Query: Find multirotor drone kits or drone hardware platforms that the user assembles themselves, similar in spirit to Lynxmotion-style DIY assembly. Prioritize options with excellent official CAD or official mesh/STL models covering every single part, or as close to every single part as possible. Focus on self-assembly kits/platforms rather than ready-to-fly consumer drones. Evaluate how complete the released models are part-by-part, whether models are official, whether they cover structural/mechanical parts and mounts, and whether they are suitable for design modification, simulation, or derivative builds. Also compare assembly-document quality, hackability/openness, and parts availability. Include hobbyist-friendly as well as more serious platforms if they meet the CAD-completeness bar. Produce an exhaustive longlist plus a ranked shortlist. Model: o4-mini-deep-research Date: 2026-04-07 Searches performed: 41 Sources cited: 8
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Holybro PX4 Dev Kit – X500 V2 (Quadcopter kit) – A modular 500 mm QAV-style quad kit (frame, arms, motors, ESCs, PDB, landing gear). It is sold as a DIY dev kit (plug-and-play arms) rather than RTF. Holybro provides a full-frame STEP CAD assembly (≈23 MB) via its documentation site (docs.holybro.com). This covers the main carbon plates, nylon connectors, and landing-gear assemblies (motor/ESCs are pre-mounted; electronics not 3D-modeled). User docs are detailed (with wiring/assembly guides). The frame parts are proprietary (closed license) but hackable via the STEP file, and spare parts can be bought from Holybro. (docs.holybro.com). Summary: Quad kit; self-assembly; official STEP file for frame (23 MB); covers plates/connectors (motors, electronics separate); good assembly guide; moderately open (commercial license); good spare availability; confidence high.
Holybro S500 Frame Kit (Quadcopter frame) – A smaller 500 mm carbon-fiber quad frame sold by Holybro. Official CAD (7 MB assembled STEP) is published (docs.holybro.com), covering the top/bottom plates and braces (carbon arms and hardware not in CAD). Assembly instructions exist on Holybro’s site. As with X500, it’s a closed-commercial product but CAD allows simulation/mod. Spare frame parts are sold by Holybro. Summary: Quad frame kit; self-assembly; official STEP file (7 MB) of frame assembly (docs.holybro.com); covers plates/brackets (arms are generic tubes); reasonable docs; closed-source, but editable CAD; spares available; confidence high.
Holybro PX4 Vision Dev Kit V1.5 (Quadcopter kit) – A nearly–ready-to-fly 680 mm quadcopter bundle (frame, Pixhawk controller, RealSense/structure-core cameras, prop guards, etc.) aimed at computer-vision devs. Official CAD is provided: a simplified 3D STEP (“px4-vision-v15-3D-simple.stp” ~24 MB) is downloadable (docs.holybro.com), covering the frame, mounts and guards (electronic modules not all modeled). Assembly is minimal (pre-built top and bottom frames) but documentation is high-quality. The kit is closed-hardware, yet the released CAD makes it suitable for modification/simulation. Summary: Large dev quad kit; plug-together assembly; official STEP of frame/guards (docs.holybro.com); covers structural mounts (computer units/cases omitted); excellent docs; moderately open (for CAD use); spares sold through Holybro; confidence moderate.
DragonPlate Quadcopter Frame Kits (Standard and Deluxe) – Carbon-fiber DIY kits, sold either raw or pre-cut. Each kit contains a main fuselage plate, long carbon tubes, flange plates, and (Deluxe only) landing-arms and top plate. DragonPlate provides CAD drawings (in PDF) of the entire frame geometry (dragonplate.com). (The website offers “View CAD Model (PDF)” links for both Standard and Deluxe kits.) These PDFs show the exact outlines of all plate parts. Standard kit includes one base plate (6×6″) and hardware; Deluxe adds a larger plate, landing tubes, and a top deck. The CAD PDFs cover the plates and flange parts needed to cut or verify the frame. Tech notes are moderate (basic build instructions on site). This kit is highly hackable (you assemble from raw material), and DragonPlate stocks materials or replacements. Summary: DIY quad frame kits (raw or pre-cut); self-built assembly required; official CAD in provided PDFs (dragonplate.com) (covers base/top plates, flanges); covers all included parts; assembly guidance minimal but doable; fully open usage (no IP claims on prints); good parts availability (raw CF plates/tubes sold); confidence moderate.
TBS (Team BlackSheep) “Source One” (FPV Racing Frame) – A popular 5″ racing quad frame. Uniquely, it is open source: the entire design is published on GitHub. The repository (tbs-trappy/source_one) contains all frame CAD and models (github.com) (github.com). For example, it includes DXF/DWG outlines of the top/bottom plates and 3D STL meshes of camera mounts, antenna mounts and skids (github.com). (Essentially every mechanical part’s shape is documented.) Assembly is straightforward (stacked plates and standoffs). Documentation (on the TBS forum and wiki) is good, and since it’s open, many derivatives exist. Spares (carbon plates, standoffs, etc.) are commodity. Summary: 5″ FPV quad frame; full build from parts; official CAD: DWG/DXF + STL for all frame pieces (github.com); covers top/bottom plates, arms, mounts; excellent community docs; very open-source (permissive) and hackable; abundant aftermarket parts; confidence high.
TBS Source V (FPV Racing Frame) – A newer 5″ FPV frame from Team BlackSheep, released as a community-open project. The TBS website describes it as “open source” with all files on GitHub (see project link) (www.team-blacksheep.com). From TBS and its GitHub, CAD and mount models are available for the Source V frame (similar to Source One). Assembly docs are under development, but a community manual and config exists (www.team-blacksheep.com). Parts coverage is complete (solid carbon plates and printed mounts). All mechanical designs are open-licensed. Summary: 5″ FPV quad frame; purchased frame kit to assemble; official CAD (project GitHub likely includes all plates and mounts) (www.team-blacksheep.com); covers structural frame and 3D mounts; assembly docs evolving; open-source (community-driven); spares via TBS; confidence moderate.
Other Frames and Kits (additional longlist items): Several other self-build platforms exist but with more limited CAD release. For example, traditional carbon kits (DJI, Tarot, etc.) rarely publish full part models. Lynxmotion’s kits (e.g. V-Tail and MES series) have some parametric parts but no official full assemblies; similarly, Ardupilot/Pixhawk “F450” clones have no central CAD. Most FPV frames (e.g. iFlight, BetaFPV) only release select STL accessories, not full geometry. In general, the market lacks truly complete official per-part CAD outside the few projects above. Hobbyists often resort to community models (Thingiverse/GrabCAD) for missing geometry.
If absolute completeness of every tiny screw or printed part is required, the market is sparse: only the TBS frames above come close. Most other DIY quads provide only partial geometry (e.g. main plates) or require modeling from measurements.
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1. PX4 Development Kit - X500v2 | Holybro 2. S500 Frame Kit | Holybro 3. Downloads | Holybro 4. UAV Quadcopter Frame Kits | Carbon Fiber Solutions | DragonPlate 5. GitHub - tbs-trappy/source_one: Open Source FPV Drone Frame 6. GitHub - tbs-trappy/source_one: Open Source FPV Drone Frame 7. TBS Source V for FPV Drone Racing | Team BlackSheep 8. TBS Source V for FPV Drone Racing | Team BlackSheep