3DF F18 DF conversion

[woodsy]

Hi Guys

Well i've decided it's time to go over to the dark side and try a DF plane, i'm planing on doing a DF conversion on the 3DFoamy F18 kit BUT i know nothing about electric DF (or glow DF for that matter) so here are my questions.

Is the Wemotec minifan 480 any good for this kit?
will it fit in the fuzz? i cant find dimensions of the WM480 anywhere
Will it produce enough thrust? I'm guessing yes with the right BL motor.
What BL motor should i be atatching to the WM480?
Is there any black magic in the inlet/outlet ducting?

What price are you guys paying for the MW480 over there??

Any sugestions greatly apreciated

[ParkJetsFlyer]

Hi Woodsy,
Welcome to the WattFlyer Group!!

To us electric jet flyers we consider the "Dark Side" to be turbine powered aircraft :D

First off, you might want to consider buying a HET-Rc F-18 ARF Kit (About $125.00 USD) instead of adapting one of the Foamy F-18 kit designs, as the HET-Rc jet is specifically designed for the Minifan.


Ok to answer some of your questions.

A Single WeMoTec Minifan sells for about $40.00 to $45.00 USD (its known as the MF480 because it can accept a 480 sized brushed motor) has a Fan diameter of 68mm and the Fan housing has an O.D. of 72mm which makes it a little bit too large to fit inside a "Stock" 3D foamy F-18. There are a few ways around this problem.

Adapt the plane to fit the minifan: This involves cutting new Depron fuselage sides , making the jet "Deeper" This is the easiest way, and it's not very noticable , but it does make the jet a little more "Boxy".

Use a smaller EDF unit, or 2 EDF's: A Alpha EDF unit (60mm size) will fit into the Stock F-18 body, and there are plenty of motor/power combinations to choose from to get some decent power (you need 150 Watts of power per Pound to fly an EDF plane) OR you can go to smaller size EDF Units like GWS EDF-50's or two WeMoTec Microfans (at a greater cost as you need two motors, ESC's and a Larger Battery pack to power it all)

Build a larger Sized F-18: Over on RC Groups site, http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=434244 (http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=434244)there is a guy selling enlarged sized plans for the F-18 and all of Steve Shumate's other plane designs. You would need a 133% sized jet to fit the minifan in properly.

Properly equiped, the WeMoTec Minifan can produce enough thrust to fly a 4 to 5 lb. jet. Right now the best motor combination is a Mega EDF 16 (16/17/2) andit will produce about 600 Watts plus of power using a 4S2P 4200 mAh Thunder Power Lipo Pack, and a Castle Creations 60 Amp Motor Controller. There are other set-up's that are comparable, too.

Ducting size diameter is in relation to the "Fan Swept Area" (The Area of the fan Minus the Area of the Hub) and the Ducting needs to be 100% FSA or larger. (If your using a single fan/Double Duct, Each Duct intake Area needs to be 50% FSA, or larger) The Exhaust area is usually 90% to 85% of the FSA A single tapered exhaust is best, but it is possible to split the exhaust into two parts.

[woodsy]

Thanks for the info.
I specificaly want to do the DF conversion on the 3DF plane and write it up because i'm the Aussie importer for 3DF.

I'd like to stick with 1 fan to keep costs down soit looks like the Alpha is the go.

Is one of these http://www.euromodels.com.au/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=4_16 the Alfa fan unit your talking about?

What would be a good BL motor to hook up with it?

[ParkJetsFlyer]

Yes thats the fan. There is a thread here with Alpha set-up's that cah help you more than I can.

http://www.wattflyer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2234

Have Fun!!

[woodsy]

Excellent, thanks i have a himax 2025 4100 kicking around, i'll use that and see how it goes

[ParkJetsFlyer]

Let us know how it works out!!!!