Spitfire76's Build Log of Eclipson's Horton Ho-229

[Spitfire76]

I wasn't going to start building another 3d printed plane until I finished the ones already on my workbench but here goes again.

Eclipson Horten 229 / 3D printed flying wing

www.eclipson-airplanes.com

FT made a video of this a few months back.

 

[Spitfire76]

This will be my second 3d printed EDF plane although the first is still work in progress.

Spitfire76's Build log of 3dLabPrint's J35 Saab Draken

Build-ruary challenge day 3 of 29 This build is one of my submissions to the Build-ruary challenge. Downloaded from https://3dlabprint.com/shop/j35_draken/ I will be using Polylight 1.0 LW-PLA. Printing is underway. Starting with the 9 fuselage parts.

forum.flitetest.com

 

[Spitfire76]

Loaded the LW-PLA to print the first part of the Horton but for the first time in the 2 years that I have had my Bambu Lab's P1P it looks like I have a clogged nozzle as I hear a clicking sound when it tries to extract the filament and no filament is being extruded.

3D Printer Clog

This article shows information related to extruder and hotend clogs, with potential causes and solutions

wiki.bambulab.com

 

[Mr Man]

Wow! That’s one of my favorites!

 

[Spitfire76]

I've unclogged the printer and so printing will resume.

 

[Spitfire76]

The way that I am organizing the files for printing on my Bambu Lab's P1P is that I'll have a project file (3mf) for each of the Ecilpson printing profiles. The template profiles for Bambu printers can be found here.

Read before start printing | eclipson

www.eclipson-airplanes.com

I downloaded the zip file called "Eclipson Bambu studio printing categories"

It contains 4 project files (3mf) that contain the settings for printer, filament and process. The model part loaded is just a place holder and can be deleted and another stl loaded.

The 2 "B" files are for the more recent Eclipson models and use spiral mode to print, one is for LW and the other is for standard PLA.

 

[Spitfire76]

Just wasted an almost 4 hour print. Wing_C1 is printed with PLA using profile B2 but I neglected to disable spirial mode as per the notes in the drawing and this is what happened.

 

[Mr Man]

Just wasted an almost 4 hour print. Wing_C1 is printed with PLA using profile B2 but I neglected to disable spirial mode as per the notes in the drawing and this is what happened.

View attachment 247998

Aw, that’s too bad.

 

[Spitfire76]

Just entered this in this challenge to build and fly 4 planes in February.

2025 Flite Test Forum Challenge: Build-ruary Contest

@Mutley aren’t you going to join in with some missiles or some builds you’re working on?

forum.flitetest.com

 

[Spitfire76]

Completed printing all the parts that have to use regular PLA.

Most parts are printed with eSun PLA+ (white) as I ran out of Bambu PLA matte (gray).

I started printing the LW-PLA parts and I am using Bambu Lab's PLA-Aero. The only issue is it is black which is not good as it can warp in direct sunlight. I will try painting it white and hopefully it will turn out gray (or maybe I should paint it gray, I'll try both).

 

[Spitfire76]

I have printed all the LW-PLA parts (16). The black filament does sand and lightens so will do that before painting or should I leave it as it gives it that weathered look ?

 

[Spitfire76]

I need to start looking into EDFs. I did buy this one awhile back to put into the 3dLabPrint Draken but never finished assembling the plane so will try that first.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09FS4PY23/?tag=lstir-20

 

[Spitfire76]

That EDF seems to fit if I use the EDF_ring_size1 parts to form a snug fit.

Its also been suggested to glue the EDF directly with little bit of silicone glue (I have some E6000) which holds but can be easily removed.

I've ordered another EDF as its only $30 at the moment on Amazon.

I noticed that this models has a vertical stabilizer which did not exists on the full scale plane and explains why it needs to be made from clear plastic (1mm) to keep it looking to scale. I assume in testing it was determined it was required. I'll check into this further as I do intend to install an Aura 5 lite in this plane that should keep it stable so maybe I don't need it but just in case found this on Amazon.

Loading…

www.amazon.com

 

[Spitfire76]

Found this really great video on the full scale version.

As the full scale plane never went into production there is some speculation as to what color it would have been. Eclipson have used gray and black but the above video shows it in green. Also areas of black are not good as the PLA can warp in the sun as the Flitetest guys found out in their video that I posted at the beginning of this thread.

Tamiya have several spray paints in Luftwaffe colors.

AS3 - gray green
AS4 - gray violet
AS5 - light blue
AS23 - light green
AS24 - dark green

Maybe the AS5 for under and AS23 for upper, especially since the PLA is dark even if I sand it.

 

[Spitfire76]

The decals came with the stl files as a svg but for some reason it will not load into Silhouette Studio. I don't see any images and when I select the error triangle it displays this message.

I have not had any issues loading decals from other models so not sure why. In the end I loaded the file into Inkscape and saved it as a pdf which did load into Silhouette Studio. Re-aranged the layout and ended up with this.

I am printing on QYH (Matte) printable vinyl sticker paper for inkjet printers.

 

[Spitfire76]

Testing the steerable nose wheel. I had to print the NLG_horn 87% scale in order to fit the 3/32 Dubro collar.

 

[Spitfire76]

One issue with LW-PLA is that the vinyl decals don't stick too well but I came across this suggestion awhile back and so will try it on this plane.

Painting LW-PLA and for a smooth finish that will make the decals stick....

• sand with 220 grit
• sand with 400 grit
• blow off any powder
• spray with acrylic paint
• sand with 2000 grit
• lightly wipe with towel and isopropyl alcohol

 

[Spitfire76]

Progress so far. I need to do some more sanding and filling. 2nd EDF arriving Sunday. I likely need to change the nose wheel so the the front is a bit taller to provide a steeper angle of attack for takeoff.

 

[Spitfire76]

Found out some more history about this plane and these are some of the anticipated colors if it had gone into production.
For the lower surface

AS-5 LIGHT BLUE (LUFTWAFFE)

www.tamiya.com

For the upper surface

AS-24 DARK GREEN (LUFTWAFFE)

www.tamiya.com

Also I will likely not try painting the black PLA but just paint the white PLA on this version in those colors and eventually build another airframe using a lighter colored LW-PLA.