It fits! 
-well it fits in the bottom. My plan is to get a hard outer shell, maybe strip a large cooler
It fits in the top as well. I just didn’t take another photo of it with the top on.
Note that there is also room for my redundant receiver antennas and the AS sensor tube. It was well designed by MFE.
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Christian,
I received a reply from MFE that says:
The bottom skid pad is horizontal, and it can be calibrated as long as the aircraft is placed on a horizontal surface.
This is what I used before my hover test.
Cheers!
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Great. That seems to be the most intuitive.
Thanks for following up on that.
Cheers,
Christian
Just an FYI post. It looks like shipping cost has gotten crazy again and Banggood no longer sells the Fighter VTOL from their US warehouse. They are only sent from their China warehouse.
This is what I found on 11/25/2020.
Fighter 4+1 VTOL Kit at AliExpress - $576 and $1200 (or more) for FedEx shipping.
Fighter 4+1 VTOL Kit at Banggood - $799 for both kit and Ocean Shipping ( 25-40 business days).
So you can get it faster from AliExpress but it will cost you much more.
That’s nuts!
I almost ordered from Aliexpress as there were not any other options. I’m glad I was able to get one of the few available from Banggood when they had them in stock.
I looked through my leftover parts from the Fighter build and realized that there is a third way to configure the model. The foam runners are the same material as used on the Believer so they should hold up to various surfaces. For really long-range missions/surveys, an extra set of plug-in wings would make for an easy re-configuration to non-VTOL.
- VTOL 4+1 with a single motor in the nose
- Fixed wing plane with twin motors
- Fixed wing plane with motor in the nose
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We just got our electronics package in from MFE, took about 2 weeks to arrive after confirming payment via paypal. All equipment looks to be good quality, I think ESC and motors are made by T-Motor, the 60A ESC for the propulsion motor says T-Motor on it. Now we can continue the build…
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Very nice!
Can you tell us where you are located to get it in just two weeks?
I’m still waiting for my black camera foam to arrive. In addition to adding a mount for my Sony NEX 5n camera, I also plan on adding some air exits this winter.
Cheers!
Hi Greg, I used the email provided by Tim Chapman (Post 167): 1641637133@qq.com
Strange email, but goes directly the the MFE store. Send them an email what you are looking for and they will send a quote with a PayPal address. I was a bit skeptical due to the strange email, but it worked! I have yet to receive the import duties charge yet. I am located in Montana USA. I am happy to have the components the aircraft was designed for. I also added a camera mount for a Sony A7R that we will mount for mapping purposes. This will be triggered and PPK geotagged using Field of View’s GeoSnap system.
Yeah, that e-mail goes right to Cheng Fang who helps create the order and shipping cost for MFE. You can’t get any more direct than that!
If you followed my maiden hover test, you saw that my Hobbywing 40A Xrotor ESCs are only drawing 15 amps per motor on a 6s 21AH LiPo pack with an 11oz. (0.34kg) test payload. I suspect then that your 12s ESCs will be drawing only 7amps each. Maybe a little more if you load up on batteries or payload.
I like the flexibility of either building it for commercial or hobby use. I hope the pricing and shipping costs settle down when the Covid vaccines start to flood the market.
Good luck on your build!
I added a few decals to my Fighter 4+1 VTOL. As mentioned above, I’ll be adding some air exit vents in the coming month.
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T-Motor branding is great news if true. I’m having 12s envy over here.
That s nice quality kit for low amp ! How much did it cost ?
I installed my first NACA Style air exit vent on the top main hatch. There is air entry in the nose but no air exits in the main fuselage of the Fighter. Since I am not sure where my black foam block for the camera will cover the inside, I will not make any further additions for air flow until I actually fly the plane and see if it is needed.
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I installed my VIFLY Finder 2 device on the side of the fuselage. In this manner, I can easily access the disarm button after a flight. I also have it hooked up to a spare channel on the receiver so it charges when the plane is on and I can trigger it with my retract toggle switch on the transmitter. It’s a nice low-cost option to find the plane if the heavy pack gets ejected out the nose on a crash.
The plastic box that the finder comes in has an easy open latch so it makes for a convenient storage box inside the plane. I keep notes and other small items inside.
The white Velcro holds the MFE battery straps out of the way when inserting the battery.
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That’s a handy storage container. So basically this is a loud beeper and flashing light when there is a power failure?
Yes, that’s correct. It has been our experience that when a bigger plane crashes in the woods, the large LiPo pack gets ejected or pulled away from the connector so you can’t use an RSSI signal or move a control surface to help find it. Having a loud beep helps zero in on your initial spot into the woods or tall grass. It’s an inexpensive aid for those of us that fly near or over wooded areas.
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Gotcha. Pretty cheap “near-range” beacon. I like the idea.
The TBS Rx I had used a tiny lipo a backup battery for power failures but you have to invest in their Tx system for it to work. I’ve tossed a 4Ah 3S lipo before… a few times ha
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There appears to be plenty of space in the Fighter belly for multiple camera installations. I’m still waiting for my black foam base from MFE which will be for the Sony NEX 5n mapping. I’ll use the same position near the flight controller for it as shown in the MFE videos. This leaves the space between the two carbon tubes wide open. My intention is to place another mount for recovery here.
So, I started working on a new gimbal mount for my GoPro Hero 7 Black. The idea is to use the Hypersmooth feature for scanning tree tops and fields with the Fighter VTOL for lost planes, which is common at our field, while providing a video downlink. Initially, I’ll use a fixed position camera, then maybe a servo-driven pan/tilt gimbal, and even look into a digit video downlink.
For now, I’m using this inexpensive HDMI to AV Converter for about $10 at Amazon. I removed the weighty triple phono jack and wired directly to the board. My gimbal mount follows my standard FeiyuTech mount that I have used for years on many of my VTOLs and planes. The GoPro case is an iFlight Camera Mount for about $29. I needed a 30 degree wedge to offset the angle so my fixed position could be 0-90 degrees.
