RC planes and drones under 250g are FANTASTIC fun!

If you are flying an RC plane or drone that weighs more than 250 grams then in many countries you will have to register and pay money for the privilege. There is an alternative! In this video I talk about the many benefits to flying smaller, lighter models that are usually cheaper, more durable, more easy to transport and can have every bit as much performance as their bigger brothers.
Many of the craft show in this video have been reviewed on my RCModelReviews channel:
kzbin.info
Channel support links:
==================
My generic Banggood link. Click on this before buying stuff from them (within 15 days) and I get the small but helpful commission:
www.banggood.com/custlink/KmvvRTz2kN
My patreon page:
www.patreon.com/rcmodelreviews

[@philbarrett3739]

Simple solution....... don't register and fly what you want!

[@Jabberwoky]

Phil Barrett and therefor no insurance.

[@ChristopherF_1971]

Bingo

[@jdplus3]

And now in US this fall, a $20,000 fine potentially

[@steve_beatty]

Shhhhh !!!... Now you've gone and done it...the guvmints will see that we are still having fun despite their best efforts and legislate the fun out of sub 250 gram toys as well..

[@FPVUniversity]

and the best part about DIY light airplanes is, that if you know some really basic stuff like what CG is, you can just do it by yourself from foam sheet over the weekend and it will fly!

[@FPVREVIEWS]

Just finished building my own scale with a load cell off Ebay. Now all of my giant scale radial warbirds are under 250 grams.

[@timloydtodd820]

thank you bruce. we certainly appreciate what your doing here.

[@knight907]

One of the best things about

[@anthonywitham2305]

Sadly Bruce, when more and more people change to sub 250 gram to dodge registration. Those in charge will simply change the rules and scrap the sub 250 gram exemption. Especially if they start losing "registration" fees!

[@lasersbee]

Couldn't agree more...

[@TheLiamis]

And fees are going to rise rapidly. People need to stand up to the corruption and if clubs wont get involved in campaign then leave those clubs, let them go broke.

[@ghettotech9617]

I’m just gonna fly my normal drones all the time spend all this money thru the years not aloud to fly give my money back then probably about twenty grand

[@auzzieworker5183]

ahhh sad face here. Project currently on my bench will be about 16kg. I'll see if there is somewhere to save 15.75kg, wish me luck..:)

[@xjet]

Just give it an extra sanding before that last coat of paint! :-)

[@TheLiamis]

Helium, lots of helium. Or hydrogen.

[@geraldleclerc5109]

ADD LOTS OF HOLES!

[@gamblegambit]

Enjoy the FRIA sites. :(

[@roadsweeper1]

Or just don't register it and go fly in the middle of nowhere.... That's what I do. Yet to see a cop tramping up the side of a mountain to get to the remote valleys where I fly in the north of Scotland. Flying FPV, plenty of warning if one does decide to lol, hide it somewhere and pull out my little quad in 3 hours time once the out of breath cop finally gets to me lol.

[@unklian9221]

What is not shown in the video......Two heavy-set blokes in suits with guns pointed at Bruce's head.

[@Johnn_T]

OUTLAW SUB 250 PLANS lol.........

[@FB-gm6el]

regarding the "damage to persons or property" arguments in opposition to the RC hobby, i have always thought that a [completely unguided] basketball(624g), baseball(142g), football(410g), soccer ball(450g), or hockey puck(165g) poses a considerably greater threat to civilization (and tulip beds) than some toy 'copter or 'plane, which is presumably under at least *some* control after it leaves the director's grasp. and, even if it does enter an unguided mode, an aircraft is going to freefall much more slowly than any of the other ultra-conventional toys i listed.

[@c.g.4392]

Sorry guys, but if it isn't 6ft longer or wider then you might as well be flying micro nucleotide proteins you can't see. With all due respect. LOL LOL Lastly, no one should NOT be selecting "Like" because you will just get the FAA clean thinking this is acceptable for the other 3 million people

[@woogieman02]

Just built a 10lb wing with full navigation on it...guess it identifies as a toothpick wing! F these rules, flying over an open field with nobody for miles, I won't hurt anyone but myself. Typical government killing fun, and attempting to cash in on things

[@TheLiamis]

Same, I just bought the freewing f22 raptor and I'm going to have fun without permission from a desk jockey wank with a cocaine and hooker addiction.

[@jamesstonehouse3448]

Nice! I just finished an eachine tyro79 build and flew it the other day. Wellington's gales force wind didn't stop it! Comes in just under 250g with its battery.

[@FPVisnotacrime]

I have build a slightly smaller version of your Outlaw250, with a wing span of 50 cm. With a 2S 450mah battery, it's weight is only 108 grams and it's sooooooo much fun to fly. I've managed to add an OSD in it as well, to show voltage while flying, very useful.

[@TheVexCortex]

Looking forward to the zohd dart250g review!

[@DavidReynolds-kr6yh]

Nemo , great little plane, especially if you get the fpv version with the kopilot system, very easy to fly in stabilisation mode and return to loiter makes it easy to bring back if you lose video or reception.

[@geraldleclerc5109]

Can't wait for your DIY video I'll have my whole club up here in Canada build them for combat with fpv in summer, should be a blast!

[@pellesomethingsomething]

A real feel good video! Thanks mate.

[@echobeefpv8530]

Sub 250 is also much cheaper !!! I used to fly nothing but 5" quads. Once the tech caught up , sub 250 was just as fast, more nimble, easier to transport, and LESS expensive, and gave as good or better " fun factor" !! When you are buying multiple batteries, size = price.

[@graywoulf]

I have been building and flying foamies for several years and I never have weighed one of them. I will have to do that. I also fly some toy drones as well but I have two Sparks and I will fly them in my backyard no matter what. Interesting video Bruce and and a very good point you made here. Take care.

[@lasersbee]

Great flight footage music selection... Love the Blues...

[@JohnMark61355]

I enjoyed the video. A couple more fabulous sub-250g aircraft: the new GepRC Dolphin, a 4” quad and my beloved Eflite UMX Timber. The Dolphin is as fast and fun as any over 250g quad. The UMX Timber can fly in many wind conditions other small planes cannot, has full working flaps, and cool lights-such a fun airplane at less than 150g. So fast or slow, these two crafts have it covered.

[@stephaniekent8483]

GREAT STUFF LOVE THE MUSIC AND FOOTAGE AT THE END! :) CAPS LOCK YEAH WHO CARES!

[@MCsCreations]

Awesome video, Bruce! 😃 I've been thinking about building a FT Pun Jet with FPV... Maybe even with a Caddx Tarsier in there! It's pretty small, fast and fun as hell. 😃

[@Bigginger61]

As it stands in the UK I can't even fly a whoop with 150m of a built up area, madness.

[@basgerritsen9669]

Bruce you should really check out the sub250 speed planes and hotlines (the fdd class). You can get astounding performance from tiny 250g planes! You can find them on the German 250g speed thread or on the high performance section of rcgroups. I've got some videos up of my own 250g composite models

[@gryfandjane]

I just charge my batteries to 50% to keep the weight down. ;-)

[@JosephValentinetti]

very positive show. Good for you.

[@MoiraOBrien]

Loved the music Bruce! I just received my UMX Ultrix (65gms plus battery!). I have yet to maiden it though.

[@Electrowave]

FPV is just like a wireless periscope if the data isn't being recorded.

[@deBug67]

Loved this Video!👍

[@keithfletcher5788]

Data recording.Mobile phones camcorders and dash cams ?

[@JESchnake]

Great video Bruce. I have two Emax tinyhawk freestyles. That I have built with Microheli 115mm Carbon Fiber Frames. They fly even better after the frame change. Not saying don't fly wonderful stock. I just like the looks of the different frame and it's still under 250 grams. I enjoy flying the smaller sub 250 class just as much if not more than 5 inch class quadcopters.

[@dcsmith5839]

Thanks for posting.Great blues track.

[@theKeppis]

We already took precautions too even if the regulations would be sub 25grams (yes, 25grams) we'd continue flying, LOS and FPV, though the choices could be a tad limited :') nice video to remind people to build more balsa btw!

[@pea2911]

great video, thanks. I am new to the hobby and am already moving towards sub 250g Furibee F36 drone Volantex Sport Cub 500 XK A800 with a small amount of nose weight and the cheapest of them all is my KF606 with a small amount of nose weight all great fun to fly, and none of them have cameras (I'm UK based)

[@mboiko]

Nice music Bruce!

[@gygaxthegoat2491]

Thanks Uncle Bruce :) Fly high mate.

[@samnelson3526]

I'm liking that blues at the end!

[@zero318]

Excellent points, Bruce! In Canada some of us are really getting on the ultra micro bandwagon since the gov't dropped the hammer on bigger planes. True, we could go and join a club but the clubs have now raised their membership fees exponentially....because they can. Anyhew, I've gotten into the UMX planes (a Sport Cub S and a Stearman so far) and they are fabulous little machines! Phenomenal flyers, AS3X control as well as Bind n Fly. As you said, they fit in the car, and with the little 1s batteries I get great flight times and fast recharges. I may never go back to big planes...seriously.

[@busdriver6278]

Hell that them blues!!! I love it superb sounds!

[@roadsweeper1]

Bruce, get that ZOHD Dart video up lol. I'm looking for a little, long duration flight time fixed wing for when we go wild camping in the middle of nowhere, something I can just throw in the back of the car along with the tent. Something that can compete with the mavic pro 2 for flight time, but isn't as delicate and expensive!!!

[@xjet]

I'll try to get it up this weekend.

[@pdtech4524]

Lot's of options under 250g! 👍😎

[@RARenfield]

When America collectively decided to outlaw headphones while driving (late 80's) I argued that we don't deny a drivers license to the deaf. My argument fell on deaf ears. Stupid, discriminatory laws just make me an outlaw.

[@ludwigvanzappa9548]

That blues is so good !!

[@edruttledge342]

Sounds like we're capitulating ... and managing our depression here. 😕

[@RichardRaueiser]

In Switzerland we will not have to register, sub 250Gr, as long they don't have a camera; this is ridiculous!

[@ChristopherF_1971]

I wouldn't worry to much about it. Unless they start banning all these components we need from china there isnt much they can do but threaten us. Just fly safely and away from others and mind your business and don't post flight videos onto Social media accounts and you'll be golden. Share only with close friends and family.

[@palicgofueniczekt]

XK A600, A430 are pretty great sub 100g planes with attitude stabilization even. Their K110 heli is also under 100g and can fly inverted, etc. Local regulations limit me to sub-200g

[@xplore7359]

I've built the best sub250 qaud I could (runcam hybrid, crossfire, 800mw tank vtx, 850mah 4s pack coming in at 249g) and it's a blast to fly but the split cams just don't come close to GoPro footage. And I think we all know once the first wave of laws get passed sub250 will be the next target :(

[@MCsCreations]

Dude, if you don't fly commercially, like Tommy did in that video with the bikes... Who the hell cares? KZbin is going to butcher your video anyway.

[@xplore7359]

@@MCsCreations I'm integrating fpv into family videos as we travel to New places, GoPro footage butchered is still easy on the eyes the hybrid footage looks like a hot mess :( I'm also teaching myself video editing and proper colour grading and the GoPro gives me the versatility with protune that isn't really available on splits yet.

[@chrisbewrx]

@@xplore7359 Time to de-case the GoPro. Good luck, would be interesting to see if it can be done and how much weight could be saved.

[@rayft1422]

Register due to the fact that it is a "Data Recording Device" ??? So on that basis do i have to register my walk-man, my mp3 player, my webcams, my DVR, my VCR. I can record data with all of these as well. Do hand-drawn pictures count, or only if I draw something ? would paper notebooks count ? i can record data in that. Damn, why do I think somethings not right here?

[@bradleychalenger]

So will I have to register my CCTV cameras as they are a data collection device ??

[@JamesKing2understandinglife]

Thank you for promoting the option here, after we write letters complaining about the horrible senseless regulations. I love this concept.

[@AggieRC]

Definitely need to figure out the Li-Ion pack for the Dart 250 - it's a beautiful little machine and so much fun to fly :)

[@AggieRC]

Also the small/mid sized toothpick category for drones has so much in it now :D. I've been flying things like the BetaFPV HX115 and the Happymodel Lava X and Lava X HD on my lunchbreaks on the regular this winter, and I'm getting so much fun and sticktime out of those little guys at well under the 250gm mark.

[@DavidReynolds-kr6yh]

I’ve got a zohd dart 250 g as well, and I’ve been about 2&1/2 kilometres and been able to see almost perfectly all the way, using crossfire of course.

[@steveo726]

250 grammes of fun as long as it’s not windy

[@Raven187FPV]

strangely enough, banggood just re-released that vifly 4" drone...weird timing :D

[@MnPaul1]

My 4" whoop looks sub 250. Will the FAA have aerial weigh stations? Will the FPV police be armed with nifty red scales like yours?

[@robertsims8986]

YOU JUST TO REAL THANK'S

[@davesteinmeyer]

Great music at the end.

[@kartherton]

I agree. Who is it please anyone? Thanks in advance. Keith UK 🇬🇧

[@skyquads1930]

My hobby is aerial video so I would find it hard to get under 250 grams. Great video.

[@NitrousBanshee]

I truly find sub 250 interesting. And it will drive innovation for smaller components. But I'm still going to fly my big wings and quads no matter what rules are imposed. I fly well above 400 and we'll over weight. Theres no risk.!

[@DrDiff952]

Here in the states we will be flying only indoors soon!

[@gmivisualsjason3729]

Yes, i was wondering the same thing here in the UK regarding flying fpv sub 250 with a camera. not a data collection device. also the dvr on the goggles i think some common sense is needed with regards to the rule making. i think if the local perv wanted to take some sneeky footage they would be most unhappy with the poor quality of the recorded dvr on our lost model finder dvr on goggles. the lunatics have taken over the assylum. the drone code here in the UK prevents people from flying within a certain distance of people and property, and for me thats enough.

[@GroundControlRC]

Nice Sub-250 Options. It's not hard to build a great flying Plane that weighs much less than 250 grams. My F-22 Micro weighs 135g AUW with a 3S 450mah LIPO. It flies fantastic ;-) See you in the Air!

[@paulherder5356]

Two items to add to your sub 250 list... UMX planes from Horizon Hobby and micro helicopters (I have two!)

[@jimcasebere4718]

Now that it is music. !👍

[@markdyson8897]

just wondering if you and your mate were flying and standing together. Can you fly at the same time and land within a 10m box around you? But keep the 30m rule around people?

[@davidbrockett1]

Just got a sub 250g spitfire and it's great

[@gamblegambit]

my kwad batteries are 190+grams alone. Got a sub 250 AUW qwad that will fly for 5+ mins, on those batts.?

[@travisfries]

I don't currently have any sub 250 craft, but they would be perfect for public parks and ball fields. I just can't wrap my head around the fact the FAA says I would no long be able to fly my model airplanes over privately owned land, do land owners not own any of the air space above the ground they pay (and in the case of Nebraska) exorbitantly high property taxes on?

[@RPSchonherr]

I have a Holy Stone that weighs in at 150 g and a Emotion at 100 g that i fly around the yard and keep under 100 ft. Fun toys.

[@stevewalker9888]

As I remember it .... Sub 250 gms yeh don’t have to register it here in the uk , however if it has a data capture device (camera) then it will require registration, still getting shafted ..... dude you just mentioned this after I typed the above

[@gavinvales8928]

this is the only reason i do micro quads now. i still miss my 7 inch quad though

[@ChristopherF_1971]

All I fly are 6 and 7 even 8 inch quads. My personal preference. I've tried flying these tiny quads but just don't get as much pleasure out of them. 4 minute flight times at most. I slap a 6s 2600mah Li-on onto my 7 inch and get 32 minutes of pure enjoyment.

[@SouthpawBluesman]

You've shown us several quads under 250g, but none of them are drones. Not much options for those of us who use drones to film the environment around us and require at least altitude hold, preferably GPS and optical flow. There is one poxy choice of a shitty DJI Mini (built by Hasbro) drone, are there any suggestions you have? I'm seriously considering a light fixed wing model for filming, if we have to go sub 250...

[@aabb-zz9uw]

The problem is that it has to be below 250g MTOW not flight weight and in case of copters the MTOW is equal to max.thrust.

[@aaaaaaaaaassssssssdf]

my friend hit me full speed in the side of the face with the emax tinyhawk. it hurt. but that's it. the micros these days are amazing, but i have so many other planes the u.s. stuff coming up is frustrating.

[@STOLerant]

I've been wanting to build out a Sonic Modell Binary for a S&R rig. Is it just not worth it in the US? I worry i''l invest the time and money and will not be able to use it for long, if at all.

[@flipfpv]

Yeah...I get your point and all, and I love micros, but still...it's not OK.

[@Segphalt]

Strix nano goblin is also a good sub 250 option. (But just barely)

[@AndyRRR0791]

Most DLGs are sub-250g...

[@irwan_rc2416]

Do you have the plan for your "funbat" plane?

[@richardperry5880]

Hi Bruce . Don’t want to be negative. What’s the chance with government changing the 250g lower when all the company’s release 250g modules .. keep the good work going Bruce 👍🇬🇧

[@robertlunsford1350]

The biggest challenge is seeing the thing if you are flying third person. This does not help that my entire hangar is in the kilogram + range. What do I do with those? Chuck them in the bin?

[@kenfuciusfpv2800]

These tiny qwads need one thing badly - a very loud and feather light beeper. I use some regular 5v cylindrical beepers but sometimes they aren't loud enough.

[@FromAboveAndBeyondChannel]

Wow 👌👌👌😉😁

[@iwontreplybacklol7481]

If the hobby is sub 250 only, then I'm out! There is no comparison to a large model that has some weight to it that flies smoother, handles wind better and just all around loads more fun to fly for me.

[@dingalarm]

Agreed ! But it appears that the only way to go now to get stability and smooth flight (similar to a large model) is from a small plane fitted with a stabilizer 🙄

[@Deploracle]

Within 5 years we'll have sub-25g quadcopters that will be nimble and zip around our living rooms as we might do now in the backyard. On the airplane end of things, Plantraco has been a pioneer in micro-sized Lithium cells, controllers, actuators ... it's only a matter of time. Development should be able to stay in front of more restrictive laws in the future.

[@michaelmatthews6421]

Seriously? cause it has a camera? Wow, they are really stretching now. Might as well try to ban it completely if they're going to go that far. Love the sub 250 idea, as that's probably gonna be the only thing we can fly without registering....for now. Love your videos. Still wording my comment for the FAA here in the USA. Trying to collect as much info as I can before posting so I don't leave anything out.

[@squeaks3814]

Honestly sub250 is the best thing the only thing you get out of the 5 inch drone is a go pro but that’s not the rc hobby that’s the video hobby so if you don’t care about video and just care about actually flying then building and flying sub 250 is perfectly fine . The tiny hawk freestyle is amazing I still run the leader 120 on 3s and it flies amazingly and that’s like four years old or so . The new laws won’t kill the hobby at all just the major hype on making a KZbin video to get likes and views and subs

[@Streamlines]

Haha, I have the same scale in black. But in Germany :D

[@adrianryan1975]

Nice 12 bar

[@bwiano]

It'll be interesting to find out what effect Brexit has on the implementation of the EASA rules, any insights Bruce?

[@edcbabc]

None apparently. The UK (Teresa May) committed us to following those rules last summer, brexit or no brexit.

[@TheLiamis]

Not sure. UK will not he subject to any EU rules or legislation. However that doesn't mean the UK Gov won't jump on the bandwagon .

[@cripple10]

Where did you get foam board from in NZ?

[@xjet]

Gordon Harris art supplies sell it (in-store or online).

[@michaelgallant7615]

Not to long down the road they will see people still flying models and still having fun...Then the big corps will tell the gov puppets who they have on the string We must do somthing about this........By sub 250

[@daveburnt]

Canada is large, empty, and devoid of communications infrastructure, so the US E-ID regs aren't pragmatic to employ or enforce here. One good thing about being a backwater nation I suppose. I could see it being a by-law for the metros though, like how they're considering banning handguns. Only metros would have the resources required to police the skies anyway.

[@edcbabc]

Regarding the UK and registration for flying sub-250 with cameras, unfortunately the CAP1789 wording is "... equipped with a sensor that can capture personal data ..." so it doesn't appear to matter whether you actually have a recorder or not. Of course a simple analogue wideangle camera is no good for that at all, practical resolution being damn all more than a few feet away, but they would probably argue that technical progress could change that - and it could. I believe FPV UK are trying to argue for a waiver on sub-250 registration, but I wouldn't bet money on it.

[@xjet]

In that case, you only need to register a model with a camera if you happen to be flying around people. Hills, fields, roads and landscapes are *not* personal data so if nobody ever gets into your field of view (because of where/when you fly) then your model will not have a sensor that can capture "personal data". That'd be my argument. Besides which... capture implies that you have not only observed but also collected or recorded that data. Someone who's a passenger in an aircraft can get exactly the same view but their eyes don't have to be registered do they? Plenty of ammo for defense before a judge.

[@edcbabc]

@@xjet Nice try. But "can capture" surely just means the equipment is capable of it now or at some future time, which it is in a limited way, regardless of what I actually choose to do with it. I think the whole thing is as ridiculous as you do, and I'm no lawyer, but I wouldn't want to stand up in court on that. I think the only hope is to get them to see reason, which in the absence of public opinion on our side, is difficult. Because all they really want is the problem to go away - they won't care about the flying population, there aren't enough of us to matter. I am afraid civil disobedience, ie non registration, wiil just play into their hands, because it will worsen public opinion. It needs positive public stories, or alternatively massive heavy handedness by the authorities, like sentencing some parent to hard labour for life for letting his 6 year old daughter fly a 65mm in the back garden. I wouldn't rule it out.

[@bren42069]

Those war criminal psychopaths can make any "law" they want but that doesn't mean we are obligated to respect it. I keep saying it here but they are using these same control tactics in many areas of our lives all at once, and the end game is utter slavery. And again i say it's kind of amazing the kind of extreme tyranny they're coming at us with in the rc world. It will hopefully wake up more people in this community to what's going on out there. I follow 2nd amendment news also and it's the same kind of blitzkrieg, a constant barrage of authoritarian over the top gun control proposals, and it's amazing how similarly over the top they're handling our toy airplanes. You'd think we were all flying around with hand grenades strapped to our planes. But it makes sense in a twisted way. Their drones are fully weaponized so of course they see ours as a threat. And to government, nothing is more dangerous than a camera. Because cameras are accountability.

[@bourbonick]

OK. Have fun following rules.

[@craigreynolds2539]

Hang on, your phone is a “data collection device” how come that doesn’t need to be registered? Only if you toss it in the air?

[@gabgabgabgab]

So how long til this sub 250 law will be changed by ours lovely legislator ? Are we clear ?

[@xjet]

At that stage, every child's flying toy and even paper planes will require registration and I suspect that at this point the general public will revolt and realize the farce that is taking place.

[@hootsmin]

@@xjet No, there wil be no revolution, they will sit about on the couch watching talent shows on the TV. Its for their own safety, somebody could have an eye out if the nose of the paper plane is too pointy.

[@jibbajabba4597]

Gab 1st July 2020 in EASA regions - that's when sub-250g stuff must be registered if it contains a camera, the get out clause of being a "child's toy" is deliberately not clarified which means it's up to the interpretation of the copper, judge and jury to decide whether you are flying a toy or not, very slippery slope. xjet paper planes, frisbees, kites, balloons, free flight, control line and even rockets do not and never will need to be registered because they are not UAVs, the definition of a UAV is it has a remote pilot that can control its trajectory, those things don't which you would know if you researched the subject matter properly instead of doing the CAA's job for them by causing division within the community with your belittling of anybody who registered because they had no other choice than to do so if they wanted to continue flying with insurance on club sites (because unlike New Zealand, there is no such thing as public or crown land in the UK - the only part that is, is the thin strip between low and high tide mark in certain areas of the coast). Or maybe you could just stop banging on about stuff that became laws years ago and can't be changed and publish your sub-250g outlaw plans so we can all marvel in how much fun sub-250 stuff is instead.

[@demej00]

What blues is this?