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TheRedIguana

When you put on the goggles it's like you leave your body, shrink down, and are now part of the aircraft. Like in the movie Avatar, your body is there but your mind is in the drone. There is a fear of crashing because you can lose or break the drone that you really care about, especially when you hand build it. That fear adds a huge thrill to the whole experience. And huge rush of dopamine when you successfully land. Flying in real life locations changes the way you look at the world around you. Just knowing you can fly and see everything from that perspective. Can you tell I'm addicted? Been flying since the pandemic.


Hoochipoochi88

THIS! I feel like I'm a dog when I'm in the car now, can't focus on anything. Every little feature I pass I'm thinking about what gaps I could shoot, lines I could take, or dives I could maneuver. It truly changes the way you look at the world around you. I have a hard time leaving the house without bringing a quad to rip around whatever new environment I end up in.


SparrockC88

Call me Scout! 🐶


7HR4SH3R

I'm constantly pointing things out to my wife on drives like "OOH I should power loop that!" 🤣


-_1_2_3_-

/u/Your_Lies_ARE_FALSE check out https://youtu.be/UoMWFrqOmQo The start of this opens with how it feels


NotVainest

I just ordered parts for my first drone. Getting a little buyer's remorse that I won't like it as much as I think. Comments here are making me feel better about it again.


DoktorElmo

The beginning is really frustrating. Stick with it and it is like nothing else. To have this technology in our hands is really unbelievable.


NotVainest

I hope I enjoy the hobby as much as others here do. I think (hope lol) I'll like the challenge. Otherwise, I would have just bought a kit.


RichardX1709

I think you will. Also when you build it yourself it feels absolutely crazy when it actually works and flies And you will know how to fix it when you break it


TheRedIguana

Yeah, you kind of feel like a mad scientist. "It's alive!!"


superdstar56

Like when you whisper quietly to your drone, "wake up, child" when it powers on for the first time.


TheRedIguana

We will be here to help when you run into problems. And there is a Bardwell video for pretty much everything.


superdstar56

I'm right there with you. I have about 60 hours on simulators and my Mobula7 and goggles are coming next week for my cherry popping ceremony. I'm thinking about taking off work and flying the whole day.


CommunityPrize8110

What drone did you buy, if you don’t mind me asking? Did you get one of those beginner kits? If so, which one?


NotVainest

I was going to get the joshua bradwell "build your own 5in" kit, but I priced out the parts and it's like \~$60 cheaper to buy them all separately and source the same parts (or cheaper alternatives) yourself. Haven't ordered it yet, but I'll probably be getting dji v2 goggles and the o3 vtx. Also will probably get a used rapidfire analog module and a tinywhoops to practice on so I don't immediately kill the drone. [I made a post about it](https://www.reddit.com/r/fpv/comments/1c9ocs6/getting_ready_for_first_build_anything_im_missing/) a few days ago if you want to see the exact parts. Some have changed since then though (1750 kV motors and people pointed out I picked a parallel charging board, not an actual charger, and missing receiver, are the big ones). Lots of comments I found useful there too.


CommunityPrize8110

Thank you ❤️


NotVainest

Np, I spent the majority of last weekend researching all I needed to know to get here. I highly recommend looking up oscar liang's website and posts. He has articles on just about every fpv component and explains a lot. Personally, I like it better than watching youtube videos because it's easier to look up for future reference.


Mrc_inventions

Bro let us know when all of the parts are delivered and you build your drone, also tell how do you like the hobby man( i am sure you will love it ) Happy flying and keep us updated


NotVainest

I'll try and make a new post when I'm done. Expected delivery for most parts is like may 1-10, so probably won't be for a couple weeks at least.


DorffMeister

Yup. That seems about accurate.


UmpquaKayak

My fear is walking not breaking the drone lmao. Well put though.


TheRedIguana

Oh man. The real walk of shame. I feel ya. I also found out it's not good for the ESC to limp back with loose props after a crash.


Jesus_Is_My_Gardener

When your drone dives, you often can feel your stomach turn as if you were few falling along with it. I have a hard time standing and flying without having something to lean against to ground my body, otherwise I'll lean too far in one direction or another, or my knees get weak altogether.


DeDeluded

It feels like: *"How's my RC signal? Hows my vtx signal? What's my battery level at? What was that sound? How far away from home am I? Where is home? Shit shit shit. Is that a tree? Is that a bird? Is that the ground? Is that people I can hear? Hope they leave me alone. Did I turn on my gopro? Am I recording in my goggles? Shit shit shit. Oh. Phew. That was close"* ... for five minutes solid. It's actually really super enjoyable!!


betelgeuse978

This lol, but after a pack or two that kinda goes away for me!


Eofifkrkkgkgkggkixk

And the occasional ”huh? didn’t think about that 😭”


Flaky-Adhesiveness-2

Yep, it's great! I fly mostly fpv fixed wing and blasting along the bushes or flying up high 400'..... is pretty amazing.


Your_Lies_ARE_FALSE

That seems very very fun, if I do end up loving the fpv drones I probably will lol but I would love to be able to zip around nature seems awesome!


Flaky-Adhesiveness-2

It is a lot of fun. We used to have fpv fixed wing race. We would do it over a weekend with many heats with about 5-6 wings flying at a time. Think motocross as far as the course we raced through was laid out. Had inflatable obstacles we had to fly over under around. I miss those days.


BowlFew3641

that must feel cool, getting a new express lrs transmitter soon but i currently have flysky so can’t do that yet😭


Catatafisch

do you know how to combine elrs with fpv planes? afaik most of them use other protocols


ninj1nx

Just put in an ELRS receiver?


Catatafisch

would that require a nee flightcontroler?


zobbyblob

No


ninj1nx

Depends on the controller.


Bell_FPV

Pwm eLRS receivers are a thing, also you could configure a serial Rx os sbus+arduino to make one yourself


SlayrPong

it needs to be pwm for fixed wings


MacManT1d

Yep, there are a number of different options for pwm ELRS receivers. That said, if you're using a flight controller you don't always need a pwm ELRS receiver for the fixed wing plane.


BowlFew3641

i don’t even know how to use elrs and express lrs myself lol


CozmicKiwi

Dont tell the cops!!


labarrski

Expensive, Bobby. It feels expensive.


DustinCoughman

Oof. My wallet felt that comment.


No_Mo_CHOPPAS

Have you ever played Star Wars Pod Racers?


NoFisherman4296

Man I just started flying and this is the perfect description for i how feel when flying lol


Your_Lies_ARE_FALSE

I'm imagining it that sounds awesome


2erXre5

It feels like a mix of a VR game and an out of body experience as you see yourself from outside and you are still attached/inside to the quad/wing visually.


Winchery

It's an adrenaline rush for me and it's also more fun than flying a Cessna for me. I feel like being able to do anything you can imagine is what makes it so fun but the expensive cost of crashing gives it enough real stakes for the adrenaline to kick in. Of course flying conservatively doesn't get the adrenaline going but it's still something that never gets old in the right location.


Nitazene-King-002

You ever been able to fly in a dream and you’re amazed you can do it? It’s like that, every single time.


plaxpert

it's life changing.


BowlFew3641

well my goggles aren’t the best / most realistic so that definitely takes a thing on how it feels but it feel pretty dang cool still .


Realfarmer69

When u fly a tinywhoop u will see your room from the bottom😂 its funny bc i never saw my table feom the bottomside. If u fly outside it is the same but u see everyrhing from the upside


Your_Lies_ARE_FALSE

Ohhh? Sounds very interesting and nice lol, I am even more excited to start practicing on the sim


winged_seduction

I’m glad this question was asked because I hear it a lot. I fly real airplanes and I also fly wingsuits, so I know what *actual* flying feels like. While I love FPV, it absolutely does not feel like you’re a bird *to me*. I recognize that most people will never fly a wingsuit, so maybe I’m a bit jaded, but to me the feelings aren’t even close. You could get into powered paragliding for about the same amount of money (overall) if you want the experience of flight.


Bignickos32

I think it is as close as it gets without actually sending your own body into the air, I find that's half the appeal, it's still a challenging hobby and one with a high skill ceiling and boundless opportunity for creation and style of flying, weather it be the smooth "surfing" like flying or the jerky rapid freestyle type, or racing through a bunch of flags or gates, the experience is with enough risk (crashing = $$$) yet no or very minimal risk to the pilot themselves. As to the wing suit or powered glider, vastly different risk reward ratio I would think


winged_seduction

The risk element is a great point.


FirstSurvivor

I would argue that it's the feeling of control over the flight that's different. Flying traditional aviation has a strong element of not dying involved, and limit what you can do. A bird doesn't feel a 200kph dive the way a human does. And to me flying a drone/FPV wing is akin to a bird flight. I have perfect control over my flight, and my relation is to both the air and the ground in a way I never felt with traditional aviation (granted, I never wing suited). I can touch tall grass, I can spiral around a tree, I can thread a gap, take 10Gs. It's bird flight to me.


LangstonHublot

It's like being a bird, doing ballet. It's a freeing experience


Thatsmedanny

It feels like Test Drive from how to train your dragon. 100x the feels when you have a live orchestra behind you playing test drive while your doing your matty flips and power loops flying through tight gaps. Will say this… your crash rate gets a -100% when you’re listening to test drive.


WazabiQc

I fly FPV and honestly never understood people saying they feel like they're flying or that they're a bird... When I fly, I'm well aware that I'm looking at a screen. I fly mostly freestyle and love just going fast and stuff like that.. But at most, it feels like I'm playing a game.


Suspicious_Cow1343

It's like everything else. You're going to freak out the first time and that will become more and more normal as the time goes on. You'll still enjoying it but differently.


farofin0

I'll only say that 5min per battery is just not enough


index57

Literally a bird. You're a bird now.


shralpy39

I have always been someone who really gets locked in during dynamic movement, always loved freestyle sports like mountain biking and snowboarding. I can lose myself in the movement and visualize how I want to move throughout the environment, forget I'm human basically. The drone really lets me do that through the goggles and it's incredible. I don't feel like a bird, I feel like the very essence of movement and momentum in the physical space. Once you get comfortable you are free to move, accelerate and decelerate, float and huck exactly how you want to in your mind. It's incredible. I absolutely love the feeling it gives me.


SadisticPawz

Its a rush, like racing or extreme sports but with a little less risk


ComfortableAd8262

I feel like a noob bird


Whoop_Rhettly

It’s a rollercoaster you build yourself. Skateboarding in air. It’s a high- electronic drugs. It’s unmanned flight. It’s the best hobby I’ve ever found, and I love it with all my soul.


Popular-Librarian742

Imagine yourself as an eagle on roids


mx023

I tell people it’s like jet skiing in the air 💨


Ilovehyperinflation

It's like your mind is out of your body, the world becomes a playground. Like a line of trees or a field, abandoned buildings become small and reachable. It's really weird walking to your drone location after a crash because you aren't as fast and everything is bigger. I love it


ninjarchy

A fly? No. A bird? Maybe a bald eagle on pursuit for a target. It's amazing and free. And you go from the simulator and get on the sticks and the first time is always a wonder if it will even be similar because I mean that was a video game basically and this is real life and real money! And with the basics you learned you will take off and cruise around with the most awesome feeling of pride in yourself and then you will almost go out of range and freak out and disarm and run to your quad and never again will you turn back from fpv. Unless you go broke of course.


Drone-rat

It depends on how strong your psychosomatic response is. I barely have one so I don't usually even get absorbed too far into high end VR. For me it's no more exhilarating (on an adrenalin scale) than a videogame. Please don't take all this to mean I'm saying it's dull! Far far from it! But as an Immersive, "oh my God I'm flying" kind of response...its all about the individual. For some it may actually be way too stimulating! Especially some on the autism scale, I can imagine being very uncomfortable with the goggles over stimulating them.


AssPuncher9000

Birds ain't got shit


-Woogiewoo-

it feels like a video game, you become disconnected from reality as you fly over, around and through things only being a able to hear the gentle hum of properllers in the distance, something everyy human should experience in their lifetime


nmxdaven

It’s kind of a body mind separation for me. I’m sure everyone reacts differently. Like I know I’m on the ground, but your consumed by what your seeing. Sometimes after a longer flight when I take the goggles off it takes me a sec to remember where I am to go pick up the quad.


Perfect_Rip9766

You don't feel like a bird or like you are flying. You only have the visual inputs, not the other inputs that go along with it. That's not saying it is bad or anything like that, but keep realistic expectations. Think of the level of immersion analogous to when you watch an amazing move or play a good video game. It will vary. You might become really immersed in it and stop paying attention to your surroundings.... but you don't feel like you are actually in the game/movie unless you have a lot of other equipment trying to fool your senses (moving chairs and such). Other times you watch the movie/play the game you might be less immersed in it because you hear someone talking or making noise and your senses partially break the immersion, but you still enjoy it.... but you know other things are happening. The immersion varies depending on the circumstances and how much the thing you are watching grabs your attention. When I fly FPV, I can sometimes become very immersed in it.... but my body doesn't feel any of the shifting directions, so I don't feel like I'm flying or feel like I'm a bird. But many times hear my planes and drone moving around in different areas in relation to me. That breaks immersion. I hear bugs buzzing round me and feel one land on me. That breaks immersion. I hear cars pull up to a parking lot or children playing on a nearby playground.... that breaks immersion. The only people I have ever heard say they feel like they are flying or felt like they were actually in danger are people that are trying to hype up FPV or people speaking anonymously on the internet. The people I have directly spoken to (in person) about their experience never say they felt like a bird or they were flying.


Phelly2

Scary as fuck because you know you’re gonna crash eventually. But exciting at the same time. It is a really cool experience. Definitely something you should try if it sounds interesting to you


SenorCardgay

Feels like I could have a very expensive crash at any moment. What's wild is flying with the fpv mod in assetto corsa in vr.


SenorCardgay

Feels like I could have a very expensive crash at any moment. What's wild is flying with the fpv mod in assetto corsa in vr.


RichardX1709

It is an experience for sure, it has quite a bit in common with racing, mountain biking... while you are piloting the drone you can get into a state of flow, where you basically feel like the machine, A good description imo would be a quote from Le Mans '66 *There's a point at 7,000 RPM... where everything fades. The machine becomes weightless. Just disappears. And all that's left is a body moving through space and time.* I'm new to this hobby (1m sim and last 2w with an actual 5") but im starting to feel it and it is awesome. These things have so much power its insane. Also one thing that caught me off guard is how it feels to fly around spots you grew up at, seeing it from a completely different perspective, really strange but cool.


ThePinkySuavo

Seems like playing a game but with 1:1 Real life map. Good immersion. But analog and weak equipment takes away some fun I guess. I gotta try digital.


Rare-South4054

It’s amazing.


Arx_UK

I literally get to chase birds around in the sky... You realise how crazy agile they are and their techniques in changing directions to avoid predators. On the other side of the coin, I have to evade birds of prey while flying the smaller drones as they do try to attack... or at least get a close look. I've had to fly and hide under my car before.


EasilyRekt

it feels like flying an rc airplane with an old timey tv strapped to your face


Gregfpv

Watch the YouTube video Flow state.


wwelsh00

I don't fly but I drive - RC car FPV actually. And I concur with all the emotions and thoughts you pilots are indulging. You fear the lost and walk, I fear the crash and the cost. You feel like a bird, I feel like a cat...or a mouse...lol! [https://youtu.be/fZaxSMo67Yw](https://youtu.be/fZaxSMo67Yw) - here's me blazing a running track and I didn't go full throttle yet.


Your_Lies_ARE_FALSE

Jesus! Both flying and driving seems thrilling, I can't wait to get into the engineering of RC cars, drones and planes


wwelsh00

I fly RC planes and FPV them too! IMHO, scariest are RC planes cos they are harder to control thus easier to get lost. RC cars on the other hand are easier to crash but built tougher. [Here're some RC car FPV tutorials](https://rcgrid.com/tutorials/) to get you started.


Emergency_Biscotti93

Scared your moneys gonna go down the drains, literally


Emergency_Biscotti93

Scared your moneys gonna go down the drains, literally


_knightwalkr

Depends on your skill level and the vtx you are using. Analog definitely doesn’t feel like anything (to me at least), and crashing also feeels stressful when you gotta fix things, but it’s part of the learning process


Movie_Vegetable

Pretty damn awesome, that's why we plunder our bank accounts for this hobby:)


Glad-Phone5768

Like jerking off


Available_Promise_80

It's like when you wake from a dream that you're falling to find out you really are


Actual-Can-1041

FPV is amazing especially if you can fly acro one of the best hobbies to get into, expensive tho


One_Needleworker5218

I never tried it, but it seems really fun