Here's a build I made of the popular 32" Leadfeather
Yak 55. I made this one with heavier EPP
foam (1.9#) than most guys use, and I think this build would work
really
well for streamer combat, while still being a pretty good 3D
flyer. Total cost of foam and
parts is around $70. See the parts list
below.
With a 1500kv motor, you'll want to use a smaller prop like the GWS
7x3.5 (this is what I was flying in the video, but I think the
1300kv/8x4-prop combo works better; more thrust). I get a flight
time of around 6 minutes with the 3S 450mAh battery. A larger 3S
battery (800mAh to 1000mAh) could be used for streamer-combat
flying.
The GWS 8x4 prop works well with the 1300kv motor:
One thing that can help is to make the heat shrink a bit "short" on
each end so the CA can get in between the music wire and the carbon
rod. Music wire with a .040" diameter will also work. Using
Dubro
Mini E/Z Connectors on the servo control horns makes it easier to
adjust the lengths.
Below is what I ended up using for carbon. I found that with the
heavier foam and a 24g motor the plane tended toward being tail heavy,
so I mounted the
tail servos a good ways forward to compensate. This may be less
the case with a 40g motor (like the FC
28-22).
Wing spar: 7mm x 30" strip
Elevator spar: 5mm x 13" strip
Elevator push rod: 0.070" x 15.25" CF rod + 0.030" or 0.040" wire
Rudder push rod: 0.070" x 15.375" CF rod + 0.030" or 0.040" wire
Aileron push rods: 0.070" x 5.75" CF rod + 0.030" or 0.040" wire
Here are PDF files I've created for 22" and 25" versions of the
Leadfeather Yak 55. (I created them by manipulating the "EPPYak55-22_full.pdf"
file from rcgroups.)
They can be printed on standard 8"x10.5" letter-sized paper (just make
sure you set "Page Scaling" to "None").
To cut out the foam I printed the sheets, taped sheets together as
needed, attached sheets to the foam with double-side tape, and then cut
through with an exacto knife. I used a metal ruler for the
straight lines and free-handed the curves, following the printed lines
on the sheets.
Here's a video of indoor combat taken with FlyCamOne2 mounted
above cockpit area of my 32" Leadfeather Yak. First part is a bit of
flying with rear-facing camera, then front-facing during streamer
combat, with a couple of crashes. Edited using VirtualDub.
Here's some video of flying around with the Leadfeather Yak. At about
1:40 is some inverted flying, which looks like you're walking on the
ceiling.
