Best strobe lights???

[Js415]

This weekend I was able to take my MPP out to an area that had pretty much unrestricted air space as far as vision is concerned.

I literally could have flown it 2-3 miles with no obstructions. I did mange to fly it out a little over 4000' several times.

It became pretty obvious that around 2500-3000 feet I just flat out could not see it any more. This led me to start thinking about buying some strobes for the front and rear of it.

I've read up on several models, and think that I have picked out the best ones, but I am wondering exactly how much help are these strobes, on a sunny, clear day?

Will they add 500'-1000' of LOS?

What do you do to keep them charged? Is it one more thing that I have to remember to charge up before I go flying? Will they stay charged until needed? Do they have to be discharged for storing?

Thanks for any advice and tips.

Jerry

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

Hi Jerry,
Yes strobes can easily give you good daytime VLOS out the 1000', some much further.

Have a look through some of these threads (searched led strobes) as there have been LOADS of posts on this topic that will aswer your questions.

Search results for query: led strobes

mavicpilots.com

What do you do to keep them charged? Is it one more thing that I have to remember to charge up before I go flying? Will they stay charged until needed? Do they have to be discharged for storing?

As for these 2 interesting questions.
Yes you should check strobe charge before going out to fly (they have very small lipos in them).
I would normally just pop them on charge as I do my drone batteries before heading out, they charge very fast.

They don't have auto discharge, but do lose charge like lipos do gradually.
I would use the strobe(s) flying, then just leave until pre next flight preps.

Some strobes like the FHT duals have 2 - 2.5 hrs run time, others like FHT ARCII has up around 6 hours, so plenty of time to fly 4 or more batteries ion a Mavic model.

 

[Thomas B]

1. Use 4 Firehouse ARC2s... yes, even in midday AZ sun I can see them near mile and much better near dusk.

2. Yes!

3. The USB plugin to my computer (have an adapter to connect all 4 to one port.
Yes you have to remember... after 11 months use (>500hr) they still run strobe method for about5-6hrs on a charge.
They seem to hold charge at least a week, never went longer w/o using them.
No advice to do discharge for storage from Firehouse. I never have.

Image in midday of the ARC2s on my M2P. Only the green flashed in the pic. Note the reflection on the prop... and no, never had them interfere with imaging.


Hope this helps you.

 

[Bill combs]

1. Use 4 Firehouse ARC2s... yes, even in midday AZ sun I can see them near mile and much better near dusk.

2. Yes!

3. The USB plugin to my computer (have an adapter to connect all 4 to one port.
Yes you have to remember... after 11 months use (>500hr) they still run strobe method for about5-6hrs on a charge.
They seem to hold charge at least a week, never went longer w/o using them.
No advice to do discharge for storage from Firehouse. I never have.

Image in midday of the ARC2s on my M2P. Only the green flashed in the pic. Note the reflection on the prop... and no, never had them interfere with imaging.

View attachment 85273
Hope this helps you.

good morning tom,i noticed your m2 has a slight tilt was it windy that day? i took my m2 and my ph4p2 out yesterday and my phantom had a tilt without any wind so when i got back home i calibrated the imu and hope that takes care of it.

 

[Thomas B]

good morning tom,i noticed your m2 has a slight tilt was it windy that day? i took my m2 and my ph4p2 out yesterday and my phantom had a tilt without any wind so when i got back home i calibrated the imu and hope that takes care of it.

Had about an 18mph crosswind as I remember it.

 

[msinger]

I've read up on several models, and think that I have picked out the best ones

Most people are using one of these strobe lights:

• Flytron STROBON Cree Light (attach with these mounts)
• Firehouse Dual Cree Light (attach with these mounts)
• Firehouse ARC Light (attach with these mounts)
• Lume Cube Strobe Light

What do you do to keep them charged?

Most of them charge via a Micro USB cable. You can connect them to a USB port on your computer.

Is it one more thing that I have to remember to charge up before I go flying?

For sure. Being able to see your drone easily mid-flight is a great trade-off though.

Will they stay charged until needed? Do they have to be discharged for storing?

Like other batteries, the charge will decrease over time when not used. If you don't charge them for many months (some as little as 4+ months), the batteries could become permanently damaged and need to be replaced. That's not an easy thing to do since lights like these do not have removable batteries.

Do they have to be discharged for storing?

From my experience, it seems most people damage them by storing them for a long period of time without recharging the battery.

 

[Js415]

Great info from everybody. Thanks for the links and I plan on ordering some lights very soon.

Jerry