Cerberus Trifecta - Cerb v2 newbe build

Futuramille · Nov 29, 2017

strange bit is i flew the mini with this wrong antenna for a while. i just noticed the rise stuff is rpsma.
unfortunately, i immediately suspected my little paracorded wire harness. i couldn't get continuity in the yellow wire so ... pulled it apart. redoing it now but also got a solder sucker. desoldered those vtx like magic... through holes are empty. lol
$6. I'll be ready for testing again soon. btw, once paracord was off... continuity was fine before i desoldered the wires but to get paracord back on... it wasn't easier the second time.
lmao

HighTechPauper · Nov 29, 2017

Futuramille said:
got a solder sucker. desoldered those vtx like magic... through holes are empty. lol
$6

Can't beat the right tool for the right job, used the original plastic "Soldapult" for decades, same one with same tip.
Need to get one someday, where did you get your Futura? I was looking at this because I have used them for 30 years and they worked so well.
We had fancy soldering stations with vacuum and the whole 9, the only time they were any better was close quarters where you couldn't get the iron tip and the extractor into the same area to pull it wet and needed a heated tip.

Economical Static-Safe Challenger Soldapullt

Futuramille · Nov 29, 2017

i found that the vtx power connection to the fc was highly susceptible to breaking those wires with the hood coming off and on. hopefully adding 5 min apoxy to the joint will help.
back together but still no signal. hmmm

Futuramille · Nov 29, 2017

here's the $6 unit. the wick will take more practice i guess... didn't work well. the solder sucker worked perfectly. i checked where the solder went inside and it'le take some time to fill. it's a no maintainence, replace at some point unit. https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01I14V4X8?psc=1&ref=yo_pop_mb_pd
spring loaded, you just aim at the joint when its liquid. it left the wire bare and the through hole empty.
no clue how long it'le last but.. $6

Wayno52 · Nov 29, 2017

I’ve only done it once los for a few seconds before realising no antenna and fried vtx.

Futuramille · Nov 29, 2017

I'm not sure i should "like" that statement or not. i just did the whole setup with the wrong antenna... sigh.
did i mention this was a newbe build?
lol
y'all are great and I'm working through it...

Wayno52 · Nov 29, 2017

Lol, I think some can be lucky and some not so. I am usually the latter. But I will never do it again.

HighTechPauper · Nov 30, 2017

Yeah I can't like Wayne losing a vtx, I get lucky a lot too, unless i'm stupid, then there's no telling how unlucky I can get

Futura, soldering braid works great but you have to add flux or the wire won't accept (wick) the solder like you want. Just like the pads on a PDB or FC, without the rosin core in the solder it wouldn't flow to the edges like you might notice it does. Rosin/flux whole job in life is to react with heat to remove the impurities from the wire/plating/solder so that it "flows like water" once the temp gets right, and that will also cause it to wick into the braid like you want.
You know when you did it right because it will be mirror like and completely wetted to the edges. If you get good enough at guessing heat dissipation (power/ground/big wires suck a lot of heat, FC signal pads, not so much) you will add just enough solder to be slightly convexed instead of pillowing up like so many of us do. I did repair on avionics in the corps and that schooling and time serving in the repair lab has served me well ever since. Hope it helps you to better know how the solder will act.
Thanks for the link, looks like I'm gonna try one too, they even give you a spool of wicking braid, I just gotta pick up some non acidic electronics flux, I'm still using plumbing flux cause it's what I had.

Futuramille · Nov 30, 2017

wow, lots of great info. solder is certainly an interesting medium. i can see how time at it would bunifit perfection. very cool stuff.

Futuramille · Dec 1, 2017

so here's where i am at. the tbs unify vtx is sending signal. i can see the signal go off and on in my fatshark (truD furious fpv module) goggles signal scanner. i changed the VTX band and channel with the button on the vtx. osd doesn't work through the viewer on the channel being sent. just a solid grey screen.
i plugged the new cam into to mini (same cam) and got picture through the mini vtx w/new cam so it's not the camera. i checked voltage and continuity on the new plugs. the tbs is sending 5.2v power and i get some signal on yellow and white (not sure how to read that) on the camera plug end. ground is good to the FC. i attached the blue wire from the camera to the 12v

FC power terminal from the pdb...
still no picture. what am i missing.

Futuramille · Dec 1, 2017

white and yellow wires sound and video... are showing continuity at both ends of the harness. how do you test sound and video signal?

theGreenOrange · Dec 2, 2017

Hmm, not sure on this one. You can wire the video to an RCA plug and test with a tv if you need to.

Futuramille · Dec 2, 2017

I'll call furious fpv on Monday. the vtx is broke i think. I'm out of ideas so...

meanwhile, replacement motor came for the micro. getting in flights today and tuning. Will post a vid later. it's on 25w right now during setup so range is to the end of the yard-ish. Jason says then have a little red hood piece almost ready, not yet released

Futuramille · Dec 4, 2017

i got messages to both theflynoshop and blacksheep support on the vtx. awaiting sufficient replies. meanwhile.. here's some micro flying. we added a horizontal loop.

what a ball. on 2s its perfect, on 3s its.. err needs calming down a bit. motors get to 100deg. probably too much D but i need to tune a happy medium between 2s and 3s. i have to pull apart and rewire the FC/VTX to get telemetry including vbat. for now I'm puting batteries through it and gathering an opinion between it and the mini to settle on a setup i like.

theGreenOrange · Dec 4, 2017

If you want, in betaflight you can set two different rate profiles (with different PIDs), and change between them with a switch.

theGreenOrange · Dec 4, 2017

Are the motors getting to 100c or 100f?

theGreenOrange · Dec 4, 2017

Futuramille · Dec 4, 2017

Futuramille · Dec 5, 2017

found, dressed, posted this vid tonight. my son is 20yo, a white water raft guide in Montana during the summer (fully certified to save your butt). it's great to see him having fun in the off season.