H3li

Hi guys,

I'm planning to make my own Heli-Pad out of hardwood/MDF.
This is so I can place it down in a local field, and it will become a nice solid base to take off/land from.

Before I begin to make this - interested to hear from others, who have also made their own " Heli-Pad "
In the hope that I can pickup some tips/ideas!

I also plan to drill small holes into the corners, and fit some LED's for better visibility/effect.

Look forward to hearing your stories!

Kaelan

if you don't plan on flying at night, then skip the LED's. you won't see them in the day. Also, if you can make it out of corrugated plastic or even a sheet of plexi glass/Lexan you'd have one that will last longer. MDF will absorb and moisture from the grass and ruin the pad in short order. so far the best I have used for a heli pad is a real big door mat. like this..

cheap (around $8USD) and easy to clean

ea01bg

Kaelan ,
You didn't paint a big H on it

Kaelan

no... maybe I should paint a bullseye... so I have a target to aim at while my 450 crashes

UTM

Haven't built one myself but I have been considering it. IMO wood would not be the prefered material. As K said it will asorb water and eventually give out. MDF is a real bad culpret of this. If you decide to go wood use a good 1/2" plywood. That will hold up pretty well. If you painted it with an outdoor paint it would last longer. When I build one for myself I will be using 1/4" plexi glass for the walls with plastic blocking cleats holding it together on the inside corners. I will uss wing nuts inside the box and countersunk flatheads outside. The box will then be covered with indoor/outdoor carpeting. This setup should only have to be made once. It won't rot and on top of that it will be much more light weight than a wooden box. Using wingnuts inside will allow it to be broken down for transport fairly quickly. The carpeting on the top can easily be pieced to include an H of a different color for the visual effect. I'll most likely have this built by the end of summer. I'll certainly be posting pics when completed.

Good luck

Uri

Magic Hook

Pretty hard to be a door mat. Dosent take any building time and you can take it with you. I have used my truck floor mat in a pinch.

H3li

Thankyou you ALL for your feedback, it really is appreciated - many thanks!
The repeated advice is DON'T use wood! Strangely I overlooked this, but it makes complete sense, especially when placing the " pad " down on damp/wet grass.

The floor mat sounds interesting - little did I know, my car has it's own " Heli-Pads " sitting there all this time, that I use to rest my feet on! lol.
Plexi-glass sounds to be the 'ultimate' solution though. Lighter than wood too! Would have to be coloured, so it stands out more, otherwise if it was clear I might set my Heli down, not realising it's not on the Pad, as the Pad is see-through, and you see the grass/ground through it!

UTM, your plans sound great - look forward to seeing the Pics once you get an opportunity to make it.
Could you just use a single sheet of Plexi laid down - suppose it would be better to make 'legs' under each corner, for stability.