Firehouse Arc V Placement

[JamesJB]

Hi guys just recently got the Mavic Air 2S.

I just got the Firehouse Arc V Strobes,1 White and 2 Multicolor.

My plan is to put the white on top,one on the front arm facing forward (Green) and one on the back arm facing backward (Red). Will this work with just using the velcro that came with the strobes?
Or would having them facing down be better?

Will my plan work? Trying to do it like a normal plane would and for Safety. I'll be flying at night with my drone also.

Thank you inadvance for the help.

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

Hi James,

For night flight (safety of manned aircraft), I'd recommend putting the white one on top, as most manned aircraft will be well above your 400' max altitude (assuming that's your airspace drone rule).

The red / green, there's not going to be much chance of mounting them facing upwards, perhaps a couple of arm mounts might be adequate, put them on the rear arms maybe ?

If the area on top in front of the battery (between the sensors) will take the ARCV, that might help counterbalance the rear arm mounting for the other coloured strobes.

Regardless of the great visibility / range of the ARCV, I've personally never liked the bulk of the unit, preferring the easily mounted ARCII or Dual size.

FWIW, if we could fly at night here, I would be flying way lower than the max allowable (here it's 400' / 120m too).
A couple of hundred feet should be ample for night flight, and should not get into trouble with manned aircraft at that level.
Then a strobe can be used mostly to help the pilot know exactly where their drone is.

I'd picture manned aircraft keeping a very safe height flying at night, much more so than in daylight.
Helicopters might be the only aircraft to come down the the supposed 500' manned aircraft usually have as a minimum altitude.
Be wary around hospitals with rescue choppers possibly coming in.

 

[JamesJB]

Hi James,

For night flight (safety of manned aircraft), I'd recommend putting the white one on top, as most manned aircraft will be well above your 400' max altitude (assuming that's your airspace drone rule).

The red / green, there's not going to be much chance of mounting them facing upwards, perhaps a couple of arm mounts might be adequate, put them on the rear arms maybe ?

If the area on top in front of the battery (between the sensors) will take the ARCV, that might help counterbalance the rear arm mounting for the other coloured strobes.

Regardless of the great visibility / range of the ARCV, I've personally never liked the bulk of the unit, preferring the easily mounted ARCII or Dual size.

FWIW, if we could fly at night here, I would be flying way lower than the max allowable (here it's 400' / 120m too).
A couple of hundred feet should be ample for night flight, and should not get into trouble with manned aircraft at that level.
Then a strobe can be used mostly to help the pilot know exactly where their drone is.

I'd picture manned aircraft keeping a very safe height flying at night, much more so than in daylight.
Helicopters might be the only aircraft to come down the the supposed 500' manned aircraft usually have as a minimum altitude.
Be wary around hospitals with rescue choppers possibly coming in.

I wouldn't put the colored strobes facing upward was going to try and face one on the front arm facing forward and then the other colored one on the back on the arm facing the opposite direction so I can see it.

Hope I made sense.

 

[Starz]

Front and rear arms work fine. Velcro works on what I have been flying for a few years and haven’t lost one to date. I tend to wiggle the two Velcro pieces together to make sure they get hooked together.

 

[vindibona1]

If you have one clear, one red and one green, this is what I would do. I had to look at photos of the Air2s because I wasn't sure where the sensors were located.

Clear: If during the day, you will want to place it on the bottom. It will help you locate it with bright sky. Heavy duty velcro works very well. Mount it behind the gimbal ahead of the bottom sensor. WARNING: DO NOT USE THE PROVIDED VELCRO FROM FIREHOUSE. It wears quite quickly and cost me a strobe.

Red should go in front. What I would do/have done is get an 90° support to stand the front strobe up so you can see it well from a distance. The Green should be mounted on the rear, again away from the sensor. I actually use smaller strobes and like the Vifly brand because they're cheap and versatile. But I'm illustrating the front facing strobe with an Arc V.

I don't recommend putting an Arc V on one arm, even though you could. I don't like the idea of mis-balancing, though the drone is strong enough to compensate. BTW... If you do mount on the arm I strongly recommend reinforcing it with elastic hair bands. I have a pack of 300 that cost less than $3. I don' really even need velcro on the arms.

I do like the front/rear mounting which I've now gone to with my Mini. I can't avoid the sensor on the back of my Mavic 2, so I go with front strobes- but I can't really get a good handle on orientation unless it's pointed at me.

When I fly at night I have a clear Arc V on the bottom and another on top with my Mavic 2. I do have an Arc II and other strobes to do the same with my Mini 2, but the Mini 2 doesn't have the low light capability of the Mavic 2... but I have a Mini 3 coming which will be a different story.

 

[Starz]

Another method.

 

[vindibona1]

Another method.
View attachment 150190View attachment 150191

Vifly? At the price and weight I would do two and two and an Arc V on the bottom.

 

[JamesJB]

If you have one clear, one red and one green, this is what I would do. I had to look at photos of the Air2s because I wasn't sure where the sensors were located.

Clear: If during the day, you will want to place it on the bottom. It will help you locate it with bright sky. Heavy duty velcro works very well. Mount it behind the gimbal ahead of the bottom sensor. WARNING: DO NOT USE THE PROVIDED VELCRO FROM FIREHOUSE. It wears quite quickly and cost me a strobe.

Red should go in front. What I would do/have done is get an 90° support to stand the front strobe up so you can see it well from a distance. The Green should be mounted on the rear, again away from the sensor. I actually use smaller strobes and like the Vifly brand because they're cheap and versatile. But I'm illustrating the front facing strobe with an Arc V.

I don't recommend putting an Arc V on one arm, even though you could. I don't like the idea of mis-balancing, though the drone is strong enough to compensate. BTW... If you do mount on the arm I strongly recommend reinforcing it with elastic hair bands. I have a pack of 300 that cost less than $3. I don' really even need velcro on the arms.

I do like the front/rear mounting which I've now gone to with my Mini. I can't avoid the sensor on the back of my Mavic 2, so I go with front strobes- but I can't really get a good handle on orientation unless it's pointed at me.

When I fly at night I have a clear Arc V on the bottom and another on top with my Mavic 2. I do have an Arc II and other strobes to do the same with my Mini 2, but the Mini 2 doesn't have the low light capability of the Mavic 2... but I have a Mini 3 coming which will be a different story.



View attachment 150182

View attachment 150184

View attachment 150185

First if ok could you link me to a place that has good velcro and or holders?

2nd the reason I thought about putting green on the arm in front and red in back on the arm and a white on top is I thought that would kinda be like real aircraft for example a Cessna and wanted to follow or exceed FAA regs. I read somewhere that the Firehouse Arc V's can be seen like up to 4 miles. Plus would the placements I was planning not help with the balance? Just wondering.

I do like flying at night also just wish the camera could take great pics and video of the moon but in the video and pics the moon looks a million miles away,it's like the camera pushes the moon farther away .

I thought about putting one on the bottom but won't that interfere with the bottom sensors or the Aux light?

Edit: Your right meant to say red in front green in back lol.

 

[rickfmdj]

First if ok could you link me to a place that has good velcro and or holders?

2nd the reason I thought about putting green on the arm in front and red in back on the arm and a white on top is I thought that would kinda be like real aircraft for example a Cessna and wanted to follow or exceed FAA regs. I read somewhere that the Firehouse Arc V's can be seen like up to 4 miles. Plus would the placements I was planning not help with the balance? Just wondering.

I do like flying at night also just wish the camera could take great pics and video of the moon but in the video and pics the moon looks a million miles away,it's like the camera pushes the moon farther away .

I thought about putting one on the bottom but won't that interfere with the bottom sensors or the Aux light?

Edit: Your right meant to say red in front green in back lol.

Hi James, I bought this industrial pack of Velcro Ovals at Walmart for about $6 and they work great! Good luck!

 

[JamesJB]

Hi James, I bought this industrial pack of Velcro Ovals at Walmart for about $6 and they work great! Good luck!

Awesome Thank you. They will fit the Firehouse Arc V's correct?

 

[rickfmdj]

Awesome Thank you. They will fit the Firehouse Arc V's correct?

I have a Firehouse Arc and I used one and never had a problem, Hey, use 2 ovals and cut the 2nd one in half to help ensure you have full coverage. Cheap insurance

 

[JamesJB]

I have a Firehouse Arc and I used one and never had a problem, Hey, use 2 ovals and cut the 2nd one in half to help ensure you have full coverage. Cheap insurance

Awesome Thanks

 

[vindibona1]

First if ok could you link me to a place that has good velcro and or holders?

2nd the reason I thought about putting green on the arm in front and red in back on the arm and a white on top is I thought that would kinda be like real aircraft for example a Cessna and wanted to follow or exceed FAA regs. I read somewhere that the Firehouse Arc V's can be seen like up to 4 miles. Plus would the placements I was planning not help with the balance? Just wondering.

I do like flying at night also just wish the camera could take great pics and video of the moon but in the video and pics the moon looks a million miles away,it's like the camera pushes the moon farther away .

I thought about putting one on the bottom but won't that interfere with the bottom sensors or the Aux light?

Edit: Your right meant to say red in front green in back lol.

While I don't use this stuff myself (yet) as it would be too difficult to convert, I think the one to buy is
3M Dual lock reclosable fasteners

I think one of the front and one on the back, or two and two attached to the arms would be good. In my mind it's a balance issue making the motors work harder to maintain the balance. Its small weight, but everything counts. Actually, I just talked myself in to buying another Vifly strobe, now at $13.99 so I can have matching strobes on the arms for balance. Not sure if I'll set them front or back... but I do have the smaller Firehouse colored strobes so might have to mix brands if I want same colors on the corresponding front and rear arms. I'll have to see how that goes. Besides, I have a Mini 3 coming when B&H has stock again.

As far as perceived distance, most camera drones are wide angle so everything looks farther away, though some allow you some ability to zoom, but at the loss of resolution and sometimes noise.

 

[vindibona1]

First if ok could you link me to a place that has good velcro and or holders?

2nd the reason I thought about putting green on the arm in front and red in back on the arm and a white on top is I thought that would kinda be like real aircraft for example a Cessna and wanted to follow or exceed FAA regs. I read somewhere that the Firehouse Arc V's can be seen like up to 4 miles. Plus would the placements I was planning not help with the balance? Just wondering.

I do like flying at night also just wish the camera could take great pics and video of the moon but in the video and pics the moon looks a million miles away,it's like the camera pushes the moon farther away .

I thought about putting one on the bottom but won't that interfere with the bottom sensors or the Aux light?

Edit: Your right meant to say red in front green in back lol.

While I don't use this stuff myself (yet) as it would be too difficult to convert, I think the one to buy is
3M Dual lock reclosable fasteners

There are a number of configurations that you can do. A lot depends on avoiding the sensors. In the case of my Mini's I had to creatively cut around the power button and power indicator lights to maintain access and have to wait until it's turned on to put the strobe there and remove the strobe before turning it off. I have a strip of velcro on top of the drone to "park" the strobe while turning the drone on and off. At a certain distance even with all the strobes you'll really only be able to locate the drone and have to depend on your screen for orientation. But during the day and especially at night they really enhance how far you can really see it. I've experienced VLOS as far at 10,000 ft over water.

As far as perceived distance, most camera drones are wide angle so everything looks farther away, though some allow you some ability to zoom, but at the loss of resolution and sometimes noise.

 

[whistlen2602]

I have white on top and on the two front arms, 2 that aim down only so I can see it.

 

[whistlen2602]

 

[360 Guy]

The scenery never changes at night.

 

[Starz]

Vifly?

Yes. I stopped buying the firehouse stuff some time ago. Probably should put all my old firehouse stuff in a box and send it to some folks that may get some use out of it.

 

[Dan AISCF]

For our Air 2S, I use a Lumecube mounted to the batteries, with 2 FireHouse LEDs velcroed to the sides. The pic doesn't show it, however, there are 2 more mount points for the FH strobes on the inner back legs as well, for back/side/top coverage. This setup is primarily for me to be able to see the drone better in the super bright FL sun. Secondarily, it also works quite well for night flights.

 

[Cosmo0g]

I have an Arc V velcroed to the bottom of the helicopter landing gear I use. Works great.