Baby Bugatti

[Mid7night]

We all have our stagnant points... either those times when we're working on something and nothing seems to go right, or we want to try something new but inspiration and motivation are lacking...

I had one such moment a few days ago when trying to design a 1-sheet DTFB plane, I just couldn't draw anything that seemed worth it. Following along with willsonman's Bugatti build, he talked about similar motivational struggles, and that got me thinking... it was actually his honesty about the struggle that sparked my imagination. I decided to try and design a 1-sheet DTFB Bugatti, both as a personal challenge for myself, and a (hopefully) welcome distraction for my friend. So, the "Baby Bugatti" was born.


UPDATE: SCALED UP 24" SPAN PLANS HERE:

View attachment Bugatti_2.0_r3_PDF.pdf


SP0NZ PLANS FOR 20" VERSION:

All-In-One | Full-Size | Tiled

SPECS:

LENGTH : 17 in

CG : 0.75 in from wing LE

WING SPAN : 20 in

WING AREA : 77 in2

DRY WEIGHT : 5 oz

ALL UP WEIGHT : 7 oz

WING LOADING : 13.1 oz/ft2

WING CUBIC LOADING : 17.9

RECOMMENDED SETTINGS

THROW EXPO

AILERON 8 - 12° 60%

ELEVATOR 8 - 12° 60%

RECOMMENDED BEGINNER POWER

Motor: MT1806-2280
Prop: 5x5
Battery: 2S, 500-1000mAh (also flies well on 3S and 4S - NOT BEGINNER FRIENDLY)



Previous beta plans: View attachment Baby_Bugatti_R5.pdf
NOTE: As of 3/11/17, Successfully flown!
UPDATE: SP0NZ plans links added 5/15/17
R5 added 3/21/17 - Adds CG marks, reference scale, throw gauges and refined bottom hatch closure[/B]





Design goals:

1. Use no more than 1 sheet of DTFB - No carbon, nothin' fancy!
2. Size similar to FT Mighty Mini series
3. Scale lines where possible
4. Simplify shape for ease of construction - FT techniques only
5. 2 servos - Aileron and Elevator only

So far, I think I've hit all my goals; I'm quite please with how it looks, and the first night of building went relatively quickly considering I'm making up the instructions as I go!

The pictures of my first build should tell most of the story, but I'll answer questions as they come. I also will be posting plans, but only after I've sorted the first one myself and added all the twiddly details that crop up when building.

As of posting, I have a motor arriving tomorrow and plan on a weekend maiden, so stay tuned!

Lastly; Thank you to Joshua for his dedication to his own build, and encouragement on mine. His 1/6th scale beauty is a one-of-a-kind, but I would be terrified to take the controls even if he gave them to me, so I'm hoping the rest of us can have some extra "mini" fun on the side while we watch.


V-tail


Wing, unfolded, paper removed


Tail pieces, with gauge


V-tail glued with gauge


Vertical glued under V-tail


Underside of tails


Fuse top and sides, unfolded, paper removed



Fuse fold 1 - Standard A-fold, rear half only


Fuse fold 2


Tail slides into rear fuse




Top of tails installed


Power pod motor mount


Power pod reinforced


Wingtip tape reinforcement; necessary to keep the cut-back corner from ripping the paper during folding




Slender spar, mostly to give the wing some shape, not really structural itself




Bottom of wing after folding/gluing


Top of wing after folding/gluing


Elevator pushrod: Single servo pushes a single rod, bent into a long "U" with Z-bends on each end.


Elevator servo will go just under the flap, on top of the wing


Elevator pushrod(s) exit over the V-tail.
Elevator installation is as such:

1. Feed elevator pushrod thru servo horn
2. Feed pushrod thru hole on top of V-tail
3. Mark elevator control horn locations
4. Install control horns on pushrod ends
5. Glue control horns into elevator in the marked slots
6. Center elevator surfaces & Center elevator servo arm
7. Glue down elevator servo while holding elevator surfaces centered

Fuse bottom showing Rx location, will be closed up after installing aileron servo forward of the wing

 

[Mid7night]

Progress continues, hooking up the aileron servo and getting ready for the motor.

I needed a little bracket to reinforce the aileron servo, but this shouldn't be needed in the final build. Now that I have a layout defined, I'll incorporate the location and a slot into the fuse pieces.






The aileron servo mounts just forward of the wing, upside down, which allows the pushrods to angle out perfectly to the ailerons


Aileron pushrods threaded through little holes at the wing LE


Wires threaded over the wing, making room for battery placement under the wing. I won't know exactly where it needs to be until I mount the motor, which should arrive tomorrow.

 

[Mid7night]

Good grief this motor is TINY! That's really good news though, because that means it doesn't add much nose weight. I used a standard mini firewall, but I had to drill out the two narrower holes. Make do with what you've got.



Getting it mounted was simple, if just a little bit twiddly, given the narrow nature of the powerpod. After fitting it into the nose, threading the ESC wires around to the Rx and setting a battery on the wing, I checked the balance upside-down...lo and behold it balances right behind the wing leading edge!

The power pod doubler gets folded and glued in first, as a cradle for the pod.



Note the slightly-smushed edges to help it nestle in the right spot.


There aren't any markings, you just slide it as far forward as possible without pushing too hard, and it's where it needs to be. Just make sure its back edges are centered too.



Then I had to figure out what exactly to do with the battery and a hatch. I settled on basically leaving the whole front portion of the lower fuse as the 'hatch'. This allows not only for battery access, but also motor power pod. Given the slender nose, there really wouldn't be any other way to swap the motor if necessary. As a bonus, this also allows access to the aileron servo. I'll either just tape it closed at the front, or pin it with a thin rod or wire.

Added some tape to the inside to keep the paper from pulling away


Squeegee in some glue into the corner, keeps the edge stronger as you use the hatch


Aaaand finally had to hit it with a bit of blue spray


In other good news, it only weighs 6oz ready to fly! Well, it probably weighs a little more after I painted it, but not by much. The blue really makes it.

 

[WWagner]

So cool keep up the mini work

 

[wilmracer]

LOVE this. Good luck!

 

[agentkbl]

you guys gotta race at ff17! that'd be funny.

 

[DamoRC]

Cool, and a really neat build!

DamoRC

 

[Ricci]

Nice!

 

[rockyboy]

This is awesome!

 

[nerdnic]

Woo! Nice work so far.

 

[JimCR120]

Contra rotating props? If not genuine what about a pseudo prop with opposite blade angle that free spins behind the functional prop?
Just a thought.

 

[Mid7night]

Thanks guys! Glad you like it so far. FYI: I just posted a progress update in the second post above.

Jim: I honestly hadn't thought about another prop, I was so focused on simplifying. Maybe I'll throw one on for static display, but I'm not sure there'll be room for it to actually be on when spinning. But I'll just have to wait and see when the motor arrives tomorrow.

Edit: I guess this Hobbyking combo would be the right size, but I don't know if I want to wait for international shipping...or pay another $40+ for more motors. It would look cool tho...

 

[Userofmuchtape&glue]

Wow nice! I like the aileron linkage. good idea!

 

[JimCR120]

Yeah it was just a thought. I'm really liking this build. Looks slick and I like how you rigged the ailerons.

Do you have a goal for finishing it?

Looking forward to Sunday...

Edit: What? They make contra rotating motors?! A bit pricey for me but that does open the door to a slew of Russian planes. Tu-95 would be interesting.

 

[willsonman]

When Ben first showed me this project I was absolutely floored. Humbled, touched, and honored, this is something that should prove fun for everyone; to capture a brief portion of the history around this aircraft. I knew it would be well-received by this community and I was proven right.

A contra motor on this size may be a bit overkill but I think will fly just fine without it. I REALLY look forward to flight testing.

 

[earthsciteach]

Fan-freaking-tastic!!!!

 

[SP0NZ]

I'm excited!

 

[jaredstrees]

Looking forward to this, might just have to be my next project!

 

[Mid7night]

Plans are progressing - I just added a piece to help locate and hold the aileron servo in the fuse, and a more appropriate power pod doubler for the nose. Also revised the aileron horn marks based on the servo location.

Do any of you know; what is the typical current draw on the MT1806 from the A-pack, and on what recommended prop? I've got 12A and 20A ESC's....I don't want to burn out the 12A, but I don't want the bulk/weight of the 20A if I don't need it.

Edit: I'm planning on using a 2-cell at first...I don't have a 3S small enough (I don't think...), and based on what I've found, it's not going to hurt the 12A ESC on 2S (probably not even on 3S either, as long as I stay with less than a 6" prop

 

[earthsciteach]

Not sure if you are talking about the 1430 kv or the 2480 kv mt1806, but either way, a 12 amp esc is plenty as long as you aren't going 4s or using a prop over 6 inches. Amp draw on the 1806, 1430, 3s, 6x4e APC is 4.0 amps. Puhlenty of amps to spare!