Funder and lightning 35"
Post by Frank rcfc » Thu Jan 08, 2009 12:09 am

Funder and Lightning by Lee Ray. This has a 35" wingspan. Check out rcgroups for great detailed ideas on building this fast and fun plane to fly. cnc,skp and jpeg incld in folder.



Attached files Funder and Lightning.zip (638.1 KB)Â

 

I have built a couple (three actually) of these. The first and second was made using 6mm Depron. The third I used a mixture of Deprong (ailerons, elevator and fuse doublers). The tail feathers and wing were cut from the Green FFF from Lowe's. Also, the third is a twin motor. I used 3/8" square basswood for the stringers so I could mount the two small HXT outrunners directly on the front of the wing where I have extended the runners to add the necessary length. First flight on No3 was today. This plane is extremely fast and flew right out of hand (watch out for the port side torque roll on launch). Anyhow, today was cold in Indiana. Thanks to global warming it was up to 12 or 14 degrees. The normal or expected amount of flex in the wing did not work well for the green foam from Lowe's. The plane was landed okay but there are a number for tears in the foam probably because it was so cold.
Other than that, flew fast and straight wit the two motors and a 1000 mAh lipo 3 cell. This is a great airplane design and fun to fly. If I knew how to post photos on this forum I would show some of the breaks caused by the cold weather. Thans for a great basic design. I am going to make more of these! Oh...happy New Year to all...

Chuck
...somewhere in Indiana...

 

When you go to the bottom of the last post, just above where it says 'post a reply' , there is a place that says 'advanced postreply'. If you click on it, in the screen that will come up you'll see at the bottom, where the light-blue part is, there is a tab that says 'Upload attachment'.

 

Thank you TigerPilot...I'll give it a try a little later.

 

That was a fun plane to build and fly. Very fast. One thing I did do was enlarged the ailerons for more response. I got a little crazy with it one day and it turned right back into a kit.

 

Well, no luck with posting the photos. Dial-up plus a huge bozo factor make a bad pair.
Anyhow, I'll just have to choose a different material for Twin number two.

Chuck
...somewhere in Indiana...

 

Chuck,
Looks good, are you running 2 speed controllers as I can only see one in the pics.
If not how did you get it to work with one?
I plan to cut this out soon. looks like a fun plane, I will only go with 1 motor.

 

Looks like he is using one, I can see the wires from each motor going into the ESC.

 

Frank n' Jeff...only running one speed control. I know this is not recommended, but it works okay. I split the wires (soldered) coming out of the ESP and set it up so each motor has its own plug connections. Now and then, when I power up, both motor do not want to start right up. No problem, I shut them down and go again and they take off fine. Never a problem while flying and power is certainly no issue. In truth, the single motor version flies just as well. As I have said, the twin has a "cool" factor. I also have built one with counter rotating motors and another with then turning the same direction. I see no difference in flying either way. The Funder n' Lightning is a really good design and a superb flyer. If space on the plane permits, I would probably recommend two ESC's. The single ESC I am using here is 25A. Perhaps a single 30+ amp would be better. Thanks Mark & Trish with help in posting these photos.

Chuck

 

Hey Mark, thanks a million! Looks like a great job. I will get busy and cut one of these tomorrow to see how it looks in the flesh and I will let you know. I know you are busy and I appreciate you taking time to fiddle with this. Anyone reading this should know you (and Trish) are more than generous and willing to help out when asked. Knowing someone is there when needed is a real plus when purchasing your Phlatprinter(s).
I would be out in the shop cutting this thing tonight except Global Warming has left a foot of snow and ice between here and there and it is already above 15 degrees.
Thanks again, I appreciate your help more than I can explain.

Chuck
...somewhere in Indiana...

 

Great Work Chuck...And thanks Mark for the added assistance.

I will print this on sunday and let y'all know how it goes.

-Peter

 

Mark, are there corrections to your original update on this airplane? I am in a bit of a fog but don't know what "hole" was missing. Do I need to download the file again because you have made changes?

Chuck
...covered in snow in the middle of global warming...

 

Thanks! Now I see why there was a "step" or "notch" in your first revision which prompted my email to you about the shape of the slot in the fuselage. Now I get it! Guess I had better replace the old file(s) with this one, cut one out and see how it does. I want to see if I can get a nice fold with 6mm Depron without breaking it. I have found if I put a strip of tape of some kind on the fold line and then fold it slowly it works find and won't (usually) crack.

Chuck
...somewhere in Indiana...

 

Okay, success! I cut one out of white Depron. As I have mentioned, white Depron is too short (or narrow, depending on how you look at it) to fit the single sheet plane. I did get most of it and in particular the wing which I wanted to test for the bend on the LE. I taped it with Blenderm (very flexible, somewhat elastic) and it folded nicely. I have it stuck down with epoxy and some clamps and it is going to look good. I am going to let it set up until tomorrow and we shall see!
Thank you Mark.

Chuck
...somewhere in Indiana...

 

Mark...the white Depron I use is from RC Foam and is the largest size they offer. It is the size in the case lots they offer and is 6mm by 27" by 39". I usually trim some of the 27" down to 24". In some cases I then temporarily tape the 3" strip to the end of the depron in order to extend it so it does not roll off the drive roller. In the case of the Funder n' Lightning, this did not work, the layout exceeded the end of the foam by about 2.5". So, I am guessing the table size should be 24" x 39" so everything will fit on it. Are you saying if I change the table size everything will automatically squeeze down to fit that size? If you can do this one last set up for me, that will be great. I only have black and white Depron on hand at the moment. All my pink and blue FFF will not work because of hills and valleys in the foam. I have not added sand to my pressure roller yet but have to do that ASAP. We talked about this and you thought that would solve my problem. In the meantime, if you adjust the table size to fit the white Depron available from RC Foam for the Funder n' Lightning it will be great and others can benefit from this also. THANKS A MILLION!

Chuck

 

Mark, will give it a try tomorrow. I feel confident it will work and I appreciate it greatly. I fooled around with the SketchUp thing earlier today but I am clueless and could not figure out how to change the table size and do the rest. This will come later, I will figure it out one way or another. I cut out the other revision you did with the fold over using the Depron and it worked out great! I am going to enjoy making these airplanes and thanks to you it only will take one sheet of 39" white Depron. As you know, the black is longer and not a problem at all however, black (dark grey) is hard to paint or apply decals to. Also, the white in 39" is less expensive. While I am thinking about it, my source other than Avery for the clear full-sheet ink-jet is ONLINE LABELS.COM. It is 1/2 the price of the Avery Labels. Thanks again Mark. I will check your revision out tomorrow and let you know how it does.

Chuck
...somewhere in Indiana...