BABY BARON
Mighty Mini Sized Combat (Yeah Baby!)
Mighty Mini Sized Combat (Yeah Baby!)
DETAILS
This is my first attempt at scaling down a plane. I randomly chose to start at 60% scale of the Bloody Baron. I fully expected to end up having to scale up slightly, especially after building the prototype...it's so TINY! Well, the results were better than I ever imagined. This thing performs a lot like it's big bloody brother! Another happy accident!
It uses the same power setup as the FT Mighty Mini series, and can use the same power pod as the Mini Scout and Mini Speedster. It has nearly unlimited vertical on a 2S setup. I have not tried it on 3S (no 3S batteries small enough to test at the moment), but I'm guessing it will be pretty ballistic on that setup.
PLANS
SPECIFICATIONS
| WINGSPAN: | 18 in | 457 mm |
| LENGTH: | 15 1/2 in | 394 mm |
| WING AREA: | 89.5 in2 | 5.8 dm2 |
| WEIGHT (AUW): | 5.3 oz. | 150 g |
| WING LOADING: | 8.53 oz./ft2 | 25.9 g/dm2 |
| WCL: | 10.8 | |
| CHANNELS: | 3 | |
| CONTROLS: | Aileron, Elevator, Throttle |
| MOTOR: | Emax MT 1804 |
| ESC: | Turnigy Plush 12amp |
| BATTERY: | 450-800 mah 2S |
| PROPELLER: | 6 X 5 SF (GWS EP 6050) |
| SERVOS: | 2 X 5g (hekTronix HXT500) |
SETTINGS
Ailerons : 40% Expo : 50%
Elevator : 40% Expo : 50%
IMAGESElevator : 40% Expo : 50%
That's a ParkZone UMX Spitfire on the left, Baby Baron prototype on the right.
I told you it was TINY!
The "mini me" of the Bloody Baron!
This is my second flight with the prototype Baby Baron. My cameraman was off taking flying lessons so I got no video of the maiden flight.
Flight video of Keegan stress testing his backpackable (could be a word, who knows?) prototype (removable wing and vertical stabilizer). More details on his buld will be coming soon. I'm happy to report that it performed incredibly well. As you will see in this video, Keegan is a much better pilot than I am.
Extra background commentary from my brother-in-law and nephew.
Maiden flight for version 1.1
Materials
[*=1]1 Sheet Adams Readi-Board
[*=1]1 FT Mighty Mini Firewall
[*=1]3 FT Mighty Mini Control Horns
[*=1]1 BBQ Skewer
[*=1]3 Push Rods 18 GA Music Wire (.040"/1 mm)
[*=1]2 Servos 5 gram (HXT 500 / ES9051)
[*=1]3 Linkage Stoppers (optional)
Plans
The tiled plans only require 8 sheets
Tile your plans together and prepare them for transferring to your foam board
If you think you might make more than one of these planes, you may want to consider making some poster board templates. Complete instructions for making them can be found in my article DIY Poster Board Templates.
Poster Board Templates
All the parts for the Baby Baron take up a little over 1/2 sheet of 20 X 30 foam board
All the parts for the Baby Baron take up a little over 1/2 sheet of 20 X 30 foam board
Fuselage Construction
Parts needed:
<02> Fuselage
<03> Fuselage Doubler X2
<03> Fuselage Doubler X2
We'll start by assembling the fuselage, part number <02> on your plans. If you've built any of my swappable sized combat planes (Bloody Baron, Ugly Wonder, or Bloody Wonder MkIII), then this fuselage construction will already be very familiar to you.
STEP 1) Glue the C-Fold at the nose of the Fuselage. Make sure everything is squared up so the fuselage sides fold up perpendicular to the top plate.
STEP 2) Glue the B-Folds for the fuselage sides one at-a-time. I like to use the edge of the table to square up the fuselage with the tabs that will protrude from the top. Make sure that your sides are perpendicular to the top plate.
STEP 3) Repeat for other side.
STEP 4) Next get out your fuselage doublers, part number <03> on your plans. Ensure the doublers will fit snugly in the fuselage by lining up the notch in the doubler with the C-Fold in the fuselage. After checking for a proper fit, glue the doublers in place one at-a-time.
I'm going to assume that you already know how to build your Flite Test Mighty Mini Power Pod.
Verify that the mini power pod fits snugly in the fuselage.
Wing Construction
Parts needed:
<06> Wing
<07> Wing Spar
STEP 1) Cut the double 45° bevel along the score cut in the center of the wing, part number <06> on your plans.
STEP 2) Cut the single 45° bevels for each of the ailerons.
STEP 3) Remove the foam from the inside of the cavities for the spar tabs leaving the paper on the outside surface of the bottom of the wing. Note, you can choose to cut the openings all the way through, I just prefer the cleaner look you get by making the cavity.
STEP 4) Crease at the indicated crease lines.
Your wing should look similar to the following image at this point.
STEP 5) Score cut your spar, part number <07> on your plans, and fold it in half to establish the crease.
STEP 6) Apply glue to the inside of the fold and glue the two halves together.
STEP 7) Apply glue along the edge of the spar with the tabs and attach the spar to the wing by placing the tabs in the spar cavities.
STEP 8) Carefully test folding your wing and make sure that there is a slight gap between the bottom plate and the ailerons to allow proper deflection of the control surfaces.
STEP 9) Once you are happy with the wing shape, open the wing back up and apply glue along the double bevel groove, the top of the spar, and the trailing edge of the bottom plate. Then carefully fold your wing and apply pressure for 1-2 minutes let the hot glue properly cool.
STEP 9) Once you are happy with the wing shape, open the wing back up and apply glue along the double bevel groove, the top of the spar, and the trailing edge of the bottom plate. Then carefully fold your wing and apply pressure for 1-2 minutes let the hot glue properly cool.
Horizontal & Vertical Stabilizers
Parts needed:
<04> Horizontal Stabilizer
<05> Vertical Stabilizer
STEP 1) Remove foam for cavities in the horizontal stabilizer, part number <04> on your plans.
STEP 2) Cut the single 45° bevel for the elevator in the horizontal stabilizer.
STEP 3) Remove foam for the cavities in the horizontal stabilizer.
STEP 1) Remove foam for cavities in the horizontal stabilizer, part number <04> on your plans.
STEP 2) Cut the single 45° bevel for the elevator in the horizontal stabilizer.
STEP 3) Remove foam for the cavities in the horizontal stabilizer.
STEP 4) Glue the vertical stabilizer to the horizontal stabilizer making sure that they remain perpendicular to each other. Add hot glue to the seams on both sides of the vertical stabilizer and scrape off the excess with a scrap piece of foam.
Final Assembly
STEP 1) Attach the tail assembly to the fuselage using the slots and tabs for alignment.
STEP 2) Attach the wing assembly to the fuselage using the slots and the tabs for alignment. Use a square to ensure that the wing is square to the fuselage.
STEP 3) Add servos, control horns, linkage stoppers and push rods. This process is similar to many of the Flite Test builds. If you are new to building, refer to one of the Flite Test build videos for instructions.
STEP 4) Attach the exhaust manifolds to the fuselage.
STEP 5) Add your power pod with electronics using the same procedure as the FT Mini Scout build. Ensure the back of the power pod touches the top plate of the fuselage to obtain the proper amount of down thrust. Inset the dowels through the power pod.
Underside showing Rx and servo placement.
Completed Baby Baron!
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