3D Printed "Warmliner" Build Log

[Dana Hager]

I just read an older post from Wayne and liked his comments with respect to Hotliners so I figured I would give it an appropriate title. I will break up the build log as it is rather lengthy.

I decided to build a 3DLabPrint Joker over the winter months. The first print went well using the recommended settings from 3DLabPrint and Simplify3D on my Prusa i3 MK3S printer.

Components

EMAX GT2215 GT2215/09 1180kv Motor
Turnigy Plush 30A ESC
Turnigy Nano-Tech 3S 65C-130C 1800mah Lipo battery
Turnigy Nano-Tech 200mm Battery Strap

Frsky GRX8 Vario receiver
(2) HTX900 Micro Servo, 9g
(4) Corona DS-239MG Slim Wing Servo, 22g
(2) 15cm servo extensions
(2) 45cm servo extensions

Aeronaut Cam 10"X6" (25.5x15 cm) blades
Aloft Hobbies Turbo Folding Prop Spinner, 36mm
Aloft Hobbies Turbo Folding Prop Spinner Collet, 4mm

MP Jet Plastic Clevises, M2
2mm all threaded rod
K&S Metals 0.039” (1mm) music wire (push rods)
Dubro #511 antenna tubing (0.074" ID 0.134" OD push rod housing)
Carbon fiber tubing - 6mm OD x 4mm ID x 360mm long, 6mm OD x 4mm ID x 640mm long
Miscellaneous hardware as called out in the 3DLabPrint manual

Fillamentum PLA Crystal Clear Iceland Blue, 1.75mm
Fillamentum PLA Crystal Clear Amethyst Purple, 1.75mm
colorFabb PLA/PHA Orange Translucent, 1.75.mm
Hatchbox PLA True Black, 1.75mm filament.

BSI Insta-Cure+ Medium CA, BSI Insta-Set Accelerator

Print Times and Weights




Fuselage
colorFabb PLA/PHA Orange Translucent 1.75mm filament.
Default 3DLabPrint processes in Simplify3D.
Print time (hrs:mins) 17:00

Part Description - Factory / Actual
Fuselage part 1 - 32g / 35.15g
Fuselage part 2 - 42g / 44.90g
Fuselage part 3 - 23g / 25.21g
Fuselage part 4 - 25g / 26.26g
Fuselage part 5 - 17g / 17.31g
Fuselage part 6 - 19g / 20.08g
T Weight - 158g / 168.91g

V-Tail
colorFabb PLA/PHA Orange Translucent 1.75mm filament.
Default 3DLabPrint processes in Simplify3D.
Print time (hrs:mins) 04:13

Part Description - Factory / Actual
V-Tail part 1 Left - 11g / 11.86g
V-Tail part 1 Right - 11g / 11.86g
V-Tail part 2 Left - 8g / 7.86g
V-Tail part 2 Right - 8g / 7.83g
Total Weight -38g / 39.41g

Elevons
Fillamentum PLA Crystal Clear Amethyst Purple , 1.75mm filament.
Default 3DLabPrint processes in Simplify3D.
Print time (hrs:mins) 2:08

Part Description - Factory / Actual
Elevon Part 3 Left - 4g / 4.30g
Elevon Part 3 Right - 4g / 4.18g
Elevon Part 4 Left - 4g / 4.30g
Elevon Part 4 Right - 4g / 4.21g
Total Weight - 16g / 16.99g

Servo Holder
colorFabb PLA/PHA Orange Translucent 1.75mm filament.
Default 3DLabPrint processes in Simplify3D.
Print time (hrs:mins) 01:10

Part Description - Factory / Actual
Servo Holder - 8g / 8.37g
Central Wing Clip - 2g / 2.17g
Total Weight - 10g / 10.54g

Wing Center Section
Fillamentum PLA Crystal Clear Iceland Blue, 1.75mm filament.
Default 3DLabPrint processes in Simplify3D.
Print time (hrs:mins) 16:06

Part Description Factory / Actual
Wing Part 1 Right - 79g / 84.91g
Wing Part 1 Left - 79g / 84.86g
Total Weight - 10g / 10.54g

Wing Outer Sections
Fillamentum PLA Crystal Clear Iceland Blue, 1.75mm filament.
Default 3DLabPrint processes in Simplify3D.
Print time (hrs:mins) 18:38

Part Description - Factory / Actual
Wing Part 2 Right - 41g / 44.55g
Wing Part 2 Left - 41g / 44.59g
Wing Part 3 Right - 35g / 38.95g
Wing Part 3 Left - 35g / 38.90g
Total Weight - 152g / 166.99g

Wing Tips Sections
Fillamentum PLA Crystal Clear Iceland Blue, 1.75mm filament.
Default 3DLabPrint processes in Simplify3D.
Print time (hrs:mins) 11:55

Part Description - Factory / Actual
Wing Part 4 Right - 28g / 30.13g
Wing Part 4 Left - 28g / 30.14g
Wing Part 5 Right - 22g / 24.43g
Wing Part 5 Left - 22g / 24.44g
Total Weight - 100g / 109.14g

Servo Covers
Fillamentum PLA Crystal Clear Iceland Blue, 1.75mm filament.
Default 3DLabPrint processes in Simplify3D.
Print time (hrs:mins) 00:54

Part Description - Factory / Actual
Wing Part 1 Right - 5.5g / 7.11g
Wing Part 1 Left - 5.5g / 7.11g
Total Weight - 11g / 14.22g

Flaps
Fillamentum PLA Crystal Clear Amethyst Purple , 1.75mm filament.
Default 3DLabPrint processes in Simplify3D.
Print time (hrs:mins) 04:27

Part Description - Factory / Actual
Flap Part 1 Right - 5g / 5.87g
Flap Part 1 Left - 5g / 5.91g
Flap Part 2 Right - 7g / 7.62g
Flap Part 2 Left - 7g / 7.58g
Flap Part 3 Right - 7g / 7.47g
Flap Part 3 Left - 7g / 7.49g
Total Weight - 38g / 41.94g

Ailerons
Fillamentum PLA Crystal Clear Amethyst Purple , 1.75mm filament,
Default 3DLabPrint processes in Simplify3D.
Print time (hrs:mins) 04:27

Part Description - Factory / Actual
Aileron Part 1 Right - 6g / 5.91g
Aileron Part 1 Left - 6g / 5.87g
Aileron Part 2 Right - 8g / 9.05g
Aileron Part 2 Left - 8g / 9.01g
Aileron Part 3 Right - 8g / 8.93g
Aileron Part 3 Left - 8g / 8.85g
Total Weight - 44g / 47.62g

Canopy
Hatchbox PLA True Black, 1.75mm filament.
Default 3DLabPrint processes in Simplify3D.
Print time (hrs:mins) 00:54

Part Description - Factory / Actual
Canopy Part 1 Front - 6g / 7.72g
Canopy Part 2 Back - 9g / 10.67g
Total Weight - 15g / 18.39g

All parts printed and assembly complete. Minimal cleaning was required using the 3DLabPrint profiles in simplify3D. A X-Acto knife and small needle files were all that was required to remove the brims and minimal supports. Parts fit is excellent and should provide strong glue joints and clean seams.

*****
A word of caution, one should not use wire cutters or scissors to remove the brims or other supports in thin wall printed parts!
The shock will cause the layers to split and crack the delicate structure. Scoring with a knife and gentle flexing is all the is required.
*****

 

[Dana Hager]

Preparing for the hardware required a 1.6mm drill bit for the control horn clevis pin holes and a 3.3mm drill bit for preparing the holes to tap for the wing bolts using a 4x0.7mm tap.

All gluing was done with BSI Insta-Cure+ Medium CA and BSI Insta-Set Accelerator. No fogging or discoloration was encountered using these products.

Hinging process was to install one side with BSI Insta-Cure+ Medium CA and allow to set up. Then glue the mating side, align with some masking tape to hold in place and spray with BSI Insta-Set Accelerator .

Normally I would use Multiplex connectors for the wing servo harness but I want to be able to swap out servos and do repairs without unsoldering the connectors. Once I become comfortable with the design and durability I may change them.

I used clevises on the control horn end and Z-bends on the servo side of the elevon pushrods for simplicity and weight savings. Z-bends get a lot of bad press but its all in the details. Make sure the hole in the servo arm is sized to the pushrod wire and I like to add washers on each side of the servo arm to minimize any play in the linkage.

You can make washers of the required thickness out of milk jugs, soda bottles or any suitable plastic. Punch out a bunch of discs with a sharpened piece of brass tubing and then drill a hole sized to the pushrod wire size. No more slop...

Easy Motor and ESC install with no surprises. M3x6mm, M3x8mm screws and M3 flat washers were used along with thread locker. Use the low strength (purple) thread locker here on the small M3 fasteners to prevent loosening due to vibration and the motor heat softening the PLA firewall. I will be printing a small spacer to fill in the gap between the firewall and spinner to give it a finished appearance.

*** Important Note***
As with all motor installations, be mindful of the length of screws used to fasten the motor!
The fuselage has down and right thrust built into it but the firewall is not parallel, it is tapered. It will require different length screws or washers to adjust the length of the screw as it threads into the motor. Failure to do this may cause damage to the windings of the motor when you tighten the screws.

CG starting point will be 68mm and will require no additional weight. The final ready to fly weight with a 3S 1800mAh Lipo is 1292.00g. Jokerwings.com listed build weight is 1175g, so I feel good knowing that I could make small adjustment to the extruder multiplier in the stock gcode files and loose the weight next print.

Maiden flight update to follow.

 

[Dana Hager]

 

[Wayne]

Looks like a very nice plane. Sleek and clean, should carry a glide well and turn a nice speed pass too.

Surprised they have such a large battery in there. I'd think a 3S 850 would be better suited to that motor/prop combo and give a lot less weight in the plane. Less weight will be best for a printed plane when it comes time to land.

I've printed a few planes now and I think the best advice to anyone with one, land very well! Durability is not their strong point. For a plane of this nature I would suggest some packing tape on the bottom for the skid landings.

If the power is not what you were looking for, grab the higher KV version of that motor, something closer to 2000kv and a smaller prop. Or stick with that motor but run it on 4 or maybe even 6S with a much smaller prop (probably not a folder if 6S). The plane looks like it should be able to do some good speed.

The NuckingFutz (something like that) in 3D print form is a mini-pylon plane, and I think people were getting some respectable speeds out of that airframe. Just watch out for too hot a setup, your motor mount will deform if you have too much heat at the motor!! Never a good thing.

One of the guys here in the shop is working on a little RC Blimp (think racing blimp) and his little tiny motor got hot enough to melt the 3D printed motor mount even though it was not running!! He was just settling the motor timing on the ESC. (It is about the smallest outrunner you have ever seen, geared to drive something like a 10" prop. Will get him to do a build thread if he has any success.) (currently redesigning around a different motor.)

Good luck - I love it and can't wait to hear how the flight goes!

 

[Dana Hager]

Thanks for the insight on motor selection. Not really knowing what to expect I went with the designers general recommendations. I totally agree on the battery size and weight but to obtain the CG it was either battery or lead. There really was no way to lighten the printed tail feathers on such a long moment unless it was all printed in LW-PLA. It was a fun exercise to build in a different material and process. I will likely print a few other models but I like balsa and bagging wings. Next up will be a Schleicher ASK 14 motor glider.

Thanks for the great support and service!

 

[Wayne]

Yeah, I was wondering if that is why the big battery. Hope she flies as good as she looks.

 

[DerekBell]

Nice job! I'm just getting into 3D printing for RC parts. Do you think a Ceality ender pro V2 can handle prints like this?

 

[Kilrah]

Should try this one day. Love the choice of transparent material and colors.

 

[Wayne]

I had the Ender Pro and it is a pretty decent machine for the money. Lots of support out there. But be prepared to calibrate the heck out of it. I have recently moved onto the Prusa Minis and they just work and produce top quality prints with almost no effort.

Recently Prusa announced that they have added support for other brands with their Slicer. You could always use their Slicer, but it did not have calibrations for other brands, and it sounds like they do now. If I still had my Ender I would be using their Slicer and calibrations a try. That might be a good mix.

Kilrah - they are fun to produce and build, and some of the designs you can download are very nice. The downside is trying to keep the planes light is a challenge, and the durability is very poor for the lightest weight samples. I'd avoid the light side of things and maybe look more at the faster side of things, where weight is not a primary concern. These designs lend themselves much better to printing. I printed up one of these a while back, good and simple design that works well:
Nucking Futs

Nucking Futs - Speed 400 Pylon Racer - RC plane by tahustvedt

Flight videos:https://youtu.be/XXQ9nKR_kTghttps://youtu.be/UxittfJNad4https://youtu.be/3M_5ZInhubwhttps://youtu.be/GIJgPmEvhx4EDIT - 14.04.2019:Added a glider nose and front fuselage piece which is longer and without holes. The new files are Glidernose01 and Fuselage01-gliderEDIT -...

www.thingiverse.com

 

[Dana Hager]

The Ender can print single wall parts. As Wayne said earlier, take the time to learn and calibrate the printer. My first printer was an Ender 3 Pro and I used that to learn 3D Printing. With the Ender I build a CNC foam board needle cutter, CNC 4-axis hotwire cutter for bagging wings and countless other project parts. I am currently using a Prusa I3 MK3S and it is by far my favorite printer. I will say that if it was my first printer I would not have learned much, it is such an easy machine to use.

I am currently printing the Nucking Futs. Wayne guilted me to build something fast after my "Warm Liner" Joker. LOL...

 

[Wayne]

I did no such thing!!

Prusa makes everything easier and the results are much nicer. We had a customer bring in some parts he printed on his buddies Prusa, I was blown away. I thought I was doing pretty well with my Ender at that time, but the Prusa prints were so darn clean and so strong. Not long after that they announced the Mini and I could not pass it up for that price. I have 3 of them now. LOL I have a brand new one in a box if anyone is interested.

 

[Konrad]

I may want to look at the Prusa. I'll be up north on Friday. I'd like to see one in action if possible.

 

[Wayne]

Can do.

 

[Pankaj]

I have started printing this on ender 3, after many trial with different settings now i have final settings and getting really good prints. Just printed Fuselage...will be going with wing section.

 

[ORRich]

What is the AUW with battery, radio, motor etc ? the wing looks very Bleczyk-y nice build thread BTW