Strix StratoSurfer
© Mark Qvale - January, 2018
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| New plane! Ready for some graphics and maiden |
Introduction
I decided to try something different and having never gone down the Bixler style road, the Strix StratoSurfer seemed like a good place to start. Also, after reading much about this plane, I decided to start with a larger motor/prop combo. For flight management/control I'll be starting with an Omnibus F3Pro flight controller to keep it light and simple.
Here then is a collection of my build notes and eventually a flight review of this plane.
General Specifications
Distributor - BangGood USA
Aircraft - X-UAV Mini Talon
Build Date - April 2017
| Airframe Type - | Top Wing FPV Specialist | All-Up Weight - | 55oz (1565g) w/ 4S/7000 Li-ion Pack | |
| Wingspan - | 59 inches (1500mm) | 56oz (1586g) w/ 4S/5200 Li-Poly Pack | ||
| Length - | 39 inches (1000mm) | COG - | 65mm - 70mm @ Wing root (Stock) | |
| Wing Area - | 2.95 ft^2 (27.4dm^2) | Wing Load w/5200mAh/4S - | 18.9 oz/ft^2 (58g/dm^2) | |
| Motor - | Sunnysky 2216-1250kv | Max Continuous Power (4S) - | 370 watts continuous (4S) | |
| Propeller - | 7 x 6 Aeronaut Cam Carbon Folder | Max Prop Power - | 295 watts @ 2550ft ASL | |
| Static Thrust - | 1135g @ 2550ft ASL | Static Thrust/Weight - | 0.72 | |
| Battery Type - | 4S1P Lipo -or- Li-ion | Battery Capacity - | 5200mAh/10C or 7000mah/3C | |
| In flight efficiency - | TBA | Flight Time - | TBA | |
Components/Flight Gear
Below is the approximate layout of installed components:
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Power Set-up
For power on this build I have chosen the Sunnysky X2216-1250kv. For an ESC, I will start with a HobbyKing Blue Series 40A with extra Low ESR capacitors added. At some point I will replace the Blue Series ESC with a Hobbywing Flyfun v5 40A unit to get active freewheeling.
- Motor - Sunnysky 2216-1250kv
- ESC - Blue Series 40A
- Prop - Aeronaut Cam Carbon Folder, 8x7
- For more informaion on setting up a pusher folding prop - How To - Set-Up a Pusher Style Folding Prop
- Battery - Multistar 4S/5200, 10C or a 4S/7000 Li-Ion
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| Mounted with a 7x6 Aeronaut folder |
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Motor Mount
For the motor mount I designed and printed one that spaces the motor 6mm rearward and 19mm above the original mount to get the clearance needed for 7" & 8" props. Additionally, I printed a cowl to protect the motor and direct cooling air to the rear of the motor.
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| Motor mount parts |
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| Mounted |
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| Front and rear views |
ESC Mount
I decided to design and print a simple mount to hold the ESC. It mounts with four M3x6mm nylon screws and a wire tie to hold the ESC. This print is sized for a 25mm wide ESC.
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| ESC craddle |
Flight Control
For flight control I have chosen the Omnibus F3Pro from Banggood. It is very inexpensive and in my experience completely reliable.
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- w/iNav 1.8.1
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| All wired up! |
FC Mount
To mount the FC I drilled out the existing mount holes to 2.3mm then tapped them to M3 and flooded the tapped holes with thin CA. This makes them more than strong enough for a set of rubber M3x6mm stand-offs.
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| FC mount |
RC Control
For radio gear I am using my standard DragonLink V2 system. I have mounted the DL dipole inside the verticle stabilizer. The RX is mounted on a printed deck below the GPS mount.The printed part is glued in with contact cement but you could also use E6000 or UHU-POR.
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| DragonLink UHF antenna |
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| RX mount |
GPS Mount
For the GPS I created a mount plate to replace the white plate on the rear of the fuse. This is sized for a Ublox Mini M7 GPS.
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FPV Gear
For an initial setup I am using the stock foam cowl piece with simple mounts for the FPV camera, VTx and HD camera. I will be changing to printed canopies as I did on my MiniTalon builds to get a more aerodynamic profile and cool looks! Here are the initial components and a picture of their mounts:
- VTx - RMRC 800mw, 1.3G
- FPV Camera - HS1184 with 2.8 lens
- HD Camera - Mobius Mini
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| Initial FPV gear |
Airframe
Stabilizers
On the tail linkage I used the stock linkage bits with Hextronic MG14 metal gear digital servos.
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Wings
Nothing new or special here. I added 1" (25mm) of 3 mil laminate to the leading edge. Linkage is the same as the elevators and servos are Corona DS929MG's.
Fuselage
The beauty of a plastic fuselage is it is already very durable. Because of where I fly (and land) I still felt I needed a little more protection on the nose and rear skid so I designed up a couple of skids which conform to the fuselage shape. The new nose skid also has a provision for a bolt-on tow hook which I will add later. These are printed in ABS at 80% infil for durability. For glue, I used E6000 which is similar to UHU-POR and Beacons FoamTac.
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| Front skid |
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| Rear skid (with excessive glue) |
Maiden Video!
- Video TBA
Mods/Changes/Add-ons
Below are some canopy concepts I am working on for this plane. There is a short canopy which directly replaces the small foam piece and a longer canopy that covers the entire front end.
The short canopy with bevelled edges to fit the middle foam piece is shown with a cut-out for a Mobius/Runcam camera or bolt-on components for the Pan and Tilt and Roll gimbals. The bolt on components are the same ones (interchangeable) as on my MiniTalons. With a shell thickness of 1.4mm, the plain canopy (no cut-outs) will be close to 21g.
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| Short canopy profile |
 
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| Two short canopy styles |
I haven't developed the cut-outs for the long canopy yet but here is the basic shape and how it fits on the fuselage. With a shell thickness of 1.4mm the weight would be close to 42g.
 
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| Long Canopy concept |
- Stay tuned!
Project 3D Print Files
Below are the 3D print files shown in this build.
- General print notes:
- 1. All parts are shown printed in PushPlastics ABS filament
- 2. Motor mount and front & rear skids are printed at 80% infil, all others are 20-40%
- 3. All weights are as printed and subject to change depending on printer/slicer set-up
- 4. Print orientaion is dependent on printer/slicer set-up, please rotate if necessary
| Image | Part Number | Part Description | Weight | Print File | Compatibility Notes |
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52136 | ESC Mount | 6.7g | 52136.STL | 25mm wide ESC craddle mount |
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52137 | GPS Mount | 3.3g | 52137.STL | Mount for a Ublox Mini 7M GPS |
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52138 | Motor Cowl | 4.0g | 52138.STL | Motor and mount cover |
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52139 | RX Mount | 4.2g | 52139.STL | Mount platform for DL RX |
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52140 | 19mm Offset Motor Mount | 3.1g | 52140.STL | Motor mount to allow 7 & 8 inch props |
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52141 | Rear Skid | 2.0g | 52141.STL | Glue on rear skid |
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52142 | Front Skid | 12g | 52142.STL | Fuselage glue on front skid (print on edge) |
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52108 | VTx Saddle Mount | 2.7g | 52108.STL | Saddle mount for a 26mm x 50mm VTx |
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47010 | HS1184 Camera Mount | 4.9g | 47010.STL | Simple box camera mount for the Surveilzone HS1184 FPV camera |
See Also
Some of the Vendors I used for this project
Comments? Questions?
