FPV HUB

Here we go again :) Idle fingers build planes :)

I fancied something a little faster than normal, I looked at a few different choices but decided on the very cheap and cheerful Skyfun. Its very cheap, spacious, capable of decent speeds and fun :)

As usual, the list of whats going in it :

Skyfun from Hobbyking UK £34 (http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=36736)
Turnigy Plush 60 Amp ESC £22 (http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=28405)
NTM 2836 2700KV Motor UK £12 (http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=29484)
6x4E prop £0.53 (http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=41516)

Batteries :
2200 3S 30C UK £9.02 (http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=26705)
or
2200 4S 30C UK £13.63 (http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=26706)

Servos :

Hitec HS5055MG £13.08 each (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/261304717653?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649)

Receiver : Frsky X8R Telemetry Receiver EFPV.co.uk £23 (http://www.efpv.co.uk/#!product/prd2/1412427151/frsky-x8r-telemetry-rx)

Vtx : ImmersionRC 600mW 5.8ghz £66 (http://www.firstpersonview.co.uk/transmitters/5.8ghz/immersionrc-600mw?tracking=52d9b4fae528d)
Camera :  25x25 WDR 650 Surveilzone ( HK )  (http://www.surveilzone.com/25X25mm-650tvl-0.001-lux-starlight-super-mini-fpv-camera-d-wdr-hs1149f)

With all the bits here I got started on it.


A few hours later everything was glued together and could have been flown





Instead the weather got in the way, which happily led me to think a bit more about the build, its weaknesses and fixes for them.

The first was the weak jointing between the wings an body, I was not happy with them so a trip up to Keith`s and we set about putting a large spar across the whole of the rear :

Then some spars that were missing in the box that followed the leading edge of the wing were bought and fitted. The top and bottom were then taped to protect the foam against dirt and damage and a pattern added to the bottom for easier orientation


The Vtx inside the canopy would not last long without any cooling, the plane had no vents, so I drilled a hole in the front canopy section and glued in a piece of carbon tube to jet cold air at the vtx. I repeated this at the back, there was a few places the air could escape but added the same size vent so that there was more ways for the air to escape at the rear than the inlet at the front so it will not blow the canopy off with air pressure build up. 




Ready for a maiden, only thing to add will be my Skew-Planar from Bignose :)

That looks excellent Ian!

Super excited about this maiden. Will it keep up with a FunJet?

Richard

Thanks Rich, yeah it should do, some lads run this motor at 1500W most 1000W and the motor is fine with it.

Looking good. On my mkII version I moved the servos to the top of the wing. Those spars were missing on both of my skyfuns.
There is so much space inside these planes for there size.

Nice Ian
Easier to launch than a Funjet as well
Antennas just needs crimping so will be in the post tomorrow mate
Cheers

Nice one Simon :)

Struggling to actually find out the CG, most say before the finger holes, but how close is that, I dunno lol I`ve done it so my fingers just feel the edge of the holes so the CG is just before them, I hope that`s right :)

Sounds about right :)

Always safe to go nose heavy.  Do a teat run, and move back if you have too much up elevator !

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk

very nice and clean that ian,with ref to the vtx did you consider mounting it out on the wingside abit for a bit better cooling and the skew to go on etc ?

Thanks Mark.

I thought about it then decided not too, it would mean dead weight on the other wing to balance it back out. Because its on it the wing it would be behind the CG so would mean even more dead weight in the nose to bring the CG forward for no real gain over mounting it in the canopy.

My first one had the balance point with my fingers just outside the front of the finger holes, as you know that was far too nose heavy!
Yours sounds right, and what I'll be aiming for on my second attempt!

Quote from: Coyote on January 05, 2014, 10:39:06 AM
Thanks Mark.

I thought about it then decided not too, it would mean dead weight on the other wing to balance it back out. Because its on it the wing it would be behind the CG so would mean even more dead weight in the nose to bring the CG forward for no real gain over mounting it in the canopy.

ahh yeah good point well good luck ian with the maiden hope the weather plays ball for you.

I've always balanced mine in the centre of launch holes.

Slightly nose heavy, not to much.

And it flies like it's on rails.

The glide is unreal lol.
A couple of times with a breeze I've had to force the nose down to land.

It just wanted to glide lol.

I sold it, and then brought another to fpv.

Hmm, that`s interesting, 3DJIM said in front of the finger holes or it will be a very short flight lol Now I`m confused

I've just checked the CofG on my Jamarra Roo (Skyfun) and I've got it exactly at the very front edge of the finger holes, not forward or back but right on the very front of them.

PK

Its confusing me tbh Paul, in front, on behind..............

Does front mean with your finger in the hole as far forward as it goes, or out of the hole as far back as you can before its in the hole ?

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64048/Skyfun-kit-4_zps28f0beaf.jpg)

On your photo, if you pushed a bead headed pin into the foam at that tiny 1/2mm gap of white foam showing between the black line and the first part of the 'D' cut out then that's where mine is.

I wouldn't get too anal about it to within 3 or 4mm of that point front or back (remember your lipo will get lighter as it uses up stored power and that will move the CofG  ;D )

I've just lifted my 'spare' unbuilt Roo kit off the top shelf and the instructions for CG say.....

"The correct position for the Centre of Gravity (C of G) is at the front edge of the launching wells which are let into the lower side of the model"

also says....

"Elevon Throw:    approx. 10mm up and down  Expo 50%"

Thanks Paul, I think my throws are a little more, oh say 20mm more lmao

Mine are set at 10mm, if you've got loads more it's going to be jinking and twitching right from the get go..... interesting to watch the video  :)

Also, having opened the box there are no carbon spars in it.
The instructions don't list them in the parts list and whilst their build photos show them the note says....

"If you are using a stronger motor or intend to fly the model aggressively we recommend that you strengthen the model. This is best done achieved (sic)  by gluing 2   2-2.5mm Carbon rods into the slots in the wing and fuselage lower surfaces"

So my first one I must have bought the spars separately.

PK

Its a cool plane  flys very nice fpv too. When set up right its probably nicest flying FPV plane I've had.
but...
That foam is so friggin fragile it doesn't look nice for long...

Oh - and theat rear motor mount will come off - the glue they uses is crap.
Someone told me this, so I gave it a little tug and it seemed OK... they were spot on. After maybe 5 flights off it came and chewed up rear of plane.
Recommend taking off the foam and doing it properly!

Well old cheesy vid from it...

FJ on Vimeo (http://vimeo.com/8461287)

Ian, I have just broken the 'dead spell' in my FPV career and have bought all the gear on this post - absolutely everything on your list!

Any suggestions, other than build and fly? I'll read the thread and wait for your maiden before I even open the boxes... Going in is the old FY21AP and AP117, no Go Pro, just bollocking speed is what I'm after :)

Richard

The maiden was the other day Rich, flew nice but then went into a dive and obliterated itself lol :)

Here I`ll show you .................

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64049/IMAG0421_zpsdd64d828.jpg)

I wouldn`t bother with a stabilizer, when its trimmed it flies straight and true. I would seriously advise fitting a lipo strap though :)

Hey that looks just like how my one ended up😢
Unlucky mate, what's the plan with it now?

This :)

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64049/IMAG0422_zps03bef3cb.jpg)

No hanging about here lol

Servos mounted on the top this time, lipo strap added, camera moved forward a bit, everything else as it was. The X8r had bust both its antennas though so I need some replacements

Lol ,good luck again on the maiden please keep it up longer this time (-:

Oh jeez, that's bad, but love the typical Brit response......

I didn't honestly think you'd prove me right quite so quick.....

Quote from: Shikra on January 05, 2014, 06:25:51 PM

That foam is so friggin fragile it doesn't look nice for long...

Yeah I landed it, and it landed good Gary :)

Not entirely sure why it went into the dive and why it would not pull out of it at all. I`m hoping it was the lipo because I can address that problem

Hi Coyote, that made me smile !  Do you have a whole pallet of skyfuns ready just out of shot ?

Good luck with this one though, I'd love to try something like this.  I suppose at the price they are it's not such a disaster when disaster strikes !

Will be keen to hear how you go on.

Regards

Mark

Thanks Mark, they have plenty in stock, but I have the Euro warehouse on standby :)

At £30 for a whole new one it doesn't break the bank as long as the electronics survive

Are you going to dope the pilot before the maiden i expect he's really nervious :laugh:
I would google up an uncut silage field for a softer landing this time ;)
looking smart coyote :)

dizzy :)

Obliterated itself? Come on, fess up... :)

How long was it in the air before the crash?

I'm going to take my build easy and slow, watch and learn, then fly.

R

I got 3 laps out of it lol :) First was to trim, that was nice, tracked true, second did a high speed pass, which was anything but high speed ( much bigger prop required ) came around again and that's when it dived

Of dear.

CG wrong?

Nope, everything was fine, flew nice, did a few circuits, but then it went into a dive it wouldn't pull out of. I think the lipo had come away from the velco towards the nose

Good to see you building another!

Yup lipo came loose for sure I seen it slide forward as it passed me at 120 mph. ;D
I can assure you it DEFINITELY was NOT pilot error  ;) ;) ;)

Well it came that time to throw Mk2 up in the air after the first fail :)

This time I had 3 freezing cold flights, the controls were still twitchy around mid stick, nice fast rolls but a lot more elevator control now I moved the CG back to the front of the finger holes ( inside front edge not outside of them. )

The trust angle needs adjusting, straight up when given throttle with no elevator compensation. I will add dual rates for smoother flying, then full for mental stuff.

The speed was the only disappointment really, the 6x4 was fine, but no top end, a 6x5 was near enough the same. I tried a 7x5 which gave much more authority on the launch, but again, top end was better but still lacking.

Two combinations to try next, first a 6x6 then I`ll try a 5x5 for less initial speed, so a good chuck required, but a faster top end speed and see which one works best for me.

If your using 4s,
Mine flew great on a 4.75x4.75

My new one is built, but still in the loft awaiting some enthusiasm lol.

Yes its on 4S, interesting, I was thinking bigger props, but looks like smaller might be the key then

Think i used 6x4 on a 3s.
And 4.75x4.75 on a 4s

Just wondering how well the cyclops tornado would do on it lol.

Or just get another bixler 1 to throw it in.

Quote from: Coyote on January 12, 2014, 09:18:29 PM
Yes its on 4S, interesting, I was thinking bigger props, but looks like smaller might be the key then

That looks a cracking plane Ian, Wish I'd seen this post before I ordered my Phantom ,although I do love that ,anyway Did you have to pay customs from the euro shop? I think for to speed you require a bigger prop and for exceleration a smaller prop <lower gear effect> Adam Rappy Freak and I both decided not to use bottom pushrods for the elevons because pulling out of a fast dive is always safer with servos pulling rather than pushing in case of pushrods bending.
Not trying to teach you to suck eggs M8 just my two pence worth LOL.
              Cheers  MIKE.

P.S why don't my smilies work anymore?

No not been caught by customs for ages now, must be 9 months + since I last paid any

I preferred the servos and pushrods on top simply so they wouldnt pick up knocks or damage on landings

Looks good fun that... I see a camera on the nose but no footage.. come on... you know you want to!  \0/
G.J.

I had no DVR recording that flight, then swapped it for a Mobius camera, which ejected its SD card after a magnetic tree incident lol

So the next flight will be its first recorded flight as long as the SD card is still in the camera when it lands :)

Don't forget Ian ,I think it was you who said --No video-- it didn't happen,  LOL

Those magnetic trees are buggers EH!!

              Cheers  MIKE.

Ah, sorry, I had got mixed up with my Solius thread lol

My Solius had the tree incident not the Skyfun lol

Quote from: Coyote on January 16, 2014, 10:55:51 AM
Ah, sorry, I had got mixed up with my Solius thread lol

My Solius had the tree incident not the Skyfun lol

Any chance of a link to that plane Ian please.
             Cheers  MIKE.

Hey thanks for that bud. I may have to get one. Oh god more money!lol.

        Cheers  MIKE.

Oh no, it was the Skyfun I meant Ian. Sorry M8.

        Cheers  MIKE.

Oh right lol First page of this thread gives a list of everything I bought on it Mike.

Just been out with a 5x5 prop on it, still not blown away, but was better.

I then took it up to the field with the Solius and did some FPV flights, the first one was great on 4S did loads, then landed and found the DVR plug had come away from the Dominators  \0/

So I had no 4S left but a 3S I did have, popped it in and took to the air, the video is getting uploaded in a sec, its the live feed.

Not great for a couple of reasons :

1) It was a bit dark
2) My reception was sucking in rain mist
3) A bit windy
4) Less speed to play with
5) Contrast on the WDR was too high, but on a bright day its just right, go figure lol

Anyway, video will be up ( with royalty free music ) in a few minutes

Skyfun live feed on Vimeo (http://vimeo.com/84477434)

Not bad fun, shame the reception sucked a little

Now thats pretty quick for a baby like that i can see why they are so popular  :)

nice one coyote :)

dizzy :)

..... Wow!... Quick or what?  Scary Mary....
G.J.

Nope :)

Its much quicker, but I left a full charged 4S at home, the other in my box was dead and the first flight didnt record because the video plug pulled out of the fatsharks.

That video is on 3S because that`s all I had left to use. On 4S its much quicker :)

Hi Ian sorry didn't catch the first part with the list.
Anyway looks pretty impressive from the video M8. Do you find problems with the pugs on the Fatsharks as I have to use electrical cleaner a lot on mine?

        Cheers  MIKE.

Its just one of those things with the socket, the plug for the AV connector pulls out so easily. Last night though I cut up two leads to make a temp DVR to Fatshark lead that lets me clip my DVR to my Fatshark head band with no long trailing wire so that wont happen again.

I have noticed also the camera was a bit out of focus, I had forgot to readjust this after the Mk1 crash. The focus locking nut was loose but the picture looked OK, looking back at the video not so great yet

thinking of putting a 1300w 3000kv Dr Madthrust motor on mine with 4S... will the skyfun take it?

Should do, some are running the motor I have with 1500w on 4S

WoW! WoW! Wow! I cannot wit to get mine in the air. Excellent vid Ian!

Cheers Rich, had it out today on 4S, happily I can say both Keith and Daz were pretty impressed with the speed of it, took it out 1.4km away over Keiths house for kicks, all was great until I landed. Looked back at the DVR footage and its beyond terrible ! Same DVR recorded another cloud adventure only a few minutes before, but this recording was 99% trashed with no obvious reason why, the footage in my goggles were fine

Just watched your latest vid on Vimeo mate, very nice although it did get chucked around a bit.

I think I'm gonna grab one of these and copy your build - it'll make for some fantastic calm summer night videos blatting around the field.

Cheers Steve, again was running late this morning so didn't have time to pop it in here, I do now though :http://

www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcm08bVZIgE (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcm08bVZIgE#ws)

Yeah it was getting buffered about a fair bit, I think the Mobius needs pointing down more as well tbh.

These foam elevons have to go though, terrible they are, I have to retrim every single flight due to themgetting distorted while being stood.

The elevons are a bit twisty on their own, I glued a thin (same thicknes as the TE) carbon fibre strip down the trailing edge and it keeps them nice and rigid, also the control horns are fixed through to a thin ply insert on the other side thats wider than the horn to spread the loads.

(http://i1140.photobucket.com/albums/n575/pk-surfing/Jamara%20Roo/reinforcedelevon.jpg) (http://s1140.photobucket.com/user/pk-surfing/media/Jamara%20Roo/reinforcedelevon.jpg.html)

PK

Great video Ian, you must like the windy days M8lol!

       Good move by P.K. as I did with my Phantom a couple of strips of Carbon works wonders.

It does go well though , but not through fences ,Ha Ha!

            Cheers  MIKE.

P.S my smilies still won't work.

Enjoyed that ian  good video like the blasting down above that road sure I could see a speed camera flash lol

Great flight. Maybe its the floppy elevons but most of the "being knocked about" was in yaw, the camera on the front might be decreasing yaw stability so extending the two fins by 10-20mm to the rear might help this. Easy to do with some stiff clear plastic slotted and glued into them.

Mick

Cheers guys :)

Mick, that's a point about the camera, it did though before fitting the Mobius do the wobble in the yaw, but only at 80%+ throttle. O had not addressed that, mainly because I wasn't sure what it was. I will be beefing up the elevons or replacing them with balsa ones this weekend. If it is the Mobius causing it then I'll extend the fins as suggested because it needs sorting.

In the quest for more speed once I fix the stabability issue I'll be fitting a NTM 3000kv motor with either a 4.5 x 4.5 or 5x5 prop which will increase the speed quite a bit more than it is currently.

Progress time :)

First modification was to swap out the foam flexible elevons for balsa strong versions. A quick trim to Keith's, some over sized ailerons and a bit of cutting and shaping and they are now on. A few layers of varnish to harden them, then they will be taped white, then taped again with clear for more strength

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64052/IMAG0434_zpsdd693e1a.jpg)

Next I moved the motor to the rear of the mount to get the CG further back

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64052/IMAG0435_zpsa5e0e803.jpg)

I then fitted the MyFlyDream Telefly OSD for antenna tracking. I`m not going to use it because I`m flying off the goggles, but I put it in to see if my tracker is now working again.

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64052/IMAG0437_zpsca90bcf3.jpg)

I forgot to put a shot up of the Mobius on the front now replacing the WDR 650

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64052/IMAG0436_zps8ba2d2b0.jpg)

OK so yesterday didn't go well :)

I had moved the motor backwards, but it seems that even though the motor mount hadn`t been moved it was way way out !

The launch was loud and some what brief lol Paul chucked it, it started to dive instantly, I gave it full back and nothing, bump ! An ejected canopy plastic and a bust canopy later it could have flown, right until Ian bear claws thought I`ll just see if I can bend the mount up, just a little bit :) :)

Crack ! Motor mount alloy snapped :(

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64053/IMAG0438_zpsba420f90.jpg)

Of course Hobbyking UK don`t stock a replacement, the UK store that does carry one ( only the alloy part ) wanted £13 for it ......... The whole kits only £40 delivered to your door !!!

Anyway, Paul has a Jamara Roo jet, its probably the original of the SKyfun before it got ripped off and copied, every exact mm by mm :) So Paul kindly took the measurements from his motor mount and dropped in this afternoon a 3D printed motor mount :)

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64053/IMAG0439_zps6b6c3b33.jpg)

Awesome :)

I drilled the holes, found some nylock nuts and on its gone, in white too to match the plane, me likey :)

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64053/IMAG0441_zpsc16cc1cf.jpg)

He has kindly printed off a spare for me next round arsed in field modifications

Nice one Ian, glad to put the printer to a good use.

I was going to say I have a spare motor mount, but the replacement you have looks better!

Cheers Brucey :)

I decided to put a TeleflyOSD in it to find out if my trackers back in action. Then I found the V5 sends telem down the video as well as audio if you used the TelefyPro OSD. I ordered one and today it came :)

It was slightly larger than I first thought ! Massive lol But in it went

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64056/IMAG0447_zps2ab54a11.jpg)

Current sensor and Ublox GPS as well

Balances fine, ready to give it a whirl

Great video, brought back old memories, managed to spot the house I was brought up in :o

Had a fairly decent crash last weekend with it, lipo got disconnected then burst into flames :) Wing was very damaged, canopy bust, motor mount was some where but couldn't be found, ESC wires damaged etc so I decided a retro fit was needed

And so begins Experimental Airlines Mk 32 test bed :)

Gorilla glued in a ply plate doubled up and sunk into the main fuse :

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64104/IMAG0011_zps1445fc83.jpg)

Gave in and fitted an AP for RTH function which might save me a few repairs in the future, how it will cope with the vibrations is anyone`s guess  :

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64104/IMAG0012_zpsf53ab4ec.jpg)

I had no FY31AP GPS sensor so used a Ublox GPS instead, a quick swap of the Tx and Rx wires and it works fine getting lock in seconds. You can also see the filler on the rebuilt wing, needs a sand and some more to get the full shape back :

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64104/IMAG0014_zps6f6448f5.jpg)

This was positioned towards the back out on the wing to shift the CG further back, I have done the same with the Vtx as well :

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64104/IMAG0013_zps4748f8d3.jpg)

The idea being I could then get the AP behind the lipo and get rid of some lead as well as open the option up for a 3000 mah size lipo for longer flights.

I also didn't like the intrusive look of the Mobius and wanted that further back as well to aid the CG. So I took the lens out and used an extension to get a nose back and shift the mass to the rear. I cut some spare foam up to fill in the empty space : 

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64104/IMAG0010_zps4c49c691.jpg)

Then I added lightweight filler to regain the nose shape, its just gone on so needs to set before sanding, but its getting there :

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/cayote64104/IMAG0015_zps9462d295.jpg)

So the Skyfun has been good fun, got well battered over time and it was either retire it or grace it with a fresh new body.

Fresh new body it is to be then :)

A few changes to be made :

Going back to the 2700 NTM motor and a 6x4 prop for longer flight times.
MyFlyDream AP going in for some stabilization
1.3Ghz video this time around
EZUHF going in over the 2.4 Frsky
4000mah 4S over the 3000mah 4S
Laminating the Skyfun this time so the dirt doesn't get in making it look nasty straight away like tape alone has done.

Again a 4" extension was used on the Mobius to get the front more streamlined and the body weight of the camera further back to aid CG. I lightweight filled the camera lens in so I could laminate easily around it :

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0422_zpsx7gi7gkn.jpg)

The body then sits inside the canopy :

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0423_zpsaxzrc8p7.jpg)


I treat myself to a Hobbyking laminating iron after my limited success with a household iron on the Ritewing Z3. The finish on the Z3 left me with not much hope of a great finish on the Skyfun. This turned out to be misplaced.

Here is the main body with the Vtx and UHF fitted that has been laminated. Both wings, horizontal stabilizers are laminated. Only the nose to do once the filler has set.

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0425_zpsrggfpvg2.jpg)


The laminate went on perfectly, no air bubbles, no lifted patches, I`m very happy with the result so I will be doing exactly the same with the Solius and Twinstar.

Looking good. Laminating it makes a huge difference I've found.

Looks great Ian.

I'm about to retire my 2nd skyfun and transfer the body to a new one so this thread will come in handy.

Do you plan on strengthening the motor mount with this new build? Or waiting for it to break first? My current mount is very heavy with a few layers of ply. If it breaks now the whole section of foam around the mount will break- which happened on the last build of mine.

I like the möbius lens location- do you fear a crash will send the battery ploughing into the mobius?

4000mah 4s that's a lot of battery for a little wing. I'm guessing with a 2700kv motor this is a speed machine and you won't glide it or cruise at a low current much?

Do you always advocate varnishing balsa elevons? I have to admit I have never done it before but it's not a bad idea!

Looks good! And fast  ;D

Quote from: Brucey on February 28, 2015, 06:22:17 PM
Looking good. Laminating it makes a huge difference I've found.

Thanks Brucey, if all it does it keeps it looking cleaner than it did I`m happy, added strength is a bonus on top :)

Quote from: Billy_boy_2010 on March 01, 2015, 02:13:34 PM
Do you plan on strengthening the motor mount with this new build? Or waiting for it to break first?

I`m waiting for it to break first then I will upgrade it. Its not bad, so while its still in one piece it does the job fine. If it was lousy to begin with I would immediately swap it out.

QuoteI like the möbius lens location- do you fear a crash will send the battery ploughing into the mobius?

No I`m not concerned about that, the lipo will be fastened down like last time with a velcro strap so the only time its going into the camera its a write off anyway so its going to be a big bill :)

Quote4000mah 4s that's a lot of battery for a little wing. I'm guessing with a 2700kv motor this is a speed machine and you won't glide it or cruise at a low current much?

The 2700 can produce some good speeds, but with a 6x4 prop it will cruise at relatively low amps. Its not going to be capable of any great ranges though.

QuoteDo you always advocate varnishing balsa elevons? I have to admit I have never done it before but it's not a bad idea!

I don't think it makes a great deal of difference, but my vanity requires that raw natural balsa clashes terribly and requires painting before its fit for use :) :)

I guess I must be landing harder than you- the metal mount broke fairly early on on both of mine :D I'm sure if they just made the alloy bit out of a higher quality aluminium it would be much more robust.

Fair enough on the Velcro thing- I think I'm going to have to make a more secure mount for my new one.

I'm hoping with my 2200kv motor and a 2700 4s I could get some semi sensible ranges and flying time. Although I have bigger planes for this so I think I will just burn it around at 25A :D I can't imagine what a 3000kv motor it like on it.

Fair enough on the varnish if you're leaving the balsa uncovered. I put black wrap on mine and it looks awesome.

The MyFlyDream AP turned up this afternoon so I set about fitting it.

I wanted it as far back as I could so I can get a lipo right up back against it. Its forward enough to get the wires in and forward enough to get wires around each side still :

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0434_zpselddjk2x.jpg)


I could then mount the GPS in the receivers side wing :

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0432_zpsflpk02xl.jpg)



This wing is now finished with installment so I could now fill the channels over with lightweight filler and then once dry I can sand it all down so everything is nice and white again ready for lamination :

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0433_zpsjgmw5ncx.jpg)

Looks like a very neat and tidy install.

Initially I thought it was a waste putting a high end autopilot in a bank and yank close range wing. Many of its features wouldn't be much use.

However- after a bit of thought- could an autopilot make this a real all rounder?

With careful throttle management, is this your go to plane that can be a mental 80mph plane for 10 mins or, with careful throttle use and stab mode on the autopilot- you can get some really nice möbius footage at a reasonable distance away and benefit from the autopilots features for efficient flight and RTH safety?

To be honest Greg, the MFD AP is complete overkill and completely unnecessary for this plane.

I had two reputable brand Vtx failures on me last year and made the decision to ( overkill or not ) install RTH to all my planes now. This would have saved both my planes last year and I wouldn't be replacing the battered looking Skyfun or need a completely new Solius. So if I use them just once in an emergency the value of gear they could potentially save means they will have paid for themselves.

The MFD AP will be 99% of the time in the Skyfun be a passenger, it doesn`t even need stabilization the thing flies that well. Airspeed will be useful just for top speed curiosity. But apart from that only used for RTH.

Just started building my first one of these, going for a los maiden this weekend. Went for a 2200kv motor as i thought that might be a bit easier to handle.

Are there any essential mods you would recommend? I see you're mounted the motor on the outside of the mount. I've put mine on the inside at the moment, is that to allow for the bigger battery or should I move mine?

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The speed waggle won't affect you with only a 2200 motor on so no need to chop the vertical fins. The mou t is a weak point but it's fine until you break it :)

Yes I mount the motor back to balance for the larger Lipo. Normally this is not needed.

Tip for maiden would be really chuck it with loads of power on or it just won't make it. Be ready to instantly cut the throttle if it's not going to take to the air to save the prop and motor mount.

C of G for me is the front of grips under the plane (not in front of the grips, the front of them)

Have a friend launch it with you at full throttle- a good chuck into the wind you will be fine

She's very agile so have dual rates ready so if she's a handful you can really tone it down.

Fly it with a light battery to start with obviously

I run the same motor as you and it's still quick!

Cheers guys, fingers crossed :-)

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Quote from: Coyote on March 05, 2015, 08:57:14 AM
Tip for maiden would be really chuck it with loads of power on or it just won't make it.

Tip #2

Follow through with your hand after launching.
Don't pull your hand back like i did once.

Nearly lost a finger, luckily my finger nail prevent more damage.

Own stupid fault though, to eager to get hand back on tx.
I have never launched it myself since :)

Worse part, plane carries on flying while you bleed out lol.

I've had a reasonable amount of success launching using the wing tip recently. I did this with a friends skyfun for him much better than trying to chuck it from underneath

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Well I did the maiden today, considering the amount of wind I'm really pleased. Flies really well and needs very little throws! Had mine set to 60% and that was more than enough :-)

Did a few fast passes downwind and it was motoring! Not going to put the FPV gear on it just yet, get a bit more used to it first. Maidened my fpv40 wing with a vector onboard as well which was another resounding success. All in all a good mornings flying!

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Glad to hear it :)

Sounds like it went perfectly :)

My mate flew his last weekend and it was a nightmare so I was more than a little apprehensive! Think his cog must have been too far back, he copied where my battery was and it flew a lot better today. What can I say, he copied the better pilot ;-)

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Ok so now the other wing. The Vtx was already in place, I did though want some clean power for it so I got hold of a couple of the BNX022 filters to try out. I got the already mounted to PCB ones for pure ease.

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0437_zpsxknt0zrh.jpg)

The filters and chat on them can be found : Here (http://www.fpvhub.com/index.php/topic,22884.msg198873.html#new)

They are a bit larger than I thought they would be, which is great though because I thought they were a lot smaller so had reservations. Anyway it got soldered up and embedded into the wing :


(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0435_zpss1hb9tld.jpg)

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0436_zpsweznfdb6.jpg)

Again, power to one side of the channel, signal to the other. Then just like the other wing lightweight filler was used to fill the channels ready for a sand and laminate over :

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0438_zpslq8djdy5.jpg)



I cut the MFD AP cable to the current sensor to make it shorter, then made the end off. There is no point in having a birds nest of wires sat there to pick up all the interference on when it only takes a few minutes to crimp new connectors on :

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0444_zpstsqyqmcl.jpg)

Wow Ian you're really quite anal about this stuff aren't you?! :D

It looks really nice. Filling all the channels with filler is real dedication to the look and it's aero! I may borrow this idea for mine- I already have some outrageous orange solar film set aside instead of laminate though.......

i was going to ask why you chose to fit the video Tx to the bottom of the wing- is it because you can partially use the existing servo channel? Or another reason?

Those filters look fantastic. Did you buy them from Farnell linked on the other thread?

Finally- what 12V bec do you use to power the mfd? Im after a super quiet uhf friendly one :)

Re the mfd like you say if it saves a plane it's worth it. I'm surprised you didn't fit a much cheaper RTH option is that's all you're using it for- but I guess you want something dead reliable and to instantly be familiar with the OSD between planes.

Sorry for all the annoying questions!

To be honest Greg this is the first time I have mounted a vtx to the underside. But they do look better underneath, the airflow does not get obstructed as much as it does on top and I have no intention of swapping frequencies with this plane so it can stay put.

No I bought the filters from the German guy who has mounted them on PCB`s.

I didn't fit an autopilot last time simply because I flew with it so close in, but this time around figured why not :)

Fair enough. Is there no chance the video Tx will overheat with foam above is and tape/laminate under? I assume you're putting tape under it so it doesn't fall out :D

Where may I find this mysterious German guy?

Wish the mfd were a bit cheaper- then I would get one for my skyfun!

Any chance of a link to a really clean uhf friendly 12V ubecs?

I buy these (or very similar looking anyway): Adjustable Step-down 3A DC-DC Converter  (http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1pc-New-Standard-Power-Supply-Module-Adjustable-Step-down-3A-DC-DC-Converter/121239592454?_trksid=p2047675.c100011.m1850&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20140107083358%26meid%3D2a4c048be4974db5a135af2e6fa55e8b%26pid%3D100011%26rk%3D5%26rkt%3D10%26sd%3D251523752891)

No UHF noise from them at all, there's a very sensitive little potentiometer on them to adjust the output voltage, I've used them for both 5v and 12v on a number of things.

Quote from: Billy_boy_2010 on March 07, 2015, 05:58:27 PM
Fair enough. Is there no chance the video Tx will overheat with foam above is and tape/laminate under?

Yes on the ground with no airflow over it. But others have been doing it for ages so I guess its my paranoia so lets find out :)

QuoteI assume you're putting tape under it so it doesn't fall out :D

Its stuck to the foam  already and is gripped as well so the laminate will not be covering it to promote the most efficient cooling.

QuoteWhere may I find this mysterious German guy?

In the thread link I provided, its the ebay link in that thread.

QuoteAny chance of a link to a really clean uhf friendly 12V ubecs?

The one Neil linked to there is the same as I use

Fantastic thanks very much guys

Will look forward to cleaning up my act

Nice build!

Thank you :)

As Greg was asking here is the position of the adjustable PSU. This will power straight from the current sensors output :

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0446_zpszkfq8gtv.jpg)

Also you can see the 4000mah Zippy Compact that I am planning on flying with. You can see just how lost it looks in there but does add a fair bit of weight.

In this pic you can see where the lipo is to balance the CG. The 60 amp Turnigy Plush ESC though is not here so it will adjust it some more, but it gave me an idea of the ball park I`ll be putting the lipo at so I have a very good idea of where the battery strap wants to go.

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0445_zpsmmy1cb0i.jpg)

As you can see there is acres of room to move the lipo forward to compensate for the ESC. This is mainly due to the GPS, Vtx and Rx being so far behind the CG being out on the wings.

My hope is at this stage that I might be able to move the motor inboard of the bracket with it still balancing, that would be ideal :)

The airspeed sensor arrived in double quick time, so I glued in a long servo horn to hold it out on the side :

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0452_zps9y6qn90r.jpg)

The hole above is for the other pipe, I prefer to have this separate and flush with the crafts body. Once the glue is set it will get filled and be nice and white not looking out of place like it does right now.

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0454_zpsgyuw0iic.jpg)

The second picture is misleading as it looks a bit wonky :) It is straight though ;) 

Skyfun Maiden:

http://youtu.be/ku0fMR5IUQ4 (http://youtu.be/ku0fMR5IUQ4)

And I thought the Caipirinha was twitchy 😜 impressive video. I like the big screen in your car 👍

OMG I am ridiculously jealous of your setup Ian. The giant TV, portable screen and your GS and tracker setup is a thing of beauty!

The maiden went really well considering how twitchy it was, isn't it unusual the elevons responded so quickly as aelerons but so poorly as elevator?

Yes the elevator was poor, that could be just a cg move to the rear to fix that though. The ailerons though were crazy twitchy, dialed them down to 60% on full rates now and basically 30% on low rates.

Nice set up as usual mate

So if you got yourself a chauffeur you could sit in the back and do a nice 30 mile run!

Brilliant setup mate, well jealous 😉 


It is right 😀

I think this maiden has attracted more attention about the extended GS setup than the skyfun :D

Lol your probably right hehe

As mentioned in the video, I was going to go home and move the foam out of the way or the camera further forward. I went with further forward :

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0461_zpsxv6kw3zs.jpg)

I added a block of foam to take up all the room rather than use filler, if you use too much filer it will just crack every landing.

Filler then put on liberally, the filler shrinks as it sets so nice and hig is fine, it sands very easily down so you don`t need a second go when its shrunk too low

(http://i108.photobucket.com/albums/n39/cayote64/Skyfun/IMAG0462_zpsyy1huwd6.jpg)

Polycell Advanced Polyfilla, I find if you do it in one coat it does not crack, the laminate also stick to it very well and it does not shrink either.

http://www.tesco.com/direct/polycell-advanced-polyfilla-600ml/212-2505.prd (http://www.tesco.com/direct/polycell-advanced-polyfilla-600ml/212-2505.prd)

I upgraded mine instantly, the originals are rubbish. I will always put balsa elevons on these types of planes, too much flex on foam.

I made them a little wider, to be honest though it doesn't need any bigger than the original size.

I made balsa elevons and added some solar film. They look awesome.

The only thing I will say is I wish I had tapered them- like Ritewing does on the zeph. It's supposed to help something or other!

Also make sure that the thickness of the elevon is thinner than the thickness of the wing at the rear. Mine are thicker which means when flying flat and level there's a slight underhang and flat edge. I don't know if it affects flight characteristics but it's slightly less efficient. Too late for me now covered in solar film. I will redo them at some point.

3mm will be fine for it imo.