Micro Apex 3” Freestyle

By petek-fpv on Feb 27, 2021

23  6,475  7

Wanted to build a discrete freestyle quad as my 5" was feeling a bit Obnoxious.
Aim was to build somthing that would fly similar to a 5" and be able to take beating. ImpulseRC's new apex micro was the obvious choice with a solid 5mm frame.

This thing rips!
Get around 3 and a half minutes of mild aggresive flight time on a 4s 750mah. (Tattu R-Line)

Photos

Discussion

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YanikS   Mar 22, 2021  

How loud is the drone? Also i'm thinking on going with 1404, 1505, 1606 or 1408 motor (inspired by babyhawk hd 1404, maybe also run 3.5inch props) you think that would work well enough?

feej   May 31, 2021 

I'm also interested in just how loud this is compared to a 5". I love my 5" but I do feel a bit self conscious about it sometimes :-D Made a 3" toothpick which is great, and much more usable in smaller parks, with great flight times (4-5 mins on a 450Mah 3S) but doesn't quite have the throw. I'd love a smaller freestyle basher so I'm considering a 3/4" build to join the family.

jeffcd   Mar 04, 2021  

Nice build! I'm actually thinking about this frame for my son, because he's been flying the TBS Source Micro 2" with 1103 motors on 3S, but I'm tired of replacing motors! The motors are just so small and the frame arms don't offer any protection. I got CNC Madness to cut me a couple of spare bottom plates, because he's already broken one. The Micro Apex looks like a tank, so I think he'd be able to spend more time flying and less time fixing. Those Rotorgeek 1407's look very durable also.
Curious, is the 3.5 min flight time in the winter (cold temps)?

petek-fpv   Mar 04, 2021 
1

Thanks man! I was previously flying the Geprc Phantom frame but had similar problems with the arms motors breaking to easily.
Got the apex so I could have a micro beater and I have to say its worked great. I've had a few hard concrete slams and the thing has held up. Frame and 4mm arms are solid, so would highly recommend. Same story goes for the motors, I live near the rotorgeeks store in toronto and wanted a solid durable motor, obviously going for the more durable option means more weight and these motors did push the build just over 250g. But they are solid and very well built. (Rotorgeeks have actually discontinued manufacturing these motors, but still have a fairly large stock of the motors and spares).

As for the flight time, yes thats winter temps, around zero degrees celsius.

Also ran Genfam 3052 props today and they are what ill be using from now.

jeffcd   Mar 04, 2021 

Thanks for the info, it sounds like a good frame. I'm in Niagara region, but Rotorgeeks ships here pretty quick, so I like the idea of ordering motors from them incase I ever need a replacement. I didn't know those were being discontinued, so that's good to know.
Do you think it should be pretty easy to keep it under 250g with an analog setup? I've got a small VTX and then I'll probably put in a splitcam or Caddx Baby Turtle. Would you say that the 750mAh is the minumum or do you think 650 would be ok in the warmer weather? I think for him I'll probably keep the props fairly tame.

petek-fpv   Mar 05, 2021 

I think you could keep it sub 250g with analog. I've not tested the drone with anything less than 750mah. If its just more weight your trying to cut down on, I'd think a 3S would still run nice with the 5000kv motors.

DrMacca   Mar 01, 2021  
1

Wow, amazing build! That's incredible you were able to fit everything in there and it still looks super neat and tidy!!! 👍👍👍

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