Any Ao Sen Ma CG035 quad owners ?

Same battery problem as others except they won't use the Lipo's.
They have some of the "Good Ol Boys" that still whine about these new radios that the New hams can afford.
Those are forsale for Anyone and I have two of them that I use as I can plug in the Fire and State Police to listen in for when they are doing saturation coverage on I-5 or wherever they are.
Most of them are called Handy Talky's and just for instance, Kenwood dual band (mostly used) starting at $250.
Then you can get one of those Baofeng Chinese radios, dual band, starting at $35 bucks, throw away's of course.
The one of those I use is model BF-F9V2+ which was about $60 bucks but does 8 watts output.
I use a different antenna on it but with the Peak radio system running all the way up and down I-5, off to the coast, and eastern oregon, by listening to that frequency, I can here were accidents are and know how to get around them.

Hams fishing use them to communicate back home of the wife is a ham.
I guess the main thing I like about being a Ham is the fact that you can run out of Cell range Way too quick but because of a Federal law, all the communication companies (look at Any mountain or hill top around and you will see what is called a Antenna Farm up on them) are required to let Hams locate system up there with them.
What this means is just about Anyplace in Oregon, up and down the coast, if I get in trouble, I can reach what is called a Repeater up on the hills or mountain tops and ask for help. Hams run emergency communication tests all the time for such as Search and Rescue so if any Ham is in trouble, others will make sure you are ok and come after you. Pretty strong botherhood.

If you want a picture of some of this stuff, like that cheap radio I listen too all the time, just ask.

Next drone. Good question.
I am still in the learning stages Big time so still thinking about building my own and learning the lingo.

Not sure what they call the brain but I would like to come up with something I can add things to it.
Follow me, GPS, FPV camera system, Return Home would be nice.
I am not much into the racing stuff any longer, not even with the RC cars like I did a long time ago so my thing would be to have something again to follow the old boats, show the area we are moored at, the facilities maybe to help promote the boat club events.

But, on some of the little hikes and ventures, have one with me that, like Horsetail Falls up on the Columbia river, west of Multnomah Falls, take the drone and video things like that.
I do have that Hubsan H107C+ but its not FPV, so, kind of looking for a mid side, not the Mini but something around the 150 mm range that I can pack with me and do things like that.

Oh yeah, to become a ham, no more Morse Code required (wink wink)

Helmar, KB7DBD

I think Baofeng was a brand one of the guys told me about a while back. Is this the one you have:

https://www.amazon.com/Baofeng-Hi-P...rd_wg=v59TS&psc=1&refRID=NWR5Q9X6W45ZW3KKQF1C

That's crazy cheap. How can they make it so inexpensive?

I took a couple sample Ham tests online last year to see what kind of questions they had. One test was for the technician and one was for general. Without studying anything I passed the technician test but failed the general. The general test had more questions that I didn't understand. I wasn't too far off a passing grade so with a little studying I could pass that test. I am glad they don't need morse anymore, that was a major turnoff for me originally.

This Peak radio system you speak of, is this a subscription or monthly cost like a cell phone? One of the guys was telling me that a friend of his has some equipment on a tower around here but I can't imagine you get to use these repeaters for free.

Sure, post some photos of your Ham stuff. I always like to see technical things folks are doing and using.

If you are serious about building your own quad I still think you should get a frame that you can build upon. Pick one that you can upgrade over time so you are able to use the brushless motors you have now and then change them later as you grow in the hobby. That's why I looked up those waterproof frames for you because most frames are open and besides not being able to float all your electronics will probably get destroyed if you land or crash in the water. There was a video on here of a waterproof frame that the guy hung his GoPro underneath in the GoPro waterproof housing (standard equipment) and he could land and takeoff from the water. What was cool was that the camera could see under the water when he was floating on top. Of course that was without a gimbal.

The flight controller is the electronic box or printed circuit board brain that controls the quadcopter. There are many to choose from with varying feature sets and price points. Things you want to do like GPS assisted flight and return to home are functions of the flight controller. Most flight controllers have companion apps or software that allow you to program and set features and flight characteristics. You could look at different software before buying any controller to see if it is to your liking since most are free downloads or at the least you will be able to view screenshots online to get a feeling for the features.

John

Hi John.
Yes, that is one of the Baofeng's that I got.
If interested, Hams that are Extra class, can give the tests and you hear them on the Peak system talking about when and where.
I would score the radio and just listen. I can give you the frequencies that are in your area.
I of course have the accessories for these little radios and the reason they are so cheap, they are throw away radios if anything goes bad.
So, if you are interested, can tell you what accessories I got and use, like the antenna adapter to go to a outside antenna. You can make up what they call J pole antennas and of course, once you have a license and get on line, other hams have items to pass on to you, like antenna's and such.

No monthly cost to use the system but if you want to make a donation, those are welcome. I think I send $35 bucks a year which is less than on meal dining out. But, you don't have to and you have a fair amount of people that do not.

Here is one for instance. Down in Florance Oregon, my cell phone does not work. I had a heart attack that almost got me back in 2010 so I like the idea of being able to call for help if I need it.
The repeater down on the coast, I can bring it up full quieting with my little hand held radio. Makes me feel safer.
With these radios, its antenna antenna antenna. the better antenna you have, the better reception your going to get. Some of the folks will get the little Mag Mount antenna and if in some of the assisted living places, they put the antenna on a cooky sheet next to the window, works great.
It really depends on how fare away from the repeater you are but in Roseburg, I think you will be fine with maybe a larger or taller antenna on the radio, I did that on mine and am full quieting.
This will show you the coverage of the different areas.
The repeater you would access is on Scott Mtn. Here is the link to look it up. https://www.w7pra.com/
This shows you the coverage area, https://www.w7pra.com/coverage-map/

I will see if I have some pictures of my ham station to share.
Took two, then had a few to send.
The main radio I use is a Kenwood dual band TM-V71 that is just left of my laptop and has a orange screen on it.
I have two other Kenwood 2 meter only radio, one in my geo tracker and one in my truck.
The main radio I use is on my little desk and has what is called Echolink capabilities. That will use the Internet and you have a list of repeaters all over the World that uses Echolink. I like the boys down under and talking to them about the gun laws. They keep telling us, Do Not let them take our guns ;-)

I have been reading about building a quad. Most say your going to crash crash crash so start out under the 250 size, don't get crazy with the costs and camera system.

So Yes, the frame to build from is a must
And I do want a flight controller that is programmable as to add the GPS, Follow me and Altitude hold would be nice. Oh, and FPV camera setup. I think I can get away using the FPV RX that came with this CG035 as I see several camera mods that people have used.
Pretty sure I will pick up on another radio and pass on the Futaba due to its age. Not looking to get something that will break the bank but something I might be able to bind up with the other quads I have. That would be nice.

I changed the radio controller that I got with the Axial AX10? crawler and then it also runs my boat and 10T truck.
Helmar

Transmitters and flight controllers.
I did see that you have a fair amount of toys and was wondering and maybe some direction on what you know about them

I want to get a transmitter and was wondering about them, I see Flysky, which I have one of those for my RC cars.
Same with the flight controllers.
I am not sure how this ties together for the programming part.
Do you program the flight controller with a program and computer, or is this done with the transmitter ?
I am still digging so might answer my own questions, but still would like your opinion about this stuff.

I do want to add features or the ability to do so down the line.

Helmar

Wow! That's a lot of stuff on your desk there Helmar. I see you have several handheld radios but also several large "Desktop" radios. Are the large ones different or for different bands? I don't know much about this stuff but I would imagine that one of those large ones can cover every amateur radio frequency there is. Do I also see a mobile type unit mounted under the shelf? That must be the Kenwood TM-V71 you mentioned. Why would that be your main radio when you have that big Kenwood TS-440S?

Yes, please tell me what accessories you are using and what they are for.

Actually I am in Grants Pass. Looking at those links I didn't see anything in Grants Pass. With all the mountains around here I thought there would be some Ham stuff up there somewhere.

Yes, you are probably going to crash a lot when you start flying quads. I guess that's the way it is with all air RC stuff whether it's airplanes, helicopters or multirotors. Even the car, truck and crawler guys crash. I don't think you need to start with a small frame. My first was a 450 size frame made by Gaui. It has aluminum arms and I bent and broke a few starting out. Never hurt the frame or any electronics on it. Oh, and I broke a ton of propellers. Whatever you decide to get buy a bunch of spare propellers. Learn on the cheap propellers before you start using the fancy and expensive carbon fiber propellers.

If you want to start on a small frame the FPV racing frames are made very sturdy and will probably handle any crashes you will make while learning to fly. Many of those small racing frames have 4 mm carbon fiber arms. You will need to be flying fast and hit something solid before you ever break one of those.

One thing to keep in mind when choosing your frame is your eyesight. When you fly out there a ways it is easier to lose orientation on a 250 size frame that it is on a 450 size frame.

Around here almost all the guys I know started with a DJI F450 frame. Some guys bought the bare frame and got cheap motors and ESCs (Electronic Speed Controllers - you need one per motor) and chose a flight controller (brain) they liked or was cheap at the time. Some of the guys bought the DJI F450 kit which has the frame and motors and ESCs included then bought their flight controller brain separately. Here are a couple links for you to see the DJI F450 frame and frame kit:

DJI F450 Frame Only - $32 at the time I write this:
http://www.getfpv.com/dji-flamewheel-f450-basic-kit.html

DJI F450 Frame Kit - $190 at the time I write this:
http://www.getfpv.com/dji-flamewheel-f450-arf-kit.html

The reason everyone got these was because the frames are well made and very tough. They were also the first frame that had convenient soldering pads for some of the interconnections that are needed. This is because one of the frame plates is actually a printed circuit board. Another reason this frame is so good is because the arms are tough but cheap if you do break one. Now that the bare frame is only $32 you could even have a whole spare frame with four arms as a backup if you want. Replacement arms alone are only $10 per pair in red, white or black.

DJI Arm Pair - Red:
http://www.getfpv.com/multi-rotor-frames/multi-rotor-arms/dji-replacement-arm-red.html

DJI Arm Pair -White:
http://www.getfpv.com/multi-rotor-frames/multi-rotor-arms/dji-replacement-arm-white.html

DJI Arm Pair -Black:
http://www.getfpv.com/multi-rotor-frames/multi-rotor-arms/dji-replacement-arm-black.html

Flight Controller:

Many of us started with the DJI Naza flight controller. When we started these were pretty expensive so some guys got Hobby King KK boards. They were a lot less expensive but you had to do a lot more tweaking to get your quad to fly well. Some guys got to be experts at this and one guy became a guru and updating them for most of the local flyers because you needed a interface board and software. The DJI Naza has software that runs on your PC and connects with a standard USB cable. The software can download the latest firmware and install it for you. You can adjust several settings to tune your quadcopter to fly the way that feels right for you. You could do this on the Hobby King KK board but the process was a little more complicated.

In the mean time the DJI Naza had come down a lot in price. I think the DJI Naza flight controller cost almost $300 when it originally came out and now you can get the "Lite" version for under $50.

DJI makes several versions of the Naza so you may want to read up a little before pushing the buy button. Here is a table that explains the differences:

https://www.dji.com/newsroom/news/whats-difference-of-naza-m-litenaza-m-v1naza-m-v2

Here is a link to learn more about the DJI Naza flight controller and it's features:
http://www.dji.com/naza-m-v2/feature

Here are some prices for various DJI Naza flight controller models:

Naza Lite - No GPS - $48.99 at the time I write this (special):
http://www.getfpv.com/dji-naza-m-lite-multi-rotor-stabilization-controller.html

Naza Lite - with GPS - $79.99 at the time I write this (special):
http://www.getfpv.com/dji-naza-m-lite-flight-controller-with-gps-compass.html

Naza V2 - no GPS - $158.99 at the time I write this:
http://www.getfpv.com/dji-naza-m-v2-multi-rotor-stabilization-controller.html

Naza V2 - with GPS - $158.99 at the time I write this (special) - Great Value!:
http://www.getfpv.com/dji-naza-m-v2-multi-rotor-stabilization-controller-and-gps-compass.html

You indicated several times you want GPS, return to home and follow me. The DJI Naza does all of these except I am not sure about any "Follow Me" capability. I think the follow me on the DJI Phantom and other models uses the signal from the radio to know where "You" are and follow you. This feature may be difficult to implement on a DIY quad that is made from components from several manufacturers. Maybe someone else knows more or has experience with follow me that can tell you what they've done.

Transmitter:

My first transmitter, and I still have it, was the Spektrum DX7 SE. It was the first radio that had 2048 resolution, but I believe all Spektrum radios have that now. In the mean time I got a Futaba T14SG. It is a nice radio and has features I wanted at the time. However I got my lady a Spektrum DX6 and I have to tell you I like the way that one feels in my hands better - great side grips and solid build feel. Certainly it does not have all the features or channels that the Futaba T14SG has but step up a couple models in the Spektrum line and you can get them. Also the Spektrum receivers are less expensive that Futaba receivers. Maybe this is not important unless you get a bunch of RC models.

Many of the guys locally have purchased FrSky X9D Taranis radios and they all seem to love them. The FrSky receivers are less expensive than both Futaba and Spektrum which can save you a lot if you have or plan to have many models. There is also a large community of people working on Open Source software for the Taranis radio. One guy programmed his Taranis to play funny voice alerts.

The transmitter radio is your user interface for your flying and if you get into the hobby you will probably end up using whatever radio you choose for all your models so it's a good idea to spend some time selecting the one that is right for you. How does it feel in your hands. How do the sticks feel - that was a peeve I had/have with the Spectrum DX7SE - the sticks had a tiny bit of "stiction" that bothered me when making small stick movements. The Futaba T14SG sticks feel better to me, however I should also mention that Lucita's Spektrum DX6 does not have the "stiction" issue either. Many mid to upper end radios now have stick control gimbals with multiple ball bearings so they work smoothly.
You also might look at the programming method for the radios you are looking at. Do they make sense to you? Can you easily navigate the menus? Personally this is not a big deal to me, we just learn the new programming method and get on with it. Judging from all your Ham gear you know what I mean. More important to me is the feeling of the radio and the placement of all the knobs and dials in regard to my hands. Of course features and number of channels is also important depending on what you want to do. You might consider getting a few more channels than you think you need right now to allow for future capabilities of your models.

John