The 45" saucer is finished. With a 3200mah lipo, it weights about 60oz.

Here are some pictures of the completed saucer.























Attached files

 

Thanks guys! It was a fun challenge to build. You just got to love that PhlatPrinter and the doors it opens up.

 

rjarois, Thanks for the comments. I've wanted to build a heavy lifter type of plane as well. Yours looks like it will be a great picture taker. I'm waiting for some good weather here in Iowa. I'm hoping I'm not too late into the season to get this one tested. Good luck with the heavy lifter. Looking forward to videos.

 

Yes, you and the PhlatPrinter sure opened a door to another dimension with this plane. That is un-freakin believable! How did you get the covering so tight without warping the depron structure underneath? You have got to get video of this plane in flight!

 

meistertek, thanks for the comment! Covering foam is tricky. And very time consuming because of the warp factor. I probably spent 15 to 20 hours on the covering. I've experimented a lot with covering types. The first requirement is a low temp covering like Tower Hobbies 21st Century Microlite film. It has to stretch easily at a low temp. Then the next key element is the temperature of the iron. About 240 degrees seems to work well for me. I use the regular iron to seal the edges. I don't use the regular iron to do the major shrinking step. I think it applies too much heat in too large an area at one time which causes major warping. After sealing the edges well with the big iron, I then use the very small trim sealing iron to do the final shrinking. It applies heat to a very small controlled area. For me, this keeps the warping to a minumum. But, even with careful shrinking, you will still have to work out some warps. But, this is no different than with a balsa built plane. It is one of those type of tasks that are best done in the morning when you are well rested and patience is better. Trying to cover foam at night after a long day at work does not always work well.

I'm looking forward to some video of this one also. I have to find a place to take off and land. My usual flying location won't work. This one is built with landing gear and too big for me to toss into the air.

 

Mark, thanks for the compliments!! It's an honor to have a plane be on the opening page. This forum has so many excellent planes showing up. If this one flies as well as it's predecessors, I'm in for a treat. To me it's got that "bomber" look. I'm looking forward to that maiden flight. Keep up the great work on the shop and those PhlatPrinters!

 

KX-5, wow what an awesome build. It looks awesome..cant wait to see it the air!! Congrats

Chris

 

Thanks Lucky! It looks like a couple days before the wind is reasonable around here.

 

Here is the maiden flight. Sorry for the poor video. Cameras don't make good video recorders. The landing is with power off.

 

Thanks Mark. I love the sound of the dual motors. It has an awesome glide. Wing area is about 1,100 sq in. and wingloading about 8 oz/sq ft.

 

Thanks Randy. It is very stable and does not seem to have any quirky habits. I'm using a new transmitter (Specktrum DXI6) and am not use to the stick sensitivity yet. I see by the landing that I could have used just a bit up elevator just before touch down. What do you think?

 

Dude! That does sound awesome... and that landing glide was sweet too.

 

meistertek, Thanks! I do love the sound of the twin motors. I've made 4 flights so far and all have been dead stick landings. The weather is turning colder and windy here so finding a day for decent flying is hard to come by. I'm not ready to park this one for the winter just yet. I have some 4000mah lipos to try out.