Bambucopter Clones
 

Hi,

I am building a Bambucopter clone with a 210mm width. I am not certain which model showed up first so I will post several of the versions that I have found.

First, the one I am building is only found at the US Warehouse of HobbyKing. Their so-called [link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=24530]Fiberglass Micro Quadcopter Frame[/link] is available at the US Warehouse for only $10. I suspect they have a limited quantity that will soon be exhausted because it is not available at the International warehouse.

Although the description says it has a 245mm width, it is actually 210mm as stated on the box. The model is a XX-Copter Series Mini-Copter from [link=http://www.bridgeskyrc.com]Bridgesky Electronic Company[/link] in Jiangsu Province, China. They appear to no longer make/sell it but a similar version is available at Xheli (see next post).

RE: Bambucopter Clones
 

[link=http://www.xheli.com/quadcopters.html]Xheli.com[/link] sells their Mini Fly QuadCopter which appears almost identical except for the motor mount area. The $18.56 Mini Fly QuadCopter frame has been modified to use the CR-210 1818/2800Kv brushless motors. I am using the larger CRY6-170 2222/1800Kv motors on my [link=http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_11338812/tm.htm]x230 Mini Quadcopter[/link].

RE: Bambucopter Clones
 

Xheli also sells ARF versions of their Mini Fly QuadCopter with various Flight Controllers and colors.

RE: Bambucopter Clones
 

The latest version of the original [link=http://www.bambucopter.com/crab-20-and-crab-25-quadcopter/]Bambucopter[/link] is the Crab 20 and Crab 25. I don't think their original series from a few years ago is still sold. I believe that these models are sold out of Turkey.

RE: Bambucopter Clones
 

The XX-Copter Series Mini-Copter that I am building was designed to use the MYSTERY A1504-18 2700KV RC Helicopter Brushless Motors that I found at [link=http://www.goodluckbuy.com/mystery-a1504-18-2700kv-rc-helicopter-brushless-motor.html]GoodLuckBuy[/link] for $10 each. This includes the mounting screws and adapters for the GWS 5x3 3-blade props. The 2700Kv motor is meant to run on a 2s Lipo pack.

Alternatively, you could also use the $19 [link=http://www.xheli.com/09h005-03-motor.html]CR-210[/link] 1818/2800Kv brushless motors with some minor mounting hole modifications.

RE: Bambucopter Clones
 

My Mystery A1504-18 motors arrived from GLB and they are tiny! I also received my Multistar 10-amp ESCs from HK. I have learned to order a spare when buying the less expensive components from China so I bought 5 of each. Both orders took about 2 weeks to arrive using standard Air Mail.

The [link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__27135__Turnigy_Multistar_ESC_Programming_Card.ht ml] Turnigy Multistar ESC Programming Card[/link] was out of stock at the time and is still out of stock. To my dismay, not only is the default Acceleration set to Medium instead of Fast for Multi-rotors, it cannot be reprogrammed without the card. According to the manual, only a subset of the programmable settings can be programmed via the transmitter sticks. It is unfortunate that these ESCs are targeted for the MRC market but do not come configured properly for that application.

Fortunately, I have plenty of Blue Series 12-amp ESCs so when my flashing tool arrives, I can get them flashed with SimonK and continue.

RE: Bambucopter Clones
 

When my HK 12-amp Blue Series ESCs arrived quickly from the USA Warehouse I decided to prepare them for the arrival of my Atmega flashing tool and see if they are really the same as the ZTW A-Series 12A Brushless ESCs that came with my x230 kit from HK. They appeared to be identical with the exception of connectors on the more expensive ZTW ESCs.

I successfully flashed my ZTW and Blue Series ESCs using the HK Atmega flashing tool and bs_nfet.hex file from SimonK. Both of these ESCs are all n-FETs. The older "Mystery" A-Series 12a ESCs use both n-FETs and p-FETs so they would use the bs.hex file, but these ESCs are not what I had for my mini quad projects.

RE: Bambucopter Clones
 

I could finally start my Bambucopter (or x210) mini quad assembly. Initially, I decided to use my original KK1 board with v4.7 quad-x firmware. If this doesn't work to my liking, I will swap in a spare KK2 LCD board.

The GemFan 5x3 3-blade props fit nicely on the supplied motor adapters using the middle spacer.

RE: Bambucopter Clones
 

I finished my Bambucopter and did an initial system check using the KK1 board. Although it was a cold winter day I went outside for a quick flight to verify the design.

RE: Bambucopter Clones
 

While I wait for warmer weather I decided to try the [link=http://witespyquad.gostorego.com/flight-controllers/multiwii-pro-2-0-flight-controller.html]MultiWii Pro 2[/link] board with uBlox GPS from Witespy. This board can use either MultiWii or MegaPirate code and has new improved sensors which will create a more stable flight.

RE: Bambucopter Clones
 

It was 3 degrees F this morning when I got up so I didn't want to go outside today. Instead I decided to try the maiden flight of my Bambucopter with the MWC Pro 2 controller in my home gym. In case things go wrong, there is less to break! :)

I took a few photos of it flying around. Not bad for having your hands full...it was amazingly stable once again using the default PID settings.