Why I fly foamboard

[French]

My first FT build were two sparrows. One glider for my daughter and one powered for me & my dad. After building many other foam planes over the last few years, I decided to build a new Sparrow fuselage. I settled on the F Pack Sparrow plans as the nose is a bit longer and easier to balance it out with a heavy motor. Scratch building took a couple hours yesterday and I headed off today to maiden it in clear 40 degree weather.

Its been a while since I setup elevon mixing, so I had the aileron reversed at first. Crunch.

I was flying with an Emax 2205 2300kv redbottom motor mounted to a 3D printed power pod. One of my favorite pastimes with the Sparrow is to climb to a few hundred feet, go deadstick, and "glide" down. This new setup was pretty beefy (330g with 1300 3S), so it didn't glide quite as well as I remember. I was flying it FPV and cruising down when I went to power it back up and head some banging and clanging. I quickly realized the motor pod had slipped out of the back of the fuselage on the "glide" down. EEEKKKK!

And ultimately, THIS is why I fly foamboard.

Still, it was a great day. A little dirty and crumpled, but 99% of the damage was easily repaired by reshaping the foam.

 

[ElectriSean]

Good times

 

[French]

Thanks!

 

[RMDC]

Fun videos! Does the FPV stack take a bruising sitting so far forward?

 

[French]

It was fine for this crash. The FPV camera is held on with a tiny rubber band (like for braces). It sits in a 3D printed mount that’s hot glued to the foam. The rubber band is designed to be the failure point in the event of a crash.

I’ve started reinforcing the antenna with Bondic UV glue - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B018IBEHQ...t=&hvlocphy=9011572&hvtargid=pla-307252024500

This glue is great. I lay thin layers of the glue and set it instantly with the UV light. Once set, it’s strong and rigid. I coat the VTX “stem” and base of the antenna well. Then I reinforce where the clovers attach. In the past, I would have probably broken the antenna in that crash. I was extremely impressed when everything held up.

 

[sprzout]

I'm kinda the same way. I had a Versa Wing that I built. Crashed it on Christmas Eve, and split the wing in half.

My dad was bummed when I told him it was a loss and I was going to have to rebuild it, because it wasn't salvageable. He started saying, "Well, you could try some hot glue, put some tape over it to hold it together, make sure everything is lined up and balanced right..."

"Or, I could spend $5 in foam board and 3D printed materials, and make another one with the undamaged servos, motor, and receiver from this one."

"Or you could...Wait, how much did this cost you???"

LOL He's not as afraid to fly my planes anymore, now that he realizes it's so cheap to fix.

 

[French]

lol, my dad was the same way with this one, then I explained that the fuselage was only 3/4 of a sheet of DTFB!!!

 

[sprzout]

lol, my dad was the same way with this one, then I explained that the fuselage was only 3/4 of a sheet of DTFB!!!

Wait, the Sparrows only require 3/4 of foam board? Hmm...That means they'd be smaller than the Versa Wing, and I could pack them for a road trip to AZ to see my in-laws...LOL

 

[French]

Wait, the Sparrows only require 3/4 of foam board? Hmm...That means they'd be smaller than the Versa Wing, and I could pack them for a road trip to AZ to see my in-laws...LOL

I already had two wings. All I needed was the fuselage, nose doublers, tail, and power pod.

 

[Winglet]

Can't beat it!