RC Airplane Foam Board Design Calculator

[@devansh1735]

Can you please tell me how to design fighter jet.

[@Lisa-py3pr]

Hi, I am designing an sport-type RC plane, but I have some restrictions for building, and I would like to experiment with changing some of the given variables (on the calculator you can only vary the wingspan). Which is why I was wondering if you have the formula's the calculator uses, so i can calculate the effects on the dimensionsby changing the weight for example.

[@joey6058]

What an excellent source. Is there a way to look at the formulas that the calculator uses?

[@RCexplained]

I don't think formulas are listed.

[@LoganClark-ky4rs]

Please make a video on how to set up the wings for a sport plane. I don’t know if it needs to be for a 30 inch long wing does it need to be cut in half and put on each side. Or what do I do?

[@hamadhalbahrani8781]

Great job, sir. Thank you so much.

[@zipppiz]

Wow this is already fuce years old byt truly great stuff thanks!

[@RCexplained]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@nguyenducquocanh4341]

Wonderful calculator, but it would be useful to me if it had metric units as well

[@jalalhaider83]

Hi friend, I can see a problem if I select glider, I select wing span 42inches it says wing chord as 3.2 inches , what I heard is your wing span is 5 to 6 times of your chord length by that it should show wing chord as 7 inches why 3.2 inches I mean ?

[@RCexplained]

Gliders have high aspect ratios.

[@kingnouriyt]

First channel and website which is really helping me building my plane

[@RCexplained]

I'm glad the channel and website is helping. Thanks for your comment.

[@austntexan]

Great website and tool. Would the Trainer selection get me close if designing a twin FPV cruiser?

[@RCexplained]

Yes, you may tweak numbers as you see fit.

[@harpoon_bakery162]

For a 48" trainer wingspan it's telling me to build a 104.8 square inch horizontal stabilizer. This seems huge , gigantic. Are you sure the formulas are correct? I also assume this to be without the elevator included. Just wanting to make sure of these measurements before getting too far into it. have cut the H-stab, and again, just seems huge. Thank you for your calculator. seemed to work fine for a 35" , but building bigger after crashing first one. Building a foam trainer.

[@RCexplained]

Hi Harpoon_Bakery, the wing area includes the ailerons, the horizontal surface area includes the elevator surface area and the vertical surface area includes the rudder surface area. I hope this helps make your horizontal stab look better. :)

[@GujjuBalvant]

this website are not open today

[@RCexplained]

I fixed it.

[@gardengnome1579]

Does the with of the body matter?

[@RCexplained]

The width of the fuselage as changing any dimension on the airplane will change its flight characteristic. However, a wider body can positively or negatively effect flight characteristics. My recommendation is keep the width proportional to the length as in the dimensional image.

[@gardengnome1579]

@@RCexplained Thanks!

[@Mikinct]

I had a Aeroscout 2 1.1 RC Plane wheee fuselage broke beyond repair. How would I figure out what size foam plane the existing motor & battery would fit it? If I placed the motor, battery into a smaller Aeroscout a mini would it fly or crash to the ground? How do you know proper dimensions for wing & fuselage?

[@RCexplained]

A crashed foam plane may look like its broken beyond repair at first, but I've seen a lot of crashed planes repaired to fly again. You can use your power system in a high wing, slower flying plane with a wing span between 40 and 54 inches or so.

[@Mikinct]

@@RCexplained Amazing- Thanks 4 the info. Yeah, just bought a Hot Glue gun & repaired original. I’m now into building more DIY RC planes going forward. Where did you find what wing size would work? Just from building a few RC planes yourself or online calculation. I believe the original Aeroscout weighs 1.8lbs.

[@RCexplained]

Hey Michael, I know this from experience. Generally you want to use the calculator and experiment with different wing sizes and compare what recommended power system wattage is required vs all up weight of the plane.

[@sz72909]

I used the design calculator, and entered 30" for the wing span (A) so I can use just one standard 20"x30" foam board for the wing. The AUW (All Up Weight) came out to be 7oz, but ONE foam board alone is a little over 9oz., and that does not include the fuselage, the rudder, the stabilizer, nor the electronics!! Am I misreading this? Thanks

[@RCexplained]

Hi Steven. What kind of 20x30 foam board do you have and what scale are you using to weigh it? Building a small plane and keeping it around the 7oz mark will be challenging indeed. You will want to get creative to find ways to keep weight down.

[@sz72909]

@@RCexplained Thanks for your reply. The only foam board that I have on hand is a 3/16" foam board with two paper sides sandwiching the foam inside. Bought at Walmart for my kids' school projects. I used my wife's weight-watchers kitchen scale to weigh one board balanced vertically on top of the scale. I have seen some KZbin video where people use an XPS 3mm foam without the paper surfaces, which I can't find anywhere to order. Does the All-Up-Weight include all the electronic components (servos, motor, ESC, battery, etc.)?

[@RCexplained]

All up weight includes everything. I just weighed a 3/16 sheet, paper backed on both sides 20x30 at 4oz. It was actually under 4oz.

[@sz72909]

@@RCexplained I don't know what kind of foam board you have, but assuming you'll need two boards to build a plane, that's already over 7oz, without the servos, etc. I'm lost.

[@RCexplained]

Hi Steven, I did not use 2 full boards for a 30 in wingspan plane.

[@lancelotlalla7561]

Using the ailerons calculation how would I beat calculate the size of the aileron or rudder and elevator.

[@RCexplained]

The best answer is through your own experimentation. I can however help get you started. For the aileron you can use a length to Width ratio of 6.5:1 to 8:1. This seems to work fairly well for me. As for the elevator, what I do is use the entire length of the horizontal stabilizer or at least 85%. Then work out the width to match the required elevator surface area. For the rudder I do the same thing. Try and use the full height of the vertical stabilizer. Then just determine the width. For both the elevator and rudder you will have a known length with an unknown width and known area. The formula simply becomes L(known) X W(unknown) = A(known). Hope this helps. By the way, take a look at the calculator, I added something that may help. ;)

[@lancelotlalla7561]

PropWash love the new addition, and I've looked for something like this for a long time,I love this calculator.

[@RCexplained]

Thank You. If you need anything else added let me know.

[@shahinabdullayev3340]

If propeller is located after main wing, is there benefit in performance?

[@RCexplained]

Depending on the design, performance can suffer.

[@keithdickinson1197]

Hi, using your calculator for rc plane, adding G and J together and subtracting from B fuselage length gives me 10 mm for the width of the horizontal stabiliser????

[@RCexplained]

Hi Keith. Thank you for your question. Adding G and J plus the width of your horizontal stabilizer does not equal B, the fuselage length. In fact it will be a bit larger than the fuselage length. G is the distance from the leading edge of the main wing to the prop, which is offset from the fuselage. EDIT: When looking at a few examples of planes I built, the horizontal stabilizer actually hangs past the end of the fuselage making the total length of the airplane actually longer than the fuselage. In addition, the formulas used in this calculator haven't been setup to calculate out the perfect solution. It has been set up to provide a good starting point. For example, designing your airplane to the correct stabilizer surface area is far more important then working out the stab width when it has not been a form of output on the calculator itself. If this video helped please consider subscribing and hitting that like button.

[@keithdickinson1197]

@@RCexplained Many thanks for your answer. I'll start off with the horizontal stabiliser slightly longer than the fuselage.

[@nadaabbassi1341]

I have a university project in which I have to build an RC plane so I'd like to know what calculations and formulas you used.

[@RCexplained]

Hello I don't have the formulas on hand but it shouldn't be too hard for you to figure out.

[@albensmaine3057]

Hello Nada we are making an Rc plane for our university project too ! do you have any recommandation for us? For example what went wrong during your project ? did the plane flew great ? and If i didnt why so? Thank you

[@NinjaPandaSquad]

Which formulas or code are being utilized here?

[@RCexplained]

Jigar Surati, I can't remember specifically. What were you looking to do with them?

[@brianlink391]

same foamboard sells at DolorTree for $1 way pay $5 per sheet on Amazon?

[@RCexplained]

Hey Brian, the Dollar Tree foam is not quite as good. I've done a few builds with it.

[@brianlink391]

​@@RCexplained I usually tape all the surfaces which increases its strength and prevents it from absorbing moisture and have flown in light rain. But I have not tried the amazon stuff yet so cant speak to that.

[@RCexplained]

@@brianlink391 you can buy the elmers board locally I'm sure.

[@haziqmazlan4331]

This is great content! May I know how you find the calculations for the airplane design? Can you share it with us?

[@RCexplained]

Hi Haziq Mazlan, thank you for your comment! The calculations for the airplane design are based really on experience and some personal preference. The calculation considers ratios of length vs the main wing.

[@haziqmazlan4331]

@@RCexplained thank you

[@ronfleming6701]

It's all good been looking for something like this to build my own balsa wood airplane

[@RCexplained]

Right on Ron! What type of plane are you building?

[@ronfleming6701]

@@RCexplained I'm looking for something to be my first draft plane and build. I have been building plastic model kits for 45 years. Just started building balsa airplanes from Gullows. This is all new to me. Balsa is no way like plastic. Thanks for reply I can use any advice I can get. Thanks and have a good day

[@keithdickinson1197]

Hi, can anyone tell me what prop is suitable for a Turnigy 2205/34 1500kv Brushless Motor in a trainer plane with 40 in wingspan

[@RCexplained]

Hi Keith, what battery are you planning to use?

[@keithdickinson1197]

@@RCexplained Hi, Turnigy Nano-Tech Plus 850mAh 3S 70C Lipo Pack w/XT60 While you're there, could you recommend a suitable charger as well. I read most of your guides but a recommendation is still best. Thanks

[@RCexplained]

I would start with an APC 6x4 expecting just under 1 pound of static thrust. The Graupner line of chargers work very well. In general there are many charger out there with an equal amount of opinions. A charger recommendation requires a budget and expectations of what the charger must be able to do.

[@keithdickinson1197]

Many thanks, I can now order these bits and get things working. excellent site.

[@kaukiaa4590]

Thank you very much!

[@autome4374]

What about th BL Kv

[@RCexplained]

Yes that could be worked in somehow. I'll look in to it.

[@RCexplained]

Added the recommended kv and LiPo cell Count. Did you see it yet? facebook.com/radiocontrolinfo/

[@strexttp]

Special site ✌️

[@DreamForged3D]

Very interesting. Subbed.

[@RCexplained]

Thank You!

[@williamcampbell9859]

i feel like your horizontal stabiliser output from the calculation is off. This just doesn't seem right, it looks way too small. i.imgur.com/ijDJX9l.png

[@RCexplained]

It looks like you are using the wrong surface area. More than likely you are trying to use the vertical stabilizer value for the horizontal stabilizer. Use the correct surface areas in the right spot and it will all work out.

[@williamcampbell9859]

@@RCexplained I will check again. thanks.

[@RCexplained]

let me know if you still have issues.

[@williamcampbell9859]

@@RCexplained I'm at work currently but I just checked the calculator again and mocked it up in a drawing again. I think perhaps you are correct. Additional question- if the horizontal stabiliser extends past what the calculator says should be the length of the fuselage, does it really matter if I actually extend the fuselage spar out to the length of the horizontal stabiliser anyway?

[@RCexplained]

No, ultimately that is up to you.