Wind meter or just wing it?

Is anybody anal enough to use a wind meter? I’ve been out today and it felt right on the edge of too much, and i thought “I should get one of those meters!”
Thoughts?

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Hiya :waving_hand: Eclipse_Droneography
Yes i use a Anemometer hand held device from Amazon which is handy for knowing wind direction and gust strength which is important when it is windy and gives you a actually and accurate reading, Instead of relying on weather apps which aren’t always accurate about wind speeds and direction. You can pick one up fifteen pounds or less. :+1: I live fairly close to the sea so it’s important for me to know is it safe enough to fly or not instead of just guessing.

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Just send it. The quad does over 100kph a bit of wind should be fine.

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its handy to have as you can use it to see what the mph is on the ground were your stood before you fly. But usually it’s windier up there than on the ground. And can very from ground 50 foot up 100 foot up 200 foot up all can be different & so on. all depends were you are, In a built up area, behind trees or a cliff. So get one be careful how you use it???.

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Suggest getting Drone weather app free and does it all for you.
David

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Welcome to Drone Hub :waving_hand:
I use Droneforcast and Uav Forcast apps which i pay for :smirking_face::man_facepalming: but i get two different reports from both apps when it comes to the wind data and weather forecast then i think right ok so which one is more accurate and more reliable information, Then i turn to the Met office weather report which is free and get a totally different weather report/Information so my point is are there any apps or app out there that is better and more precise with the weather?

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Please, for the love of your wallet, stop buying every flashy little gadget that promises to “revolutionise” your flying. I’ve been chucking RC planes and helicopters into the sky since I was 12, and my advice hasn’t changed in decades.

Step one: use your head. If the wind doesn’t feel like it’s trying to peel your face off, your drone will probably cope just fine.

Step two: I stick to the classic British method grab a small handful of grass, lob it into the air, and see which way wind takes it, and that’s wind-direction. Remember no batteries, no Bluetooth, no app updates, and best bit is no carrying extra gadget in your bag. Yes, I’ll be using this ancient, highly scientific grass-tossing ritual for the rest of my days. Some of you may roll your eyes, but that’s fine. I’ll be over here, throwing vegetation and flying happily. Happy flying everyone

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To be fair I have an anemometer ( wind meter ) that I might use if I think I might be flying on the edge of safety, after all no one wants to have a flyaway. I also use it for windage with my air rifles, but the reason I own it is because I am an automotive technician on heavy vehicles and we use them for checking air flow through engine radiators. In short I would probably wing it, but if you like gadgets…… Do it :grin:
Just to add to that the Anemometer will only read wind at ground level, this will change with height.
Your other option is feel the wind and look to the clouds.

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I got an anemometer after doing my A2 C of C and I recommend it. Weather apps are indicative but don’t cover local variations, or rotor zones. Yes, wind speed is generally higher with altitude, but if it’s getting close to the limit on the ground, you may struggle to keep it controlled higher up. I do some flying where timing is important and weather might be marginal, so it’s very useful to be able to have it available. Remember your duty is to never put anyone at risk.

Do I use it all the time? Of course not. Sometimes it’s obviously good or bad. But for the marginal times I like to have it

It’s also worth getting in a car on a still day (someone else driving) and hold it out of the window. Check how it compares to the speedometer of the car at 20 and 30 mph. The speedometer is well calibrated, unlike cheap anemometers, so this will tell you any corrections you need to make to the readings in the field.

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It depends on what you’re doing.
If you’re trying to get pin-sharp aerial photos with a small-ish drone, the anemometer will stop you wasting your time.
If you’re just out flying for the joy of it, it’s not as critical.
The reason I don’t bother with an anemometer is that a drone weather app will do a reasonable job of showing the strength of local gusts. You just need to know how your drone will perform. Adding more gear to your routine can be useful but it also adds another point of failure.

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