Twenty-six named build combinations for 5-inch, 7-inch, and 10-inch quadcopter frames. Each row has the motor, propeller, and battery you'll need; the resulting flight envelope; the cost in PHP and USD; and a clear best-for guidance. Designed to be scanned, not read — find the row that matches your constraints, click through to the BOM.
The catalog is organised by frame size — 5", 7", 10". Within each frame, combinations are sorted from most-recommended (the cohort default) to most-specialised. Each combination has a letter ID (5A, 5B, 5C…) that links to the BOM, the curriculum lesson that uses it, and any cohort flight log data we've collected.
The performance numbers are spec-sheet, sea-level, fresh-battery. Real-world performance is roughly 75–80% of these numbers in typical Mindanao field conditions — the thrust deep dive explains why. Cost ranges are mid-2026 PHP and USD; expect ±10% variation. Use this page to find candidates; use the calculator to verify your specific environment.
The combinations are sorted by frame size below. If you're optimising for a specific outcome, the table here points to the best-fit combinations from the catalog.
Twelve 5-inch combinations, eight 7-inch, six 10-inch. Each combination has been used in cohort or partner-org builds at least once; numbers are based on cohort flight log data plus manufacturer thrust charts. Where data was insufficient (a combination too new to have flight logs), the spec-sheet calculation is noted.
The 5-inch range covers most cohort and alumni survey work. Combinations 5A and 5B are the cohort defaults; 5C through 5L cover specific use cases. Combinations are ordered roughly from most-recommended (top) to most-specialised (bottom).
The Lumipad Quad v1. The baseline. The build everyone graduates with.
Slightly more flight time at the cost of agility. For larger plots within 5-inch range.
Higher KV, higher pitch, smaller battery. Thrust margin for windy coastal and ridge sites.
5-inch on 6S battery. For partner orgs running 6S across all sizes for battery interchangeability.
For cohort training builds and bulk partner-org orders. Adequate for cohort survey work; doesn't last as long as 5A.
For alumni who fly daily and want a build that holds up to professional-grade use. Margins matter at this tier.
Two-blade props maximise efficiency. The longest 5-inch flight time you can practically achieve.
For greenhouse and tunnel-house surveys, indoor demo flights. Cinematic-tuned propellers reduce noise and prop wash.
For partner orgs working above 1,000 m where air density reduces thrust. Higher-pitch prop compensates.
When the standard NDVI rig is loaded with extra calibration plate and tethering hardware. Bigger battery offsets the added weight.
Motors rated for both 4S and 6S; pick battery based on the day's mission. For alumni splitting time between defaults and aggressive flying.
For sub-500g all-up builds. Skips the NDVI rig in favour of just-the-airframe. Used in racing-adjacent applications.
The 7-inch range is for endurance, range, and moderate payload. Combinations 7A and 7B are the most-used long-range standards; 7C through 7H cover specific use cases. Most cohort alumni move to 7-inch when their work consistently exceeds 5-inch operational range.
The 7-inch baseline. Used for plots over 50 ha and operating distances over 400 m.
Lower KV motors with 2-blade props and large battery. Single-flight surveys of 200+ ha.
For multi-sensor builds: NDVI + thermal + GPS triangulation. Higher KV motors compensate for added weight.
When the work needs 7-inch capability but the budget is constrained. Adequate for cohort alumni doing larger plots without the premium tier.
Optimised for the kind of survey work that pairs with agricultural cooperatives — sustained moderate-altitude flight over plantation crops.
Maximum range build with carbon props for stability. Approaches BVLOS operational range; pair with appropriate FPV link for legality.
For partner orgs who need to cover ground quickly between distant survey points. Higher pitch and KV trade endurance for speed.
T-Motor MN-series and full carbon props. The highest-grade 7-inch in the catalog. For full-time commercial alumni.
The 10-inch range is for heavy payloads and research-grade missions. All 10-inch builds approach or exceed the CAAP 7kg threshold when fully loaded — see the safety primer for regulatory implications. Combinations 10A and 10B are the most-used; 10C and beyond are specialised.
The 10-inch baseline for sensor payload work. Multispectral cameras, research-grade NDVI, multi-sensor packages.
Lower KV with bigger pack. The longest 10-inch flight time at the cost of slower acceleration.
For research-grade missions with full LiDAR scanner payloads. Dual-battery configuration.
For partner orgs who need 10-inch capability at the lowest viable cost. Compromises some longevity but flight performance is comparable to 10A.
For MicaSense RedEdge or similar research-grade multispectral cameras. Premium pack for sustained operation.
Six motors instead of four for redundancy. For research missions carrying high-value payloads where motor failure must not crash the drone.
Six numbers that frame the whole catalog. Useful for orienting before scanning, and for sanity-checking which combo class is right for a given mission.
Four real selection scenarios from cohort and partner-org alumni — each one walking through the questions that narrow the catalog to a specific combination. Use these as templates for your own selection process.
Three questions narrow it: (1) Plot sizes typically <50 ha? Use 5". (2) Standard NDVI rig only, no additional sensors? Use the cohort default 5A. (3) Budget tight from initial loan? Drop to 5E. Most new alumni land on 5A as their first build, then add a 7-inch as second drone after 6+ months.
Open combo 5A ↗Multi-sensor work strains the 5-inch payload. The thermal module adds ~90g; with NDVI rig it's 185g of sensor weight. Two paths: (1) 5J stretches the 5-inch to handle it, with reduced flight time; (2) 7C handles it comfortably with longer flight. For cooperatives where the work is regular and the budget allows, 7C is the better long-term answer.
Open combo 7C ↗Research-grade multispectral cameras (MicaSense RedEdge, Sentera) weigh 700+g. That's 10-inch territory — the 5" and 7" can't carry it efficiently. 10E is the standard answer; 10F if motor redundancy is a grant requirement. Note: at this scale, you'll need CAAP UAS Operator Certificate; budget for the certification process.
Open combo 10E ↗Five identical builds for a cohort cell or partner org — usually budget-driven. Recommend 5E if all five operators are first-year alumni (matches the training they received); 5A if the partner org wants better longevity for sustained operations. Don't mix combos within one fleet: the operational complexity isn't worth the marginal performance differences.
Open combo 5E ↗Five tiers used across the catalog:
For most readers, Default and Recommended cover 90% of useful combinations. Specialised tiers are reference material for partner orgs with specific missions.
Same reason as the propellers deep dive: 6-inch is a compromise between 5" and 7" without earning its place. For survey work, you almost always want one or the other. Some FPV racing pilots prefer 6" — that's a legitimate use case for that community, but it's not what cohort alumni do.
If a partner org has a specific reason to want 6-inch (a custom airframe design, for instance), the principles in the catalog transfer cleanly: pick motors with KV ~1700–2200 on 6S, props in the 6×4.0 to 6×5.0 range, batteries 6S 1500–2000mAh. But you're effectively building a custom combo not in the catalog, and we'd discourage it for any new build.
The 5-inch frame is the cohort default and the most-used frame across the alumni network — so it's where the most variation has emerged. New alumni experiment with 5-inch combinations because they're cheap to iterate on; partner orgs use 5-inch for the bulk of their work; specialised use cases (indoor, high-altitude, minimal-weight) all show up here.
The 10-inch frame is specialised territory — used by a smaller subset of alumni and partner orgs for specific heavy-payload missions. Less variation has emerged because the use cases themselves are narrower. Six combinations cover the practical range; further specialisation tends to be one-off custom builds.
The 7-inch range sits in between: 8 combinations covers most of the long-range and endurance-focused work, plus some specialised variants.
Prices are mid-2026 PHP and USD. Expect ±10% variation based on source and timing.
Two factors that can move costs more significantly: (1) PHP/USD exchange rate — affects items shipped from China; (2) stock shortages — when EMAX or T-Motor have backorders, the few available units sell at premium.
For partner-org procurement planning, build a 15% buffer into cost estimates. For individual alumni, assume the listed cost is realistic; budget builds (5E, 7D, 10D) tend to undershoot slightly because specific deals vary month-to-month.
The catalog covers what we've actually built and tested. New motor and battery models come out frequently; we update the catalog roughly every 6 months as new components prove themselves in cohort builds.
If you're considering components not in the catalog, work it backwards: figure out which catalog combination is closest to your intended build (similar KV, similar prop pitch, similar battery cells), and use that combination's performance numbers as a baseline. Apply small corrections for differences. The thrust deep dive shows you how to do these calculations.
If your build performs significantly differently from the closest catalog match, send us your flight log data — we may add it as a new combo in the next catalog update.
DJI's drone components are designed for DJI's own airframes and flight controllers. Their motors and ESCs work as a tightly-integrated system that doesn't easily mix with the open-source FC and ESC ecosystem (BetaFlight, INAV, ArduPilot) that Lumipad uses.
If you want a DJI experience — a finished drone with closed-source flight software — buy a DJI Mavic or Mini. The Lumipad approach is fundamentally about repairable, customisable, open-source-flight-controlled drones built from interchangeable components. Different philosophy, different toolkit.
Some Lumipad alumni use DJI consumer drones alongside their custom builds — Mavic 3 for client-facing demonstrations, custom 5-inch for the actual NDVI survey work. That's a reasonable two-tool approach.
Depends on your goals. Pre-built drones (DJI Mavic, Autel EVO, BetaFPV pre-builts) are cheaper to start, easier to fly, and require less knowledge. They're also expensive to repair, locked to specific batteries, and hard to customise for sensor work.
Lumipad's value proposition is specifically about building — both as the path to understanding what you're flying, and as the foundation for the microenterprise model that includes drone repair as a revenue stream. If you just want to fly drones for personal projects, pre-built is fine. If you want to build drones as a livelihood (or train others to do so), the catalog and the cohort program are designed for that path.
This catalog assumes the build path. The math, the parts, the troubleshooting workflows — all of it presumes someone holding a soldering iron at some point.
The full BOM for combinations 5A, 7A, and 10A — the three cohort defaults — is in the Lumipad Quad v1 build page. BOMs for the other 23 combinations are listed in the catalog spreadsheet (downloadable from the link at the top of this page).
Each combination's BOM specifies: motors (4 or 6, with model and KV), propellers (with quantity for spares), battery (with capacity and C-rating), frame, ESC, FC, RX, and miscellaneous (wires, screws, heat shrink). For non-default combinations, the BOM is a delta — we list what changes from the closest cohort default.
If you're building a non-default combination and want a complete standalone BOM (rather than a delta), email builds@lumipaddrones.com and we'll generate one for your specific combo.