Help! Homemade DLG CF tail boom and construction

Fran Teryda

New member
Hi everybody! I would really like to build a homemeade dlg but i dont know which diameter of carbon fiber tube should i buy to make the tail boom. Do you think a 6mm diameter tube would be thick enough for a 1 meter wingspan dlg? (thats the only one i can get for a reasonable price) The wings are going to be cut out of high density foam using a hot wire. I know i should install a cf spar through the whole wing to reinforce it, but here in Argentina the CF is too expensive and difficult to get :cry:. Do you know any other lightweight and cheaper alternative? (maybe glass fiber covering?)

I am also having trouble to find a lightweight 1s lipo battery to power up the receiver and the servos. Do you know any other way i could power those whithout adding too much weight?

Sorry for my barely understandable english and thank you very much in advance for your help. Cheers from Argentina :D
 

Merv

Site Moderator
Staff member
Do you think a 6mm diameter tube would be thick enough for a 1 meter wingspan dlg?

Yes, believe 6 mm CF tube will work. Here in the USA, lot of people use a CF arrow shaft. I’d try Hobby King or Banggood for the battery. They may also have your CF tube.
 

Fran Teryda

New member
Yes, believe 6 mm CF tube will work. Here in the USA, lot of people use a CF arrow shaft. I’d try Hobby King or Banggood for the battery. They may also have your CF tube.
Ohh, thanks! The arrow shaft thing is a great idea, but i dont think it will be long enough. Anyway, if i cant get the cf tube, i am going to scale down the model a little bit so that the arrow shaft fits propperly. I would love to order in hobbyking, but importing taxes here are extermely high. Maybe i could use some AA batteries, but those might be a little heavy. Anyway, thanks for your help.
 

Merv

Site Moderator
Staff member
Ohh, thanks! The arrow shaft thing is a great idea, but i dont think it will be long enough. Anyway, if i cant get the cf tube, i am going to scale down the model a little bit so that the arrow shaft fits propperly. I would love to order in hobbyking, but importing taxes here are extermely high. Maybe i could use some AA batteries, but those might be a little heavy. Anyway, thanks for your help.

You could always get the measurements from an ARF DLG and see what they use
 

Craftydan

Hostage Taker of Quads
Staff member
Moderator
Mentor
Most dlgs are ARFs -- very few new ones come without some assembly . . . And most use either a tapered boom + pod (becoming rare these days) or use a fully molded fuselage.

For building out a starter dlg, arrow shafts are a good start, and run around 6-8mm in diameter and 800-850 mm in length. A good set of plans to start from is the spinster:

https://www.flitetest.com/articles/foamboard-spinster-f3k-beginner-dlg
 

Fran Teryda

New member