Not sure if this is the correct place to post this, but here goes. I have been thinking about building a quadrotor to play around with. I know there are plenty out there to buy already to go, but I like to build things, so I was wondering if I could get a little insite on where and what type of controller to buy. In the future I would like to mount a video camera on it. I would like it to have some presence in the air, thinking about 24" to 30" across, not including the props. Just need some help in sourcing a controller that is going to be fairly easy to program and set up.

The world is yours!

Buy a DJI Phantom, it comes with everything you need and is perfect out of the box.

Total $479.

Have Rotors, Will Fly!

If you fly spektrum, check out the Flip 3D

It's a fun quad that will outperform any of the RTF ones for a fraction of the price.

I fly a Vtail aerobatic quad, love it.

Check out Arducopter site. There is tons of info:

Arducopter

Thanks for the info. This is something I want to build from the ground up. I did find some good information on [url=http://www.kkmulticopter.kr/index.html?modea=kk]

I found quite a few helpful videos on youtube as well. Right now it is a matter of figuring out what motors to use, esc's will obviously need to be matched to the motors. I even found some square glass filled nylon tube to use for the arms, and the same glass filled nylon material in sheets for the center hub. I found several places that sell boards ranging from simple easy to program to ones that require mad computer skills to write code for them.

I'll keep you all posted on how this project as it develops.

The world is yours!

Quadrotor

Runryder now features a multirotor section where you will probably meet multirotor builders and pilots and probably get leads on deals. Good luck!
Junkpilot

When you fly JUNK it's hard to tell when you've crashed!

Explains why I couldn't find the "quadrotor" section. Thanks.

The world is yours!

I've been researching the same thing. I want to build from scratch rather than a kit to teach my teenage boys how to build. They are both interested for different reasons. I wanted something flexible that could grown over time. I found three options:

1) The KK controller from Hobby King. This guy is cheap and easy to program with an on-screen LCD unit. It's not fancy and won't support adding on platforms, but it's cheap and it works. This is a good basic option for the money (< $30) and it will prove out your quad hardware.
2) The APM (ArduPilot Mega) 2.5 or 2.6 board from 3D Robotics (other vendors sell this too). This guy has a bunch of features and can be reprogrammed, flashed and built into many configurations. It also looks like it has interfaces with other boards, although I'm still researching this.
3) The NAZA board from DJI. This is the Cadillac board. It's expensive, but it's proven and works.

I'm probably going to try option #2 to start. It's a bit more raw of an interface, which is what I'm looking for, but it has proven support. As far as the hardware, you can get inexpensive parts almost anywhere. HK has really cheap stuff, but the frames can be brittle. You get what you pay for. Others have better frames. You can also make them yourself as long as they are symmetric and reasonably stiff.

I just fines building one from scratch this is my set-up

Frame: hobby king X650F Glass Fiber Quadcopter 550mm
(lengthen to 700mm)

1 MC: NAZA-M V1 avec GPS

4 MOTOR: AX-2810Q 900KV 370W

Props: RC Timer 10X4.5 CF

4 ESC: Hobby Pentium 30A

Kit LED

Flies great !

You can do so many set-ups, its not funny! depending on what you want to do, but you have to do it right

Have fun!

P.S. sorry for the spelling or the grammar I am dyslexic!

Check out Arducopter site. There is tons of info:

Arducopter

+1 For Ardupilot!

Jarrett Watson
http://jarrettrc.wordpress.com/

Explains why I couldn't find the "quadrotor" section. Thanks.

Because there's not a quad section. BUT.... there is a multirotor section. It's right under off topic.

https://rc.runryder.com/helicopter/f148p1/

JRjoe.....
Indoor plumbing??? No, we don't need that!!!

There sure is!

The world is yours!

You get what you pay for in RC equipment. I personally use Spektrun because I have found it to be very reliable under all conditions. A quadrarotor can be a dangerous aircraft it you lose control or it goes out of control so I want to have confidence in my RC equipment. Get a transmitter with as many channels as you can afford. More is generally better.

My Quad has been done for a few months now. It flies great for being a budget build.

The world is yours!