M.A.R.S. Parachutes for Multi Rotors !

With the multi rotor sector of the hobby moving at an exponential rate we are seeing more and more Aerial / Video Platforms with very high end components becoming more capable of any thing we’ve seen in the past couple years.  With such components on a professional multi rotor you can bet that the cost of these machines can be quite high.  A professional carbon fiber frame for example like a  hex or octo can fetch as high as  $4,000 and  $10,000  or better for a RTF model.  As for camera’s in the professional sphere your looking at around $1,000 in the low end,  and if your even considering using something like a RED EPIC camera unit,  the base price is around $10,000 and as much as $58,000 for something like the EPIC-M  RED Dragon Pro collection.  Now having all this professional gear seems like a fantastic idea for those who can afford to shoot with this kind of stuff but what happens when you decide you want to take a $1,000 camera or a $10,000 camera in the air?

Some things have already been considered  by most multi rotor pilots such as using an octo frame or using an X-8. Others would choose putting batteries in parallel etc. but what happens when all systems fail?  An octo or an X-8 are great but are only good should you loose one or two motors and I’m not saying that any multi rotor has a tendency to fail all that often but the fact of the matter is ” What could you do to protect your investment ? “.   Now you may or may not know it but there is finally a solution for such a thing and you wouldn’t have to be too worried about your whole rig pile driving itself into the ground .   As well for the BIG boys with the much heavier rigs up to 25 lbs ,  there is even a M.A.R.S. parachute recovery system for you too !  The M.A.R.S. parachute recovery systems come in three sizes ,  “the mini” for a “four pound” craft,  “the 58” for crafts up to 10 pounds and the very impressive “M.A.R.S. 120”  which can accommodate up to 25 pounds.  The 120 simply means the parachute is 120 inches across or 10 feet .  Fortunately for airplane guys  they have the option of cutting the engine and gliding,  or the helicopter guys who have the option of auto rotating their machine to the ground,  NOT the case for multi rotors.   If your looking to invest in one of these units for your Aerial Video / Photography company or are a multi rotor hobbyist with a craft with a hefty price tag then you would be able to find M.A.R.S. Parachutes  here at these sites UAV Rotorking or at M.A.R.S. Parachutes.

Here is just a Demo video showing these parachutes in action.

Hope this helps and by the way don’t forget to “LIKE”  RCHelimenace on Facebook.

Power Hungry power distribution board for multi rotors

Getting into the hobby of multi rotors can be a fun and challenging endeavor.   Ever since I picked up my quad copter from Randy at RC Dude hobbies I have become increasingly interested building and designing my own hex copter capable of lifting a heavier camera like a DSLR.  I currently have an older Go Pro,  a Canon Vixia , as well as a NIKON D7000.  The quad does a nice job carrying the Go Pro camera without any problem at all however it doesn’t have enough physical space or enough power to carry anything bigger.   I am in the process of building a really large hex copter of my own ( not as if it hasn’t been done before ) but I really wasn’t fond of  frames only being capable of carrying 2kg’s .  Since I am a do -it- yourself kind of person , I chose to build a frame with the majority of the parts available at the local hardware store should I ever have a crash.   Since the hex I am building would require the  use of a 6s 5000 mah battery or better I was on the search for a power distribution board that would be able to handle enough current without stressing out the board and having a possible meltdown.   Now many boards or harnesses are quite capable of doing that however I tend to look ahead for more than what I would really need which alot of times really isn’t necessary but that’s how I roll.

Recently I obtained a Power Hungry power distribution board from UAV Rotorking and thought it would be an ideal fit for my heavy lift hex.  From what I have been told about multi rotors is that if you have say 4 lbs of total weight, then you would require around 8lbs of total thrust from your motors to compensate for the 4lbs and make it easier for your quad to hover without severely struggling to maintain that hover.   I figure my setup may be around the 10lb mark however ,  carrying possibly 2 6s 5000 mah batteries which would require more power to maintain decent lift.  This Power Hungry power board is capable of handing up to 400 amps safely without any stress which is a good thing as well for the entire system.  This board would  enable me to be able to lift a 30lb payload if I so chose to.

Here are a few more features of this board :

Its supports single and dual battery setups

Its made from extremely conductive solid copper plates

Corrosion free material

Each plate is Nickel plated then Gold plated for long protection and super high amp capabilities

Comes with 16 male 3.5mm bullet connectors for ESCs

(4) 12 inch wires already connected to the board   (2 positive ) , (2 negative)

The wire can be customized upon request   (you can have it longer than 12 inches)

After receiving the package in the mail this week and doing an “unboxing video”   I can honestly say you are going to be very pleased with how well this product was thought out and designed for simplicity.  The things you will need to do is solder the type of battery connectors you intend to use and as well as solder the male bullet connectors onto your ESCs  (which is a given) .  Another thing you will need is non- conductive standoffs to put the boards together.   The female bullets are already professionally pre-soldered to the board for you and the total setup will support 8 motors. The top plate is the ” + ” (positive) with 2 -12 inch wires already soldered on,  and the bottom plate is the ” – ”  (negative) with 2 -12 inch wires soldered on as well.  After having a really good look at this board I can already see the benefits such as a clean professional look,  plugging in or removing your ESCs at home or at the field is a breeze (not that type of thing where you solder the ESCs to the board ) ,  high current capacity,  rated for aerial photography and video multi – rotors,  and best of all,  wait to you see the video from UAV Rotorking on how fast and easy the installation is.  Below are just 2 of the videos I would like to show you,  one is the installation video from UAV Rotorking and then my own “Unboxing Video” .  I hope this helps you in your search for a really good and reliable power distribution board for your multi – rotor, again thanks for taking the time to read this post and don’t forget to “ Like RC Helimenace on Facebook” .

Installation Video

My “Un-Boxing” Video

Enjoy.