I chased a race car with a 9" drone and I'm never going back | CATALYST MACHINEWORKS MERICA 9

[@rc_dubai]

my whole family was in the same room during the intro.

[@MustangPilot1]

🤣

[@eagle7015]

Holy

[@thamudman]

Hahaha

[@quaneu9216]

rip hahah

[@JThemelis]

And?

[@KenjiFPV]

I like how you did the whole intro with a straight face 😂

[@paalmiso]

I wonder how many takes it took :D

[@theHotpointHoodlum]

He’s a natural

[@StillIt]

That intro....*slow claps and nods*

[@73GDoc73]

My wife says 9 inches is just right . Unfortunately I only have a 5 inch or sometimes a 3 inch. :(

[@rp479]

Your wife’s boyfriend fills in the gap you leave

[@FlyturboKwad]

@@rp479 Ouch!

[@NeoNeko420]

We're talking about quadcopters right? Lmao

[@73GDoc73]

@@NeoNeko420 Er..Er... Yeah quadcopters... That's what I meant. 😄

[@scottschmitz1179]

@@73GDoc73 wait what are you talking about

[@John-rh3dh]

I wonder how long of a laugh break he took after shooting the intro.

[@JP-qq2kn]

I wonder how many takes the intro took..

[@FabioPansera]

@@JP-qq2kn actually it was the first take 😂😂😂 he did take a while to stop laughing 😂🤣

[@MadDragon75]

My thoughts exactly.

[@blazer5979]

I'm in the category of: There's no point but I'm highly interested, just cause it's badass.

[@SkyCandyVisuals]

JB why is your head staring up into the sky to the left so uncomfortably 😂🤣 love you man 🤟🏾

[@scottgivens27]

I built this one and love it! It’s mainly for fun and the Wow factor it brings when fellow pilots and people watch it fly. It literally brings enjoyment to everyone around you and it’s a freaking RUSH the entire time. Corning nearby trees and obstacles, the props and motors make a sound that’s hard to explain, but you feel the raw power this thing puts out. I used Neils dump file and Wild Willys Blheli 32 motor cooling methods to bring the temps down super low, while increasing the P’s about 2-3 points and it’s perfectly aggressive with zero prop wash. But yes, when you barely hit anything, the props will disintegrate and that’s $5 a prop! 😂 Imo, it’s basically a trophy quad for those who want to feel like they are flying a beast class but don’t want to spend that kind of money. I felt like the sweet spot is a 4000mah 6s xt90 battery for 9 minutes of descent speed flight. I tried the 5200mah 6s, and it’s just too heavy to freestyle and probably chasing as well. I knew the motors would sell out fast, so I immediately bought 5 of the brother hobby 2816 1050 Kvs when they 1st came out. Of course I don’t fly as great as JB, but dang, you need at least one 9” in your life!😂

[@ruftime]

Nice Josh! As with everything in Life.......it’s not about the size......it’s ALL about the Pilot😎

[@outlawfpv3792]

K...glad I'm not the only one who looks like Stevie Wonder when flying.

[@thejeffhendrix]

Someone asked Stevie Wonder why he's always smiling, he answered "Because I'm rich"

[@outlawfpv3792]

@@thejeffhendrix Ever see that vid of Stevie on stage when a mic stand falls and he reaches out and grabs it like a guy that can see.....check it out in KZbin.

[@pctechadvisor]

Thats how my wife knows not to bug me.

[@blazer5979]

Honestly better than those who stare at the ground and wonder why they have poor vtx reception.

[@cyberdust2000]

I love my 9"! I have a custom Chameleon LR 9" with 2816's and a 3300mah 6s. My Ideal use for this quad is long range. At 32% throttle cruising at 45 mph, I get from 12-15 mins depending on how high the mountain is I'm ripping up and down. But she does top out at 98 mph and is still fun to freestyle because the extra weight makes for some superior hang time. Glad you have joined the world of Macro

[@moek]

That transition from the parking lot to the racetrack is just 👌 story telling ✅

[@wackywezfpv9335]

Nice show, i have an XL9, 960kV motors, 1800mah 4S bi blades, and up to 16 mins of flying, very cheap to build, she shakes like a model T Ford but what a lovely sound, always turns heads when shes up in the air,

[@PiDsPagePrototypes]

Glad you spoke to the risk - there's at least one person flying a Red Camera on an X-Class for motorsport, and frankly, around crowds, that mass moving at that speed, above people, is just stupidly dangerous.

[@HDgodfrey]

Your content is a true tonic for my soul. Locked away working on robots and industrial machinery, I get to live vicariously through you and it always lifts my spirits. Chasing those cars looks awesome but my hands shake when I push hard racing or freestyling so... maybe not a good idea for me. As always, thanks.

[@deejay-blinkz-official5604]

I LAUGHED WAYYYYY TOO HARD FOR THIS INTRO LMAAAOOOOO

[@JonE5FPV]

Always awesome to see what catalyst Machineworks has cooking! Love this content.

[@curbie1150]

Entertaining and educating all at the same time. Thanks again !

[@Atlas_FPV]

I think it’s great, the biggest drone you can get before things start getting crazy expensive. Just having it exist is great.

[@chrisburke63]

Yesssss. Can't thank you enough for not using stabilization JB!!! Every quad looks the same the second you slap hypersmooth on, no matter the tune. And it's not true that every production has you run HS/RS. Some prefer the dynamic look of unstabilized

[@burnfpv3888]

You have the like for the intro alone. Good work JB

[@tonypena1]

Yes, a lovely addition to my Squadron

[@dcollea]

Hey... I work in Kingsport :) JB, next time you go eat at California Authentic Mexican grill which is right next to Kingsport Speedway. Very good

[@jeffreyodachowski6247]

Love this video. Your looking up and to the left Josh lol. You must have really been feeling it.

[@petebuttons210]

Love the Stevie Wonder impression while flying that big boy.

[@nirvanaflightsfilms6530]

I love chasing drift cars and I always use 6inch drones. I feel 6inch are better than 5inch for that application. Plus emax avan 6inch propeller is realy amazing. Good video Joshua!

[@BigAlFPV17]

I got the Merica 10" but haven't got the parts for it yet but I did build the I-Flight DC-10. I just mainly use it for long range. I did notice it wobbling on mine. I was wondering about that. Excellent video Joshua!!

[@chrismonsen]

エクセレント　ビデオ！　excellent video! Thank you

[@davidlondon3111]

Glad it’s not just me that holds my head at a strange angle. Might be some competition coming through for Nurk soon Joshua

[@divingfalconfpv4602]

Him: oh yeah 9" I can keep up now.. Me: well it's a celica 🤣🤣

[@OnlyLivedOnce]

That's what I was saying! It was a Celica overpowering the exit! But that's fun stuff! More chase content plz. Ken Block has some awesome footage.

[@MrCrowleyandhisdrone]

Nice, looks like a great time.Thanks for sharing

[@johncarold]

Hi Josh Well I'm impressed, Yet I seen Neill flying this quad, and I wanted it. I just came from years of flying 1/3 and 1/4 scale RC Airplanes and when I started flying quads, I went to the smallest ones, but I always wanted to get a large one. But X class was out of my price range. But now that I seen you chasing race cars, I'm thinking about my race track and flying there. Thanks again for the video and information

[@dbcooperfpv9883]

I’m building a super g 10” to primarily carry a GoPro but it may carry 2. If you want to dive a cliff or bridge, but only way to get line of site for good rf is to be a mile away, 7”-10” has a nice advantage since if you’ve ever run 5” freestyle quad a mile and back, you have minimal time over target, even with a 6s 1300 pack. Even a 6” covers this distance much more efficiently

[@TheFpvDad]

What an intro!! That one goes down in the books!! 🤣 9 inches is the perfect size ahahaha 😆

[@MCsCreations]

Pretty fantastic flying there, Joshua! 😃 Really impressive quad! Great review!!! Stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊

[@attomfpv4175]

@joshuabardwell when will the racing drone specs be on your website? i REALLY waiting patientlyfor your racing drone specs to look for.

[@ffaspector]

I just came here because my new Nazgul flew away on the first arm. Make me feel better.....

[@kanishqfpv1011]

Joushua sir i need your help i don't know how to contact you , i have a drone issue please reply. 🙏

[@OnlyLivedOnce]

Those motors are meant for speed as far as the quick visual goes. I built an 8in quad with carbon composite bi props on 2807 motors and 6s. Bi props will give better speed and control opposed to agility with tri props(while that edge on agility is obviously a wash at these speeds). Gaps are relative but the motor/prop combo it what to look at when building. I can use a 4s 3600mah for 10min at average 60mph or a 6s 2200mah for 5min around 100mph. Great video. The chase is what I like over freestyle. Hit up RDQ, peeps.

[@jeffcopus]

I'll be chasing race cars this year. Nurk recommended this drone, and it looks like I'm in that niche for this drone. Should be fun.

[@boactech3076]

Always fun to see how people keep their head while flying fpv 😄 Some people look to the left, other only down steele straight ahead, Bardwell to the sky 🤣 Never looked to myself, but I think to the right-down 😋 I love the sound by the way of any type of machine freestyle 👍

[@Vousie]

Some people are really good at aiming the patch antennas at the quad though - which might be looking up depending on where they're standing, but I doubt the patch antennas on Bardwell's goggles were doing him any favours...

[@johncarold]

Hey Josh I just finished my 7in quad and it was terrible. It looked like it was going to fail apart. And it did the F.C, then the VTX, and now the ESC. Right bad luck , but I finished rebuilding it. I now have the technology. But I don't think it's ready yet. I just finished watching this video again. And I noticed some similar stuff ? I noticed that the 9in was running a Maytek F722 and a 60a esc, and 2816 1050kv. Now I think I have been learning about building after 10 years of building. But I purchased a new Darwin 129 7in long range quad and after a year of changing stuff, I ended up with a 7in long range quad using 2808 1100kv TOKA motors, Diatone F722 mk4 flight controller, and a 45a Diatone esc. Now I have just finished installing the new esc and I realized that I better not power it up especially if I use 6s, so I'm not going to and save up for a new 60a esc, what do you want to bet, I use a Diatone ESC. Still a very good video.

[@the_darkside_fpv]

Jb I’m dying bro😂😂😂 that entro was gold!!

[@Bean-Time]

I was really confused when you used the 5 inch, i thought you were already using the merica

[@maverickflightstudio1499]

Yea mee tooo..lol

[@RealKushrage]

Yeah haha me2 xD

[@Siamect]

Me 3

[@feelmyola]

I just got done chasing race bikes and super cars and Monday and yeah my 5" struggled on straight aways. Luckily the track 5 tight turns in a row where I could really get close and get some great shots. I need to find an investor to fund me 😂

[@hateforall4012]

Well this took a whole different direction! Great info and video as always.

[@minaexperiment]

Good episode! Chasing cars looks like so much fun. Might have to build one of those this winter.. Only thing is those huge brick batteries i would have to get are not cheap! Also pretty limited prop choices in the 8+ category. One can dream thought :)

[@rohansully584]

I notice a significant difference even between a 5” & 6”. A 6” is heaps more lofty than 5”

[@ohnenamenspieler]

What RTF Kit would you recommend to a beginnen? Tinyhawk freestyle 2? Eachine novice 4?

[@cadmonkeyfpv2685]

This is a first. Something in my personal fleet before JB does a review of it! Love my 'Merica9 (and all the other 'tongue in cheek named' CMW drones I've got)

[@JCtheMusicMan_]

Joshua, I love the intro! 🤣 The rest of the video is great too btw!

[@AV-14]

That thing is a BEAST

[@Sir_Hubris]

U R out of town and still feeding us video's ... Respect ¶ :-)

[@andrewut7ya511]

That freestyle was suprisingly good for a huge drone. Obviously not a freeatyle drone but suprisingly agile.

[@oscar-po3bw]

when it cuts to seeing Josh leaning back with the goggles on , i hope we all know that feeling 😄

[@Prohdigyy]

THAT WIRE GAVE ME ANXIETIES :P

[@trojanorse]

Great flying.

[@kc8302]

Those 9inch frames are perfect for long range flights where you might anticipate high winds.

[@ScreamGreek]

That’s some sweet speed!!

[@SKIDOOSH]

My XL QAV-R 8 inch , 8s flies like butter! Maybe it is the bottom mount and centered cam. That type of set up always makes things look more robotic and shaky.

[@BubbyFPV]

I went drift car chasing and I used a 1800mah 6s on my 5 inch kwad and was getting 7-8 minute flight times

[@Joebie3]

That makes sense, I'm guessing that you're dealing with a lot less throttle than in a situation with cars going straight. Not saying drift cars aren't going fast, but depending on the course they are likely to be going slower sideways than these circle track cars are going in a straight line. (Minus the Celica that JB started chasing at first with the 9")

[@SickocrowAU]

I tracked a Rebel Yeti 9" with my Intrepid 6". We both had 2200 6S 70C packs on. He had to land hitting 21.5v after 7 minutes, and I was still running 22.8v. 9" might be better than 5", but it also might be going over the other end of the scale, being too heavy for it's own good. It was just one flight though.

[@AerialWaviator]

Wondering if video quality was related to power level used during freestyle vs the 70% throttle used on the track? Maybe were nears some resonate frequency. Maybe a possible topic for future vide ... looking at blackbox data, and/or tuning a large quad. (how/if differs to a smaller quad) BTW: Does wife recommend selecting 2-blades, or 3-blades ... for props?

[@cornbeanbuttersquashthe3rd416]

Nice delivery on your opening...

[@hernen]

Man your intros are the best!

[@ehaviv]

Speed + flight time + wind penetration (weight) makes it good size for mountain surfing

[@QSpeedRacer]

So for 10".. catalyst merica, iflight dc10, or yeet rebel 10"? Long range filming and being able to go faster

[@butcher]

Something is wrong with this frame or this build. My 9" inch quad is super smooth ( in dji feed ) so something is not ok with this :D ( My first guess the problem is the big tpu canopy with the gopro on top, I think it can vibrates like hell. )

[@badfourlife]

You use gopro on your 9??My gopro shows vibes way more than dji feed, those 9x5x3 and 10x5x3 are super outta balance and show vibes usually unless you balance props... arm to arm braces somewhat counteract but balancing is the way to go, ive even gotten a bunch of 10x5x3 with vertical bend in one of the blades which i doubt you could even tune out

[@butcher]

@@badfourlife Yeah I use gopro, and you are right, there was a series of hqprop 10 and 9" props which were super unballanced, but the latest ones seems fine for me. Maybe try master airscrew props, those are very good as I heard.

[@badfourlife]

@@butcher Ya my newer batch of 10x5x3 seems to be a lot better as well, i got some biblade aeronaut carbon power 10" i need to try here one day, but been busy building up my 6/8" quads but back onto the 10" soon

[@SH-ry2xi]

My 9 inch is really veiny

[@SummerCrowfpv]

Yes I think you are correct. I found this to be an issue with smaller quads running tpu mounts for naked GoPro especially. I began replacing those mounts with ones I made from ABS sheets that I cut and glued together instead of 3D printing. I found these to be far stronger and much lighter some are less then half the weight of tpu this is a real plus on my rekon5 and on my marmotte with the mount for my gopro8

[@RomanSplinter]

Well done. You're almost as cool as Johnny FPV.

[@tSobota]

Hello, today I switched my drone's 5-inch propellers to 10 inches (I have a big frame). It was flying amazing for about 3 minutes and then fell out of the sky with smoke. My 2450 KV motors took so much current they just smoked. Should I use a smaller KV motor? What should be KV to propeller inches ratio?

[@JoshuaBardwell]

You need a much lower kv and much larger motor to spin a 10 inch prop. Like 28mm to 30mm in size.

[@tSobota]

@@JoshuaBardwell thanks for your advice!

[@Mediamarked]

This looks like a great quad for longer range mild acro. Interested, but kinda the same as my TBS disco clone with naze32. Lot more responsive though.. cool quad.

[@nickxc]

I fit into that semi pro category and I really want one. It has a pretty small form-factor for a 9in compared to my 7in cinelifter, and definitely goes faster. I don’t chase cars often, but whenever I do, I’m gonna wish I had one.

[@hazonku]

My wife said 9 inches is the perfect size too. Too bad I'm only working with 3.

[@Fr3ud]

I was playing this video out loud with my mom near me and the whole time during the intro she was just giving me the side eye 😂

[@tristanturner]

I like this sort of long distance style drone. I wonder what the cost would be for a complete DJI setup on this drone. I currently have the DJI FPV, but its not quite what I want.

[@tylerharris9709]

The intros just keep getting better

[@flightspeedproductions9865]

Hey Joshua! This would be sobamaxing for what I do! I chase dirt track cars a lot, sadly this is nowhere near my price range but maybe one day 🤣

[@PineyJustice]

And this right here is why I've been flying 9-10" for 2 years now. A bigger quad can make an open freestyle spot more fun and they're way way better for chasing stuff.

[@rubenvaneupen7327]

What kind of 5 incher did you use? I tried it with a sub250 quad :), that was a challenge :p.

[@MRShortX]

Have you tried the iflight chimera 7 1800kv on a 6s ? Great video as always 😎

[@nunyabus2734]

Great information thanks

[@HolaACchillin]

Great video! I have been chasing cars in an over like this quite a few times now. Trying to figure out how I would make a video I’ve been just recording the footage. I think I’ll show how I fly seven minutes in this scenario with a 5 inch and a go pro. Love your work! Much love (:

[@HarleyAssi]

I'm a TinyWhoop dude, just building my first Quad. A 4" and owing a Roma F5, I consider ... big. So: No. THat monster ain't for me. I liked that video though and can see that ppl will love that giant :_)

[@checkeredflagfilms]

as well as speed wouldn't you say this build would be an ideal medium to longish distance choice? Oh and btw...specifically, what battery was on-board?

[@JoshuaBardwell]

4000 mAh 6S. I think if you weren't pushing speed too much, you could get about 15 minutes flight time. Not exceptional for long range. It's really built for power not endurance.

[@dronepilot260rc]

I would be curious to see how a 7" would do in this environment 🤔. I built mine for long range but it's decently fast :-)

[@hernen]

Hey! How fast is it? I am looking for something that can cruise at about 100mph but want to keep it within 7 inch

[@nicholassheldon8638]

@@hernen I built a 7 inch that cruises naturally around 65-70 mph but could definitely go faster.

[@hernen]

@@nicholassheldon8638 thank you for the response I might build a 7"

[@nicholassheldon8638]

@@hernen go for it. They're super fun

[@TheDroneNerd]

What cinewhoop is that at 9:30 with the multi color bumpers ?

[@veek2767]

The way that thing flys and moves makes the world seem smaller lol.

[@xV3ND3TT4x]

What could go wrong if you still do chase cars at these constant speeds with a 5 inch 6S ? Is it bad only for the batteries? If yes, what exactly is bad, the fast discharge? aren´t they build for that? Thank you:)

[@StealthyDead]

I think it's funny how when Josh yells, his accent comes out more. For me, it's when I drink XD

[@JP-qq2kn]

The Stevie Wonder pose was awesome 🤣

[@gammagonad1657]

BEST INTRO EVER 😆

[@TheMrcrazyGeorge]

I love how at 3:33 you became Scotty Kilmer

[@TBrann83]

I freestyle the shit out of my 9/10" quads in every place a normal person flies a 5". I rip indoor parking garages.

[@blazer5979]

Dude post that shit. Would be fun to see.

[@joshpfpv6088]

Hey bardwell, could you fit a Herocast on it? There are many live broadcast applications for gorpros on these rigs using the herocast

[@JoshuaBardwell]

I think it's possible but I can't find the weight of herocast to be sure.

[@joshpfpv6088]

@@JoshuaBardwell thank you! The Hero 3 with hdmi, charge cable, and mount is 155g, the herocast with antenna and charge cable is another 265g

[@J4nkyFPV]

What size battery were you running at the race track with the 9"??

[@phantomflightfpv]

Building my second now!

[@RCRitterFPV]

Kinda want one to rip to the top of Mt Hood. worth it over a Super g + or FR7 or Cinesplore?

[@k1ortia]

The mrs totally agree,s with you also. 9" is just right

[@bengmo64]

Damnit JB you told me 3.5" was just right!

[@tango_sierra8608]

Shirt is sick at intro.. also, who owns that sexy white S2k in the first location. I SEE YOU