Do Bright Skins Make Visibility a Lot Better?

[Hillbilly1236]

In

$5.00 to register with FAA. NBD

Canada I think it's $25 to register but that is not the issue. If the drone weighs 250G or more I need to get a Pilot's license and that is not an easy thing to get, from what I have read. I'm not prepared to go through that yet. Maybe in the future, if I decide I really want to get more involved in this hobby or want something more than the MM2.

 

[Hillbilly1236]

With the LAND module and the strobe, I'll be less than 5 grams overweight.

View attachment 123014

Your second edit above shows that the entire setup, ie the AC and LED mount, with lights, puts the AC under the 250g limit. That should be good to go in this country, at least for now. Thanks for that info.

 

[teeroy]

In

Canada I think it's $25 to register but that is not the issue. If the drone weighs 250G or more I need to get a Pilot's license and that is not an easy thing to get, from what I have read. I'm not prepared to go through that yet. Maybe in the future, if I decide I really want to get more involved in this hobby or want something more than the MM2.

It's only $5 here as well. Or $3.91 USD...we get a better deal lol

Registering your drone: Overview

How to register and deregister your drone; how to transfer ownership of a drone.

tc.canada.ca

 

[teeroy]

Your second edit above shows that the entire setup, ie the AC and LED mount, with lights, puts the AC under the 250g limit. That should be good to go in this country, at least for now. Thanks for that info.

The LAND module is a beepy-flashy thing for if (or when) your drone goes down so you can find it easier. A little peace of mind I figured. It has enough battery to run for a few days, only turns on when it senses the drone has stopped moving for a certain period of time.

 

[Hillbilly1236]

It's only $5 here as well. Or $3.91 USD...we get a better deal lol

Registering your drone: Overview

How to register and deregister your drone; how to transfer ownership of a drone.

tc.canada.ca

This is funny. I just realized you live in Alberta. Your member info on the left side of the screen says your location is Roma, A..... which I took to be elsewhere in the world. So you already know what is involved to fly In Canada. The cost is not an issue. Just the licensing part.

Did you get the LED's in Canada and if so where?

 

[teeroy]

This is funny. I just realized you live in Alberta. Your member info on the left side of the screen says your location is Roma, A..... which I took to be elsewhere in the world. So you already know what is involved to fly In Canada. The cost is not an issue. Just the licensing part.

Did you get the LED's in Canada and if so where?

I ordered right from the Firehouse site, shipping was about a week to here in northern AB. I can't remember the shipping cost, I think it was about the same as the LED strobe.

Just an FYI...the license was pretty easy to get, when I bought my original mini from DJI Amazon store it came with a free drone basic license course from West Coast Drone. I did their online course and figured what the heck, took a stab at the basic license exam and passed it first try. It was $10 to take it.

As for the weight thing, I doubt anyone in the field will be carrying a gram scale to weigh our drones if they are checking a guy out. I'd just quickly pop the bottom strobe off if so. I'm not going to register mine.

 

[TM74]

I have mine in dark but do have a strobe under it.

 

[DanMan32]

I ordered right from the Firehouse site, shipping was about a week to here in northern AB. I can't remember the shipping cost, I think it was about the same as the LED strobe.

Just an FYI...the license was pretty easy to get, when I bought my original mini from DJI Amazon store it came with a free drone basic license course from West Coast Drone. I did their online course and figured what the heck, took a stab at the basic license exam and passed it first try. It was $10 to take it.

As for the weight thing, I doubt anyone in the field will be carrying a gram scale to weigh our drones if they are checking a guy out. I'd just quickly pop the bottom strobe off if so. I'm not going to register mine.

I was thinking that too. Only fish and game carry scales.

 

[Hillbilly1236]

I ordered right from the Firehouse site, shipping was about a week to here in northern AB. I can't remember the shipping cost, I think it was about the same as the LED strobe.

Just an FYI...the license was pretty easy to get, when I bought my original mini from DJI Amazon store it came with a free drone basic license course from West Coast Drone. I did their online course and figured what the heck, took a stab at the basic license exam and passed it first try. It was $10 to take it.

As for the weight thing, I doubt anyone in the field will be carrying a gram scale to weigh our drones if they are checking a guy out. I'd just quickly pop the bottom strobe off if so. I'm not going to register mine.

I think the online course you took probably saved you a bunch of time by not having to research and focus on things that are not likely to be on the test. If I get to the point that I want to get licensed, I will likely just go through the reading materials or see if there is a cheap online guide. Or I will just take the test to see what kind of questions there are and then have a better idea of what I need to study before taking the test again.

As far as the weight goes, I agree that it is unlikely to have a law enforcement officer, with a scale, question me. But the fine for being non-compliant is $1000. Not worth the risk in my opinion. Just better off to get the license and register the drone. I'm certainly not worried about it if I am flying at home since I pretty much live in the boonies on a large acreage and the land behind me and the land to one side of me is all Crown land. I could easily fly for 20 kms in most directions without being anywhere near people or buildings and probably over 100km in some directions. I just want to be compliant when I'm away from home, even if the risk is very low.

 

[Hillbilly1236]

I have mine in dark but do have a strobe under it.

I suspect that is easier to see against clouds and light colored backgrounds and it looks nice too.

 

[A.O.]

True but I think the poster lost their drone in daylight and couldn't find it despite apparently walking past it at a distance of single digit feet. When they returned, in darkness, with a torch the tape worked a treat and lead them straight to it.

Gee wiz, here in America we have upgraded and went to flashlights instead of torches!! ? Sorry, I just had to.

 

[A.O.]

On a more serious note and to address your original question... "do skins make visibility better?" YES, and HECK YES!! that is my answer. I went to a fluorescent Orange and its WAY more visible!


And against the trees...



I also added an Arc V strobe to the belly but was not impressed, other than at dusk I think the skin did much better at making it visible!

 

[lannes]

You will still be under 250 grams with this strobe. The mini 2 weighs 230 grams ready to fly with battery and memory card.

Edit: oops, my bad...238. you'll be one gram over

Edit #2: Good to go!

View attachment 123012

Doesn't that block the cooling slats on the bottom of the MM, airflow cooling through them might be important as the MM doesn't have a fan ?

 

[Deleted member 103366]

Gee wiz, here in America we have upgraded and went to flashlights instead of torches!! ? Sorry, I just had to.

Nahh you olks just cant spoke write, lol

 

[African wildlife]

The biggest factor here is mental concentration. If the drone is far away - and you take your mind of it - you'll be stuffed if you have poor or average mental skills. You'll likely be looking for the drone in the wrong part of the sky. It's easily done because most minds are not well trained. Even if someone's good, this can still happen and a drone can be hard to find.

As mentioned above, a strobe light is by far the best option - simply because it could "catch" your attention - but you might still easily miss it. You don't have to be in Montana, USA, to be at the sharp end of "big sky".

Brightly coloured skins will have no effect on potential bird attacks - whether the drone is seen as an intruder or as prey. Does the bright pink of a greater flamingo deter an African fish eagle? No.

[Edited to add:] Your eyes/brain don't see the whole of the sky or landscape if you're looking for a specific something (like a drone). If you don't know exactly where something is it can be tricky to "find" it. You can easily miss or "not see" a large object such as a zebra or red hartebeest (more brighter coloured skin) unless you know exactly where to look. Your eyes/brain focus on a relatively small part of your wider vision when trying to locate or relocate something.

 

[TM74]

Doesn't that block the cooling slats on the bottom of the MM, airflow cooling through them might be important as the MM doesn't have a fan ?

I thought that so just decided to stick with the original for the strobe...

 

[Hillbilly1236]

Doesn't that block the cooling slats on the bottom of the MM, airflow cooling through them might be important as the MM doesn't have a fan ?

Not the one I'm considering. https://www.amazon.ca/Wrapgrade-Ski...keywords=WRAPGRADE&qid=1612303847&sr=8-7&th=1

 

[Hillbilly1236]

On a more serious note and to address your original question... "do skins make visibility better?" YES, and HECK YES!! that is my answer. I went to a fluorescent Orange and its WAY more visible!
View attachment 123040

And against the trees...

View attachment 123041

I also added an Arc V strobe to the belly but was not impressed, other than at dusk I think the skin did much better at making it visible!

That certainly looks like it would be a lot easier to see in most conditions. Does it help when the drone is a long ways off? Basically would it help to extend the VLOS range?

 

[teeroy]

Doesn't that block the cooling slats on the bottom of the MM, airflow cooling through them might be important as the MM doesn't have a fan ?

The body of the strobe is below the vents, there is a few mm of gap to allow the cooling ports to remain functional.

 

[Hillbilly1236]

I thought that so just decided to stick with the original for the strobe...

Do you have a skin on that Mini or is that some special edition one?