purchased my first Solo.....or two

kuro-ka-yamato · Jan 18, 2017

Hello. A few weeks ago I purchased my first quad/Solo during the BB $299 sale. I've been wanting one for awhile but 1. I couldn't justify spending $700+, 2. Was living overseas for the past few years and couldn't fly them in the city, and 3. car and m/c parts are a higher priority for my 'me' budget. I am very excited to get out there and take my first flight. Hopefully its not raining again this weekend. I have been playing with the Solo flight sim like it was my first gameboy.

I have read numerous threads concerning the end of 3dr hobby/consumer support since my initial purchase. I accept that. And I see other available software support and the few hardware upgrades. Given the price point(s) of used/parted out Solos on eBay, I purchased another BB Solo special, 2x batteries, and 10+ boxes props this week as spares. I'm pretty sure I'm gonna need a Solo parts intervention by Friday expecting that BB prices will go back up and not be re-stocked. kinda have the feeling from a few years back when 5.56 and .22 were in short supply.

For the experienced Solo owners, how many spares is too much given the current sale prices and availability? I'm in Virginia and have noticed significant drops in on-hand stocks at BBs across 4 states. (online BB zip code queries at night). I am seriously debating buying a 3rd BB special. OR buying 4x more batteries for the fridge and hope they work when my first 6x die out. FYI. I feel more comfortable about potentially damaging 1x drone and having 1x spare system vs. having only 1x $700+ drone and go home game over. I'm also curious as to how many props you guys went through when you first started to fly the Solo.

I know that things change and there could potentially be new supplies in the future. Right now I'm just a hobbyist who is anticipating making mods in the future when skills improve.

Any comments on buying spares is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
~C

Chuck · Jan 18, 2017

Welcome, kuro-ka-yamato. How many Solo's to purchase is totally up to each individual. Some on here own 4, 5, even 6 Solo's. With parts being hard to find, having spares seems to be the way we are headed. I have 2 Solo's, and I am still flying my 1st with the original props on it. I got it right after Solo was launched. I guess your prop life will all depend on how safe you fly. I try not to get too crazy with mine. With flight times averaging anywhere from 12 - 18 min., having spare batteries are a must. Make sure to keep your batteries stored at 50% charge. There is no need to put them in the fridge. Remember that the last 25% of charge while flying will go very fast, so make sure you have enough juice to make it back and land. If you take these batteries too low, you can cause permanent damage to them. It is easy to get caught up in the "mods" frenzy. Just take it slow and easy until you get a feel for which mods most fit your needs. There are some on her who still fly their first Solo just like it came from the box. Lastly, make sure you have the manual downloaded, and study it often. Do that, and learn the added bonus of the search function on here, and you will have answers to most questions available to you. I wish you luck. Take it slow, and fly safe.

Jimmy Miller · Jan 19, 2017

Kuro-ka-yamato I am first Solo flyer also. Do what Chuck says!

Chuck · Jan 19, 2017

Jimmy Miller said:
Kuro-ka-yamato I am first Solo flyer also. Do what Chuck says!

I wish I could get my wife to do what Chuck says.......

kuro-ka-yamato · Jan 20, 2017

Chuck. thanks for the information. I was hoping to get outside and fly today but is raining. seems like its always raining when I have time to go fly. I fired the Solo up a few times and have made good WiFi and SAT connections during configuration. I haven't mounted the gimbal yet. I'm past the 15 days since purchase. I hope that I don't encounter any major issues.

3drHighMileFlyer · Jan 24, 2017

kuro-ka-yamato said:
Hello. A few weeks ago I purchased my first quad/Solo during the BB $299 sale. I've been wanting one for awhile but 1. I couldn't justify spending $700+, 2. Was living overseas for the past few years and couldn't fly them in the city, and 3. car and m/c parts are a higher priority for my 'me' budget. I am very excited to get out there and take my first flight. Hopefully its not raining again this weekend. I have been playing with the Solo flight sim like it was my first gameboy.

I have read numerous threads concerning the end of 3dr hobby/consumer support since my initial purchase. I accept that. And I see other available software support and the few hardware upgrades. Given the price point(s) of used/parted out Solos on eBay, I purchased another BB Solo special, 2x batteries, and 10+ boxes props this week as spares. I'm pretty sure I'm gonna need a Solo parts intervention by Friday expecting that BB prices will go back up and not be re-stocked. kinda have the feeling from a few years back when 5.56 and .22 were in short supply.

For the experienced Solo owners, how many spares is too much given the current sale prices and availability? I'm in Virginia and have noticed significant drops in on-hand stocks at BBs across 4 states. (online BB zip code queries at night). I am seriously debating buying a 3rd BB special. OR buying 4x more batteries for the fridge and hope they work when my first 6x die out. FYI. I feel more comfortable about potentially damaging 1x drone and having 1x spare system vs. having only 1x $700+ drone and go home game over. I'm also curious as to how many props you guys went through when you first started to fly the Solo.

I know that things change and there could potentially be new supplies in the future. Right now I'm just a hobbyist who is anticipating making mods in the future when skills improve.

Any comments on buying spares is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
~C

Hello, great post. I bought one and looked up replacement motors and shells for starters. I will list my rational so you feel better having a spare one incase of problems.

New 3DR shell-$200+
New motor pods-$115+
Propellers new-$12.99+ shipping
Spare smart battery charger-$70+ shipping
New battery not on sale at be- $70+
Solo leg replacements- $10-20 each +shipping
Wifi card-$40+ shipping
Replacement remote control battery-$40+ shipping

Replacement controller- $499.00 ( hard to find replacement as this is the only price I found)

New gimbals-$50.00 depends on sale

These prices are from amazon, eBay and other sites from a quick search of the parts that I used to calculate if it's cheaper to just buy replacement parts when something goes wrong or a buying a second brand new drone and only using it for parts or incase of a crash.
If you add that all up realistically it actually makes sense to buy a brand new drone as a spare. If you were planning on buying a spare smart battery charger regardless that's already $70. New drone comes with two batteries at $50 or so each. The cost is crazy when you break it down like that.

I have two and I have 6 spare batteries, the remotes, two smart chargers, two controller batteries, two carrying cases, four replacement motors, gps unit, wifi card, four legs. And a whole lot of other items I don't even have time to list.

twitchyzero · Jan 30, 2017

had 3 sets at one point, will get rid of my 3rd one and just have one as back-up. I just got a Mavic so there's absolutely no need to have more than 3 drones at once as a hobbyist...haha

Kevin Sebesky · Jan 30, 2017

I wouldn't get too wrapped up in the hysteria, kuro-ka-yamato. Just close your eyes and take some deep cleansing breaths for about 10 minutes.

That ought to give me enough time to finish checking out at bestbuy.com.