not a cinewhoop...lightweight...O3 with no frame in view...2.5" micro? yes please!

My favourite micro quad size is the 2.5" - out of all my builds the heavy 2.5" form factor is hands down the best -- it's portable and has great freestyle flight characteristics. I hate the expression "flies like a 5 inch" because in reality, nothing does.

The Holodonata from craftedkwads is a straightforward and simple but proven design. The anodized cage is a super nice touch, designed to protect while being out of the view as well as being forward enough that the props also aren't visible.
It's a classic squashed X layout. Some may prefer separate arms but I like the weight savings of a single bottom plate although this one is extra beefy for a 2.5" at 3mm thick. In general, it's a solid frame. Much lighter than similar builds but when assembled it doesn't feel flimsy like many toothpick-esque builds.

Kai was nice to me and sold me a pre-production kit. I had to supply the m1.6 bolts for mounting the O3 and the m2 bolts for the camera and the motors. Hopefully these will be supplied in the final run as they are not very common. The m1.6 bolts are kind of specific and motors of this class are generally supplied to fit 2mm thick frames.

The guts (motors and flight controller) were taken from a geprc phantom HD from 3 years back and previously built into a skeleton naked digital toothpick which never took flight due to various issues.

The final weight is at 120g which I feel is a decent weight for tossability although my last build around that weight was with 1404 motors which has around 20% more stator volume. Only time will tell, watch this space.

will upload all flights to this playlist
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZO-KyA5iVKmvMwepFF9LGd5JNY6v4Otz

Today it passed the living room hover test, yay. Now waiting for the lovely london weather to cooperate

27 June 2024
halfway through 2024...man I really need to get out more and fly