03/26/2026
Finally Back in the Air! | First Flight After Eye Surgery
It has been a long road to recovery, but I’m finally back behind the goggles! This was my first official flight since my eye surgery, and honestly, I couldn't wait any longer to get back into the sky.
To celebrate, I’m maiden-ing a brand new "Franken-build." This started life as my Air65, but I decided to give it a major footprint upgrade. I swapped the original 65mm duct style for this 75mm carbon fiber toothpick frame.
🎵 The Soundtrack:
The music in this video is an original track I produced myself. I’ve been working on a series of tracks inspired by the FPV lifestyle, and I thought this was the perfect vibe to pair with this first flight back. Let me know what you think of the production in the comments!
Can you identify this frame?
This frame was actually sent to me by someone in the community, but I’ve lost track of exactly who or what brand it is! If you recognize this specific 75mm toothpick carbon layout, please let me know in the comments so I can give proper credit in the next video!
Air65 to 75mm Conversion Details:
To get this 75mm flying right with the old Air65 electronics, we had to make some specific moves in Betaflight. Here’s the final tune I landed on to handle the new frame and motor combo:
Motors: Upgraded to high-performance 0802 23000KV motors.
Master Multiplier: Set to 1.0 for a more responsive, direct feel.
D-Gains & PD Balance: Both bumped to 1.1 to keep it locked in and predictable.
TPA Adjustments: Bumped the TPA rate to 65 via the CLI to kill the high-pitched "ringing" on the top end.
Configuration: Set motor poles to 12 and ensured Bidirectional DShot was ON.
The Post-Surgery "Rust":
I’ll be honest, the sticks felt a little shaky today. My right eye is still just a tiny bit blurry, so my depth perception isn't quite 100% yet. Between the recovery and the nerves of getting back into the air, it took a minute to find my flow. You'll see some of that "shake" in the footage, but I know I've got some work to do to get back to where I was.
The Maiden Mishap:
It wouldn't be a true test flight without a little drama. During the flight, the camera mount actually snapped, causing the camera plug to pull right out! It cut the session short, but that’s the hobby for you.
What's Next for Part 2:
I’m already planning the fix. I’ll be firing up the Bambu Lab A1 Mini to create a custom lightweight 3D-printed canopy. The goal for the next video is to get this build even lighter and more secure so we can really see what these 23000KV motors can do on a 75mm frame.
Build Specs:
Frame: Unknown 75mm Carbon Toothpick (Help me ID it!)
Motors: 0802 23000KV
Electronics: Air65 Stock AIO/VTX
Props: 40mm Bi-blades
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Finally Back in the Air! | First Flight After Eye SurgeryIt has been a long road to recovery, but I’m finally back behind the goggles! This was my first off...
