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Pre-Flight Fly Away Jitters

Joined
Apr 2, 2018
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Location
Vero Beach, FL
Hi All,

I ordered a Q500 4K from Amazon and have yet have an opportunity to fly it. I've been spending some time with the simulator program on my PC and watching a lot of YouTube vids.

I've read a few threads on fly-aways.... I'm a little paranoid, just wondering if there are any best practices I should follow. I know that for the initial startup I should let the powered-up Q sit for 15 minutes or so, for it acquire all the GPS info it needs. Anything else I should/shouldn't do???

Thanks in advance for any advice,

Bren
 
A good compass calibration and also on a flat surface do a accelerometer calibration.
Also make sure you have a SD card installed behind the battery on the ST10+ just in case anything happens you have the telemetry data to send to Yuneec as it is required for warranty.
The chances of a fly away are very rare and most times end up to be just pilot error
Happy flying
 
Exactly right. True fly-aways with the Q500 are unheard off. On the first several flights, remove the camera. It's expensive to repair and you can get a feel for the controls and the telemetry without the camera. Get at least 60 minutes of flight time before putting the camera on.
Find a flat surface away from metal to launch. Not concrete!!! Once you turn on the Q don't touch it until you take off.
You got this....go for it.
 
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If you have any video game experience, flying the Q500 should be easy. The simulator is actually your best practice aid, though I do suggest running it on the largest TV in your house to get a more accurate visual representation. A 60" at least. On a typical PC monitor (or worse - laptop screen) you just don't get the sense of scale, and thus a realistic sense of handling.

The Turtle/Rabbit slider on the right side of the ST10+ determines how quickly the unit responds to the sticks. It's not a motor speed control, it's a response control. If you leave this on Turtle and need to make a quick correction before a collision, you will probably not avoid the collision. Set it about halfway, maybe 3/4, so you get a proper feel for the response. Setting it at full rabbit requires only short flicks of the sticks to get a response, and movement.

Same with up and down. Do not try to land in Rabbit. That's where you get ground effect and potential flips. When you're about 3 feet above the ground, drop it into Turtle and hold the down stick all the way down until it lands and the motors decelerate. Don't let off the stick until you hear the motor speed decrease. It takes about 3-5 seconds after touchdown. If it looks like they're not spinning down and the unit becomes wobbly, launch straight up to avoid a tip over.

Don't forget:
-Maintain line of sight at all times
-When in doubt, let go of both sticks
-Hit the Home switch to make it return to you
-If it looks like it's running away, hold the big red candy-like button.

Then again you can also get a fishing reel on a heavy base with 100 yards of line tied to the landing gear. If it looks like it's flying away, reel 'er in.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
DrNewcenstein, I applaud your effort, but I had to delete several comments in your post. They were simple incorrect. It is not possible to "hijack" a Q500. It cannot be stolen during flight by another controller. Also, you never turn the camera into the wind if it is very strong. The camera acts like a rudder and a rudder works best downstream.
 
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Hi All,

Thanks for all your input, I appreciate it!!!

✓ Removed CAM
✓ Micro SD installed on ST10+
✓ Compass calibrated
✓ Accelerometer calibrated

It was a bit windy over the weekend, I flew it around a bit, didn't go crazy. I was impressed, can't wait to take it out again in calmer weather and in a more open area.

Also picked up the Husky box for travel. I just need to pick up a couple of extra batteries, any recommendations?

Bren
 
Shop around. Different dealers have wildly different prices. I picked up 2 of the white Q500 Yuneec batteries only to discover a few minutes later that I could have gotten 4 of them from another dealer for the same total amount.
 
Shop around. Different dealers have wildly different prices. I picked up 2 of the white Q500 Yuneec batteries only to discover a few minutes later that I could have gotten 4 of them from another dealer for the same total amount.

I picked up a 2 pack on Amazon: Powerextra 2 Pack 11.1V 6300mAh

I'll let you know how they are.... Please PM me the 4 pack info if you don't mind.
 
There was no 4 pack. I bought 2 batteries for $120 each. Another dealer had the same battery for $60 each.
 

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