Tahoed
Very Strong User
I put mine in a dog crate, just in case it tries to fly out of the window...
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3D Printed Glider Seagull
- Thread starter RafaelAvila
- Start date
As a follow up for this thread, I flew my painted Seagull at the Sunset event and had a great time with her. I think everyone had a good laugh with the plane, and I received a lot of compliments. She flew great, no issues at all. Sadly the flock of Seagulls did not pan out, only seeing about 5 of them flying at the event in total. Only 2 of them painted.
If you build one of these you really do need to invest a little time into getting some color on them. Makes a huge difference in appearance. A couple of simples passes with a spray can on the wings and some paint markers for the beak and eyes will do the trick. No need for anything really fancy. They look great in the air regardless of spending hours on the paint, or minutes.
Sadly my video did not turn out, the camera had focus issues. I have just this one still photo that was taken far away:
For a good laugh I would drop down low over a line of pilots and "poop" on them by wiggling the tail left and right. Always good for a laugh.
Really enjoyed flying her and showing her off to folks.
Now for the good news, Planeprint is allowing us to sell printed planes. We had a number of requests to do this. So right now while our printers have some spare time we can print out more of these. We are offering the glider version, in white Poly Maker LW-PLA as pictured above, but without the paint, in kit form. The price will be $120. This includes a license fee for the designer. If you are interested, please email us at contact@alofthobbies.com as this will not be on the website at this time.
They fly very well in most slope conditions. If you are good at landing, then you should have a decent lifespan from the Seagull. We do not recommend storing them in hot spaces like a closed up car. PLA can and will deform under higher heats. These are fragile birds, but great fun to build and fly. If you bang it up, contact us for spare parts.
If you build one of these you really do need to invest a little time into getting some color on them. Makes a huge difference in appearance. A couple of simples passes with a spray can on the wings and some paint markers for the beak and eyes will do the trick. No need for anything really fancy. They look great in the air regardless of spending hours on the paint, or minutes.
Sadly my video did not turn out, the camera had focus issues. I have just this one still photo that was taken far away:
For a good laugh I would drop down low over a line of pilots and "poop" on them by wiggling the tail left and right. Always good for a laugh.
Really enjoyed flying her and showing her off to folks.
Now for the good news, Planeprint is allowing us to sell printed planes. We had a number of requests to do this. So right now while our printers have some spare time we can print out more of these. We are offering the glider version, in white Poly Maker LW-PLA as pictured above, but without the paint, in kit form. The price will be $120. This includes a license fee for the designer. If you are interested, please email us at contact@alofthobbies.com as this will not be on the website at this time.
They fly very well in most slope conditions. If you are good at landing, then you should have a decent lifespan from the Seagull. We do not recommend storing them in hot spaces like a closed up car. PLA can and will deform under higher heats. These are fragile birds, but great fun to build and fly. If you bang it up, contact us for spare parts.
wayne, I painted it with Walmart paint and paper towel haha I don't even have airbrush
its only cost about 0.80 cents per little bottle
its only cost about 0.80 cents per little bottle
thenated0g
Moderator
Love those paints. super cheap
Konrad
Very Strong User
Guys, I'm digging out my Seagull in hopes that I might get this trimmed and tuned by Sunset. Looking at the documentation and this thread I don't see what you guys are using for servo arm length.
Can somebody tell me what are the servo arm lengths and if you are using close to 100% servo motion in your radio set up?
P.S.
Mine doesn't have the thrust tube. Seeing videos where the EDF Seagull is prone to stalling (Jarron) from what I think is a low pressure zone from the fast EDF exhaust produces under the "stab". I'm thinking the thrust tube is worth the tail weight!
What do I need to do to get one printed by Aloft, order or beg?
P.P.S.
Love the video, "Wayne you have my credit card #, right?"
Can somebody tell me what are the servo arm lengths and if you are using close to 100% servo motion in your radio set up?
P.S.
Mine doesn't have the thrust tube. Seeing videos where the EDF Seagull is prone to stalling (Jarron) from what I think is a low pressure zone from the fast EDF exhaust produces under the "stab". I'm thinking the thrust tube is worth the tail weight!
What do I need to do to get one printed by Aloft, order or beg?
P.P.S.
Love the video, "Wayne you have my credit card #, right?"
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I need to dust mine off. Check the details on radio setup in the manual. We have them listed on our website:
alofthobbies.com
I see we are out of stock, will bug the guys to get some qued up. Tis the coming season.
We do not offer the EDF version, they suck. The glider is awesome!
Plane Print Seagull Glider Kit 1500mm
Soar among the birds with this fully 3D printed R/C glider. Modeled after the common seagull, it fits right in on coastal slopes. Constructed primarily of lightweight PLA, the Seagull achieves a super low wing loading of 17 grams/dm2. This means it will stay aloft even in light lift. It features...
alofthobbies.com
I see we are out of stock, will bug the guys to get some qued up. Tis the coming season.
We do not offer the EDF version, they suck. The glider is awesome!
Konrad
Very Strong User
Read both the glider and EDF manual and don't see a servo arm length call out. I see a recommended control surface throw. I was looking for some guidance as to the arm length so as to not having to go by trial and error. I was hoping that the Aloft hive mind had done enough of these that there is a known value for the arm lengths.
Mine has the normal servo arm on all servos. I'd don't recall my mixing anymore, but you really do not need a lot of throw on these for them to fly well. The instructions cover everything very well. Don't over think it, these are not models that are going to last a long time. They look GREAT in the air, and that is about it. I have a lot of fun with it. If not flown and landed with great care, she will be back to raw materials very quickly. No mid airs, no slightly rough landings, and care must be given when transporting. So far all damage to mine has been from transport.
The difficulty on these is the printing process. When building, do not get caught up on any details. Just go for close enough is good enough as the goal should be good looks at a slight distance. I have seen people put way too much effort into building them, they all fly identical regardless and they all looks great in the air if you give them a little paint. My paint job took all of 5 minutes.
The difficulty on these is the printing process. When building, do not get caught up on any details. Just go for close enough is good enough as the goal should be good looks at a slight distance. I have seen people put way too much effort into building them, they all fly identical regardless and they all looks great in the air if you give them a little paint. My paint job took all of 5 minutes.
gp49
Very Strong User
Looks like 12 is a good, average compromise!
Two that I saw at Sunset last year were broken before getting out of the car, but both were flying ok after a CA session. Paint yours as a 'she' rather then a 'he' and you will stand out (at least among the models)
Konrad
Very Strong User
Not being an ornithologist or a member of the Audubon society what is the difference in plumage. I see the difference in the juvenile plumage, too much work!
Yep, this is a technical hobby or at least was. Statements like that looks right it will fly or that looks normal are subjective values that don't transmit any real information. Thanks for the quantifiable value!
I'm going to add some light glass over the gull wing break. The bird has to at least make it to the slope in one piece if I'm going to fly her.
To Wayne's point, the last production run by Rafael looked real good! He had worked out the direction to run the print head so as to get a real good surface finish on the upper wing skins.
Yep, this is a technical hobby or at least was. Statements like that looks right it will fly or that looks normal are subjective values that don't transmit any real information. Thanks for the quantifiable value!
I'm going to add some light glass over the gull wing break. The bird has to at least make it to the slope in one piece if I'm going to fly her.
To Wayne's point, the last production run by Rafael looked real good! He had worked out the direction to run the print head so as to get a real good surface finish on the upper wing skins.
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The stuff sands well too.. But don't bother. LOL
Looks like about 9mm on the servo arms. But again this is outlined in the manual. They spec out what the throws should be. You actually have good access to all of the servo arms. You will be in the shop at some point, check out the built models if you like, but you are already over thinking this. LOL
Looks like about 9mm on the servo arms. But again this is outlined in the manual. They spec out what the throws should be. You actually have good access to all of the servo arms. You will be in the shop at some point, check out the built models if you like, but you are already over thinking this. LOL
Konrad
Very Strong User
Fiberglass as in fibers across the outer wing joints for strength. Not as in a surface finish. BSI CA is not bonding as well as I'd have expected. My joints fail without any damage to the parent material. Hence why I think there needs to be some added support in the part line such as a light band of glass.
I did a, command find, of the manual and didn't find anything about servo arm length. Yes, they do have the control throws called out. But as this is a proven design I'd like to learn what folks used in the way of servo arm lengths and servo resolution to reach those values.
Proper geometry is over thinking? Obviously we have a different concept of the minimum thought needed to get the most out of a design.
As it looks like I'll need to be the trail blazer on this I'll publish the values I use to meet the spec's called out for the surface deflections. In the end, it is the surface deflection values that are the important spec.
I did a, command find, of the manual and didn't find anything about servo arm length. Yes, they do have the control throws called out. But as this is a proven design I'd like to learn what folks used in the way of servo arm lengths and servo resolution to reach those values.
Proper geometry is over thinking? Obviously we have a different concept of the minimum thought needed to get the most out of a design.
As it looks like I'll need to be the trail blazer on this I'll publish the values I use to meet the spec's called out for the surface deflections. In the end, it is the surface deflection values that are the important spec.
Konrad
Very Strong User
And I asked for servo arm length to get those values.
CA was/is fresh from Aloft. In fact opened the tubes for this model. The failed glue line was cured for months. My concern is that the print filament wasn't damaged at all in the joint failure. I used medium CA followed by thin CA after the initial assembly. Maybe the expanding thin CA fractured the original med CA joint?
Whatever the failure mode I'm not going to look at it under a SEM. I'm just going to add some fibers across the joints that don't have a carbon tube across them.
CA was/is fresh from Aloft. In fact opened the tubes for this model. The failed glue line was cured for months. My concern is that the print filament wasn't damaged at all in the joint failure. I used medium CA followed by thin CA after the initial assembly. Maybe the expanding thin CA fractured the original med CA joint?
Whatever the failure mode I'm not going to look at it under a SEM. I'm just going to add some fibers across the joints that don't have a carbon tube across them.
Konrad
Very Strong User
I'm always at a loss as to why folks like to encourage sloppy thinking or mindless complacency.
Here I was wanting the servo arm length to get the most from my servos. I was also looking to benefit from the experience of others that have built this model.
Key to this is that I'm lazy and don't like to redo thing, like reinvent the wheel. Here you can see that I'm using an MPJet connector with spring retainer. This retainer is a bear to remove should I need to change servo arm length. (I choose the MPJet retainer for its 1mm post).
Well with my servo and radio the best arm length is looking to be 7mm to 7.5mm. At 7mm and at 100% radio value I get 55mm plus tail wag. Spec is 60mm. At a radio value of 120% I get over 65mm plus tail motion.
Now what annoys me is that the as printed parts allow the push rod to bind with the rear spar mounting boss! Allowing the servo to mount up higher closer to the mounting pad would clear the spar boss. I'm using the Corona DS-843 MG servo. This results in the top of the servo arm being 14mm above the servo mount. For the as printed mount to allow the pushrod to clear the top of the servo arm needs to be 13mm or less above the pad.
Seeing how the push rod runs, the proper fix is to allow the servo to mount closer to the servo mounting pad. I'd have liked to see the legs printed with longer slots to allow the servo to do just that. With the servo mount installed this is going to be another exercise in frustration.
I also found that the hole in the tail control horn was way to large for the 0.8mm push rod. To cut down on slop I upped the push rod diameter to 1.25mm wire.
I think these issues apply to the glider seagull as well as my EDF
With some forethought from the designer and even some proper feedback from those that have built one of these this trap could have been avoided.
Folks, please give some though to your installation. You really can't over think this! (Yes, I'm talking back at Wayne!)
Here I was wanting the servo arm length to get the most from my servos. I was also looking to benefit from the experience of others that have built this model.
Key to this is that I'm lazy and don't like to redo thing, like reinvent the wheel. Here you can see that I'm using an MPJet connector with spring retainer. This retainer is a bear to remove should I need to change servo arm length. (I choose the MPJet retainer for its 1mm post).
Well with my servo and radio the best arm length is looking to be 7mm to 7.5mm. At 7mm and at 100% radio value I get 55mm plus tail wag. Spec is 60mm. At a radio value of 120% I get over 65mm plus tail motion.
Now what annoys me is that the as printed parts allow the push rod to bind with the rear spar mounting boss! Allowing the servo to mount up higher closer to the mounting pad would clear the spar boss. I'm using the Corona DS-843 MG servo. This results in the top of the servo arm being 14mm above the servo mount. For the as printed mount to allow the pushrod to clear the top of the servo arm needs to be 13mm or less above the pad.
Seeing how the push rod runs, the proper fix is to allow the servo to mount closer to the servo mounting pad. I'd have liked to see the legs printed with longer slots to allow the servo to do just that. With the servo mount installed this is going to be another exercise in frustration.
I also found that the hole in the tail control horn was way to large for the 0.8mm push rod. To cut down on slop I upped the push rod diameter to 1.25mm wire.
I think these issues apply to the glider seagull as well as my EDF
With some forethought from the designer and even some proper feedback from those that have built one of these this trap could have been avoided.
Folks, please give some though to your installation. You really can't over think this! (Yes, I'm talking back at Wayne!
)
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