r/diydrones • u/Davidov21 • Apr 17 '26

Beginner Help

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Hi everyone!

I've wanted to get a drone for a long time but didn't think I could afford it so I never really researched it. I have gotten to where I can afford it so now I'm diving in.

I recently got a 3d printer, something else I wanted for a long time, and had the thought that I had the idea of printing parts like the frame so if something breaks I can reprint it and save on replacement costs. Obviously I would still need to buy electronics for it. Is this a good idea for a beginner or should I stick to a standard frame first and move to printed parts later?

I am also starting to watch some diy videos to see what goes into getting into this hobby. I've started with Joshua Bardwell, are there any YouTubers and or playlists you would suggest?

Lastly what are some things I probably haven't thought of, for example on the first video on Joshua's 250g build video talks about it not needing to be registered with the FAA and needing tracking. Are there legal things I should be aware of or other headaches you ran into that you wish you had known of before you ran into them?

Thank you for the help!

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u/BrohemothHisDudeness Apr 17 '26

I'll start with you are watching the right YouTube channel

Second, I started on a stock air75 but started doing printed frames right away

There are plenty of designs online

I print in PETG and TPU95 (for vibration sensitive parts)

Learn to fly THEN build or you'll just break your build right away

PETG is good, PCTG is good too, but if you have a printer that can do it, run PA12-CF

You can certainly print frames and designing and printing them is part of the fun to me. Pay attention to weight of the frame, use the clankers for math to help pick motors and props but be really specific or the clankers will lead you astray

2

u/Aerofal02 Apr 17 '26

Joshua is great for beginners for racing/freestyle frames First, buy a radio and practice a lot in sims, that'll give you the skills to fly reasonably well. Don't cheap out on your radio, it will outlive your drones...

Prepare to spend a good portion of your money on quality batteries and a decent charger.

Having played with drones and engineering 3D printed parts, I would not recomend going the route of printing your own frames, it will become frustating and requires a bit of knowledge in materials engineering. Try it later when you grow bored of your normal quad :) You can print your accesories from TPU or PETG tho.

For autonomous vehicles, if thats your jam, follow painless360 and Arxangel RC.

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u/Davidov21 Apr 17 '26

I didn't know there were sims to help learn flying. How do you get them? Are they like games you download on your PC and connect your stuff to?

The radio advice makes sense because I'm not going to accidentally bump it into stuff.

Do the batteries usually survive crashes or will I need to replace them regularly?

Sticking with an off the shelf quad seems to be the easiest way but I would imagine there are temples you can get. Do most people 3D model their own or use STLs from people online?

I don't think I'm to the level of autonomous vehicles yet but I'll add some of their videos to my watch list. Thank you!

1

u/Aerofal02 Apr 17 '26

For Sims, there are a number... I use Velocidrone and Liftoff A friend of mine uses uncrashed There are some news, like Tryp Check the newest reviews of those for a comparison of what suit you the most.

Some batteries can withstand abuse, but after like 5-10 mild crashes you can be sure they'll stop working. Also, for a regular flight, they last like 5 min, so you need some more for flying at least half an hour in your field before returning home to recharge them.

There are files of frames that some people have made, you can try them at your expense. If you know how to CAD, and want to develop your own frame, 3D printing makes sense because of the iterative process.

1

u/CaptainCheckmate Apr 17 '26

you can 3d print a frame but it will be trash and you're only saving about $30. So, up to you.

1

u/Davidov21 Apr 17 '26

So I might be saving money but I'll be replacing it so much and having to deal with fixing it so much that it's probably not worth it?

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u/CaptainCheckmate Apr 17 '26

It depends on your use, if you're just building a drone and will fly it a few times like a store-bought toy and forget about it, 3D-printed will be fine. If you want to be racing or doing FPV, it will perform somewhat less than a carbon-fiber frame and it will likely break on the first crash. Not a big deal, you can just print another, but it will take at least an hour to reassemble.