anaximander
New member
Hi all! I'm anaximander, and I'm hoping the folks here can give me some pointers on a project of mine.
I've always been interested in RC aircraft, and I've been interested in building a UAV ever since I nearly got the chance to do it for a uni project, back when ArduPilot was still very new and something you ran on an actual Arduino Mega. Now, a fair few years later, I've decided I want to take the plunge and start flying. I have a 3D printer, a rough understanding of the principles of flight and the basics of airframe design, and a background in engineering and software development. Ultimately, I'd like to design my own aircraft, 3D print it, and set it up to fly autonomously and do aerial photography. I realise that's quite ambitious, though, so I may have to start a little smaller.
I figure step one is to get something that flies, and learn to fly it. I was hoping someone could help me make sense of all the parts of the hobby that I know less about. I feel like I know enough to assess an airframe, but I don't really know where to start from an RC point of view. I know I'll need a transmitter, and I know these vary wildly in cost and capabilities. Is it worth going straight for something that can do all the things I'll want later, or should I start cheap and upgrade later? I know that my eventual goal is to build a flying wing - should I start out learning to fly on a more conventional airframe, or do wings fly differently enough that I should try to find a flying wing design to learn on? I have a 3D printer and I'm not afraid of a little self-assembly; are there any good 3D-printable designs that I could practice with? I'm pretty sure the process of learning to fly will involve a few crashes, and I like the idea of being able to print replacement parts to repair crash damage, rather than feeling like I just destroyed an aircraft I spent good money on.
Here's hoping someone can help, and that someday I'll have some cool things to share.
I've always been interested in RC aircraft, and I've been interested in building a UAV ever since I nearly got the chance to do it for a uni project, back when ArduPilot was still very new and something you ran on an actual Arduino Mega. Now, a fair few years later, I've decided I want to take the plunge and start flying. I have a 3D printer, a rough understanding of the principles of flight and the basics of airframe design, and a background in engineering and software development. Ultimately, I'd like to design my own aircraft, 3D print it, and set it up to fly autonomously and do aerial photography. I realise that's quite ambitious, though, so I may have to start a little smaller.
I figure step one is to get something that flies, and learn to fly it. I was hoping someone could help me make sense of all the parts of the hobby that I know less about. I feel like I know enough to assess an airframe, but I don't really know where to start from an RC point of view. I know I'll need a transmitter, and I know these vary wildly in cost and capabilities. Is it worth going straight for something that can do all the things I'll want later, or should I start cheap and upgrade later? I know that my eventual goal is to build a flying wing - should I start out learning to fly on a more conventional airframe, or do wings fly differently enough that I should try to find a flying wing design to learn on? I have a 3D printer and I'm not afraid of a little self-assembly; are there any good 3D-printable designs that I could practice with? I'm pretty sure the process of learning to fly will involve a few crashes, and I like the idea of being able to print replacement parts to repair crash damage, rather than feeling like I just destroyed an aircraft I spent good money on.
Here's hoping someone can help, and that someday I'll have some cool things to share.