Which way is front?!

[HoverMan]

I don't have fpv, so I must rely on the 'ol eyes. I'm trying to think of a good way to mark the two front arms of my 1.1.1 so I can tell which way is forward, on the underside. Any ideas?

I was thinking maybe some bright orange vinyl wrap on those two arms. I've used this stuff before and it is awesome. Here is a laptop cover I wrapped because it used to be pink. Its called 3M Scotchprint. Its a vinyl wrap, popular with car enthusiasts. You can heat it up and literally wrap anything. I don't do want to do anything as permanent as painting.

 

[LuvMyTJ]

Vinyl wrap will work up to a certain point. Lots of guys use led lights that can be seen well at a distance. These things can go quite a distance very quickly and can be tough to tell its direction easily.

 

[HoverMan]

Vinyl wrap will work up to a certain point. Lots of guys use led lights that can be seen well at a distance. These things can go quite a distance very quickly and can be tough to tell its direction easily.

I agree. The light idea is interesting, but I'd hate to take any more power from the battery. Might check it out though.

 

[LuvMyTJ]

LED's use a ridiculously small amount of power. You could even go with LED strobes... There is a current thread today on just that :arrow: http://www.phantompilots.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=9619

 

[joeflyer]

Probably the best way of marking the front is with a Phantom Headlight. They're LED's and don't use very much power. You
can find lots of them on Ebay http://www.ebay.com/itm/DJI-Phantom-Qua ... 2c708153a1 , on Banggood.com or Goodluckbuy.com.

I also put red and green reflective tape on the legs, plus I replaced the Phantom bands with the red tape. They'll show up better than plain vinyl. You can find lots of people selling reflective tape in small quantities on Ebay. I recommend "Reflexite". It might not reflect quite as well as the 3M stuff but it is much thinner and flexible enough to bend around curves.

 

[HoverMan]

Probably the best way of marking the front is with a Phantom Headlight. They're LED's and don't use very much power. You
can find lots of them on Ebay .

Joe, is the headlight visible straight ahead only or can you see it pretty well from the ground too and in the daylight?

LED's use a ridiculously small amount of power. You could even go with LED strobes... There is a current thread today on just that :arrow: http://www.phantompilots.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=9619

That, is freaking awesome! As long as it doesn't interfere with the video, I'm down. Love it.

 

[porl_hopkins]

Headlight is brilliant. I have one on my P1. Can see front straight away even in strong sunlight

 

[its]

I bought a multi colored one, maybe 8 different colors you can choose from. Been waiting a few weeks for it.

 

[Centralcoast]

I find painting the front prop guards red gave me the best results for telling front from back. The headlight and stripping on the legs also helps. No matter what you do, orientation is going to be lost so using home lock to regain visual orientation comes in handy.

If you are shooting a lot of video, you might consider going with FPV down the road. I'm waiting for mine to arrive. It was supposed to have arrived last week, but the supplier just notified me the shipment has been delayed by weather. He threw in a free monitor sunshade, so I'm not complaining.