Posted by Exponential |
Jul 16, 2022 @ 04:24 PM | 5,290 Views
I haven't built a plane at Flite Fest for a few years, and the Flerken looked like a fun build that was a bit advanced which could be built in a reasonable time. So, I purchased a Flerken kit and some hardware at the store there, and then away to the build tent. Like most of the crowd, I was hunched over a hot glue gun with the build video running on the cell phone. We returned later in the night to finish up the build, and I'm glad I brought the headlamp.
The next day I tried to balance it with a 3s 2200, but it was too tail-heavy, and I've had a few flying wings and know that cg is usually in a narrow range and you can't cheat. A 4s 3200 balanced out nicely, and after a janky throw at 3/4 throttle it was airborne and needed only a few clicks to get it flying hands-off. It's not a speed demon with the recommended power system, but plenty fast for me when I want to go fast. Slow flight is good, carry power when landing and fly to the ground.
Once back home, I drew the outline of the plane up in Inkscape by importing photos and sketching on them. I then did a few paint designs and settled on a black with red trim scheme that's faintly reminiscent of the Klingon Bird of Prey. I recommend Inkscape as you can try all kinds of schemes and colors quickly, but paper and colored pencils are fine as well - done both.
The paint job was done with Rustoleum, black first and then red. Normally I'd do the light color first, but the red covers the black very well. I tried the baby powder method this time before applying 3M low stick masking tape and was pleasantly surprised to find it works well even with paint that's been applied to packing tape. I've crashed a black foam SR-71 from not knowing which side was up, so in this case I've made sure the pattern is different on both sides and stands out. Orange or Lime green would have worked here but red and black is a classic.