Mount your antennas right| BUILD TIP 

I'm not a racer that has 17 quads to bring with me. JB then proceeds to show us literally 17 quads 😂

oh how i wish i could just reach down and pull up a new quad every time lol... ahhh to dream...

I’m trying to imagine your monstrous pile of quads sitting just off-camera

I was honestly thinking about this exact thing the other day. You read my mind JB.

This is the ONLY way I mount my receiver antennae. Thanks JB for the informative video as always. I for sure learned something today regarding the T antennae.

I recently came to most of these conclusions also, except I’ve put a downward bend on my antenna, so that the only way I’m really not going to have line-of-site is while inverted. Which is usually very brief. And, yeah, that balance of what part should give and what should be flexible is what’s enabled me to keep a quad in service long enough to that I can learn some of your freestyle moves. Finally.

I'm getting the frsky R9m instead of the crossfire , so seeing how you mount the long range antennas is really useful. Thanks JB

Good content as always. Most consistent and pleasant to watch/ hear RU-vidr!

I legit LOVE that your example drones are as covered in grass clippings and green stains as mine. I don't feel as much like I'm doing it wrong :)

what a welcome video. Im just rebuilding my quads. Now all i need is a good idea for battery leads.

Was just pondering this same issue on a micro today, as my reception was suffering on the arms. I almost did the side zip ties, like you showed going from back arms forward, but ended up going towards the back, making an x. On an R-XSR, the reception is great. I also took the dipole from the arm (horizontal) and went on top ( vertical) and the range difference on 25mw was insane. Zip tie up top with heat shrink over it. Crashed a bunch and it's holding on perfect.

Some really cool ideas I would have never thought of. In my experience with a lot of antennas if you mount them like that you will get awful signal. I mean, if you hover facing away you are literally in the "blind spot" (not sure of the scientific term.) I do it exactly like that but then bend the antenna a little upwards and it got me at least 2x range. Just a thought

Nice review Josh. I’m building a new reverb and I wanted to experiment with antenna placements. I agree with your assessment on vTX placement sticking straight up on the top deck; you always break it during crashes. On my hawk 5 I’ve sheared the vTX antenna sticking straight up many a times. Not worth replacing a $20 antenna each time.

Very nice with all the different examples you gave ✌ I run one kwad with L-shape in the back and another with antennas on the arms pointing backwards, both with decent range on X4R 😊

I use the same for vTX on the 5" build and on my tinywhoop. Not the same on the 3", on that one I use the lumineer axii you've shown, and on top, but with a 45 degree SMA. The other day, that took a goal pole I didn't realize that after the crash and went home. Didn't fly for two weeks and then realised the antenna was missing. I went back to the park where I crashed, and found it looking brand new. Replaced the broken 45 degree adapter and flew it again

Great video! Thanks a bunch for sharing your knowledge. Now i know where to mount antennas properly!

For receiver antennas I use the tubes from spray cans. If the receiver antennas are thin they’ll slide through the tube under the shrink wrap and it makes it easier to replace the zip tie if it breaks in a crash. Hope that helps, tony

Thanks for the video, really appreciate it. Pretty sure this is partly in response to the video I sent you where I somehow fried my FC through the antenna pig-tail mounted vertically to the frame. I had crashed a few times on that antenna and it may have been faulty because of that. I definitely made all of the mounting mistakes you just covered. Guess I have some work to do when the new FC gets here. I am also going to be insulating the pigtail as some people in the comments have suggested (so that I don't inadvertently create another closed loop between it and other electronics or cause interference).

Great video! I agree durability of antennae and antenna mount to mainboard strength is priority

Thank you. I learned so much more about zip ties and their importance in antenna configuration and how antennas function.

I think.... That shirt is next level. Not only was I blinded by science, I was also dazzled with fashion!

So many ways to mount them. You got remember if you change the orientation of the transmitter antenna you can get better range. If your mounting them in a L shape you should really use the tuned crossfire Antenna as it matches the polarisation. If you use the immortal antenna just use the Diamond or T shape antenna so you can match the polarisation .

This wa so helpful! Munched 3 aerials before I decide to look for a solution which was so simple!!

After watching ima try your methods, get ready for praise or a laugh in the next week. Lol thanks for the vid. Perfect timing for me.

I swapped to start using BRAIN3D brand TPU. I have literally never broken an antenna since i swapped. It has so much give. It's awesome!

For my receiver I use one of those antenna mount plastic thingies I found on AliExpress or some other. It’s a plastic little bracket with plastic tubes you can mount in any orientation and almost any spot on the quad while keeping that “perfect” 90° angle. (2.4 gHz).

Great video. And great way to mont i been doing my 2.4 ant like your for awhile since i seen it in one of your videos. Works great

THANK YOU Josh, learned something again today. Next vid tomorrow so i learn again something

Another great video. Thank you Joshua !

That smooth operator look awesome.

Great vid JB, like that shirt too, fly or die. I ve done the vertical L too, but will give that horizontal L a try.

I mounted my aomway cloverleaf on a 45 degree angle. From mmcx pigtail (ziptied in 3 places) up through the bottom plate into the sma. Sma is mounted on foam and ziptied. Then I ziptied half way up the stem of the antenna, on to the top plate (zip tie loop + ziptie). Ziptie!.

I like the extra long foxeer antennas. I'm a long ranger and like the radiation emitter (antenna) away from the noise of the motors/ESCs. It comes out the back and curves upward at a 45 degree angle for best reception during normal flight. I've also de-pinned my vtx and direct soldered my antenna and noticed an increase in signal strength. That requires taking a soldering iron to the field in case the joint gets broken. Refer to a Bardwell video on depinning the VTX.

Thanks, Josh! Excellent info!

I think I mount my antenna almost exactly the same way, I've found the video antenna straight out the back zip tied to the top plate is the most durable way to do it also, but with the Rooster I use the long range mounting option with a stubby AXII attached. I've tried lots of different ways to mount my RX antennas and the and zip tie on the arms is my favourite, I like to use a slightly thicker zip tie to keep it more rigid and if I reverse my props I have them pointing backwards which I think might even be a little bit better for range. I wish I knew this when I first started flying, it would have saved me a lot of damaged antennas.

This really helped me out a lot! I really like your videos and I always learn something just like you say in the intro. Also, I know that you don't do much long range stuff now but I think it looks really cool and I would be interested to see you get into it more and do some video teaching us what you've learned and stuff like that. Maybe a "Long range for mini quad pilots" video or something like that would be cool. I have a lot of cool long range spots near me but I just haven't been sure how to go about getting into long range to fly them from just flying pretty short range quads. Anyways, keep up the great work

I like my receiver ant. pointing forward but the same under arm. works for me cheers Thanks Joshua

This was super helpful! I wasn’t sure if the way I mounted my antennas was optimal but now I know that it is. To remedy the issue you talked about around 6:10 , you could just bend the antenna up about 45 degrees so that it pokes out a bit more

great video, thanks 👍Something I always do is place some foam between the SMA and the carbon frame before zippy tying, I have had some interference from this in the past.

Horizontal L for the crossfire antenna is a great idea, I learned something today, again! I do the vertical L on my quads but I don’t like how the lower part of the L is too close to the vtx antenna, which is probably not good. Thanks anyway !

Also a good point to add is the zip tie method helps with durability because in a crash your zip tie will break (most of the time) instead of damaging the antenna. It acts as a bit of a dampener. Vtx antennas I’m referring to.. great vid again JB

I love how you mount your antennas except that I mount mine from the front arms pointed to the rear of the quad. That way the antennas can’t get caught in tree scraggle as you fly forward. I bought some longer 3dbi 2.4 antennas with the ipex connector that most receivers use and I have even soldered them to the receivers directly.

You’ve inspired me to tare apart my quad and re-config it

Throw an axii on the chameleon and it should work just like the catalyst machine works does, but agree the coax taking the brunt of the force is the most durable method hands down! Great vid!

Awesome tips. Great channel Joshua I have learned tons. I will try the L configuration left a like

Ive had crossfire failsafe on me many times before i even come close to losing video signal. Youve got to remember that we also use high gain patches on our goggles and the situation in which you are flying affect how far each frequency travels or how well its received

Another great video! As BoBo said below, I try to insulate the SMA from the carbon of the frame, a piece of electrical tape or the like, it would help with electrical inference. Thank you

it is so nice that you count in the metric system!

Yo.. just drill 2 holes in the top plate and you can zip it anywhere you want...

Thank you, this is so always on my mind!

Very helpful as usual. Thank you 👍

Good video topic that is often ignored. I can certainly use this info

Luv your videos, thanks for the knowledge. Have you thought of reviews on 3D printers.....what to look for......etc......or even a panel discussion video on what’s what..... thanks

I always put heatshrink over my sma connections. Just helps with interference from the carbon.

Awesome as usual Joshua. Thanks for the birthday shout out by the way.

These dilemmas are exactly why I bought an Ender 3 and a couple rolls of filament. My Rooster was the straw...You can easily design anything you need for free on TinkerCad. I like the 45 angle out the back for vtx and receiver antenna at the same angle but 90 apart. I still had receiver antenna getting sucked into the props until i started using the tubes.

07:09 That’s exactly how I mounded antenna to my first quad.

I always thought that the SMA connector cannot touch any carbon so I've always Heat Shrink it. Thanks for the tip of zip tie the base instead 🤙🏻

Very useful video. Noticed a lot of groundloops through SMA connector there... well, I hope you have some kind of insulation between SMA connectors and carbon. Should have. Also should be mentioned that VTX antennas with SMA connectors must have hardening tube over cable connection to SMA connector. Otherwise cable will break off after some crashes (happened with me too). Antennas without connector hardening are suitable only for mounting in places without stress on connector - on googles for example. Receiver antennas on top mostly become chopped on crashes when they bend down into props pushed by tree branches and other things where you crashed in. In my quads they was relocated on arms more than a year ago - after viewing your older videos :) Never chopped receiver antennas by props anymore. Thanks!

Yes , I have found the same thing, wish I had seen this month's ago. Would have saved a bunch of antennas. H frames seem to keep the props farther away. Arris v2 frame is the one I have.

thanks Joshua for great tip

Thanks for the info 👍

Such an awesome topic Joshua! I remember Stinger Swarm and Steele "discussing" these concepts in the past, but your explanation really takes this to a whole new level. Thanks for everything you do.

Dude. Ya gotta link that shirt. Thanks for learnin me sunthin. Rock on Josh!

This was really helpful...you know what else would be massively helpful? The next time you have to clean a motor with a c-clip, it would be awesome if you made a video on the best way to get those stupid things on and off without destroying them or losing them. I can’t seem to do either...thx man, this stuff is really useful.

I'll have to try this someday

I like that frame !!! CMW that is smooth lol

Nice ideas! Thanks! 👍

Very helpful, thank you!

Bonne explication 👌 Ton tee-shirts est superbe je l adore 👍🤪

Thank you for this !

To make the VTX style better IMO, use a RAPSTRAP first. It will give the antenna a little give and then use two small zipties over the rapstrap to lock it in.

hat down to you, you know your stuff.

Is it possible to use 2 video transmitter antennas, just like the 2 radio receiver antennas? For example one VTX antenna could be on the left side of the quad, the other on the right.

Hi Joshua much respect! I have been following you vids on the Wizzard x220s and wondered if you could help, on the Wizzards fpv antenna the sma mount on the vtx has an angle bracket if I remove it would the antenna connect to the vtx like in this vid? Keep up the good work. I learnt something today!

On your last video you showed how to clean motor. Awesome. I just opened my motor and found I have a cracked magnetic. Is motor shot; or can I fix it. I am new to drone flying, but I love it. Trying to get better. Harder than it looks. However, still fly everyday. Morning & evening. Anyway; can you let me know what you think about my motor

Sick shirt!!

You are the fpv know it all and I love it.

Like the T-shirt.. Kick ass!!!!

Could be useful to 3D print a bay for the SMA/coaxial part of the antenna with a flexible material

Good technicals

Josh I got a problem with tying off my pigtail and antenna against the carbon fiber... every time I do that I get crap in the video and when I put something between the sma connector and the metal parts of my antenna and the frame it goes away till a new problem shows up... I use heat shrink, or tape of some sort .. but good video is a sore spot with me I never have good video for very long... before something acts up. Thanks Randy

I usually duct-tape or heatshrink my 2.4 ghz antennas to zip-ties at both rear standoffs.

Watched yesterday, thought maybe it would be good to change pos of my antennas. Today chrashed and shredded both of the receiver. So now i'm ready to change them 😅

OMG 6:37 when we can buy the JB motors? Love the colors :)

Thankx Joshua.

Did you fly the smooth operator yet and or have a video? I have been looking at that since Neil posted CAD images of it. I love the Massive Droner and I think that may be my next frame

Omg the antennas mounted on a zip tie on an arm is my pet peeve now

I need this, hope its good, I'll let u know after...

I learned today!

What I never understood is why its not a default to run antennae diversity on freestyle quads were its expected that the aircraft with rotate on all axies. Take 2.4GHz ELRS, were you can run two T antennae, orient one horizontally on the nose or tail and one smaller one mounted vertically (use a stand-off to mount). That way if you lose signal quality on your horizontal it can fail over to the vertical. Steele has a good video as well on making an 'immortal L' which achieves a similar thing with one antenna.

Great Video

Haven't destroyed an antenna in a long time! :)

@joshuabardwell are you going to go over the changes on version 2 of your board?

The Spektrum DSMX I’m using has two small antennas coming out opposite of each other. I believe the zip -trick should work. Thoughts?

I fly in a narrow space in my front yard mostly in front of or next to me and I use Spektrum(which has one antenna fixed in the handle horizontally) with the Le drib antenna mod on my TX my question is should I point the modded antenna straight out or straight up and does it make a difference? RX antenna r out the back of a rooster frame 90°. parallel to frame. Like your chameleon

I'm inspired. 6 inch long range freestyle quad it is

0 hey Josh another great vid, but what do you think about antennas that don't have SMA? I'm talking about antennas that are MMCX, I think, but they just come right off of the VTX and kind of just have a long coaxial. I'm confused about what to do I think why have the SMA it's just another weak point is it not?

I think the real answer here is to get away from carbon fiber. I'm just starting to get into quads. I bought my first fairly typical carbon frame. But definitely the next quad I build will be fiber glass. Carbon is much lighter and much stronger than fiberglass, but it's five to seven times more expensive (a lot of people don't realize how cheap fiberglass actually is). I think a good compromise is to add about 50% to your frame's weight, achieve 80% of the strength and stiffness, but have it cost much less. A carbon frame might weigh 100g and cost $50. A slightly less durable glass frame would weigh about 150g but cost only $12. The big value add, in my opinion, is that now you can put your antennae inside, and achieve an extremely protected sleek build.

I like them purple and gold JB edition motors