Mutleys Ritewing Z3 spade

iwan_canobi · December 14, 2015, 10:30:26 AM

Thats still looking really great! Mine is almost ready to go, just a few things to finish here and there. The terrible weather has kinda slowed my pace though! I got a 3D printer last week so have been messing with camera pod designs, is yours 3D printed? Currently I plan to cut a section out from the nose and replace with this :

I designed it for a 3x3cm board cam and for the Runcam HD2 which should be arriving any day. The runcam will need to slide through from the battery bay but hopefully should work well and not disturb the aero!

I like the rear facing mobius idea, I have a video switcher lying around so that could be an awesome addition also!

mutley2 · December 14, 2015, 03:58:50 PM

That looks like it will really take out the drag from the front Mobius and cam mount, great work, keep us up to date with this as I've just ordered some thing very similar from Chris at Ritewing for the Drak.
Just a thought, the camera on my Z3 still needs a clean every time it lands as the profile is very low and leaves the lens right in the grass, sand, mud or general sh*t. Would it be better to have a aerodynamic mount that pulled the camera away from the ground and helped keep it clean, I've been trying to come up with some thing and have pan & tilt mount which I'm would help and keep the lens clean, just a thought.

Badlands · December 14, 2015, 05:43:18 PM

Quote from: iwan_canobi on December 14, 2015, 10:30:26 AM
Thats still looking really great! Mine is almost ready to go, just a few things to finish here and there. The terrible weather has kinda slowed my pace though! I got a 3D printer last week so have been messing with camera pod designs, is yours 3D printed? Currently I plan to cut a section out from the nose and replace with this :

I designed it for a 3x3cm board cam and for the Runcam HD2 which should be arriving any day. The runcam will need to slide through from the battery bay but hopefully should work well and not disturb the aero!

I like the rear facing mobius idea, I have a video switcher lying around so that could be an awesome addition also!

Wow - I like that, are you planning on sharing the stl file?

iwan_canobi · December 14, 2015, 10:10:45 PM

Quote from: Badlands on December 14, 2015, 05:43:18 PM
Wow - I like that, are you planning on sharing the stl file?

Cheers! I will release them for a fee of £10.... :P Kidding, yeah, I'll stick it up on thingiverse once I'm happy with it, the sizings aren't coming out quite right so I need to figure out if its the design or my printer thats not right!

Quote from: mutley2 on December 14, 2015, 03:58:50 PM
That looks like it will really take out the drag from the front Mobius and cam mount, great work, keep us up to date with this as I've just ordered some thing very similar from Chris at Ritewing for the Drak.
Just a thought, the camera on my Z3 still needs a clean every time it lands as the profile is very low and leaves the lens right in the grass, sand, mud or general sh*t. Would it be better to have a aerodynamic mount that pulled the camera away from the ground and helped keep it clean, I've been trying to come up with some thing and have pan & tilt mount which I'm would help and keep the lens clean, just a thought.

Yeah I would love a pan/tilt setup but I can't think of any way to do it neatly. To pan right round it really needs to sit quite high on the nose. Hadn't thought about the lens getting mucky, good point. It does sit back from the hole though so should be protected to some extent! Once I get it fitting correct I'll stick some pictures up in my thread of what it looks like.

mutley2 · December 15, 2015, 01:57:59 AM

It's no big deal cleaning the lens ever time its just when you forget to take a clean cloth that it becomes a pain flying with grass stain on the lens. Being set back would help, nice idea though

Badlands · December 15, 2015, 07:33:16 PM

Hey n1 m8!

Ive always thought the official Z3 cam mount looked a bit goofy.

Your design is lot sleeker...

Quote from: iwan_canobi on December 14, 2015, 10:10:45 PM
Cheers! I will release them for a fee of £10.... :P Kidding, yeah, I'll stick it up on thingiverse once I'm happy with it, the sizings aren't coming out quite right so I need to figure out if its the design or my printer thats not right!

Brucey · December 15, 2015, 07:48:43 PM

Nice Martin, promise I won't run into the back of you :'(

Badlands · December 15, 2015, 08:13:57 PM

Haha - that's not my Z3 Brucey (although it does look a little like my Z2!) just a random picture.

& yea don't rear-end me with your SSBB ffs - wont be anything left!

Brucey · December 15, 2015, 08:33:03 PM

Ah, thought it was yours!

SSBB will be the only thing in the air, no quads or planes!

mutley2 · December 15, 2015, 09:38:55 PM

Hey Badlands, the gopro mount for the Z3 is a bit of a slab and Chris said how much he spent on gopros until he switched to mobius cams and new mount, think it was about 3k in a year. Love my gopro but would never stick one on a Z3 or Drak until I win the lottery hehehe.

Billy_boy_2010 · December 20, 2015, 02:15:06 PM

Quote from: mutley2 on December 15, 2015, 09:38:55 PM
Hey Badlands, the gopro mount for the Z3 is a bit of a slab and Chris said how much he spent on gopros until he switched to mobius cams and new mount, think it was about 3k in a year. Love my gopro but would never stick one on a Z3 or Drak until I win the lottery hehehe.

Chris must crash a heck of a lot. That's at least 10 go pros he has smashed up to rack up that large a bill.

mutley2 · December 20, 2015, 03:53:18 PM

Quote from: Billy_boy_2010 on December 20, 2015, 02:15:06 PM
Chris must crash a heck of a lot. That's at least 10 go pros he has smashed up to rack up that large a bill.

Not sure he was crashing but the gopro lens in that mount was the main brake when landing lol, Mobius cam's aren't as good as gopro but sure are cheaper.
I've been though 2 Mobius lens and a Fatshark lens on my Z3 so far, the Drak will have a better mount for both.

mutley2 · March 13, 2016, 06:24:22 PM

I've been asked a number of times on how I launch the Z3 Spade, it's really straight forward, I just launch/throw in a traditional way. No real expertise is need just a confident throw, more like a guided throw as the Z3 has more than enough power to push hard straight away. My Z3 had 2 Mobius's fitted, a flat field and there was zero wind in the video, so it's worst case scenario, no problems though.
There has been a lot of talk on the weight of the Z3 and it's wing loading, this vid should show that even with a loaded Z3 it's a pussy cat to launch, I believe the key to a good launch is confidence and a 4s set-up, hope this helps any one with a Z3.
The vid show's a few launches, the OSD readings on take off and landings from 2 Mobius's and a GoPro
! No longer available

Why does my tracker now remind me of Bob the iffy scutter from Red Dwarf lol

Andy Sayle · March 13, 2016, 08:31:12 PM

Nice one!

MarkLloyd · March 14, 2016, 12:39:09 AM

Hi David,

Many thanks for posting the vid........ but a little too late for me I'm afraid !!!

I re-maidened the Z3 today but had a repeat of my failed launches and smashed up the front again. I'm not sure if it can be repaired or if I have the spirit to do it again. I can't figure it out, I was out flying yesterday with the Venturi and videoed 5 great launches, normal over arm ones like you do with the Z3. It just soars away like your Z3 does. It was my intention to post them up today for anyone wondering about launching the venturi !

I went out again this morn with Mike (Drone 5 on the hub) , tried the same with the Z3 but it just peeled left into the ground before I could correct it.... Almost like a torque roll I'd get from the funjet... but that shouldn't be an issue with a plane this big ?

2 other launches with the venturi.... no problem. I wondered if I should have launched the Z3 in auto balance mode, maybe it would have given me more time to get on the sticks. Each time I've had a failed launch it has been a sharp left nose in . Ailerons are working in the right direction. auto balance does too, although switched off this time..... I fly mode 1, (like you ?) and right hand launch, so takes a second to get on the ailerons.

I had a Z2 which was easy to launch, and I know this should be too.... I've just watched your vid !

I really do think this should be the ideal plane for me but I've had it a year and it hasn't been airborne yet .

I have a vid clip which I'll try and post up tomorrow ! Grrrrr :(