The Journey to FPV Part 2

With the first learning experience under my belt I decided to go a step further and build a plane from scratch.
In my endeavor for video aided flight I found that the best platform with both stability and agility was a Delta wing design.
A KFm-4 (Kline--Fogleman) Airfoil would provide good lift and preferable flight characteristic, while not taking more than a month to build.
FPV Trond on YouTube has some really fantastic plans for the build:
 

 

I ordered parts again from HobbyKing 

Sometimes ordering batteries and less bulk items separately can save you on shipping.

 Then I started the build process:
Pink 1/2 inch insulation foam is found at Homedepot or Lowes and is the core of the plane.
Dollar tree foam board will make up the steps in the airfoil and is found at most Dollar stores.
  I cut out the wing sections with  a very sharp exacto blade.
Then use Guerrilla glue to join the pieces.

Dollar tree foam board glued together with guerrilla glue and then wrapped in packing tape becomes an impregnable mass that has the ability to stop small projectiles.
 One key is to use extreme packing tape, the fiber glass cross strands are very light and extremely durable.


 But this stuff is a hit or a miss. Sometimes you will find it for $8 a roll sometimes you wont find it at all. So if you do see it at a reasonable price, buy it while you can.

And don't forget there is always a balance!

This was way too much duct tape.

Once my (elevator aleron) Elevons were attached I began with electronics.

The motor mount was attached with hot glue and then the motor was bolted on.

 Next I glued in the control horns for the servos, connected the push-rods to the servos, and glued the servos down.
I dug out a rectangular area for the battery tray and then glued in the battery tray.
Mounting the ESC (electronic speed controller), receiver, video transmitter, and popping in batteries is the quickest part of the process, because at this point you can already see the thing in the air.
The unfortunate mistake of a quick center of gravity check would cost me though.

After tossing the plane at half power a few times it was clear something wasn't  right.
The plane would not nose dive, with full down elevator.
I added weight to the nose the plane and it did level out, but didn't get above five feet off the ground.
Frustrated, someone tossed it off the top of a building for me to see if it would travel any distance at all.
Unfortunately the plane was just to heavy.
   Mounting the motor first was the mistake. It was mounted far back which caused the center of gravity to shift . The battery tray,even when shifted forward, couldn't counteract the weight of the motor and mount.

Learning from my mistakes I will re-attempt the all elusive FPV flight.

Energy and persistence conquer all things -Benjamin Franklin.