AtomRC Swordfish with INAV: Maiden flight footage and my full review (with setup tips!)

[@dougmcpheters1546]

The hobby would not be complete without Lee! Raise your had if you've learned something from this man!🖐

[@ChainsawFPV]

There's that jingle I clearly remember from my intro to FPV 3 years ago! Love that you still use it!!

[@Painless360]

Yep, still rocking the same into I've had for years and years! :D

[@Videolinquency]

An ArduPlane version is really good news. I hope this channel will review that setup as well when the time comes.

[@martinnugroho3450]

I started to learn this hobby a few years back. And I learned the tutorial from this channel. Thank you!

[@AB-sk4kz]

Congratulations Lee, Smooth & stable flying.

[@alcmann]

Thank you for the review. I’m convinced your review has helped me make my decision on my next model to compliment the dolphin, instead of the Mars 1200mm. Keep up the great reviews

[@johncarold]

Hi Lee Great video and review of the Swordfish, I just finished my Ranger T1 Build and then I saw this one, I really like this one, I never had a V-tail before but im sure it will be fine, I guess I need to convince my wife that I need a second one. I am saving up for the Jumper XIAKE, but I'm sure it would matter what one I get first. Thanks again for the update on your Swordfish. Happy flying.

[@Painless360]

Patreons will be getting a full flight video preview of the Xiake800 today and it will be on the channel publicly at the weekend... Stay tuned!

[@FunBitesTV]

Awesome review Lee. I Like your little star ratings bit on these reviews.

[@Painless360]

Thanks for the feedback. The system was developed with input from the Patreons. It allows for easy comparison between models and features. It also removes a lot of the 'waffle 'that regularly get added to 'reviews' that are meaningless. Happy flying!

[@theflyingsandalrc]

Sounds like a winner-almost. Thanks for filling in the gaps in the manual

[@fallswoodaviation]

I highly recommend the Reptile Dragon Talon if you're looking for another twin prop. It has similar specs to the Swordfish, with awesome front-facing and wingtip LEDs. It can handle high speeds and it cruises really well on medium throttle. Only complaint is that the PCBs need minor adjustments for proper assembly.

[@Painless360]

Thank you for the suggestion!

[@pepermintpilot1694]

Thanks for the video Lee, very well done. Ardupilot "out of the box" that would be novel!

[@AerialWaviator]

Fascinating review, lot of good news. Nice to hear that with the large tail surface area yaw stability is not an issue. Based on you reference of 4200 mAh and 40 minutes flight time, it sounds like overall current draw is~6.5A. A very respectable number for a mix of review type flying. An ArduPlane option is exciting news, but am a bit nervous given the initial incomplete setup of INAV. This an example where AtomRC could leverage RC community support to validate flight controller and other settings for the Swordfish. Similarly the missing bits like control throws could be easily shared by a PDF download from AtomRC's support web. Again drawing on feedback submissions from the RC (reviewer) community. Have to give AtomRC credit for allowing a number of reviews to get their hands on the Swordfish early on. This should provide lots good data for Atom RC to incorporate and make available to Swordfish pilots. In you option Lee, how would the Swordfish rate compared to the AtomRC Killer Whale (another twin) in your personal fleet of planes? IMO it seems Swordfish seems to offer more rounded package, with no negatives.

[@Painless360]

I prefer the Swordfish over the Killer Whale, The whale is a much bigger beast with flaps and a huge internal space. This is easier to transport and just as nice to fly. The Whale may be more stable for filming too thanks to the higher wing...

[@AerialWaviator]

@@Painless360 Thanks Lee. It's definitely nice to have options.

[@IanF-FPV]

Really looks nice in those flybys. Pretty much a bank and yank plane with that flatter v tail. I might get the kit for the right price.

[@jamesemery1]

flies beautifully with a wide speed envelope, shame the manual is lacking. I'm Like the idea of the ardupilot set up. Stay safe Lee

[@dihler55]

Mine should be here either this week or next week. (ordered one as soon as i saw it without looking at reviews lol)

[@dronepilot260rc]

Nice! Still waiting on mine to arrive. I bought the kit version. I’m thinking about running 2x 2306 1900kv or 1400kv. 2x blheli 35a esc. Zohd Kopilot lite and caddx vista for FPV. I’m hoping to use my 4s 21700 5000mah liion pack. I used only 1000kv on the Killer Whale so 1400kv - 1900kv should be more than enough for my style of flying. I have the Excalibur v2 (nearly identical glider/plane ) for 150 mph speeds 🎉 Thanks for you review, I’m super excited

[@Painless360]

Best of luck with the build and maiden - this is a beauty!

[@_Brando_69]

This one looks promising. looks super stable too

[@brettbuchbach4692]

Another great review Lee. I spend a lot of time learning from your channel. Have you ever had anything to do with lefei snl+ fc I have 2 here find them very simple to use as no soldering required and an osd setup. Good for the lazy people. Keep up the great work .

[@joycenkenes]

So awesome Atomrc produces a Inav FC now . bet they're way better than what you could do DYI

[@Painless360]

See my videos on the RTH versions. There are a few issues with the current AtomRC F405 flight controller (Smartport support etc..)

[@MCsCreations]

Amazing flying and review, Lee! 😃 Fantastic looking airplane indeed! Do you think it would be possible to 3d print different noses for it? Perhaps with TPU, so it wouldn't break easily, who knows. Anyway, stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊

[@Painless360]

3d printable noses already around. Doesn't take the community long to mod things... Happy flying!!

[@MCsCreations]

@@Painless360 Oh, fantastic! That's great to know! 😃

[@alainrac56]

Thank you Lee for your videos, just bought this plane and try to learn about INAV, but no OSD with my DJI O3?

[@Painless360]

Please see my INAV for beginners series. DJI are pretty terrible at providing support for things outside of Betaflight and leave it up to the wonderful work of the INAV developers to figure out how to make it work. It is why I really like Walksnail... 03 Air units are supported in the latest INAV so make sure you have MSP displayport selected for the UART you have it connected to and that you have the TX and RX lines the right way around.. Best of luck!

[@willay747]

Great to hear! Mine is on order! :)

[@ericeves6452]

Hello Lee, when you mention control throw amounts, is that the total throw from full up to full down or just center to full? Cheers and thanks for the great content!!

[@Painless360]

Typically, throws are from neutral position in one direction. So a throw of 8mm is 16mm total...

[@rodeopilot7495]

greta video , whats your current meter scale and offset steps ?

[@gearhead366]

With some of Audupilot's assisted flight modes, would this be a good plane for a beginner? One of my other hobbies is slot cars. The quality of the car and controller can make all the difference in the enjoyment. I'm guessing that RC flying is the same. I'd rather not get put off by the cheap components in a beginner RTF kit. With no aids, I'm sure this plane is too much for a beginner. I'd like to get into FPV eventually, too, so a plane that could carry me from beginner to FPV would be great.

[@Painless360]

See my video out today. INAV and Ardupilot can provide a lot of help for a learner... Happy flying

[@jwc4520]

Sound like a fun fly . If you survive setup ...lol . Take care.

[@Painless360]

Setup is really easy, and this is a forgiving model. One of my favourites... Happy flying!

[@Rocketman0407]

Seems reasonably priced and great compared to say a fully specked vtol . I got a question on the premade FPV + RTH version of the Swordfish what kind of budget remote do you recommend. Is there any good remotes with a built in screen for the video feed? I am not really interested in googles but a screen that shows me the video feed while I fly.

[@Painless360]

Nothing 'budget' with a screen in it that I've seen. See my Kit Picks video for that I recommend - kzbin.info/www/bejne/r53Xhqd7r92Gj8k

[@blackterminal]

Hi Painless I get you like inav but it's a bit pricy. I'd be very interested to see you try something like the budget Sparrow flight controller in a few of your models. Thanks for your videos

[@Painless360]

INAV is free. It runs on lots of flight controllers. Some are cheap. Cheap often equals more problems so you pay your money and take your chances... Best of luck

[@pilotmiami1]

Bravo.thenks

[@sams9716]

Good to hear! Question on balance. Do you think it would handle a 4S2P 21700 pack?

[@Painless360]

My pack weighs 287g with and extra 10-15g from the Walksnail stuff right up in the nose. If the pack is about the same weight (and will physically fit), it should work.

[@hansburk2830]

hab meinen heute fertiggebracht, jetzt noch 10 mal durchüberlegen ob ich alles richtig gemacht habe.

[@dronepilot260rc]

Dolphin is still 👑 King lol that and my AR 900 classic wing live in my trunk and are ready to fly at moments notice 🎉

[@Painless360]

Great to hear from another Dolphin fan. I've had a few messages from pilots over the summer who got one, flew it and were blown away by how good it is! Happy flying!

[@mkeigwin]

do have a inav 7 diff all file for this plane , as the one you have posted is ver 5.1 , just trying to get the rth and lauch setup . i will be using a speedy bee f 405 wing unit , as the stock one does not support fport and i want pan & tlit setup , and help thanks , this is my 1st inav setup , but have been in the hobby for many yrs thanks mike

[@Painless360]

I don't share diff files for fixed wing outside of Patreon as they require so many things to be the same on the model to be of any value. Check out my INAV for beginners series for all the steps I use to get them flying every time.. Best of luck!

[@Jeremy_Baeyens]

Hello Sir, Do you have a recent version of your CLI dump ? Regards Jeremy

[@Painless360]

I don't share CLI dumps usually... Best of luck

[@patrickmurphy3759]

"Spend a day learning how I NAV works". Sheesh man it took me freaking weeks.

[@Painless360]

Check out the INAV for beginners series on the channel. All you need to know, explained simply. Happy flying

[@bimmers50e30]

So they need to make the nose longer for more CG balance option and battery option. That's a big heavy option? Also since they are going beginner, are the controls still to sensitive?

[@Painless360]

I like the need for a large pack as it provides a lovely long flight time. Two packs in parrallel is also an option if you only have smaller packs. Sensitivity is a function of the throws and they can be set as needed. I'd prefer if AtomRC published setups for beginner and expert alike... Happy flying

[@sherwoodp2738]

Lee, I sent ATOMRC a question today about coming out with an Arduplane version of the Swordfish and I'd like to share with you and your subscribers their response... My Question: When will the Arduplane version of the Swordfish model be available? ATOMRC Response: We can upload arduplane parameter setting on our web, you just need flash the arduplane firmware, load the settings.

[@Painless360]

That is a shame. They are potentially missing the opportunity in front of them with this model... Happy flying

[@billarnall1422]

Hi Lee Were the throws you advised in manual mode? The standard.throws on the ailerons before any adjustment are enormous. How did you adjust the throws?

[@Painless360]

Always check in manual mode. Adjust throws mechanically kzbin.info/www/bejne/a2TNk4mZgKaHpMU and then reduce travel in INAV Outputs as a fine tune....

[@billarnall1422]

Thanks Lee, big help 😁

[@StormAlertPulling]

Can you you put the DJI HD video on the plane

[@Painless360]

Yes. Happy flying

[@jamesmiller1271]

I can’t seem to get any out puts from my crossfire nano to the Atom F405 FC I have smart port set to uart3. The receiver is bound and everything is updated to the latest firmware. The the FC is on INAV 6.1. I feel like I’m so close but I’ve run out of ideas.

[@Painless360]

Issues with this FC with Smartport. You'd need to use the inverted hack from what I have been told... Happy flying

[@sigufo]

What is the lightes battery you can use to hit CoG? Do you think the stock setup can do 6s? Dos the F405 support dual analog camera switching? I have the RTH+FPV version in the mail.

[@Painless360]

The battery I have here is 287g with about an extra 15g in the Walksnail stuff. Less than that in the battery and you'll need to add dead weight

[@davidwatkin1484]

Sonic Modell and ZOHD are the same manufacturer

[@Painless360]

I know, I designed the ARWing PRO with them.. different brands with different identities though... ;)

[@edouardfarines3130]

please, What is the weight of your 4S li-ion battery?

[@Painless360]

287g

[@bryanbailey9208]

Can see the fc is 180 flipped, but why is pointer arrow facing rear off craft ? Cheers,

[@Painless360]

That is what 180 yaw flipped means. The 'nose' of the flight controller is pointing to the tail of the plane... Happy flying

[@bryanbailey9208]

@Painless360 so if I do a 180 roll flip ,that would be OK, acording to Andrew Newton?

[@Painless360]

Depends how you rotate the FC from defaults. If you are asking a question about anothers content, they are the best person to ask... best of luck

[@bryanbailey9208]

@@Painless360 cheers much appreciated

[@sandygregoire2732]

Hi there can you show video like how to connect receiver to swordfish rc plane’s flight controller so I can see it and Wich the name of the transmitter did you use to control the swordfish rc plane and dont use skipping video and don’t use speeding video please use hd video

[@Painless360]

Check out my INAV for beginners if you are struggling with the basics. I used an SBUS receiver here but lots are using CRSF connections from things like ExpressLRS

[@sandygregoire2732]

@@Painless360 but what’s the name of the transmitter you are using for swordfish rc plane

[@Painless360]

I think I used an old R-XSR from Frsky I this one... Happy flying

[@sandygregoire2732]

@@Painless360 how about receiver for swordfish rc plane what’s the name of the receiver

[@Painless360]

FrSky R-XSR. As answered above.

[@JohnWhite84]

@Painless360 do you have an INAV 6 or even 7 file?

[@Painless360]

I don't tend to share setup files as they are specific to the model and radio setup. What are you looking for specifically?

[@JohnWhite84]

@@Painless360 This will be my first INAV install. I am extremely familiar with betaflight and can decifer what is needed and not I just thought it would be easier to study an already working setup/diff file. Basically reverse engineering, not trying to simply copy paste.

[@JohnWhite84]

@@Painless360 forgot to add my first INAV build is a swordfish.

[@Painless360]

Check out the INAV for beginners 2023 series for all the steps. Just a few key differences from Betaflight... Best of luck!

[@Mstom178]

How would you setup a tx16s for vtail?

[@Painless360]

Radio setup on the radio never changes. All the mixing is done in INAV. See the INAV for beginners 2022 series.. Best of luck

[@kennyriverrat220]

How hard would it be to put DJI HD caddx in it?

[@Painless360]

Not too tricky. Very similar to the mod for the nose or they do provide a mount for the hardware in that dorsal recess. Happy flying

[@Coronet47]

Do you have an updated file for iNav for the swordfish

[@Painless360]

What is it you need it for? I've been flying it on INAV 6.0 and it is great..

[@Coronet47]

@@Painless360 I bought swordfish but new to iNav so I don’t really know much wanted a template tuned for INav 6. Or should I go for the one by Atomrc.

[@Painless360]

The setup process outlined in the INAV for Beginners series will show you all the steps. Using another persons setup assumes that the model, FPV setup, modes and OSD layout (as well as flying style) are the same..

[@NicholasKnowles-x5v]

Does it fly like a glider?

[@Painless360]

Sorta... Happy flying

[@allysoncheynes1216]

Don't tell anyone, but I have a crush on Lee.

[@Chilternflyer]

Lee: You comment about wishing that there were more INAV RTF's is ironic given that your whole channel is about teaching people how things work and how to set them up! No one takes the time to learn anything anymore because of RTF and PNF. They expect to buy a shiny box and go flying without any knowledge or any effort to learn anything. We've seen the hobby dumbed down over the years. Particularly since drones started coming from the factory RTF with flight controllers set up. It's bad enough that most people haven't a clue how to tune Betaflight anyomore. Imagine what it would be like if no one understood the basics of how to setup INAV!

[@Painless360]

Thanks for the comment but I don't see any irony. Most of the pilots watching the channel are here to learn how to build and setup RC technology but there are significant numbers of pilots who just want to fly. Some of my flying buddies are like me, (and you I'm guessing) in terms of loving both the flying and the building parts of the hobby and enjoy tinkering. Some other pilots are not technically gifted or have no interest inearning how the flight controller works. They just want to have the enjoyment of flying wtlithiut the soldering and setup. Both options are valid. . Having more BNF / ARTF models with INAV or Ardupilot would allow those pilots to access the benefits of those systems. The other benefit is that learners can get models with features that help (autolevel, RTH etc.) and help avoid some of the crashes that we all get when trying new stuff. If you love building, there is plenty of help about already. If you don't, then you'll end up buying a Horizon Hobbies product or you need a pal that can build and setup INAV for you... I'm sure that some of those pilots will be inspired to learn how it works and become builders too but that only haolw s of they see and experience the benefits in the firta place. I how that makes more sense. Happy flying!