Water Landing Gear

[SkyDogII]

HI guys, its me, the dumb-***newbie...destroyer of zooms...
I already lost one AC in the LA River when I Flew too close to a steel Bridge in Burbank.. AC disconnected and down it went.
Luckily I was able to retrieve it (after pooping my pants and having a mild coronary) and had refresh..

So I saw a bunch of water landing gear on Amazon...See the attached .pdf....
I know you are LYAO at me for even considering these.... But I want to protect myself the next time i go to the river, if you want to call it that.
I really want to shoot FPV video down the LA River.. I am intrigued by all the pipe line crossings, horse bridges, and other crazy stuff you see floating by in the wash.

which one of these would you get? I like the ones with the pool floaties, seems like you get more surface area contact with the water.
and I like the way it clamps together and can add an accessory, maybe add a go pro on the top?!?

I could see myself maknin a set of the ones with the Styrofoam balls by using the extra landing gear I already have....

please, anyone have any input on using these???

feel free to laugh at me... its ALL good!
skydog IV

 

[Meta4]

But I want to protect myself the next time i go to the river, if you want to call it that.
I really want to shoot FPV video down the LA River.. I am intrigued by all the pipe line crossings, horse bridges, and other crazy stuff you see floating by in the wash.

which one of these would you get? I like the ones with the pool floaties, seems like you get more surface area contact with the water.

What are you wanting to do ... fly and photograph around water or actually land on water?
Those floatie contraptions are very attractive to timid new flyers but they come at a price.
The price is they are going to reduce your flight time and performance and could very well contribute to losing your drone rather than making flight safer.
Most of my flying is over water and I'd never handicap my drone like that.
The best thing you can do to make flying safer is to avoid flying close to obstacles.

 

[Thomas B]

If you want floats, I recommend Arris Raptor.
Not cheap.

Drone Pro Accessories

Drone Pro Accessories

www.irepairmd.com

 

[SkyDogII]

no, no, no... no water landing or take off at all... just something to try and be safe when I fly over the water.... if I have another issue ...i'm getting tired of spending money on dji refresh, but it is one ( mod removed Langage) of a service, I don't think I could have gotten a new replacement for the $149 and $119 ($270) or so they charge for the first go.
And its just another hard lesson to learn... metal bridges are not very cool to fly close too..so don't do that.

thanks guys, i'll check those raptor ones out...
sky dog iv

 

[Meta4]

no, no, no... no water landing or take off at all... just something to try and be safe when I fly over the water....

The only reason to strap that junk on to your drone is to actually land on water (and not many people really need to do that).
Otherwise those contraptions are only good for giving you a false sense of security, sapping your battery life and speed and, reducing your drone's ability to deal with wind.
Can you even find one that advertises how much it reduces flight time or performance?
Add to that the fact that a crashed drone rarely falls upright or close to shore where it can be easily retrieved.
Your drone flies just fine over land or water.
Don't waste your money.

 

[Phantomrain.org]

HI guys, its me, the dumb-***newbie...destroyer of zooms...
I already lost one AC in the LA River when I Flew too close to a steel Bridge in Burbank.. AC disconnected and down it went.
Luckily I was able to retrieve it (after pooping my pants and having a mild coronary) and had refresh..

So I saw a bunch of water landing gear on Amazon...See the attached .pdf....
I know you are LYAO at me for even considering these.... But I want to protect myself the next time i go to the river, if you want to call it that.
I really want to shoot FPV video down the LA River.. I am intrigued by all the pipe line crossings, horse bridges, and other crazy stuff you see floating by in the wash.

which one of these would you get? I like the ones with the pool floaties, seems like you get more surface area contact with the water.
and I like the way it clamps together and can add an accessory, maybe add a go pro on the top?!?

I could see myself maknin a set of the ones with the Styrofoam balls by using the extra landing gear I already have....

please, anyone have any input on using these???

feel free to laugh at me... its ALL good!
skydog IV

When it comes to flying near the water you cannot do better than the Sea Lander Jacket with a Mavic Wet Suit . Each offer its own set of benefits but together they change the playing field.

For those asking about about flight time: If your flying over the ocean or the lake your going to be confronting winds of 10 to 15 mph so
a 20 minute flight time is a good average on a typical day. No wind , that never happens.

We offer a Special Discounted Price for Forum Members:

Phantomrain.org
Coal Thanks for your interest.
email me at [email protected] for the Twilight package that includes both the Sea Lander Jacket and the Wet Suit.

Here it is in action.

 

[THE CYBORG]

I am like you SkyDogII in that I have an irrational fear of flying over water, to many my drone crashed in the river, pond or sea stories, perhaps they are simply user error but they tend to put me off.
I have looked at floats but think Meta4 makes a good point, same thinking put me off getting some.

 

[rbtmckny]

HI guys, its me, the dumb-***newbie...destroyer of zooms...
I already lost one AC in the LA River when I Flew too close to a steel Bridge in Burbank.. AC disconnected and down it went.
Luckily I was able to retrieve it (after pooping my pants and having a mild coronary) and had refresh..

So I saw a bunch of water landing gear on Amazon...See the attached .pdf....
I know you are LYAO at me for even considering these.... But I want to protect myself the next time i go to the river, if you want to call it that.
I really want to shoot FPV video down the LA River.. I am intrigued by all the pipe line crossings, horse bridges, and other crazy stuff you see floating by in the wash.

which one of these would you get? I like the ones with the pool floaties, seems like you get more surface area contact with the water.
and I like the way it clamps together and can add an accessory, maybe add a go pro on the top?!?

I could see myself maknin a set of the ones with the Styrofoam balls by using the extra landing gear I already have....

please, anyone have any input on using these???

feel free to laugh at me... its ALL good!
skydog IV

Looks like Phantomrain might have just what you are looking for. But I agree with what has already been said that a crashed Drone does not always land right side up or even in a somewhat controlled manner, so you should still be prepared for a loss should your Drone go down. I've seen pontoons and balls that attach to the legs. I think you would need a near perfect landing for those to work. If I was younger I can see myself purchasing and using the Sea Lander Jacket and Wet Suit. I would land and take off on water until something bad happened. I'm too old for that now though. I fly over water a lot and I just try to be careful. I never fly below 3 meters and never hover below 5 meters. If I'm not sure about something, I don't go there..

 

[Radpuppy]

HI guys, its me, the dumb-***newbie...destroyer of zooms...
I already lost one AC in the LA River when I Flew too close to a steel Bridge in Burbank.. AC disconnected and down it went.
Luckily I was able to retrieve it (after pooping my pants and having a mild coronary) and had refresh..

So I saw a bunch of water landing gear on Amazon...See the attached .pdf....
I know you are LYAO at me for even considering these.... But I want to protect myself the next time i go to the river, if you want to call it that.
I really want to shoot FPV video down the LA River.. I am intrigued by all the pipe line crossings, horse bridges, and other crazy stuff you see floating by in the wash.

which one of these would you get? I like the ones with the pool floaties, seems like you get more surface area contact with the water.
and I like the way it clamps together and can add an accessory, maybe add a go pro on the top?!?

I could see myself maknin a set of the ones with the Styrofoam balls by using the extra landing gear I already have....

please, anyone have any input on using these???

feel free to laugh at me... its ALL good!
skydog IV

I have new Arris Raptor set of skids all you would need to get is the float attachments if you are interested

 

[ToddCarey]

Something I bought to give me a little better sense when I fly over water is called "getterback" from Amazon. It is around $40.00 and straps on one of my M2Z arms with velcro. I have not noted any detrimental effects to flight time.

If the drone goes under water, the device discharges a float with 100 feet of line on it to the surface. I have never needed it, and hope to never test it, but it gives a little relief to the pucker factor.

 

[SpitFire]

I also would recommend the Arris Raptor.
For three reasons, the skids raise the drone
up higher, without the pontoons. Skids can be used as handles if you want to walk drone thru area your photographing. And only use pontoon's when flying over water on very calm day, pontoon's slow down drone. If your bird gets water logged, at least you still have the body if it takes a dive into the water. And, DJI will give you some compensation on a new or refurbished drone. They will rebuild the drone, and sell it for refurbished price.

 

[jimk-nj]

I have the one in the upper left of your document.

It cuts 1-2 minutes off flight time. In P mode I do not notice a difference in performance. However in S mode top speed is reduced to 38mph.

I only use it when I fly over water. I have no intention to attempt to land on water. Nor do I think it will land upright if it was to fall out of the sky. It will however keep it on the surface until I can retrieve it.

The noodles need to be slightly forward justified in the holders for it to be balanced on water. I also added a strip of black tape around each contact point with the noodles to ensure it won't come apart on impact.

The bright color of the noodles makes it easier to see against most backgrounds while flying.

I understand they are not for everybody, but to me the $24 is cheap insurance.

Jim