FT Versa Wing - BUILD

ms166

New member
Laminate afterwards -- Lamination films have quite a bit of stiffness when cold, but conforms and molds well when warm and bonds well when hot. applying it to the paper/foam first will affect how the board folds up, and can weaken the bond between the lamination and airframe as the parts try to slide relative to each other as they fold.

Spray adhesive is your call -- it's used to tack it down so it doesn't move until you've gotten the heat to it. As you turn the corners on the LE, a little bit of heat will make the plastic more flexible, so if you do use the spray, it's best to only hit the edge you're starting with, otherwise you'll end up with more wrinkles because it didn't want to turn the corners sharply when cold. Tack one side with glue/heat, gently pulling it tight, then spread the heat. The more you have adhered down, the less it will move.

I'd also recommend stripping the paper after assembling the wing halves and blunt-nose section. The lamination film will have far more stiffness and durability than the paper has, and you don't need the weight of both. You'll have to reattach the hatch and aileron hinges with tape, but that should be easy.

Naturally, I'd recommend trying all this on scraps first -- folded and glued into shape like a wing section, if you can manage it -- so you can get the feel of the material before you try it for real.

Hello Craftydan, you are the man! I could not hope for a clearer and more complete answer :D, so thank a lot for your complete and detailed post, I will just do as you suggested, and post the result :)
 

SP0NZ

FT CAD Gremlin
Staff member
Admin
Moderator
Mentor
I have redrawn the FT Versa Wing plans with the additional Blunt Nose conversion pieces into a single set of plans. You can get the latest version of the plans from my plans index here:

SP0NZ- Plans Index
 

ms166

New member
Versa Wing laminated and maiden done!

A few words about the lamination process:
I followed the recommendation of Craftydan: building the Versa Wing first then stripping the paper and laminate
It was a long process and without the paper you have to be more carefull with the heat of the iron. The stiffness of the Wing do not really improve, the laminate film compensate the paper but do not had much more stiffness. But now it handle very well the Winter humidity.

It was a test and for the next one I think I will keep the paper on the bottom, and for the elevon, I will replace the stock with Balsa wood.

My configuration is a bit ood, I wanted to test a parachute doors (waiting for the fabric), my hand launch skill need a bit more practice so a nose protection was required, I added two central winglets for stability in flight and protection, after the maiden I was happy with the result of both :rolleyes: ) the external winglets are the one of the tbs caipirinha. Finally I wanted the be able to change the components of the wings really easy so there is a Radio Receiver and Video transmitter doors.


Blunt nose 1.jpg

Blunt nose 2.jpg
 

Qrome

Junior Member
Cool, I love seeing all the variations and mods on this wing. I got a chance to fly this modified Versa this morning. My buddy Glade modified the prop canyon to be similar to the Arrow and added a fin aft of the motor. Result is a straight tracking wing that looks great. We have been flying wings / deltas with mid-ship motors with fins behind the motor for a while and find that it is great for reducing the typical wing wag in FPV.

The video shows the Versa also modified with a camera pod center wing similar to the Arrow.

 

Qrome

Junior Member
Do you have any info/pics on that vertical tail? Does it work for yaw?

The fin is held in place by carbon fiber tubes. It is actually very stiff. There is no rudder on the fin. For FPV it really reduces the typical wing wag you see. A true Versa "Arrow".

I am making modified "Arrow" and will be doing the same fin. I love flying this plane.
2016-02-23-07.52.07_scaled.jpg 2016-02-23-07.52.18_scaled.jpg
 

Overprop

Junior Member
"Bulge" Nose Versa Speed Wing

My brother had a big power setup he never used so I decided to make modified BNV to fit this heavy gear.

Motor: NTM propdrive 35-48 1100kv
Battery: 4000mah 4s
ESC: 80A
Prop: 11x7 APC (Note it's a 9" prop in the pictures)

There were a few issues highlighted by other users so I wanted to achieve the following:
  • Easy CG setup - this motor is heavy so it needed to be situated further forward.
  • Prop space - extra had to be cut out to make room for the 11x7 prop.
  • Fuselage space - A fully custom fuselage meant I could have quick access to all the components
  • Strength - Using a two piece design with a "jigsaw" joint strengthened by a one piece motor mount and skid plate.
  • Yawing - Most fins on wings are perpendicular to the yawing pivot point, I wanted to create tail fin properties by stretching the fins rearwards.

Here is the two piece "jigsaw joint":
View attachment 66509

One piece motor mount and skid plate:
View attachment 66510

This is the fuselage lid made in a similar way to the wing airfoil:
View attachment 66511

The fins are long and needed stiffening up, I embedded a ring of cocktail sticks into the foam and then glued a second piece of foam over the top. This has created a very stiff yet light fin. This technique can be used in the spars if you glue a cocktail stick top and bottom. Which transfers the maximum tensile stresses through the cocktail sticks (This is how a steal "I" beam works) adding a lot of strength with little extra weight:
View attachment 66512
View attachment 66513

This is the finished fuselage cover held in place by 3m Dual Lock (similar to Velcro)
View attachment 66514
View attachment 66515

The fuselage was made up of layers of foam to build a wall and then sanded to shape, it also provides good impact protection:
View attachment 66516
View attachment 66522
View attachment 66517

The fins give that racer look:
View attachment 66518
View attachment 66519

The nearly finished product, just need to maiden this thing now! I have a feeling she's going to be quick :rolleyes:
View attachment 66520
 

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Last edited:

jpot1

Elite member
I decided to build this wing tractor style to start. I've got a Turnigy d2836/8 1100 kv motor. Will that work ok?
 

Parki73

Junior Member


Here's the full step by step video tutorial showing how to assemble your FT Versa Wing kit.
This laser cut wing kit is also available as a scratch build with the free build plans available below.



On your speed build kit there is an extra fold that will need glued and taped. This is setup to allow for the wing to fit inside of our low rate shipping boxes.



Reinforcing the inside of the wing with hot glue will give your wing long lasting strength.



When you fold your wing there will be an off-set, you will want to keep that width consistent along the entire side when glueing.



And that's one wing complete, this kit assembles in a very short time.



When glueing your other wing, be sure to match the spacing on the back of your wing.



The wing is designed to allow for a very quick assembly and you can true up everything easily with sandpaper.



A few passes on 100 grit sandpaper is all it takes to get everything straight and fitting snuggly.



Check to see if everything lines up and you're ready to start glueing!



Some hot glue to connect your wing halves and your wing is almost complete!



1.8mm Linkage Stopper "Speed Clevis" work great for this wing.



The FT Control Horns come with the speed build kit and can be purchased separately for those of you scratch building.



A zip-tie connected to a BBQ skewer to secure the back your power pod.



Click HERE to see the Power Pod Build video if you need to assemble your power pod.



Balance is very important with a wing and we've added a CG mark to the bottom of the wing to help you.



The battery, in combination with additional nose weight can be adjusted to keep the wing slightly nose heavy.



We hope you have fun building your FT Versa Wing! Be sure to share your builds and mods!


FREE Build Plans:
FT Versa Wing [ FULL SIZE ]
FT Versa Wing [ TILED ]


Click HERE to see the POWER POD BUILD VIDEO
Equipment used in this build:

FT VERSA WING POWER/ELECTRONICS PACK "THE BEEF"
Available at LazerToyz.com


FT Control Horns
FT Elements Simple Firewall
2712-12 24G "Blue Wonder"
Hextronic 9 Gram Servo
TURNIGY Plush 25amp Speed Controller
Turnigy 1000mAh 3S 25C Lipo Pack
1.8mm Linkage Stopper "Speed Clevis"
1mm piano wire (push rods)


FT Versa Wing - Pusher Conversion/FPV tutorial:
This conversion is done with the FT Elements Simple Firewall.



13233014_10154239041227193_3901131342249383345_n.jpg 13178791_10154239040842193_6686020353175891504_n.jpg 13151776_10154239040767193_2472249857615419490_n.jpg Going to have some fun with this wing conversion.
 

mrwis@yahoo.com

New member
OK guys what am I doing wrong here.... I've been flying my new Versa airframe tractor vs. the old pusher style I retired last fall and I've been breaking props on landing probably 75% of the time. I'm not the greatest at the landings but most have been pretty good with no damage other than the broken prop.

I'm running the suppo 2217 1250KV (http://www.altitudehobbies.com/suppo-motors/suppo-2217-7-1250kv-brushless-motor-park-425-equiv) motor on a 2200 3 cell with a 9x4.7 APC.

Should I consider finding a prop saver? According to the motor spec I'd need a 4mm one. Could/should I run a folding prop of some size? Or should I just keep working on the landings and eventually this issue will resolve itself. I would say I don't come in too hot but maybe I'm not close enough to the ground before I bleed off the speed. I've been about 4 to 6 feet I'd say when I come in. Then I try to bleed some speed, flair it, then cut the throttle and plop it down.

Any suggestions are appreciated.
 

makattack

Winter is coming
Moderator
Mentor
If you're using a landing gear on your power pod, and it's nosing over and breaking props, instead of chopping power right before touch down, keep the power on very low and then only chop it as the wheels touch the ground. This should reduce your vertical descent enough to really grease it in. It takes practice. Touch and goes are a good exercise for this.

If you don't have landing gear and are belly landing it, maybe try setting the esc motor brake on so the prop isn't free wheeling/windmilling with the motor off. There's no guarantee the prop wont stop in the vertical, but you might be able to pip the motor until it stops more horizontally. Doesn't have to be perfect as hopefully whatever you land on will move the prop out of the way on contact.
 

Jugsy

New member
Any particular brand? Might be worth shopping around, based on your hangar I'd guess your skills aren't lacking!
 

mrwis@yahoo.com

New member
I've been using the actual apc brand. I think I may try the landing gear again as well. I had it on but with the bands i had they didnt hold the vbend to the bottom of the pod enough and it collapsed on landing. I think I'll zip tie the gear to a paintstick and band that on. My field doesnt have really short grass and my wheels arent to big but it might be worth a try again.

I also have an 8x6 apc style prop non apc brand the seems a bit less flexible. I think i may give that a try. I don't usually fly full thottle very often with the wing so i think id be ok.

My sons the better pilot for sure. I just like the builds so I've put together quite a few thus far. Only one real crash so far though. That was last weeekend when i nosed the wing in.
 

Rog

New member
I am looking into building a verse wing. On most pusher style airplanes they require a right-handed propeller. I have been flying SlowBoat seaplanes which are a pusher style. I started out with right-handed propellers with real good luck. I switched one of them to a left-hand propeller and honestly can't see a difference. On a verse wing does right or left hand rotation make any difference? Will a left-hand propeller facing forward work properly?
 

nevenelestate

No Agenda FPV
The only difference you should have with prop direction is the nut holding the prop on. You want to make sure your are spinning in a tightening direction. The torque from the motor should have little impact due to the wing size.
 

Spitfire222

Not a skater
I am looking into building a verse wing. On most pusher style airplanes they require a right-handed propeller. I have been flying SlowBoat seaplanes which are a pusher style. I started out with right-handed propellers with real good luck. I switched one of them to a left-hand propeller and honestly can't see a difference. On a verse wing does right or left hand rotation make any difference? Will a left-hand propeller facing forward work properly?

Pusher style aircraft only need a right-handed prop if you can't reverse the direction the motor spins. This use to be a problem on glow-powered aircraft, where reverse propellers were the much easier solution instead of getting your engine to spin the opposite direction.

These days, with electric power systems, it's so much easier as you just reverse any 2 of the 3 leads from the motor to ESC to reverse the direction of spin. All that matters is that the propeller faces opposite of the direction that you want it to produce thrust in. For a pusher, you mount a traditional prop on the motor "backwards" (with respect to the motor), and make sure the motor spins counter-clockwise, if the nose is pointing towards you.

So, to answer your question, a left-handed prop will absolutely work properly, assuming you've mounted in correctly.