Catching your drone - is that a good idea?

[bobmyers]

Pretty risky carrying a transmitter with an IPad attached and a sunscreen on the Ipad. ( a phone may be different, because it does not have the weight. Hand catching can be completely safe if you have a companion to reach up with both hands, and grasp the bottom gear on both sides-- otherwise I will try to land it on the best surface as I try to take off from the best surface. Of course, at my age, I am looking for pavement or some other smooth surface to launch, as I am not going to be hiking very far like some of you youngsters.

 

[Mal_PV2_Ireland]

Pretty risky carrying a transmitter with an IPad attached and a sunscreen on the Ipad. ( a phone may be different, because it does not have the weight. Hand catching can be completely safe if you have a companion to reach up with both hands, and grasp the bottom gear on both sides-- otherwise I will try to land it on the best surface as I try to take off from the best surface.

Nope nope and nope, I have a Samsung 8" tablet with sunshade, lanyard and hand catch all the time. You are surmising about a worse case scenario in a situation that you are not experienced in doing, that's all. If I had a 10" screen it wouldn't make a difference

 

[Mal_PV2_Ireland]

You don't need 2 hands to hand catch, just catch the skid closest to you and then the weight of the bird naturally flops away from you bringing with it the blades which have already stopped at this stage.

 

[SCGirl]

Just learning, but I do about 50/50. If it's fairly calm I usually practice several landings while I'm out flying. When I'm done I practice hand catching. I always let it hover about 30 seconds or so to make sure it's stable and above my head. I then do the hand catch grabbing the gear with my right and power down with my left. If there is a breeze I always approach upwind so if it gets blown out of position it goes away from me. I haven't felt unsafe yet. If it was a more powerful machine I would be hesitant.

 

[Zigs]

Since I usually have my camera recording I've learned to smile as I'm catching it . . . the first few times I looked extremely serious.

Z

 

[Mal_PV2_Ireland]

Just learning, but I do about 50/50. If it's fairly calm I usually practice several landings while I'm out flying. When I'm done I practice hand catching. I always let it hover about 30 seconds or so to make sure it's stable and above my head. I then do the hand catch grabbing the gear with my right and power down with my left. If there is a breeze I always approach upwind so if it gets blown out of position it goes away from me. I haven't felt unsafe yet. If it was a more powerful machine I would be hesitant.

You're putting some of the boys to shame, haha nice one!

 

[Mal_PV2_Ireland]

Since I usually have my camera recording I've learned to smile as I'm catching it . . . the first few times I looked extremely serious.

Z

Haha yeah I learned to stop video just before I hand catch because I didn't like some of the faces I was pulling at the start

 

[snerd]

I haven't thought to try it in any of the 13 flights I've now completed. This thing is just so easy to set down, like a feather! I may have a go of it later on, or if I encounter any less-than-ideal conditions.

 

[cjmwales]

I've been hand catching since my third flight with my P2V+.

It's hardly rocket science - set a reasonable height within easy reach (above eye level), approach with caution being mindful of what the wind is doing, reach up and grip a leg before holding the left stick down to stop the motors. Easy. Don't be afraid to abort & re-take control though if there are doubts about drift or reach. You should have one thumb ready on the left hand stick, just in case.

This one looks violent because it was in ATTI mode & the wind was pretty strong:

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I will land conventionally on short grass or solid surfaces though, as it's far more gratifying to get a nice gentle 'plonk'.

Last night I was practicing hand launches too, these are even easier, although it's a good idea to pitch the quad forward slightly & ensure climb power is set before releasing so the Phantom goes away from you. Don't let it go until you feel it pulling your arm!

 

[JayB]

Nope nope and nope, I have a Samsung 8" tablet with sunshade, lanyard and hand catch all the time. You are surmising about a worse case scenario in a situation that you are not experienced in doing, that's all. If I had a 10" screen it wouldn't make a difference

+1... with lanyard its easy

 

[sdharris]

This question keeps coming up again and again so its more a personal preference and evaluation of the risks. I only hand catch in environments where landing is not safe or would damage the Phantom.

I suspect many people who hand catch every time even when a perfectly clear area to land is available would change their mind if something did go wrong. Many things can happen using both methods its just whether you are happy to have your hand and face nearby if it did e.g. gust of wind, someone knocking you or the phantom, someone getting your attention, user error, mechanical failure etc.

If something did go wrong it looks like you can finish a music concert but you'd need surgery afterwards http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-32988046. This was not a hand catch but demonstrates blades cause a bit of damage and that if you are not extremely careful things can go wrong.

 

[donco234]

This man wins the internet for getting his wife to hand catch it! My hat is off to you sir, we should all involve our wives more in our hobby haha

She bought the phantom for me as a gift! Think I will keep her.