Here is an update on my MF480 project. I decided to call it the DoJet after the nickname of the full size jet that I fly, the Dornier 328. I chose to use the Mega 16/15/3 with a Pheonix 45 from Castle Creations. Castle Creations makes a great product and there costumer support is next to none. I still am debating on which battery to use. The FMA high discharge cells look good but the flight time would be down unless they were in parallel. Any suggestions? Ready to fly weight without the battery is 1.5 lbs, not too bad for a prototype. I had some trouble with the inlets collapsing so I added strips of balsa capped with Kevlar around the shell, that seemed to have curred the problem. The silver tool next to the plane is an aluminum plug that I made to make a perfect exhaust pipe for the fan. There is even a lip that matches the diameter of the fan so the transition on the inside is smooth.

looks great, is it going to have a landig gear? I am currently in the planning stage for a scratch built jet project. I would love to see more picks if you have them!

Currently there are no retracts for weight considerations. I have made a dolly that has steering and is just for takeoff. It will be interesting to see if it works. I have purchased two Apogee 3S1P 2080mah packs and will wire them in the 3S2P config. That will push the overall weight just over 2lbs. At 300+ watts that should perform well. The hatch is fiberglass with a foam core and there is a lip on the front and two neodyum magnets on the back. This makes for a clean look, we will see if it stays on inflight. There is a picture of the aluminium tool that was used to make the exhaust duct. The test flight is scheduled for later this week, finally! What are you ideas for a scratch built project flydrive rc?

well, I have severall ideas that i am working on, It looks like a cross between a f-16, f-18 and the eruro fighter. I plan on using a piece of pvc pipe for the body and foam for the wing and tail surfaces, I bought all of the pieces to start building at Lowes for $25; However, I think the pvc will be to heavy for an edf so I am thinking of using it for a mold to make a fiberglass tube. If I use the pvc the model should weigh about 6 pounds ready to fly, Do you think this will be to heavy? I also would like to build a rocket launched glider, but that is still just an idea

Yes the PVC pipe would be on the heavy side. PVC pipe can be molded. The outer half of my intake ducts are moulded from a piece of PVC pipe that was cut in half, waxed, and sprayed with PVA. I then covered it with lightweight fiberglass and then one layer of Kevlar. In hindsight fiberglass only would of been better because it would of eliminated small pinholes in the Kevlar cloth. You still need to stiffen the intake because of the suction made by the fan. I steamed balsa by putting it on a plate with water and the microwaving it for about 5 minutes. I then glued two strips per side and that solved the problem. In the future I will laminate foam to the outside of the inlets to stiffen them. The inner part of the duct was made on a homemade mold that eliminates the need for the spinner.

The DoJet is getting an update already. The fuse is getting remolded with an integral fin. The wings and the stabs are getting molds also. The plugs are made from a foam core sheeted with ply and then fiberglassed. The first photo shows that stage. They were then primed, painted and polished in photo 2. Now I am adding wax and buffing inbetween coates. The last photo shows the new fuse with its first coat of primer. I always put a thin layer of primer on first that is a different color than the rest. Then when you are sanding off the outer primer you know when you are about to hit the fiberglass. The outer coat will be grey primer. The wings have also gained a little sweep to make it look a little better! Let me know what you think, FYI the first DoJet is for sale ready to fly.

Half of one of the wings and the stab is being molded now. I used black tooling gel from Aerospace Composite Products and the covered that with heavy fiberglass cloth for strength. The tooling gel is great and it makes a very hard and glossy surface.
The fuse is almost ready to be molded and that will be done in the same way.

Here is the inside of the mold. They will be trimmed and sanded and then the other side will be molded.

The fuse is ready for a layer of enamel. It will be buffed, waxed and then molded.

The molds should be done tonight. This is the fuse plug with half of it molded.

The fuse mold is done now. Today I put a few coats of wax on it and used liquid rubber to cast a plug for the wing root. Before the fuse is put in the vacume bag I insert the little rubber plug to fill the void. The dowel rods make holes through the plug for the air to escape. I should have the pics in a day. The wings should be done soon.

The first DoJet is for sale if anyone is interested in a RTF spot jet.

Today I put on a coat of PVA and then painted the first MKII fuse mold. I also attached the first set of molded wings to a MKI fuse. It is amazing how much you learn on each piece made, already I have thrown out two tails and a few other smaller pieces. The new MKII fuse doesnt have specific hatches marked out because i want to experiment on this one to get it perfect. There is also plans for a MKIII version that would have retracts. The nose retract would be a commercial unit but the mains would be custom made out of composites to save weight. Any suggestions?