ZOHD Altus: Maiden flight footage and full review

[@Patrick-ux5pw]

Hi, Thank you for the scoreboard with stars. It really helps to get some ideas of how it feels.

[@Painless360]

Thanks, it also allows for direct comparison with my other fixed wing reviews... Happy flying

[@travelrideandfly8355]

I’ve finally managed to maiden my Altus on 4s LiIon. It is a nice little plane and it does exactly what i bought it for - FPV flight with decent range in a compact & portable package! It took off quite easily at ~1300g (4s-8000 mAh LiIon) with 1500 idle & 2000 launch throttle then cruised nicely at 50% throttle with ~7 amp, however it seemed to be a little bit nose heavy, even though i balanced it on the wing marks.

[@winginit8729]

Nice job as always. Hopefully zohd will catch back up to the hobby and become relevant again.

[@travelrideandfly8355]

Finally! 🎉 I was waiting for this video like my pay day 😃 ! Thanks for touching the 6s question!

[@MCsCreations]

Fantastic flying and review, Lee! 😃 I absolutely agree about the nose! Stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊

[@n1vca]

Thanks a lot ... seems like the AtomRC Swordfish is the better choice.

[@Prevettspecialdesign]

Nice review Lee, you really hit the nail on the head with this one, if only they had sent an early version out to you and some other highly experienced reviewers or modellers, these downfalls would of been caught and addressed. To be honest I was going to order one when they were pre released, and I’m so glad I didn’t 😢.. all I kept thinking is where do I fit my walksnail system to keep the model looking nice. As you have said all manufacturers should now be designing models for HD video systems as standard! And having to think about the CG is just stupid, surly this is the first issue that should have been caught. If they had of sent some demo models out and the basics had been addressed and revised they would have had a huge seller on their hands! I really hope they pickup on these problems and the next model is better, it’s nice too see them back after so long away. Can’t wait to see what they do next. Thanks for the video I was interesting to see your thought. 👍🏻

[@sullytrny]

The molded logo in the aileron is Priceless

[@gerryherman7420]

Thank you for the very thoughtful flying review, Lee!

[@IanF-FPV]

Lee thanks for the follow up flight video. Andrew Newton touch on something very important with the kit version of this model. The ruddervator custom servo horn seems to only work with Zohd servo splines so I ended up buying a pair for 16 USD. Also it’s a pain and a half to thread the servo wire through the tail boom. I had to cut the servo connector off and solder on an extension cable to have room for the wiring to run through the boom. I also wish the pre made servo wire tracks in the wings were larger and the pocket for the wing servo connectors was larger to accommodate the 3 connectors and the motor wires. I hope someone can 3D print a nose for a GoPro 9 and 11. That’s what I use.

[@Painless360]

The electronics are good so I wouldn't buy the kit personally... Happy flying

[@IanF-FPV]

@@Painless360 Ok nice. After receiving my kit and experiencing the overall build process it doesn’t really seem worth it to buy the kit unless you crashed your pnp..😔

[@northernfpv9562]

Can confirm it can loop and roll on a 4s lipo. However it will drop a wing and stall if you slow down.

[@ayoaina_fpv]

Thanks for this very informative review Lee👍. Yeah for my style of flying, I’d also want it absolutely no more than 850g AUW for this sort of wing area.

[@julianhumphrey4843]

Lee, top man i was just about to pull the trigger on the Altus, but after watching this video i dont feel its the plane for me, lovely looking model and looks to fly very stable but having to add a lot of weight to nose is not on

[@johncarold]

Hi Lee, WOW, That's heavy, just like the AR Pro, I was hoping for how floaty was it. I was thinking about a nose that I can use a pan-n-tilt system in. Thanks again for the video and information about this plane.

[@Painless360]

If you are looking for a floaty twin, then the Swordfish would be my pick at the moment..

[@MrVasmikey]

Same thing with the AR Wing Pro. Has to have a lot of Wt. Up front.

[@Painless360]

Yep, both designed for large, heavy batteries and an action camera to get CG. Great if that's what you want (and don't mind the weight) but tricky to build out at a lower AUW without mods...Happy flying

[@jamesemery1]

would it worth printing a longer nose and trying it with a much lighter battery, it would take a bit of gluing and faff but may transform the planes sluggish response.

[@Painless360]

Hi James, that was exactly the same conclusion I came to in the summary. If the nose had been 3"-4" longer with mounting and airflow for HD FPV systems it would allow for lighter builds that I expect would help launching and flying characteristics... Happy flying

[@jamesemery1]

@@Painless360 yeah I watched the summary I meant a follow up video with your improvements of lower weight and better airflow for cooling.

[@Painless360]

If a good nose extension becomes available, maybe. But then it'll look like a Reptile Dragon v2!

[@ChinaExpatsRC]

I wonder if there will be a VTOL version later.

[@IanF-FPV]

Zodh claims that they are working on it.

[@11coso]

Been waiting for this video! Thanks Lee!

[@owen_is_on_the_internet]

I agree with almost everything. Good review. I used your 3d printed Walksnail mount and it cools very well. I still prefer this over the AtomRC Swordfish (which I also had) because that plane had the opposite problem; a big battery fit in the nose just fine but the plane became VERY nose heavy. Re the launch issues: you’ll have a much better time holding it where Zohd put the little grippy area on the fuselage. I couldn’t really grip it well so I put some grip tape there. Once I did that it takes off pretty well with a 4s 21700 pack and throttle at 1850.

[@Painless360]

Great to hear that you used my nose design. Happy flying!

[@AerialWaviator]

An nice informative review. It's a bit of a petty that a beefy camera and larger battery are required to get CG. It would be amazing if ZOHD offered an alternative fuselage that located the main wing for pilots with less ambitious FPV flight plans. (ie: less than max endurance and max video resolution) Even if an alternative fuselage was just sold as a supplemental accessory to the PNP/KIT editions for a lighter build. The great plug and play feature of the main wings and tail boom should make this a possibility. Or, offered as a boxed sibling model to Altus, (perhaps the Ava).

[@arshadmohammed1072]

Thank you for the video! Do you think this would be a good plane for complete beginners? I love this style of twin tractors. It was a toss up between this and the PNP Heeing T1 for me

[@Painless360]

Lots of stuff on the channel to help... kzbin.info/www/bejne/hZKuonSknJJ1jKc Heewing T1 is a solid little twin... Happy flying

[@arshadmohammed1072]

@@Painless360 Thank you! Been subscribed a while now, appreciate all the info you drop. Take care!

[@evilredd]

Hey Lee I’m having some issues with my SB405Mini…I’m on analog and at launch my OSD completely disappears. I noticed your video started after and it’s a digital system which shouldn’t change anything I believe. Mine is setup simple to yours on a different air frame. I’m almost leaning towards the FC as I have been trying other bits from other models with no luck.

[@Painless360]

I've not used analogue FPV with the flight controller. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gKSbeXmabaiWrqM was a video covering some common fixes... Best

[@wastedworldexploration2842]

I’ve just got this and putting it together,im using a atomrc fc and when I flash inav 7,the saving defaults screen never seams to finish,what would be the reason for this?

[@Painless360]

Known issue. Reboot FC and restart Configurator and it'll be good...

[@pilotmiami1]

Bravo.thenks. go ahead

[@dronepilot260rc]

I think I’ll hold off on this one. I was expecting a 4s 2200 plane 😅

[@razeaz10]

14 satellites in flight is not a lot, in general we are catching fewer satellites in the Czech Republic. Don't know how it is with GLONASS blocking? Thanks

[@Painless360]

14 is about average for here... Happy flying

[@blackbirdboy1]

I think ZOHD have missed a trick. The Atom Swordfish is a much better alrounder.

[@travelrideandfly8355]

Hi again. I’ve just tried the 6s LiIon …. it will NOT work ! ESCs won’t burn, but the motors will have a specific beep (maybe some voltage protection function in the ESC) and will not start the motors ! Without programming info for ESC, you can’t use the 6s. That is a pitty , as it was balancing perfect with my 6s 4000 mAh LiIon, and you can easily limit (scale) throttle in iNav.

[@Painless360]

Thanks for the info, if you figure it out please post how.

[@mmosca]

They should stop designing the nose for old gopros. At least update it to the current ones, or just don't include a gopro in the nose.

[@peterross9541]

YES.. it's not so fast, but only 100mAh per minute, and that's with two motors = good efficiency ❤

[@probante]

on mine I had to use a 7000 mah sohd battery to get the CG spot on. If you try with a 2200 or worse a 1500 mah there is no way you can balance. it. Cruise amperage is around 5 or 6 amp therefore very good but max speed is 110 kmh max. I am using your 3d print design and installed a dji airunit. (thanks Lee!!!) all in all is a good plane, but being spoiled with the Swordfish I honestly dont like this plane so much. If it wasnt for you stl nose file I would have been forced to place the airunit on top of the battery hatch which is absolutely a crap in my opinion.

[@KanaBaradei]

I don't know how well it will go with this model TBH, from what I see there is no real reason not to go with the swordfish, both in terms of pricing and performance.

[@Painless360]

You can directly compare my scores for the key metrics via kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y4W1lKeBntRjd5I Happy flying

[@readypostify]

Nice.

[@burntnougat5341]

Wish the would give the v tails a rest. Swordfish and this are both v tails

[@dronepilot260rc]

The nano talon is a V-tail but I enjoyed that one. Sadly I crashed it with experimental stuff haha 😆

[@burntnougat5341]

@@dronepilot260rc mini talon is a great platform. It's well designed as a v tail pusher.

[@davidlee50]

To be critical I'd stay with a grass area for that plane.

[@Painless360]

I don't think that is critical. I think that's a good idea for almost all foam planes without landing gear... Happy flying

[@jas-FPV]

Looks like too mich throw…. No plane should do that with full aileron

[@Painless360]

Imagine the results with the full 19-20mm throw as supplied! Happy flying