Propellers are the important element of any FPV drone as they decide the ability, smoothness and responsiveness of the plane. These specialised airfoils connect to the motor hub and are available a wide range of shapes, sizes, and blade counts. Understanding the fundamentals of propellers is essential for optimizing the efficiency of your quadcopter.
Suggestions
Propellers are designed for various functions, the pitch, form and materials all play an element in efficiency and flight traits. Right here I’ll share what I feel are the most effective propellers that it is best to get.
I’ve tried all main propeller manufacturers and located HQ props to be one of many smoothest and best to tune. They appear to be extra balanced and trigger much less vibration than others. I’ve additionally had higher luck with triblades than twinblades with regards to attaining smoothness.
Finest 5″ Props
HQ 5×4.3×3 V2S
Finest All-Rounder
The “smoothness” of the prop performs a giant half in how effectively the drone flies, and the way a lot we will push PID and filters in tuning. Propellers that produce much less vibration will inherently have a bonus in that regard. The load distribution of the blade and total weight of the entire prop additionally issues, the better it’s to spin up and decelerate, the quicker it’s to vary RPM, which interprets into quicker response of the drone and higher “propwash” dealing with.
I really like the HQ 5×4.3×3 for its linear throttle response, which supplies me very exact management via the entire throttle vary. The responsiveness and grip are simply superior, the quad feels snappy and linked to the sticks.
Get the HQ 5×4.3×3 from:
AliExpress: https://s.click on.aliexpress.com/e/_DneZBnf
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3dlBRDF
RDQ: https://oscarliang.com/product-9yhl
Banggood: https://oscarliang.com/product-5lqa
GetFPV: https://oscarliang.com/product-v2u8
Finest 5″ Props for Sub250
Gemfan LR5126 2-Blade
Versatile Possibility with First rate Efficiency
Designed for sub250 5″ lengthy vary, effectively matched to 2004 motors. Helps each T-mount and normal 5mm prop nuts.
Product Web page:
AliExpress: https://s.click on.aliexpress.com/e/_DDlqcI1
GetFPV: https://oscarliang.com/product-oe2l
RDQ: https://oscarliang.com/product-58rm
NBD: https://oscarliang.com/product-mnv6
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Finest 7″ Props
Finest 3″ Props for Freestyle
Finest 3″ Props for Cinewhoops
Finest 3.5″ Props for Freestyle
Finest 3.5″ Props for Cinewhoops
What’s A Propeller?
Propellers, often known as props, are the unsung heroes of an FPV drone. They play an important function in producing thrust that lifts the quad off the bottom and permits it to maneuver in several instructions. Nonetheless, many drone pilots usually overlook the significance of selecting the best propellers, resulting in points akin to elevated noise, lowered flight time, and even motor failure.
On this tutorial, we offer a complete information to the various factors that have an effect on the efficiency of FPV drone propellers, together with pitch, form, and the variety of blades. Whether or not you’re a newbie or an skilled pilot, this information will assist you to perceive how to decide on the appropriate propellers on your quadcopter, enhancing your flying expertise. Be taught every part you could learn about propellers and take your FPV drone flying to new heights.
Propeller Instructions
Propeller Course: CW and CCW
Propellers are designed to spin in both a clockwise (CW) or counter-clockwise (CCW) path. In a quadcopter, two motors spin CW and the opposite two spin CCW, so it’s necessary to match the propellers to the motors primarily based on their supposed path of rotation.
On an FPV drone, the off-center placement of the propellers produces each thrust and rotation across the middle of the drone. To counteract this rotation, it’s needed to make use of two CW and two CCW props.
When buying propellers, they often are available pairs of CW and CCW.
To generate downward thrust for the drone to take off, the propellers ought to spin in a means that permits the forefront to chop via the air first, with the air then escaping via the trailing edge. You possibly can simply decide the path of a prop by figuring out its vanguard, which is commonly labelled as both CW or CCW on the blade.”
Methods to Mount Propellers?
By default, Betaflight expects the motors to spin as proven within the diagram beneath. Because of this it is best to set up the CW prop on the motors on the prime left and backside proper.
Professional tip: To make it simpler to recollect, simply notice that every one entrance props spin into the FPV digital camera, whereas the rear props spin into the rear of the quadcopter.
There are three sorts of propeller mounting in FPV drone motors: M5 threaded shaft, T-mount, and press match.
M5 threaded shaft (5mm) is the most typical in 5″ FPV drones (and bigger rigs). The propeller is connected to a shaft with an M5 thread on the finish and screwed tight with a self-locking nut (often known as a “nylon nut”). There are sometimes spikes on the motor bell, which dig into the propeller and maintain it in place.
Within the T-Mount, the propeller is connected to a 1mm or 1.5mm thick motor shaft, secured by two M2 screws onto the highest of the motor bell. This mounting is well-liked in much less highly effective 2″, 3″, and 4″ FPV drones.
Press-fit (or friction match) is well-liked in small FPV drones akin to tiny whoops and toothpicks as a result of this mounting is extraordinarily gentle weight. These drones are comparatively low-powered, so the props are unlikely to fly off even in crashes.
Propeller Measurement
The completely different propeller sizes
Propeller measurement is given in imperial inches (1″ = 2.54 cm).
When describing propellers, there are two sorts of codecs:
L – size, P – pitch, B – variety of blades:
For instance, 6×4.5×2 (often known as 6045×2) propellers are 6 inches lengthy 2-blade propeller and have a pitch of 4.5 inches. One other instance is 5x4x3 (often known as 5040×3), a 3-blade 5″ propeller with a pitch of 4 inches.
You would possibly generally see “BN” on the finish of the numbers, which implies “Bullnose.”
You may also see “R” or “C” after the scale numbers, akin to 5x3R. “R” signifies the rotation of the propeller, which stands for “reversed.” It needs to be mounted on a motor that spins clockwise. “C” is the other and needs to be used with motors that spin counter-clockwise, however often, the letter “C” is ignored.
A propeller is alleged to be “heavier” whenever you improve the diameter, pitch, the variety of blades, or all. It takes extra torque to spin a heavier prop than a lighter prop.
Propeller Size
The size of a propeller refers back to the measurement of the disc that it creates when it spins (or the gap from one tip of a two-blade prop to the opposite).
Propellers generate thrust by spinning and transferring air. The quicker the propeller spins, the extra air it could transfer, which generates extra thrust.
Do you know? FPV drones can’t fly in house as a result of there is no such thing as a air for propellers to maneuver.
When the propeller pitch (defined beneath) and blade rely are the identical, an extended propeller can generate extra thrust as a result of it will increase the floor space. This implies you’ll be able to speed up quicker, nevertheless it additionally requires extra energy from the identical motor. Nonetheless, longer propellers don’t essentially imply quicker flight – pitch is a extra necessary issue (as defined beneath). Shorter propellers can spin up and decelerate quicker as a consequence of decrease drag and momentum, which makes the drone extra agile and responsive.
Propeller Pitch
Propeller Pitch refers back to the distance a propeller travels throughout one revolution, and it’s measured in inches. Primarily, it’s how far the propeller would transfer ahead if it had been transferring via a stable medium as an alternative of air.
A propeller with the next pitch strikes extra air with every revolution, which may create extra thrust when the plane is touring at excessive speeds. Nonetheless, it additionally implies that the propeller generates much less thrust when the plane will not be transferring.
The next pitch propeller also can create turbulence and prop wash, which may have an effect on the efficiency of the plane. It additionally spins slower, which may make the plane much less responsive. Alternatively, a decrease pitch propeller is extra responsive and might spin up and down quicker, making it higher for manoeuvrability.
Blade Rely
Including blades will increase the floor space and therefore creates extra thrust. That is just like making the propeller longer, besides you’ll be able to match it in a smaller disk space. By growing blade rely improves grip within the air, nevertheless it additionally makes it much less environment friendly and places extra pressure on the motor.
For FPV drone pilots, each two and three-blade propellers are well-liked for racing and freestyle flying. Most pilots favor three-blade propellers as they’re an amazing steadiness between effectivity and energy, they supply extra grip within the air because of the further floor space in comparison with two-blade. Alternatively, two-blade is often extra environment friendly as they creates much less drag and draw much less present, therefore nice for lengthy vary flying.
You must also think about the sound these propellers create – when there’re extra blades, it lowers the RPM at a given energy so it’s often quieter nevertheless it additionally is dependent upon the design.
There are propellers with much more blades, akin to quad-blade and hex-blade propellers. Quad-blade propellers are stated to be nice for indoor tracks and cornering, however they’re much less environment friendly than tri-blade and spin at a decrease RPM at a given energy. Hex-blade propellers usually are not beneficial for regular flight as a consequence of its excessive inefficiency, however micro cinewhoops generally use these to enhance their energy because of the lack of house to make use of bigger propellers.
Weight
In the case of propellers, weight is a crucial issue to contemplate. Typically, lighter propellers are likely to carry out higher. Heavier propellers have extra mass on every blade and require a extra highly effective motor to spin them. This will result in larger torque loading, making the motor work more durable and presumably reducing total efficiency.
Lighter propellers have much less second of inertia and might change RPM quicker, making your drone really feel extra responsive. Additionally they work higher with a wider vary of motors as a result of they require much less torque to spin up.
The load distribution of the blades additionally makes a distinction. Propellers with the blade’s middle of mass nearer to the hub are higher. Nonetheless, this implies the tip of the prop will get thinner and simpler to interrupt. If the middle of mass is additional away from the hub, there’s extra drag and the propeller is more durable to hurry up and decelerate.
What Propellers To Use on an FPV Drone
It’s necessary to decide on your propeller measurement first as a result of it determines the scale of the body you should utilize.
The propeller measurement you select additionally is dependent upon the kind of flying you wish to do. The 5-inch propeller is the preferred as a result of it’s versatile and can be utilized for racing, freestyle, and even carrying a full-size GoPro digital camera. The 7-inch propeller is healthier for long-range flights as a result of it could carry a a lot bigger battery. You possibly can find out about all of the completely different drone sizes on this publish, I received’t repeat it right here.
Listed below are my suggestions for 5-inch propellers..
Thrust
Thrust is measured in grams. In your drone to hover, the propeller wants to provide no less than 1 gram of thrust for each gram that your drone weighs. To carry out stunts, and even simply to take off or fly ahead, your drone wants greater than 1 gram of thrust per gram of weight.
Propellers produce extra thrust once they spin quicker and fewer once they spin slower. The pace of the drone additionally impacts the quantity of thrust produced. Some props carry out effectively when the drone is stationary, however not so effectively throughout a cruise, whereas others carry out effectively at excessive speeds however poorly when hovering. You desire a prop that balances these elements and might create a very good quantity of thrust at completely different speeds.
To seek out the most effective prop on your drone, lookup motor thrust checks to see what prop measurement work greatest together with your motor. Take into account that props carry out wildly otherwise when strapped to a thrust stand in a static setting in comparison with once they’re truly flying via transferring air. Props can produce 20-30% much less thrust within the air than on the bottom.
To precisely assess prop efficiency, it must be examined on the pace your drone usually flies at. Nonetheless, few individuals have entry to wind tunnels for this kind of testing. So, take efficiency checks with a grain of salt as they will not be an correct illustration of real-world use.
Smoothness
Within the passion, individuals usually use the time period “smoothness” to explain the standard of a motor or propeller. It’s not one thing that may be measured quantitatively, however extra of a sense that pilots have. In my expertise, decrease pitch props are typically smoother as a result of the motor can change RPM extra simply and shortly. This enables the drone to reply quicker to appropriate errors and reduces one thing known as “prop wash”.
Pace
A propeller that creates plenty of thrust with excessive pitch doesn’t essentially make a drone quicker than a decrease pitch propeller that generates much less thrust. Because the propeller’s pace will increase (which is measured in rotation per minute – RPM), so does the drag, requiring extra torque from the motor to show.
The theoretical most pace of an plane may be calculated utilizing the equation:
Max Pace (in inch per second) = Max RPM * Propeller's Pitch / 60
In actual life, elements akin to air resistance, head wind, and angle of assault and many others can all have an effect on a drone’s pace.
Thrust impacts acceleration and angle of assault, whereas RPM impacts prime pace. To attain the most effective pace on your FPV drone, you want a steadiness between thrust and RPM.
Are Bigger Props Higher?
1. Responsiveness: A bigger prop means the next second of inertia, resulting in lowered responsiveness. That is notably noticeable when utilizing motors that sometimes drive 5-inch props just like the 2207 measurement. On these motors, a 7-inch and even 6-inch prop will likely be much less agile in responding to fast, sharp management inputs in comparison with a 5-inch prop. You have to an even bigger motors to compensate however it should add weights and requires extra highly effective battery and electronics.
2. Thrust and Effectivity: Bigger props generate extra thrust, making them extra environment friendly – they’ll carry extra weight, even with the identical motor. The elevated effectivity means you get extra thrust for a similar energy or the identical thrust at a decrease energy requirement.
3. Vibration: As you improve prop measurement, count on extra vibration. That is amplified by bigger, much less stiff frames.
4. Prime Pace and Prop Wash Dealing with: Bigger props are likely to have a decrease prime pace however higher prop wash dealing with. Nonetheless, they’re usually extra environment friendly, able to sustaining larger speeds over longer durations.
Climate and Temperature
Chilly climate poses important challenges for drones. As defined in our information “Methods to fly FPV within the winter“, not solely does it negatively impression battery efficiency, however it could additionally have an effect on propellers. Relying on their materials, propellers could stiffen and change into brittle in chilly temperatures, growing the chance of breaking upon collision.
Influence of Altitude
Altitude can drastically have an effect on air density and, consequently, the efficiency of your FPV drone. In areas of decrease air density, akin to excessive altitudes, you’ll expertise much less thrust from the identical motor RPM. This leads to the drone feeling extra sluggish and fewer highly effective, just like the impact of utilizing lower-pitch propellers. Subsequently, when flying at excessive altitudes, it’s advisable to make use of higher-pitch propellers to compensate for the lowered air density.
Edit Historical past
- 2017 – tutorial created.
- 2023 – article up to date, URL shortened, up to date product hyperlinks.
- Jun 2024 – Added suggestions for extra propeller sizes.