not so cut n dry.

Pilot-Werx · Apr 11, 2016

Thank you for the help!

I have had the parrot AR drone for a couple years and it has been frustrating, like a bad dream. This thing is a blast!

I am not afraid to open things up and solder (do a lot of avionics), but I question whether the cheaper gimbals will last?

With the landing gear that sticks down, how useful is a 3-axis?

Sinisalo · Apr 11, 2016

Pilot-Werx said:
Thank you for the help!

I have had the parrot AR drone for a couple years and it has been frustrating, like a bad dream. This thing is a blast!

I am not afraid to open things up and solder (do a lot of avionics), but I question whether the cheaper gimbals will last?

With the landing gear that sticks down, how useful is a 3-axis?

it only controls some yaw movements, does not move that much on the yaw but it does make all the difference if you want super smooth video. Premier Pro can smooth out a lot of that too but you would end up cropping some of the video out so you wouldn't be able to output at 4k. The H4-3D might cost 4 times as much as the banggood cheap gimbal but it is 10 times better. Get what you think you need but keep in mind the cheapo gimbals are heavy, they break easy and are a pain to set up. With the Hero 4 black you have some different field of view options for the lower resolutions, even a narrow field of view option for 1080p.

jason · Apr 11, 2016

Pilot-Werx said:
Thank you for the help!

I have had the parrot AR drone for a couple years and it has been frustrating, like a bad dream. This thing is a blast!

I am not afraid to open things up and solder (do a lot of avionics), but I question whether the cheaper gimbals will last?

With the landing gear that sticks down, how useful is a 3-axis?

The problem with gimbals and cameras when is that they are to close to the ground and can be damaged on a hard landing. You can put on longer landing gear or use snap on extensions which give an extra 30mm of clearance.

Sinisalo said:
it only controls some yaw movements, does not move that much on the yaw but it does make all the difference if you want super smooth video. Premier Pro can smooth out a lot of that too but you would end up cropping some of the video out so you wouldn't be able to output at 4k. The H4-3D might cost 4 times as much as the banggood cheap gimbal but it is 10 times better. Get what you think you need but keep in mind the cheapo gimbals are heavy, they break easy and are a pain to set up. With the Hero 4 black you have some different field of view options for the lower resolutions, even a narrow field of view option for 1080p.

The solution around eliminating GoPro's fisheye on the hero 4 is to change the cameras lens to a non-distortion and still have lutra wide. medium and narrow lens settings depending on which video resolution you are using.

Pilot-Werx · Apr 12, 2016

I love the hero4. It has spent most of its life either underwater or strapped to the wing of my airplane. From hours of reading and your comments the zenmuse seems like the best option. I leave in two weeks to start my summer flying around in northern labrador and quebec so this will provide some much needed relief from the mundane. In addition, I also ordered a set of the t-motors, carbon props, and flysight FPV. Thank you again for the help!

Sinisalo · Apr 12, 2016

Remember you can use a lens correction profile to eliminate geometric distortions, chromatic aberration, and vignetting. Happy Flying!

jason · Apr 12, 2016

Pilot-Werx said:
I love the hero4. It has spent most of its life either underwater or strapped to the wing of my airplane. From hours of reading and your comments the zenmuse seems like the best option. I leave in two weeks to start my summer flying around in northern labrador and quebec so this will provide some much needed relief from the mundane. In addition, I also ordered a set of the t-motors, carbon props, and flysight FPV. Thank you again for the help!

You may find out ordering those t-motors and carbon fiber props were a mistake. If the P2 you bought was an original unit the ESC modules may be a problem as they were not designed for faster motors..

Pilot-Werx · Apr 12, 2016

jason said:
You may find out ordering those t-motors and carbon fiber props were a mistake. If the P2 you bought was an original unit the ESC modules may be a problem as they were not designed for faster motors..

I have V2.0 which I thought had the upgraded ESCs and motors from the factory. I will have to check again to make sure they work. I am typically away from any spot where I can receive shipments for two to three weeks so I am trying to gather the parts are most likely to fail.

jason · Apr 12, 2016

Pilot-Werx said:
I have V2.0 which I thought had the upgraded ESCs and motors from the factory. I will have to check again to make sure they work. I am typically away from any spot where I can receive shipments for two to three weeks so I am trying to gather the parts are most likely to fail.

The easies way the check if truly is a P2 v2 take the black hub prop off and if the motor shaft is black it is indeed a version 2. But why the motor and prop change?

Pilot-Werx · Apr 13, 2016

Yes, the stub shafts are color coded. I bought the motors and props as it appeared they were able to achieve a couple more minutes of flight time. The other reason is that my local RC store sold me their complete display P2 with the motors/props, without a battery or radio, for $120. From May to September I basically live on the Hudson Straight flying biologists, mining companies and hunting/fishing groups. I know it does not make much sense, but when you are weathered in, anything to occupy your mind is welcomed, even if it is messing around with an RC toy. So along with the motors, I have a complete parts machine. My wife has resorted to simply shaking her head because what started as a harmless purchase at Brookstone has turned into a quasi obsession in less than a week. Last summer it was a Yeti XL truggy, this year it is a Phantom!

Stathis · Apr 14, 2016

Welcome to the club...Phantom is addictive for sure...I also have a phantom 2 v2.This thing is amazing!!!Dont forget to store your batteries at 50% and not fully charged,it is important for lipo batteries.Happy landings...