Pathfinder - Cinematic Gopro Hero carrier - Cinewhoop

thingiverse

After months of tireless design refinements, I proudly unveil my one-of-a-kind take on the "Cinewhoop". The Pathfinder is specifically designed to carry a GoPro Hero (7) for capturing ultra-smooth and crisp video, crafted from durable carbon fiber, TPU, and PLA. The bottom and top plates are meant to be precision-cut from 2mm carbon fiber sheets (1.5mm will also work), while the ducts consist of a TPU housing with TPU inserts. As of now, it remains a work in progress and will likely undergo some minor tweaks before shedding a few grams. I do not sell the frame or RTF versions; this is an open-source project intended for anyone to build their own, but I'm open to inquiries about selling units – just don't try to resell parts of this design. I opted for TPU ducts to minimize the risk of damage when flying around delicate objects; PLA works too, but it's stiffer and more prone to breaking. This Cinewhoop is not meant for acrobatic stunts or freestyle flying – rather, it's designed for smooth, slow cinematic flights. If you have access to a CNC machine, using soft foam would be an excellent choice over TPU or PLA. **Key Features** * 3 sets of 20x20 mounting holes * 1 x 30.5x30.5mm mounting pattern in the middle (plus the 2 x 20x20) * Ability to mount 1 x 30x30 stack alongside the DJI Air Unit * Micro Cameras ONLY! (Yes, the DJI Cam is a tight fit and might require using a spacer for the front of the top plate) As per request, I've included three different duct sizes: * Standard: 20mm ducts * Duct_30 + Foam_30 for 30mm tall ducts * Duct_40 + Foam_40 for 40mm tall ducts GoPro Hero 7 mounts are available in 5/15 and 30° angles, with T-Antenna style mounts, FPV camera mounts from here, and VTX antenna mount from here. **Print Settings** I found these settings to work exceptionally well: more than enough strength and still somewhat lightweight. Print the parts upside down; no support required. * TPU/PLA with 1-5% Infill (ish) **Hardware** I highly recommend using Mamba 1408 2800KV (6S) motors with the Mamba F722 Mini Flight Controller/ESC stack – it turned out to be reliable and offers plenty of features. For motors, anything above 1408, like 15xX, is probably a good idea. Just keep in mind that as with any drone, especially whoops, the lighter the better. For the FPV camera, I'd recommend using either the Runcam Nano 3 or the Runcam MicroEagle. Use 3" ducted props; best to use cut-down 4/5 inch props or get the perfectly fitting HQ Cinewhoop Props. The finished frame with my Hardware recommendation, without GoPro (and mount) and no battery, is about 300-340g, depending on materials and print settings used.