Official Freewing 70mm F-35 V3 (2019 Version) Thread

[AceMigKiller]

Kewl

[f4u ausie]

i believe f35 fwing has foam hinges..... do u guys change them or does tape do the trick??? gota c this 1 finished

[dradams2]

Let me lay the ground work that I did before starting on this project just as a FYI. I spent weeks looking at photos, line drawings, and other info available. There is a lot of lack of details on most of the information on the Internet as well as discrepancy, especially in all the line drawings out there.. It is also interesting to note that I had the opportunity to tour the Lockheed-Martin F-35 plant and go out on the assembly line in Ft. Worth a couple of times about 6 and 7 years ago which had peaked my interest. I have always liked watching carrier ops so I decided I would like to try making the C variant. The F-35 has a wingspan of 35 feet and length of 51 feet. The Freewing has a wingspan of 32.28 inches making it approximately .92 inches per foot scale. With the C variant having a wingspan of 43 feet I need to add about 3.7 inches per wing. I had a bit of trouble tracing down the tail span but did find it in a research paper and it is 28.3 feet vs. 23.9 for the A variant. Using the conversion I set up I needed to add about 2" to each elevator which I did.

So, once I got the kit in I put it together to see what it looked like in person. The cut I decided on for the wing flaps was based on photos of the current production C variant and particularly the 402, 404, 407 and 410 aircraft of VFA-147 based at Naval Air Station Lemoore, California. I measured in 32 mm from the end of the ailerons on the model and made the cut there. You can see the base line I created to measure the 32 cm for the cut in my post #673. This seemed to be the most proportional wing length from the photos though I am sure it is not exact. The actual amount I trimmed off each wing was 2.825 inches. So now my wing extensions need to be 6.575 inches which I will just round to 6.6 and trust the sanding to get it close. Again, this is not a scale build so I am not too concerned about 1/10 of an inch on a model this size. As of right now I am planning on a combo of EPS foam, balsa, cf rods, and fiberglass for these extensions and the ailerons.

Once I got the wings cut off the first thing I did was create the flap extensions. I am extending the back of the flap 2". I think that is a good size and is comparable to the photos. I will be using square cf rod to connect the pieces together along with fiberglass. I know I am adding weight, but with the amount of wing area I am adding I hope it won't be too big of an impact. I am not building so much for performance as aesthetics. I considered added working leading edge slats but decided it is more than I want to get involved with on this project. I will leave that to someone else. 🙂

After I extend the flaps I am at the point of creating the wingtips and I have had to order some parts that will be in next week. I like how it is laying out so far and it is fun to see the change. It was a bit scary chopping up those perfectly good wings but remember, the turtle only makes progress when he sticks his neck out!

[Crick3t]

Awesome dradams2!!!! Can't wait to see it when it's finished. Also really curious how this changes the flight profile of the F35.

Keep up the good work and keep us posted with progress and results Please!

[dradams2]

Here are some pictures with the extender blocks in place. Everything is just taped together so I could see how it was going to look. The extender blocks in the main wing are EPS foam but I feel pretty sure I am going to make them out of balsa instead.

[cg7060]

The larger wings and control surfaces on the F-35C were required by the Navy for slower landing speed on carriers. I imagine that would translate well to RC. The landing gear on the Navy jet is beefier as well. And don't forget the tailhook bump underneath. Awesome project!

[dradams2]

I have been working on the main wings the past few days and got the leading edge done. At the root I molded the wing out of a combination of lightweight Spackle and Elmer's Carpenter's Wood Filler. The last coats are applied with the wood filler thinned with water. After three coats it is ultra smooth and very strong. I added three carbon fiber square rods to the flap extender pieces and then filled with Spackle and again the final coatings are with the wood filler. (I still have two coats to go one the wings) I learned about the wood filler from an article on finishing balsa model rocket fins. http://www.apogeerockets.com/educati...sletter298.pdf
I am now working on the wing extensions which will be solid balsa blocks. Once I get them done then I can work on the addition of the aileron servos and wire routing. Question for anyone...does it matter if I place the servos out on the new extension pieces for the wing or is it better to keep the weight closer to the center line of the fuselage on the original wing? I can mount it in either location and the difference would only be about 2.5 inches inward if I mount it on the original wing.




Here are a couple of photos of the wing extension block rough cut to give you an idea about the full size of the wing.


Here is the right wing with extension attached and sanded to shape.

[Crick3t]

Interesting. Dradams2 - Are there plans you are working from or just designing as you go? I can't wait to see how it turns out when it's finished!!


Here are a few pic's of my F35 Lightning sitting side by side with my new Eflite F4 Phantom from this weekend. I put a dozen flights on the F35 between saturday & sunday. I've been practicing my high alpha slow flight and landings. With the spoilerons the F35 slows down and gets into a high alpha attitude really easy. I'll try and get some more pictures & video added over the next few days or so.

[cg7060]

Dradams2 - Are you planning to use standard 9g servos for the wingtip ailerons, or do you need some slim servos out there?

[dradams2]

Dradams2 - Are you planning to use standard 9g servos for the wingtip ailerons, or do you need some slim servos out there?

I am planning on using slim servos...

This is not the fastest servo (.15 seconds per 60 degrees) but plenty good for my relaxed style of flying. 22g weight.

[dradams2]

Alpha First peek at overall look...🙂 Still using scotch tape to hold flaps, ailerons and elevators in position. Total weight gain 12.6 ozs at this point when servos are installed as well. I'm not sure how much the repaint will add. That's definitely more than I was hoping for so I may try to trim the weight some.

[Crick3t]

Looks decent. You could probably make those wings just a little smaller to be a little more scale and that would also help with your weight issue. But really you are doing some good work here. Super curious how it's going to fly!!

[dradams2]

Looks decent. You could probably make those wings just a little smaller to be a little more scale and that would also help with your weight issue. But really you are doing some good work here. Super curious how it's going to fly!!

Actually, the wing and horizontal stabilizers I worked hard on to make sure they were as close to scale as possible. It was fun and challenging moving the leading edge forward 1.25 inches and then setting the flaps close. The wingspan is right on scale wise. I think it will really help see it better once I get started on the painting. I'm also very curious about how it is going to fly.

[Crick3t]

I suppose it just looked a little off because it's still a work in progress. Keep us posted. This is an awesome project.

[James]

Actually, the wing and horizontal stabilizers I worked hard on to make sure they were as close to scale as possible. It was fun and challenging moving the leading edge forward 1.25 inches and then setting the flaps close. The wingspan is right on scale wise. I think it will really help see it better once I get started on the painting. I'm also very curious about how it is going to fly.

I hope you are able to get someone to video the eventual maiden. Very interested in seeing this in the air! Great work on all fronts

[dradams2]

Interesting. Dradams2 - Are there plans you are working from or just designing as you go? I can't wait to see how it turns out when it's finished!!


Here are a few pic's of my F35 Lightning sitting side by side with my new Eflite F4 Phantom from this weekend. I put a dozen flights on the F35 between saturday & sunday. I've been practicing my high alpha slow flight and landings. With the spoilerons the F35 slows down and gets into a high alpha attitude really easy. I'll try and get some more pictures & video added over the next few days or so.

Sorry I didn't reply to this sooner. I am not using plans other than the dimensions I created through all of my research. I knew exactly what the wingspan was going to be (39.7") so after trimming the wing I built the extension by tracing the wing and then laying a straight edge on the leading edge to extend that line. I did the same using the trailing edge and then measured out the appropriate distance to set the wing tip line. I used the picture in my post above to figure out how I was going to do the ailerons. Looking at the picture it looks like the aileron makes up about 2/3 of the flap length (leading edge to trailing edge) so that is what I did. I made the wing extension blocks by laminating three 1/4" pieces of balsa. I recently bought a Wen table sander that has a disc and belt sander. It has been a huge help in shaping the airfoil and leading edges.

I got the aileron servos installed today and as soon as I get the 17g servos from MotionRC that I ordered I will be able to finish out the wings and start painting. The scheme I am using is the one pictured above.

[dradams2]

Here is some base coat painting. Found all the imperfections so will be doing a lot of sanding tomorrow. Ailerons and elevators still not connected. I am in the middle of cleaning out my garage. It's quite a mess right now.

[f4u ausie]

u must realy b in lockdown ,,u have done a huge amount of work....looks impresive .... u said it was mainly 4 static display .....u r close
well done

[Crick3t]

Dradams2 - things are looking really good. It does look a little more to scale now that it's painted up and not taped together =)

This is pretty awesome! Really hoping we get to see video of the maiden!!

[Cycross]

Dradams2 - admire your scale efforts into doing the Navy version. I just got one curious question - Are you also going to do that vertical tail modification as well? The C model vertical fin is marginally taller than that of the A model.