Airlight

SBS_Pilot

You might want to double check the link - there is an extra comma-sign in the adress which makes it invalid, at least in my version of Firefox.

Other than that, at the first glance it looks very welcoming. I will look more thorough in the coming days.

Thanks for sharing

/Stefan

Airlight

Thanks /Stefan, I've changed the link so it doesn't pick up the comma. I hope you will find something you like

Mark

Airlight

Airlight

Hi All

Getting back into the swing now. Just uploaded the pdf fora new foamie plan (A5JET46)to the site, usual place:airlightrc.co.uk/a5plans.html. As much as I would love to release the new site, it's still a bit unfinished looking, so I'll go with the old one for now. I hope you will like this.

Fly and enjoy!

BMatthews

You sure are not kidding about the "minimal waste" part. I'm impressed at the appearance you get from the designs despite the way the parts all "nest" together. NICELY DONE! ! !

Looking at the size of a full Depron sheet it's possible to scale up your plans for use with 6mm foam by 4.5 times. Mind you by that time it could be advantagious to use side keel spines on the fuselages for some designs and some form of strip carbon spar would be needed. So call it 4 times possible to have some foam left for making any such extra parts.

Some of your designs are highly imaginative and curvy. I like that. Yet other than one which uses an underslug gondola like pod and boom sort of shape they all look like they would build up to be flyable with normal amounts of nose weight or with the propulsion motor located in the nose.

Airlight

Thanks for that BM, I'm trying to give people as much info as I can for them to be able to make the designs at pretty much any scale, and I think that including all the stiffening options on each design would be beyond my time and abilities right now, so people are at liberty to stiffen as they see fit.

I'd love to see someone creating one of these designs for themselves - you up for having a go? It doesn't need to be complicated or even original - just tweak one of the designs if you think it would be better your way.

For the builds, I always envisaged people putting their own versions of stiffeners etc, so I only show carbon slots where I think they would be necessary. The 'double thickness' fuses I assume that people can either bury a carbon strip somewhere in the length, or apply a coffee swizzler from the golden arches or similar. My own budget/time and inclination vary, so I like to give people the opportunity to come up with the version that works for them - be great to hear from someone who has built/flown one though. I get requests for info, but no return of the favour in terms of pictures, etc.

With regard to the balancing etc, my assumption is that pretty much all the designs (unless its otherwise obvious) will need to have the power mounted up front, nose end. Some kind of pager motor if your going micro, or whatever you can crowbar on above this scale. When I balance them for neutral flight, most need some kind of weight up front to fly straight and level.

Just one last thought - which one has the underslung gondola? I have a hangglider design, but this isn't posted yet (I don't think), so I'm unsure which you mean.

Thanks again for replying, hopefully many more will follow you.

Mark

BMatthews

This is the one which might be a bit tough to get the right CG location. Not much nose moment to play with.

Airlight

I get what you mean now. This was supposed to be a kind of short, stubby microlight type of aircraft with the motor mounted on the 'pointy nose' bit at the front. I think the wings could go back a little, and it looks like the fin could be smaller. I'll have a look at tweaking it, but there are 3 other 'microlight' types which might fly better anyway (not posted yet).

If you keep looking at the site, I've got a few more designs to upload imminently, and would appreciate any comments.

Mark

Airlight

Airlight

Hi All

New plans on the site, A5VTAIL19. I hope you will like it/build it/show me the photos.

Fly and enjoy!

Airlight

Hi All

Just wanted to get this out there, I think this may be one of the best yet. New plan on the site, A4ACROBAT1. For those who have given me any feedback about the plans, thankyou, I'm trying to incorporate your ideas, this one specifically about the lack of fuse stiffening on some designs. Remember though, these are meant to be ideas that you can add your own spin on, not cut and dried ABC.

I hope you will like it.

Fly and enjoy!

highfly3D

your site is great.. what size airplane are these?

Airlight

Highfly3D

Thankyou, it's alwaysgood to get appreciative comments. The designs were originally sized to give micro size craft for indoor flight (the A5 template is 210mm x 148mm), but obviously you can print them to whatever scale you like to fit your kit or preferences for build. It's easy enough to upscale them - see if your printer supports 'tiling' (this allows you to spread a print over multiple pages), then use the following to create the size of plan you want. Some of the later plans have an inch scale for the non-metricated (I am working round to everything having the same format but there are a lot of plans)

A5 = 210 x 148mm (2mm depron)
scale x 1.41 gives you anA4 (210 x 297) cutout plan (3mm depron
scale x 2 gives you an A3 (420 x 297) cutout plan (4 or 6mm depron?)

A4= 297 x 210mm plan (mostly for 2mm Depron, later plans)
scale x 1.41 gives you an A3 cutout plan (3mm/2 x 2mm sheet?)

My guess is that you could in theory build these at any scale as long as you up the thickness of the sheet and add appropriate stiffeners, so you are free to build to suit your kit. The only caution I would offer is to print the plans and seeifyou think it would suit your kit, as the differing layouts giveslightly different wing areas etc. My first builds are always to the non-scaled size of the plan just to see if it works ok, but I haven't had the time to build every one yet, so all and any effort to help on this is welcome. I know that taking the time and resources to build one of these is asking a lot, so I thank anyone who's having a go, especially if they send me pictures

I'm just building the first build of A4JET3, the pod type jet, so if you are interested I'll post the pictures, just so you can see one in build. I've actually upscaled it to just under A3 plan, but still building it in 2mm sheet just to check out how it goes. It's pretty stiff, but I've added some rod across the tailplane. This is the philosophy of these plans, you cut the stuff out then start putting the stiffeners in where you see the need.

Good luck with anything you choose to build, let me know if you need any more help, though being a newbie, It will be restricted to the plans/cutting/building I'm afraid.

All the best

Mark

Airlight

Hi All

I just uploaded a new plan, A4VTAIL1. This is a new format, with the principle of 'look at the picture and line up the letters' to get the bits in the right orientation etc. It has 2 configurations, vtail and fin, with the fin cut down to make the rudder fit.

I hope you like it, please send me a pic if you build it.

Fly and enjoy!

highfly3D

What software do you use to design plane it looks great in 3D

Airlight

I use Inventor, but its just because that's what I use for work. There are plenty of free cad packages, 2d and 3d you could use to get the same. The background is just a standard one I built up using PAINT.net, a free package with loads of great features.

Are you up for having a go yourself?

Mark

highfly3D

I was more interested in making the model in 3D to see how it looks like before in build it in real, back in 2009 i joined classes for CATIA which was one of the best for making 3D models but the software is way to complex n not as easy as many might think. But it was a good experience for me. Now today i use the profili software to make models which is far better & best part is its specially designed for making rc models.

I mainly build educational models, small rc models for beginners who want to get started in RC, I also teach school kids about space n aviation. I am planning to make educational model airplane kits for age 6 & above.

Regards,
Harry

Airlight

Harry,
I'm interested in the idea, this is in line with my plans for Airlight, so if you are interested in the idea of producing kits, I'm talking to a laser cutting service now to offer the models in kit form. We have done some preliminary layouts for a few of the models (these take time, by the way) and there are still issues of accuracy to iron out due to the small scale and 'nesting' of the cut parts, but its possible that I could offer you some help with your idea if you'd like. Let me know.

All the best.

Mark

Airlight

Hi All

Just posted a new plan, A4GLIDER1. The A4's are still supposed to be built from 2mm depron, but if you have any other thoughts please let me know.. It's intended to be ultralight, don't forget, so stick the stiffening only where needed. With this one, I'd suggest the 2 wing rods and a couple of carbon strips (or whatever), one under the fuse on the flat edge, and one buried just above the wing line.

Any pictures greatly appreciated.

Fly and enjoy!

Airlight

Hi All

Just uploaded a new plan to the site. Line the letters up for orientation etc. The new site is coming, but slower than I wanted, as I've decided to reformat the plans to go on the new version. I hope you will like this one, remember this is still 2mm Depron, or similar, for a super light aircraft. There are a few options on the power plant - I'd like to try embedded props on this one, but you will have to choose your own position. I think 2 edfs fore of the elevators might work, and theres always the obvious up front prop option.

Fly and enjoy!

Barrymartin

what i see in almost all of ur planes is that the shocky is missing. the horizontal part on thee fuse.. without that and sufficient reinforcement. the fuse will wobble..!

Airlight

Hi Barry

Thanks for the input, I believethis may have been pointed out before. As I've said in many posts ( not just here), the designs are meant to be a start point for anyone wanting to build something with minimal waste and their novelty is that they fit into a compact space while offering the builder a (hopefully) flyable design. You are right about the 'shocky' on many of these, and my suggestion would be to stick a longitudinal stiffener in the fuse to start - carbon strip/toothpicks/coffee swizzler?. I've mentioned a few times that they are for interpretation, and due to the many scales that they could be built at, I can't offer every variation of stiffening for every build. Bear in mind also thatmost were originally intended for build at micro-size, from an A5 template, and the options for stiffening sufficiently are more limited and require greater care on build.

I open these up for discussion in the hope that people will see themand offer positive critique for their improvement. Maybe I could offer some tips on the drawing face as to where/how the stiffening would be needed, but with nearly 200 designs, this would be a pretty big task. I will try to offer some guidance in future. If anyone has built one, maybe they could offer us a picture to see how they dealt with this problem? I am in the process of putting together some first build photos, but not all of them have any stiffening, the main point being to see if they get through the air.

Please offer suggestions if you can, I am open to anything positive and would welcome discussion on any of the designs where improvement could be made.

Mark

Airlight

Hi All

I just wanted to get this out there, so the pdf isn't finished yet. This one is based on a 'real' design, the Super Falcon, and I just wanted to try my hand at something you might sort of recognise. I'll post the updated pdf soon with labels etc. Please let me know if you like it, or any further improvements.

Fly and enjoy!

Airlight

Hi All

Just uploaded the new picture for this to the site, so you can see what it is supposed to make. Hope you will like it.

Fly and enjoy!