Predators 3D printed Eclipson Gö 1 Wolf powered glider

[Predator]

Liked the look of this 1935 vintage glider so decided to have a go at printing it while waiting for the paint to dry on the “Pink Panther”

Only done the fuselage so far but it’s coming out OK.

The fuselage parts

Assembled

Fuselage is reinforced with 1.5mm CF rods top and bottom.

[Predator]

Another crappy day outside, blowing a gale & raining to boot, so continuing along with the Wolf glider build,

The red tabs are TPU Flex hinges for the elevators & the black tabs are PLA+ joiners to align the parts when gluing.

Tail components printed

Ready to paint & then glue together.

[Predator]

The Eclipson Gö 1 Wolf is progressing nicely. Apart from some minor internal fittings (motor mount, servo mount etc) the Wolf only needs the main wings to be printed & fitted.

One thing that is nice with the Eclipson build is that ALL G-Codes work correctly whether they be LW-PLA, PLA, or TPU-Flex, all parameters are preset so no fiddling required. Also the G-Code files pre prime the head for all filaments by printing a prime strip along the side of the printer bed. This is great as you can load the file & filament, press print and know it will work correctly. No failed prints at all with this build.

I’ll now switch back to the Cub and get the electronics completed & tested ready to fly Sunday (hopefully). The Wolf will be on the back burner till then

[Predator]

Now that the “Pink Panther” is ready to take to the skies I have moved back to the Wolf build.

Motor has been installed along with the nose skid plate.

Also got the main wing & ailerons printed out & found some 1/4″ CF rod for the wing reinforcement. Have printed the servo cover plates, wing braces & elevator servo mount so that should now be all the printing completed although I may re print the servo covers in red & perhaps redo the hatch cover as its a tad rough.

Hopefully will get the wing glued together & painted with clear acrylic today ready to install the servos.

[Predator]

All 3 servos (no Rudder) have been installed & the wing & support Spars glued into place.

Radio & basic stabiliser have been programmed & tested and are also ready to install.

Just need to get all the electronics mounted in the fuse & add the stripes to the main wing & she should be ready to maiden on Monday (weather permitting)

[Predator]

Finally finished, fitted out, tuned & ready to fly.

Build Specs

I’ve fitted an 1100KV Bixler 2 motor (because I had several), with an 8×6 prop drawing 16A WOT and producing 177W

I’ve also tried a 7×6 prop which drops the current to 11A WOT and produces 126W. Just a matter to see which flies best!!

It is very slightly nose heavy (around 1-2mm forward of recommended) which should be good for its maiden flight.

All up weight 620g (including 1300mAh 70C 3S LiPo flight battery) which according to the Build specs is 20g overweight for LW-PLA but they use a 1000mAh LiPo battery. Probably means the stall speed will go up to around 25-26 kph.

Hopefully Maiden will happen on Wednesday 14/06/2023

[Gadget]

Looks really good Mike.  Having the COG slightly forward is a good idea.

Can’t wait to see it fly.

[Predator]

Thanks Ron, I am pretty happy with it the way it came out. If it flies OK I’ll print the cockpit hatch again as that came out a bit rough first time round. I’m also trying a thinwall print using std PLA for the spinner as the original is quite heavy and if it prints lighter it may correct the COG.

[Author]

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