Chapter 12 · Building

Before your first pack

A checklist to tick off step by step. Repeat it after every repair: many drones lost on day one are down to a badly set failsafe or a prop on backwards.

Reviewed: October 2026 · Found a mistake? Let us know

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Your progress is saved in this browser, so you can pick it up again at the field.

Before plugging in the battery Continuity checked with the multimeter: no short between the XT60’s positive and negative XT60 and capacitor polarity checked Motor screws leave clearance to the windings First power-up done with a smoke stopper

Betaflight configuration Firmware updated and configuration backup saved (diff all) The artificial horizon moves the same way as the drone Receiver bound and channels correct, from 1000 to 2000 Arm on a two-position switch Motor order and direction checked, without props Failsafe tested: the motors stop when you switch off the radio VTX on a legal channel and power; OSD with voltage, time and link quality

At the field, before flying Props on the right way round and nuts properly tightened Battery securely strapped and centre of gravity balanced Antennas well placed, away from the props Spotter beside you and area clear of people

First flight Short 30-second flight and landing Motors warm, not hot No strange vibration or noise in the image

Regular maintenance

An FPV drone wears with every flight: props take a beating, screws work loose with vibration and bearings get dirty. Five minutes of checking prevents most “mysterious” crashes. This list keeps its own progress, separate from the pre-flight checklist.

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After every session Props free of cracks and bent tips; replace any damaged ones Motors: spin freely, no gritty noise and no play in the shaft Arm screws, prop nuts and camera mount screws tight Batteries stored at 3.8 V per cell if you won’t fly for a few days Videos, DVR and Blackbox logs copied to your computer

Every 10–20 packs Motor bearings: spin them by hand and listen; if they grind, replace them or replace the motor Motor and XT60 wires free of cuts and damaged solder joints Receiver and VTX antennas firmly fixed and with no stripped cable Stack soft mounts intact and not torn Battery internal resistance noted in the logbook

Every month Betaflight configuration backup (diff all) saved and dated Radio and receiver firmware checked; if you update, do both at the same time Failsafe tested again without props Cleaning: dust, grass and sand out of the motors

After a hard crash Arms checked against the light, with no cracks or delamination Camera and lens intact, camera angle correct No hot components or burning smell when you plug in the battery (better with a smoke stopper) Short test flight and motors touched after landing

Keep track of each battery’s cycles and internal resistance in the battery logbook: a battery whose resistance is rising is the prime suspect for a low-voltage failsafe.

And then, fine-tuning

Betaflight’s defaults fly well on a typical 5". Once you’re flying it comfortably, you can fine-tune filters and PIDs for more precision and to get rid of oscillations. It’s all explained in Tuning and Blackbox.

If a motor comes down hot after the first flight, don’t carry on: check the props, vibrations and the D value before you fly again.

Checklist

Regular maintenance

And then, fine-tuning