3D Printed Racing Drone - Will It Survive?

In today's video I 3D printed the Peon230 frame from Thingiverse, a FPV racing quadcopter frame. I was curious to know if PLA plastic would be tough enough to be used as a fast flying drone frame. I loved doing this video, and I hope you will enjoy watching it!
Similar stuff I used in the video:
Flight controller: goo.gl/BnLbtd
Motor + ESC combo: goo.gl/9kiMzY
Propellers: goo.gl/A974P3
Video transmitter + camera: goo.gl/KbDS1I
FPV goggles: goo.gl/Y1mUyb
Transmitter + receiver: goo.gl/bmEPWD
PDB: goo.gl/r42Gs8
1500mAh 4S battery: goo.gl/5nbZ5e
3D printer: goo.gl/QvERnf
Peon230 STL files: www.thingiverse.com/thing:629338
GoPro mount: www.thingiverse.com/thing:126...
Music:
Tybercore - Epic Hybrid Intro
KEVIN FLY - One More Thing
Joakim Karud - Say Good Night
Joakim Karud - Fatherhood
Bryce Fox - Horns (Arc North Remix) : goo.gl/GNGsdK

[@TheXanUser]

Great video! Tip to find gopros; fold up a12-24" piece of fluorescent surveyors tape and attach it to gopro. fold it up under the cam , so it becomes a bright streamer/tail on the cam when its ejected.

[@RaphaelAguirre]

This internal drone explaination was one of the best I have ever seen. Fast, concise, damn clear: on point. As always, great content.

[@Tech2C]

Great choice of 3D printable FPV racing quad frame :P

[@bzepha8414]

I printed my own frame of yours and i loved it! Keep up the good work :)

[@LUNCHBOXFPV]

Great vlog!!! I love the editing style. Great to see such an educational video out for people new to fpv 😎 can’t wait for part 2 ;)

[@RcLifeOn]

Got a new camera, did you even notice? At least I got slow motion now.

[@cornejansen5672]

nice vid again buddy keep up the good work

[@chrisrb8193]

RCLifeOn The time spent on the slow mo shots and transitions really take the video to the next level. Keep up the amazing work!

[@braedanricketts5139]

The sound quality is better also, you can really hear the all the echo in your garage now. Seems like you could use some kind of sound dampener on the walls for when you film in there. Nice job on the quad though.

[@Oscar-cw8so]

Fuck yeah i noticed, image is way more clear and backgrounds sorta blurs out. Great vids man keep it up. I'm seriously considering buying myself a 3-d printer. Although my school will get one soon. Should i get the cr-10?

[@vincesimpkins9143]

Can't wait to see how different materials fair as quad copter body parts

[@AlumiTube]

Dame good video !!!!! :) your edding is soo nice

[@skatatataatje]

@@zassshi Your heard the man, dame and edding!

[@KroszerDaniel915]

This was the first video I saw FPV drone flight, and was hooked. After 3 years, I now have a couple of fpv drones, and love them. Thanks for introducing me to this hobby, keep up the great work ;)

[@gory51gaming72]

i really dig the way you pose theories and investigate further until you find a solution. Not many people actually show much of these thought processes and discovery . Great video

[@JBNoles]

This is probably your best produced video to date. The flow and style of the editing was next level. Your production value has grown exponentially. Keep up the great work! Of course the content was great too!

[@Liimed_]

yep, it was his best video

[@ValFPV]

@@Liimed_ I definitely agree! the newest ones have gotten a little more basic in editing style imo.

[@bjarnehansen1101]

Again a great Video!

[@Fanaticizm]

Dude, firstly thanks :) This video soothes the OCDinME, in other words... Well done with how much goes into this video alone!! Super creative & wicked entertaining to watch.

[@bo3lwa1998]

Dude, you're Awesome! you combined to of my favorite things in life: Quadcopter + 3D printing = AMAZING! Keep up the good work!

[@PatiShorti]

Awesome vid dude, I am also a FPV racer pilot, but I am sticking with my Graupner 300Q and carbon frame. I also really like those camo pants, dont know why xD

[@kentscipione1261]

I found a new hobby today.

[@alltheflyingthings1075]

You will like it 😀. Check out my vids if you like 🙂. Fpv planes are also a lot of fun. And you can fly further and longer using them

[@alltheflyingthings1075]

And for the first flight buy proper carbon frame. It's a lot more durable

[@ShaunHusain]

Meh would say go cheap and small for a learner before spending real money on better components. Flite test has lots of good beginner videos too, tons of fun no matter how you get into it.

[@some19872003]

a 5" quad is a better platform to learn on for the fact that its so popular. tiny whoops and brushed motor quads are a horrible to learn on because they are so under powered. 2" 3" and 4" are also not the best because the quality of the esc's and flight controllers are a mess when it comes to quality and also with the small size make them a pain to work on. for the fact that 5" is so popular every company is working super hard to bring out the best quality components in that size range and also keep the price down since its such a flooded market right now.

[@adityaramachandran5223]

Yeah get into it for sure!!

[@zacharyjbaldwin]

Hey Simon, this is the video that got me into FPV flying and racing. Since starting I've joined a local team and made a lot of friends along the way. Thanks for that.

[@hh8t]

Once again a very nice video! Very neat. Love the effects and cuts, keep going! Also loving the DIY stuff you make, awesome!

[@whity4584]

Your a very talented young man Simon. Keep up the awesome work buddy

[@johnnickerson9037]

This is what started my fpv quad habbit, I now have 5 (2 1/2 months latter). Hope to see more, maybe a how to print TPU

[@markpinther9296]

Thank you for explaining the basics of how drones work. Great videos!

[@DALOOMSDOO]

Subbed and I watch all your ads in full cuz you are just awesome. Love your editing, your dialogue, and your content! First KZbinr I've ever tapped the bell for notifications.

[@stewartsstuff4695]

"...when you crash it's very immersive, so for a moment it feels like you're gonna die.... very exciting." Hahaha!

[@ChirpFPV]

No it does not, i have crashed these drones alot, it does not feel like your gonna die, you’re just scared you broke something

[@skatatataatje]

@@ChirpFPV No shit Sherlock!

[@3DPrintingNerd]

I really hope you and Daniel Noree could do 3d printed drone / quadcopter collab someday!

[@brandonfpv]

I love FPV, I’m glad your channel is doing this.

[@JohnOCFII]

Fantastic video! My "hobby time" shifted about 18 months ago from 250mm class quads to 3D printing. The quality of your video, the editing, not to mention the content, is fantastic. Subscribed!

[@MrNamegame]

"when you're flying, it's very immersive, so when you crash it feels like you're gonna die..." Hilarious how he says that with such a straight face and chill voice

[@just_cody3569]

prizedcoffeecup very exciting

[@tripy75]

I printed the peon as my first frame, and I still fly it today. I like it a lot, and printed in PETG with the recommended infill gives it a pretty good resilience. I only broke 2 top plates where I zip locked the battery connector to avoid stress on the flight controller in 5 months. By the way, the creator of this frame (tech2c) also have created the hypercube 3d printer, and it's a very good one too!

[@pascalknol]

Thierry Schork, I work on this frame. www.thingiverse.com/thing:2507950 I have some one printed it for me at 100 infill PETG and its awesome. But at this infill density its gets a bit heavy. What infill density did you use?

[@ozzman39]

Thierry Schork is the frame still holding up? I am getting ready to build one and this is the frame I want to use

[@tripy75]

@pascal, I printed it at 100%. it's on the heavy side, but good to learn. @ozzman yep, still flying it. it pretty durable and my only issue is the back of the top plate that broke 2 times, where the spacers connect. but those where VERY rough "landings". not an issue if you can print them, I have a bunch of spare parts.

[@ozzman39]

Did you print the spacers or buy them?

[@tripy75]

I bought them. I did print a few, but didn't used them. I was afraid of poor mechanical resistance.

[@NDPuzzles]

Awesome! I knew that PLA would be capable of such a task and really hoped for it to work. I don't like ABS at all but have mainly printed puzzles in PLA, where stability isn't too important. The fact that it survived your crash however, is a proof for its great properties!

[@alexandrevaliquette1941]

I'm impress with the editing, filming quality, humours and entertaining as well as usefull. Thanks for sharing!

[@Nerdforge]

Great video man! :D

[@RcLifeOn]

Thank you very much!👍

[@babbalgts]

Love your channel and humour 😁😁

[@zoner7782]

As always, very interesting/entertaining with a lil humor. Thank You

[@pteranodon3946]

Total newbie and first time viewer from Germany here. Very informative and inspiring video. Also, awesome editing - really appreciate the effort you put into that.

[@aman-um9rw1yx2p]

you are always coming with a great vedio 😇😇😇👍👍👍👍

[@pcmasterrace6356]

I used to be a fan, now Im an air conditioner

[@pieceofpotato7883]

Pc Masterrace very original joke....

[@Harinair72]

Pc Master race, haha took a few secs to get it! Cool!

[@kingsambition2179]

Pc Masterrace lol

[@kingsambition2179]

Lol

[@aminathhaiha2642]

LOL

[@ajinkyax]

wow you have such brilliant talent. Drones, and the cinematics, so beautiful

[@CoherentDelivery]

you are the mechanical and electronic genius of the KZbin... great job !

[@demianvandenberghe1784]

I love your channel so much! I bought my first 3D printer (CR10) because of you!🙂

[@noahkunz635]

Me too! This guy is pure inspiration! Thanks a lot!

[@sravanthkumarchintalacheru1359]

That's cool, brother. Did you try printing a drone? 😁

[@mkpownerboi3320]

Wow all the dead memes in this vid xD good job simon keep up the good work

[@TheMikolasZuza]

I fly my 3d printed peon for months now. I reprinted mine with PETG, it's really strong now. Sometimes I break an arm, but you I just print some spares and it's quick and easy to replace. Nice job with them slow-mo's :)

[@pemtax557]

Hey Simon, What a fun episode!! I really enjoyed it. The frame appears to have been much more robust than I would've ever guessed it would be. Building and flying FPV Mini Quads is my hobby and eat up anything related to it. But I also know how successful 3D Printed frames usually are ... So I look forward to the follow-up of this video. Keep up the great content, you always entertain me!

[@oobledooble3342]

You should try to build the best DIY drone you can from scratch and at an affordable price. Great video by the way!

[@Plur307]

Depends what you want the drone to do. There is no best drone. It's like asking if a Ford F-150 or a Ferrari is better. Are you towing a boat or racing? There are lots of kinds of drones each good at certain things.

[@oobledooble3342]

Plur307 I meant a racing drone, similar to the one in the video

[@Plur307]

Racing drones are already pretty affordable. A top of the line one is only about $300 using all the best stuff. That will get you one that is fast enough to win a world championship if you are a good enough pilot. The expensive stuff is the goggles, all the batteries, charger, controller (transmitter) etc. All that stuff adds up to like 3X the cost of the drone itself. My goggles alone were like $400 + $100 for an upgraded diversity (dual antenna) system. Then add two $20 antennas and the goggles are like $540. About as much as two very nice racing drones.

[@oobledooble3342]

Plur307 I just want to be able to build a cheap drone to use for fun, not necessarily to win world championships.

[@Plur307]

All I was really trying to say is that there are a lot of hidden costs. The price of the drone itself isn't all you need to consider. Each battery will only get you about 2 to 5 minutes of flying time on a racing drone. So if you want to be able to go fly for an hour you will need several batteries. They cost about $20 to $35 each. 10 of them will get you about 50 minutes of flying time max. That's $200 to $350 in batteries alone. In my opinion if you are already investing that much in the hobby you might as well spend the extra $100 to get a really nice drone that will be a lot of fun. I love the hobby. I'm just making sure people understand the hidden costs. The drone itself is only one of the many things you will need to get going in the hobby. You might as well make a nice drone because a cheap one can be disappointing. You will also want a nice charger that has a lot of power so you can parallel charge all your batteries at the same time. That alone will probably prevent you from flying a lot because charging the batteries is such a pain in the ass and takes forever. If you go cheap on your charger it will take many hours to charge them all. But a nice charger can charge all 10 in 1 or2 hours. There is a saying "the poor man pays twice". It means the poor man tries to do stuff cheap, finds out the cheap stuff sucks, and has to try again and do it better. It's cheaper to just do it right the first time and buy good stuff. Just trying to help.

[@marlonlyn2719]

“It’s very immersive, so for a moment when you crash, you feel like you’re going to die” lol

[@Flow__FPV]

That video showed me the world of FPV. Now, it's my main-hobby for more than 2years. Thanks a lot 😊

[@anubhavdas4268]

Your video editing is just awesome! I've never seen such kind of professional video editing on a tech channel!

[@justkarkat9575]

You should try printing the propellers

[@leyan5620]

JustJedi I was wondering the same

[@bikerbro9902]

he did

[@Resantinos]

After watching half of this video... INSTA SUB!

[@diegoeche]

I really wanted to get into 3D printed drones and you gave me all the info I needed. Thanks so much for that video! :D

[@summontoofak6196]

Nice job man. I love your work. Keep up the good work!

[@LtKernelPanic]

Damn. That worked amazingly well. When I saw "Will it survive?" I thought sure until it crashes and hearing that crash I figured it'd be in multiple pieces when you found it. I wonder what the cost of printing your own frame and spare parts would be compared to buying them?

[@HighVoltageMadness]

Don't buy all these expensive electronics to build this 3d printed quad only to crash and destroy it. A carbon fiber drone frame can be bought for as little as $20 for a 5in. They are inexpensive, durable, and most frames have replaceable arms in case you break one. You can then 3d print the accessories like camera mounts, antennas, and bumpers.

[@sebgln]

@@HighVoltageMadness Hello, I have a 3d printer and i want to get started with building an fpv drone, i already printed an rc boat in pla and it works well. Think it's worth printing a peon 230 in pla?

[@stinkfist911]

7:51 Should have been the thumbnail.

[@gmdinis1]

Love this video Simon!

[@RebelTechTV]

i need this in my life,Gonna save up and buy a CR10 i believe and start tinkering,but definitely wanna get into FPV quad racing. Your videos are pretty inspiring,Cant wait to see the rest

[@AusJo]

As a joke you totally need to do flexible filament

[@Nejdat]

Biraz aksilik olmuş ancak uçuş 10 numara olmuş It was a bit of a hitch, but the flight was number 10

[@mtkesari]

Love your humour and narration ! 👍 Subscribed

[@ericanastasio7530]

That video was was shot and narrated so well! I give it full a popcorn worthy vid!! The pov flying scenes and explination of how imersive piloting these drones feels have got me intrigued to build one myself. Of course applying my own mods like antena that hang over the front of the video for comedic buggy effects LoLz

[@SciencemanYT]

7:51 Random but ok 😂

[@PiedriXD]

I like almonds

[@awesomestuff9715]

I like avocados

[@holyjavascriptvevo7987]

I like 🤑💸💵💴💶💰💳 Money

[@nugget4971]

more of a pistachio guy my self

[@asdomega]

I think thats the best video in your channel so far. Good Balance between video Gimmicks and "bad" jokes... keep going! Also thanks for the drone explanation

[@seivbombs6457]

Awesome video man!! Thanks for the upload!

[@albinkappling8084]

What soldering station do you use and what do you think about it?

[@RcLifeOn]

Weller whs40, absolutely worthless compared to the one I used before, which was the Weller ws81. It does the job I guess, but if you going to do some serious soldering for many years, just get a good one right away so you don't end up with some cheap crap.

[@some19872003]

a soldering iron i would suggest is a hakko fx888d. they are such good quality that they will out live you and they go for about $100 US. it is such a dream to use because how fast it heats up and holds temps.

[@Plur307]

I also have a Hakko and I highly recommend it. I also recommend a large chisel tip and a precision pencil tip. It only takes a few seconds to change tips. The large chisel tip is best for general soldering because it has so much mass and holds heat well. The fine pencil tip is great for precision circuit board stuff.

[@albinkappling8084]

some19872003 thanks everyone!

[@albinkappling8084]

some19872003 the only problem is that i live in europe and the soldering iron runs on 110v power not 240v.

[@DroneLoversFPV]

Do you still sell quads??? Would love to have a quad made by you man, you seem to know what you´re doing...

[@understandingtravis2136]

in for response

[@some19872003]

with the amount of information thats around now its easy to build a quad. i learned everything about building mine right on youtube. only down side is you need the right kind of tools and some experience soldering but even that can be learned on youtube quickly.

[@Plur307]

As somebody who has built many drones I don't recommend buying premade ones. You will crash and break it. If you don't know how to build and repair it you are screwed. Better just to learn how to build them yourself. It gets easier every day as the technology gets better and parts become more integrated.

[@some19872003]

i do agree with you that building one is better than buying one but not everyone is willing to learn how to learn how to build and solder. i said the same thing when it came to rc cars where everyone should learn how to build them before they drive them but i have seen how bad some people put those together to the point of super gluing the electronics in and using wood screws and then complain that the car is crap because their repairs didnt work. besides if someone buys a ready to fly quad there are so many videos showing how to replace an esc or motor that its not hard to do. the one thing to consider is most people that get into "drones" just replace them once they crash and break or just quit all together. some people just have no mechanical skills at all.

[@peterzingler6221]

Problem is drones requering soldering skills from very tiny pads to big awg cables . Big copper cables arent so easy to solder

[@bilalbashir5345]

For me the best part of ur each video is EDITING 😍 I LOVE IT REALLY

[@SavvyICEMAN31]

first time watching a video of yours and just wanted to say nice editing and it is appreciated for the time spent

[@moldymoss3991]

Could you make money selling those? I was wondering seemed pretty cool !!!

[@abizi1879]

What even are those props :0

[@alltheflyingthings1075]

They actually are pretty bad. Fragile and unbalanced

[@the_golden_ingot]

Awesome racing quad

[@andrecarvalho9637]

Awesome video, Simon. As always...

[@brandonsemerau5894]

Your vibrating problem looks like it was a resonant frequency issue and not a material property/delamination issue. If you changed the shape of your arm cross-sections to something more like a T-beam you could probably get away from using extra materials like carbon fiber plates and go back to ~25% infill.

[@sasha.djordjevic3071]

Two dislikes...damn....Norwegians again :)

[@6rilllir6]

5 now

[@mariusennorskgaming2300]

Haha im Norwegian but liked:)

[@johannmagnusson9435]

Sasha. Djordjevic Do I'm from Norway and I liked the video

[@sasha.djordjevic3071]

Johann Magnusson Hahaha...great, he deserves it

[@maineiacscientist2706]

Great video!!!! Thank you for your time and energy into making these awesome videos:)

[@sasanmottaghipour876]

I love how easy it is to see you're really really enjoying the flight, with that huge ass smile on ya face :D

[@MidasGoldKing]

This is absolutely fantastic, great video and very satisfaying to watch. I love your Lab , Thanks a bunch for this share. Cheers!

[@bobert13581]

fantastic production quality!

[@qibble455]

Excellent editing and production quality. 10/10

[@saeedag4468]

this is the video that got me into FPV. Thank you brother!

[@nikolaybambov4191]

i have watched some of your other clips but this one is the one that make me subscribe to your channel... great work really loved it

[@mccc4559]

Your skills continue to develop beautifully. You are still that wonderful young man we have come to love and trust. My best to you and your family.

[@romain8894]

3D Printing + Drone = Amazing idea ! So cool man and really instructive video by the way!

[@DavidPunsalan]

great video. love the troubleshooting and passion

[@topcommentofthemonth367]

great vid, especially how you included all the links to parts in description! i might try this when i get a 3d printer

[@abhirajsonawane7884]

This was your first video I watched! I subscribed before I finished watching it. Amazing editing!

[@skagerstrom]

Love the sound of that high quality DX6i plastic :D

[@Kanamit.]

That thing is a Superfast Beast. Great job.

[@carmenaviles1111]

Dude this is great!

[@Slowestmk8]

That thing is fast. Awesome video

[@ifitaintbrokefixit3787]

Videos like this are why your videos are great

[@user-dy7ff8vu2y]

AMAZING WORKS

[@daichit979]

Love what you are doing!! Keep up the great work :)

[@benhaase3583]

loved the video as always! keep it up!

[@tbx1024]

Great shots, great editing, great experiment. Subscribed.

[@nsgaming4499]

lol this guy was alone and all the video recording he do from different angles, Hats off to you Myan. You deserve more likes.

[@AsgardStudios]

Dude, I love your show! So informative and entertaining as F^%$! Well done.

[@alexandru2882]

Excellent video! Congratulations!

[@yazen108]

Den bästa kanalen av 3D-utskrift, tack

[@joea9198]

Man I enjoyed each second

[@rouyamam2611]

You really got talent man! Great videos and great explanation !

[@jasonhackman5553]

Nice video, awesome editing skillz!

[@rezendegabriel12]

you're such a genius. as ALAWAYS, great content

[@nepalilifehacker552]

Love your built up Dude