FrankenStick - Body / Fuselage

thingiverse

Here's the spun text: I'll start by saying this is made up of various sets of parts, including body, tail, wing and more. I've linked to the other parts at the bottom of this writeup. Feel free to use part, all or none as you see fit. This paragraph explains what each set of parts is a part of. This is just one idea I had for making a modular plane that can be assembled with different wings and tails based on a 25mm round or 22mm square tube "stick" body. It's perfect for anyone who wants to play around with different configurations. The idea behind this is inspired by the concept of a "stick" plane being an actual stick. I used 25mm plastic conduit but CF tubes would be lighter. Each part has a PDF file with photos to help you visualize things and more info and instructions. I made use of 3mm and 4mm threaded bar a lot, but you could also glue CF rods in place. Some of the photos may look slightly different from the STLs as they evolved over time. This makes the plane you see in the photos, with a wingspan of 110cm, length of 90cm, front of wing to prop centre 20cm and wing trailing edge to front of tail 32cm. All sizes are just recommendations, not fixed values. The CG is about 1/3 from leading edge of the wing but you can make it closer if you want. Again, this is meant to be a chassis for whatever you want to do with it. The weights are Wing 365g and rest of the plane with motor, servos, nose weight and undercarriage (basically as in photos) 650g. The battery is extra, and the weight includes PVC conduit "stick" but CF would be a bit lighter. If I make any changes or updates in future, I'll add them here. If you modify or upgrade any parts, feel free to link them back to this page. Updates - None. So, let's talk about the Body. The body is made up of the main body, which is a box that you put the "stick" through. There's space either side for the receiver and ESC. One uses 3mm rods glued in holes to support these, while the deeper one has a printed base and so a larger space for electronics. There's a groove at the rear for an aerial from the receiver, if it has two, so they can be at 90 degrees. The body lid sits on top and you can attach any wing to it, held by threaded bar or elastic bands. There are dihedral blocks to allow wings to be fitted to it. Basically, put the body on the "stick" and attach your wing(s) to the lid(s) and play around as you like. This idea was inspired by Flite Test sticking a KF airfoil on a plane, which made me think of swappable wings and this idea kicked off. The Body Lid has a servo slot so you can use one servo in the centre to control both ailerons. The Lid can be attached using the Body Lid Thumbscrew, and cowling, if required. This is just a thumbscrew with a nut glued inside it that takes a 4mm threaded bar. For the brave, the body can be turned "upside down" allowing a low wing option. Just means fitting the wings using dihedral blocks but the other way, then maybe foam to cover the centre and land on? Other Franken Parts: * Battery: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3708528 * Wing: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3708569 * Motor: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3708547 * Tail: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3708553 * Undercarriage: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3708558 * Control parts: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3708544