3d printed firewall
- Thread starter skymaster
- Start date
Flying Monkey fab
Elite member
Have, had no issues other than breaking it in a crash.
Foamforce
Well-known member
Not that I’ve seen so far. I haven’t gotten many of my motors hot enough for it to be a problem yet though.
I have printed a bunch of motor mounts from PLA, PETG & ABS.
If you use PLA and run the motor hot the motor mount will become soft start deforming.
Eventually the motor mount will fail. The hotter the motor the faster this will happen. PLA can work if you have good airflow and keep the motor temp down.
Using a plywood plate will not help much as the heat will transfer down the motor mounting bolts. A better solution is to print the motor mount from PETG or ABS as they are more resistant to heat.
If your motors are hot enough to melt PLA, they are way too hot.
You need a smaller prop.
skymaster
Elite member
I'm just thinking safety since i have not flown with a printed fire wall on any of my builds.
I bolt my motors directly to a PLA firewall, no X mounts. When it gets really hot out, 95+. I may get the screws to loosen due to a small amount of melting. When that happens I STOP, because I know I will soon burn something out if I keep going.
No need to melt PLA just make it a little bit soft. PLA starts to become soft at about 120 deg F.
That is all the heat you need for the mounting bolts to start working their way though a PLA motor mount and is well within the rated capability of most motors.
I use 3D printed firewalls in every single one of my builds because Im too lazy to make them out of plywood. They work extremely well! Just get on thingaverse and there are tons of stuff for FT builds. I have only used PLA and haven't had any issues even in some extreme crashes. The power pod can be used as a sacrificial part. Id still leave the pod itself made out of foam and just glue the firewall on. When you nosedive it into the ground the foam pod acts as a crumple zone and absorbs some of the impact rather than the fuselage.
With that being said I am making entire power pods. The photos I attached are of a modified 130% simple cub i just finished. The power pod and the hatch/canopy are both 3D printed. As are the main wheels, servo mounts and control horns. I also added a 3D printed tailwheel mount for the rudder to give me a bit more control on the ground. Not sure how its going to work out.
Anyway 3D printing is amazing for this hobby. I just try to use less infill if I can to save on weight. But those main wheels I found on thingaverse weigh half of what I was originally going to install. Keep in mind if you use PLA you probably dont want to leave the plane in a hot car or it could reach its glass temp and start to get soft. Thats really the only downside to PLA. If you are worried about it use PETG, but i have found with smaller parts I get more rigidity with PLA so i have stuck with it.
Attachments
Similar threads
