Tank

Introduction:

This is like the armattan bumper except without the foam. I was curious to try an similar frame which can support 2" props for better efficiency and power.

Components:

• X2 UFO Frame
• 4x EaglePower 1103 8000kv with Gemfan props
• Super S F4 stack with 4in1 ESC
• Frsky XM+ receiver
• LST S2 AIO camera/vtx

Conclusion:

The frame is pretty tough, so I called it "tank". If I were to guess, I would probably say the armattan bumper is more durable, but it has some major drawbacks (noise, efficiency, and smaller prop support). I inverted the frame to make it a "pusher" style quad. By using a super s stack, I had to drill new holes into the frame. It's able to support 2" props, but some of the wiring comes to within 1 or 2mms of the props. Also, using a AIO camera in the front leaves a tight fit with regards to prop clearance. I had to move the camera sticking slightly outside the frame in order to allow the props to clear. Overall, the build wasn't too bad compared to other micros. The final weight came to 53grams with the 4 blade 2040 gemfans.

The quad is actually very stable and noise levels are not bad at all. Efficiency is better than the RS90, but it doesn't corner as well as the Moskito since it's slightly heavier and you're carrying more weight across the turns. In fact, it feels a lot like the RS90, but a bit more stable and less noisy. My only complaint so far is that there isn't enough power to flip the quad over in turtle mode.

I tried two props on this, the Gemfan 2040 3 blade and 4 blades. Overall, I felt that the 3 blade offers more initial thrust, but the 4 blades offered more stability and better turning. This was after flying 2 packs on each prop type. My opinion is still likely to change over time, but I'm probably going to stick with the 4 blade props.

Overall, this has met all my expectations with the exception of turtle mode.