Pkbros1 said:
Yah i agree the v959's not the most sturdy but did help get some solid practice in enough so where I know how to fly quads pretty well. I will look into the other types of batteries and thanks for the advice because I would of gotten the DJI batteries otherwise. Which props should I get? And any decent gimbals for 50$ or less? Are prop guards worth it? DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY OLD GEAR I CAN HAVE FOR FREE? And what is the best solution for traveling with the Phantom?
Yeah, if you find better / cheaper batteries, share them here. So far those Turnigy $10 + $5 shipping ones are the best deals I've seen that have been around for a while.
Re

rops... Lots of us have asked that here and in other forums. It seems like for 1.1.1 and P2 flyers the general consensus is that the DJI self-tightening ones are pretty **** good. I started flying my 1.1.1 at the first week of the year and are still on my original ones though I've banged them up pretty well. I also bought a balancer and found that they were nearly balanced from the get go. I still shaved a little material off but not much.
Re

rop guards... I love mine. One day I'll fly well enough to not need them and save a little weight. For now, they've saved me from not just breaking some props but saved my P1 from falling out of the sky after some elevated bumps into trees and things.... not to mention some bad landings. I'm slowly getting better with my flying but still a big time amateur. Some videos:
https://vimeo.com/user24382551
Re:gimbals... there are some cheap $70 ones but I don't have experience with them. You'll find lots of them posted. I don't know of any $50 ones.
Re:traveling... If you're not buying a case (or even making one yourself), take the props and prop guards off and just shove them in the box like you're thinking of doing anyway. The pain in the butt thing though is that you'll need to take off the landing gear and whatever crap you've strapped on it also.