3D printed edf unit

[Fluburtur]

Well, I freestyled this in about 15 minutes in fusion without doing any math or even thinking if that was a good idea.

Then I glued it on my 80cm combat wing that died 3 times already

I will try to fly it when I find servos, im kinda out right now. I do not have very high expectations for this, I kinda hope the fan will explode and shred the plane even.

 

[mrjdstewart]

my guess is it will fail at speed. i have never had any luck printing anything like this. every spinner i have ever made has died on its first flight or even before on initial spin up. just cant get the balance perfect enough. make sure you have some eye protection when you do try.

good luck,

me

 

[DamoRC]

I have seen quite a few 3D printed EDFs that seem to work fine but agree with @'mrjdstewart, safety glasses are a must.

What Kv motor and batteries are you using?

 

[Fluburtur]

the motor is a 2212 2200kv one, I will probably have to run it on a 4s if I want enough power to make it fly.
As for spinners, the one I have printed so far have proven to be the strongest part of the plane. I have made a parametric fusion 360 model if you want.

 

[Fluburtur]

Well, it kinda flew.

It barely had enough power to keep itself flying but it is already a miracle it managed that much, at least it does a good job of demonstrating the low speed capabilities of my wings.

 

[DamoRC]

Nice work - congrats!

You might get some benefit by adding a thrust tube.

Was this with 4S and do you know if you were maxing out the amps on the motor?

The motor Kv is low in comparison to typical EDFs of similar size (approx 3500 to 4000 range, depending on the number of blades). You might be able to squeeze more power out of the motor by adding more blades to the impeller (unless you are already maxed out on the motor power).

 

[Fluburtur]

Yeah it was on 4s, I think it could benefit of a better design (like, actually do the math).

Anyways the rotor broke on the final landing. I might get a proper brushless motor for that and try to make something that is worth using.

I guess the most work is to find proper propeller airfoils or find some approximations for the kind of oval airfoil used on those, I planned on making a proper 3d printed propeller at some point.

 

[IcedStorm777]

Do you know if there in anyone on the forums that could make the planes for a 70mm EDF? I am hoping to be able to 3d print one but don't have the skills to design one. I figured they might be able to design it around an cheap but good motor. Maybe from hobbyking? Thanks!!

 

[Fluburtur]

It might be possible to design a 3d printable one that looks good on paper, it is just maths after all but the problems inherent with 3d printing will still be here. The surface wont be smooth, leading to drag. Tolerances might not be enough and it will be weaker than injection molded plastic. The only interest in printing one so far has mostly been experimentation, I never expected it to be useful.