I second this.
I use thin, but strong, packing tape when there is not a mechanical hinge piece to reinforce. Works really well.
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I don’t mind purchasing T-Motor parts if that ends up being what I need but I’d prefer to use less expensive parts until I feel like I know what I’m doing.
Do you if T-Motor ESC can be programmed using those ESC programming cards? Years ago I made a program which would program ESCs which used those programming cards. It would be convenient if I could use the same program to with the T-Motor ESCs. I really dislike having to listen for beeps and to try to set my throttle to the correct value.
Thanks a bunch for your input. I’ve built smaller 'copters but this is my first attempt at making a quad plane. This is also the beginning of my journey of trying to learn to use ArduPilot. I really appreciate the help of this forum.
Yes, that behemoth ESC was what was recommended.
Do you if T-Motor ESC can be programmed using those ESC programming cards? Years ago I made a program which would program ESCs which used those programming cards. It would be convenient if I could use the same program to with the T-Motor ESCs. I really dislike having to listen for beeps and to try to set my throttle to the correct value.
On the AT 115A product page it states “…support LED programming card setting parameters, simplify the setting process.” So that sounds like it may be possible. I agree that counting beeps is annoying.
-Christian
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I missed that. Thanks.
I’m pleased to learn this. With the program I wrote for the Propeller microcontroller, it’s really easy to program an ESC.
I haven’t ordered the T-Motor ESC myself. I think I’ll see how the 80A one from AliExpress performs before I spend more for the T-Motor ESC. I don’t think I’ve heard anything negative about T-Motor products (other than the price) so I’m not opposed to purchasing their gear if the less expensive gear doesn’t do the job well.
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I have a brand new AT 115A ESC. I decided it is way more than I need and it’s heavy. Make a reasonable offer if you are interested.
Have you discovered eCalc? It’s a great tool to help select props and motors.
Dave
Have you selected batteries? I can’t find a 12s battery that fits the very spacious battery compartment. I ended up going with two Tattu 17000mAh 22.8V 15C 6S1P Lipo Battery Pack for a whopping $800.
Dave
No. I’ll probably wire 2 6P packs in series. I have a helicopter which uses 5Ah 6S packs. I’ll likely use these in series and parallel as needed to get a battery big enough for this new aircraft. The heli packs are probably heavier (with a higher C rating) than the Fighter needs but I’ll start with these until I figure out what sort of packs I should really use.
I purchased year’s license but I haven’t taken the time to learn to use it. I plan to spend time learning to use it in the near future.
Worth a shot if quality isn’t the highest priority. Although, 90% of the time all overseas parts come from the same manufacturer and just have a different stamp or sticker.
I’m still working on this aircraft. One thing I’ve worried about is the glue. Foam-Tac works fine if I do everything just right. However if I don’t apply the right about of glue on both surfaces, I often don’t get a good bond. I’m currently using E6000 as my glue. I’ve just started using it today and it needs to cure for 24-hour but I’m presently optimistic that it will work well.
One reason I’m back to working on this aircraft is a VTOL series done by Painless360. Here’s the second video in the series.
Another motivating video was by ArxangelRC. He built and flew the twin tractor version of the Fighter.
I hope to have some progress photos to share soon.
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I’m not so sure E600 is a good glue to use on EPO foam. The interior parts glued with E6000 seemed to have cured just fine. This made me optimist about E6000 used with EPO.
Today I glued the two halves of the airplane body together using E6000. I think the glue softens the foam when spread too thick. Here’s a photo showing the swollen foam at the glue joint.
There are a couple locations which have similar swellings. I’m not very concerned about these imperfections but I wanted to make sure to share this information with anyone who might want to use this glue.
I’ll take follow up photos once the glue cures.
I’m using masking tape to hold the two halves together while the glue cures.
It looks like there’s a slot in the bottom of the body for some sort of stiffening board. I hadn’t noticed this slot until seeing this 3D printed part by ArxangelRC.
I made a board out of 1.16" plywood.
The wood can be seen on either side on the bottom of the body.
I’m not sure how important this stiffing board is but I think it’s a good idea to include.
I’m not sure how much more I’ll use the E600 glue. Besides the Foam-Tac, I also have some UHU POR I could try. I just dislike the inability to reposition parts when using Foam-Tac.
Now that the two body halves are joined, I’m hoping I will progress through the rest of the build at a faster rate.
In case anyone things I know what I’m doing, I want to dissuade that notion.
While I tested to make sure I could safely remove the masking tape before using it to hold the two halves together, the tape stickiness increases with time. Once the masking tape had sat overnight, it wasn’t as easy to remove. The moved tape left blemishes in the surface finish. I could remove the tape without blemishes if I used a solvent (ethanol) as I removed the tape but this made the tape removal more of a chore.
One the topic of surface finish, I thought I’d share an idea I have about painting the Fighter. I really like the paint job Ben did on his fighter (seen in a previous post). Ben used spray on PlastiDip. Apparently he had to be very care when applying the PlastiDip since the propellent could damage the foam. While I liked the colors Ben used, I think I’d like to make my aircraft as inconspicuous as possible. I’m seriously considering painting my aircraft with grey PlastiDip.
I tested some scrap EPO and the PlastiDip doesn’t appear to harm the foam.
While the PlastiDip doesn’t appear to harm the foam, it can deform the foam since the PlastiDip shrinks a bit when it dries.
The PlastiDip caused the scrap piece of foam to curve.
Even though the PlastiDip caused the foam to curve a bit, I’m hoping geometry of most surfaces on the aircraft wont be as susceptible to this deformation. I’m still seriously considering using the PlastiDip. I hope you all will talk me out of this if it’s a really bad idea.