Walkera Scout X4 Quickstart Guide

This is a simple guide that will help you get setup and flying with your walkera scout X4 quadcopter. This post is also a wiki post so any user can update and improve it (if you have a high enough trust level). In general the included quickstart guide is abit brief and we have received a few emails from customers asking to explain things abit more clearly. Also if you have any questions or comments just let me know.

This guide is not intended to replace the included quickstart manuals, but rather uses alongside to better explain some of the concepts. So its still a good idea to have a look at the manual.

Also if you are fairly familiar with quadcopters you might want to skip this guide and go direct to the quick-start videos.

This guide is not yet complete so some sections are missing.


Assembly Guide

Instead of writing about how to attach the props, gimbal etc this video does a good job at showing you how to assemble everything


Binding your Devo F12E Radio

Now that everything as been assembled, you will first need to bind your Devo F12E radio to the scout X4.

The first step is to make sure the throttle stick is down, and all the switches are in the zero position. An example video is shown below, but please note that the radio in the video is for a Mode 1 transmitter (so the throttle stick is on the right), your radio is most likely mode 2, so the throttle stick is on the right.

In terms of connecting a battery, you can either use the included battery holder and use AA batteries, or the suggested method would be to use a lipo battery, I would suggest you use an either a 2s/3s 1600mah battery. If using lipo batteries you would connect it to one of the balance ports as shown below.

Once you are sure all the switches are in the zero position turn on your transmitter. (if a switch is not in the correct position it will beep and tell you)

Now you must turn on your Scout X4 quadcopter. with the battery inserted the first thing is to slide the power switch to the on position, once that is done you should see a faint red light glowing. Now press and hold the power button on the top of the battery. You should see the power indicator light up which means the scout X4 is now turned on.

The Red LED will now flash brightly until the scout has completed the binding process, it can take up to 30 seconds the first time, but is usualy much faster.

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You will need to complete this procedure each time you turn on your scout X4 quadcopter. Once the red LED stops flashing you can check the Devo F12E is connected properly to the scout by moving the gimbal pitch adjustment slider and you should see the gimbal pitch down. Also you should be able to see the video feed from the camera displayed on the Devo F12E (assuming you have FPV enabled, or the iLook+ camera). The video below shows the LED behavior on the scout X4 during the binding procedure


Compass Calibration

Before you fly your scout X4 its very importnat to complete the compass calibration procedure. Its a good idea to remove the propellers for this step just in case something causes the motors to arm/unlock. If your scout X4 still has the LED flahsing red, please go back the binding process and try again. Its also important to make sure you perform the calibration away from strong sources of magnetic interference (power lines) and away from metal surfaces.

With the Devo radio and scout X4 turned on and bound (you should not see the flashing red LED once binding is complete), you will need to enter compass calibration mode by moving both sticks to the central corners as shown below.

The quadcopter shown now enter into compass calibration mode, and this will be indicated by the red led flashing quickly. You will now need to rotate the quadcopter about all of its axis. This process is illustrated in the video below

Once the compass calibration is complete you will need to turn the scout off to ensure the calibration values are saved. Its also worth noting that when you are flying the scout X4 automatically adjusts the compass calibration so after the first few flights you will notice that things such as position hold will improve.


Arming and Disarming the motors

Once you have turned on the scout X4 and its bound with your Devo F12E radio, its good to wait until you have at least 10 GPS satellites locked before you start to fly. You can easily see how many GPS satellites your quadcopter has locked onto by looking at the Blue flashing LED on the battery. Before you takeoff you should wait for it to flash at least 5 times per sequence. Its also useful to remember that the motors can only be locked/unlocked in manual mode, and you will need to unlock the motors before you can takeoff, even if you are taking of in autonomous mode.

Arming/Unlocking the Motors

Once you are happy the scout X4 has locked to enough GPS satellites then you can proceed to arm the motors. Please make sure the throttle stick is all the way down, and that you are in manual mode. Then simply slide the throttle stick to the bottom left corner and hold it there for a few seconds. Once the motors are unlocked you will see some LED’s turn on on the arms of your scout X4 quadcopter. Slowly move the throttle stick upwards and you should notice the motors start spinning.

Some people also comment that all the motors don’t start spinning at the same time, unless your scout X4 is perfectly level this is normal at very low throttle, however as you increase throttle you should see all motors spin at the same speed. If this is not the case its a good idea to contact us (or the shop you purchased it from) as there could be something else wrong).

Disarming/Locking the motors

To lock the motors once you have landed you just need to move the throttle stick to the bottom right corner for a few seconds, once the motors are locked the LED’s on the arms will turn off.

1 Like

Hello,
Nice talking with you .
I have a question, how often have to perform the calibration of the compass ? Every time we fly or only the first time to ride it. Greetings and thanks .

You only need to do the initial calibration once before you fly.

Also in case you wanted to know your scout X4 actually calibrates the compass as you are flying so you don’t need to do it again unless you are flying in a significantly different location such as the other side of the world :wink: