Greetings folks!

I stumbled upon this forum right as I was beginning my latest round of building, so I figured I would document it for all of you to enjoy, given how little I was able to find on the Nano Drak on the forums in general. This is the 28" wingspan version, and I'm building it with the intent of being a general-purpose FPV wing- powerful enough for some screaming fun at the park, but able to cruise fairly efficiently for some longer range exploring and with the FPV and RC equipment to support that. I may even pick up the 40" wings eventually for even more cruising ability, depending on how flying goes in the beginning.

The parts are a mix of stuff I had lying around and some new stuff specifically for this build.

Airframe: RiteWing Nano Drak 28"
Motor: Armattan Oomph Velvet 2205 2250kV
ESC: Hobbyking AeroStar 30A
FC: Matek F411 Wing
Servos: Hitec HS65MG
RC: FrSky R-XSR
Camera: Foxeer Razer Micro
VTx: AKK 5.8GHz 600mW
Antenna: VAS Ion
Props: DAL Cyclone 5x4x3
Battery: 4s 1500mAh 100C

In addition to the stock airframe I'll also be laminating and adding fiber tape for reinforcement in critical areas.

I began the build tonight by gluing in the spar holders and foam spar covers and by going over and smoothing some rough patches on the airframe, as well as adding the fiber tape on the leading edges and the sides and bottom of the fuselage. I will post pictures as the build progresses to more interesting stages!

Very interested to see this build!

I've been steadily chipping away at the build over the past couple of evenings and it's coming down the home stretch now. After the initial cleanup and gluing in the spars and motor mount, all done with Gorilla Glue, I laminated both wings top and bottom with some laminate I had leftover from a previous build. I then cut and attached the elevons with fiber reinforced packing tape. I prefer this to using laminate as the tape allows for freer movement of the surface.

The bottom surface of the fuselage was also laminated. I didn't laminate the top because I didn't feel the effort of negotiating all the hatches and openings would be worth it, as the top of the fuselage shouldn't be too vulnerable to damage.

It was at this point I realised that the kit does not include any control linkages or hardware, but after a dig through the box of parts I managed to find some control horns and enough piano wire to make the pushrods.


Cutting holes to mount the servos in came next, which was easy enough to do by roughly setting the servo where I wanted it to go, tracing it in sharpie and then cutting around those lines and plucking the foam out with pliers. Servo installation was made that much easier by cutting off the mounting tabs before embedding them in the foam, a trick I picked up from TeamLegit's Mini Drak build video. I then glued the servos in with hot glue.


I finished out this build session by making a start on the electronics and wiring. I first soldered the motor to the ESC, mainly because I didn't have three pairs of bullet connectors lying around, but also because I'm not all that concerned with motor direction. I have enough spare props lying around that I can just make sur I use the right one. I then soldered a battery lead and the ESC leads to the FC, as well as two female plugs for the wing servos.  I didn't direct solder the servo wires so that I'd be able to remove the wings for transport. This won't be something I do for every flight, but the plane has a pretty carry-on friendly form factor with the wings removed, so I would like to be able to bring it with me when I travel.




Wings laminated, elevons attached and servo pocket cut out. Note the extra LE reinforcement; tree trunks, signposts and goalposts tend to be magnets for my aircraft.



Underbelly shot. Bottom surface of the fuselage laminated, extra layer of tape reinforcement right doen the middle for belly landings. Also note that for the forward wing spar cover I had to add a second foam strip that had come from one of the wing spar covers, as the spar slot was so deep the strip provided didn't fill the gap completely. I also didn't know when I ordered the kit that the wings would be removable, and the included velcro method is simple and effective.



Another picture of the fuselage lamination and reinforcement. The laminate from the belly actually wraps up around the sides of the nose, and I figure I'd extend the LE reinforcement up the sides of the fuselage. No dented leading edges for me!




Servo mounted in the wing. I placed it as close to the root as I could to make sure the wire would reach the flight controller. It will be interesting to figure out a method for wire routing, as there are no preexisting holes, slots or cutouts to allow wires from one bay to another in the fuselage.



The beginnings of the electronics setup. I added the female connectors to the servo inputs to allow the wings to be completely removed for transport. Still to add: camera gear, radio gear and ViFly lost model alarm/buzzer. I intend to try my hand at some mid range flying with this thing and it would suck to have it go down irrecoverably, so hopefully the buzzer will help.

Stay tuned for the completion of the build and the maiden flight!

we need pictures ;-)
i personaly would use a biblade, because of no need for „grip“, its faster and specialy in landing the blade can turn to a direction it doesnt damage the prop.

(09-Feb-2020, 12:46 PM)hugnosed_bat Wrote: we need pictures ;-)
i personaly would use a biblade, because of no need for „grip“, its faster and specialy in landing the blade can turn to a direction it doesnt damage the prop.

Yes, pictures are coming once I can figure out how to post them! I do have some bi blades I'll be trying, but based on some of my previous wing experience tri blades actually do give a noticeable performance increase. A wing may not need the "grip" for cornering and maneuvering in the same way a quad does, but the wing will respond to throttle punches and quick accelerations better with a tri blade, and that suits my style of flying.

Got more building in this morning, so the plane is done apart from the programming and some minor final details. I've included pictures of my electronics setup, however that is likely to change when it comes to do weight and balance checks, as I'm not currently hitting the recommended CG of 15mm forward of the main spar cap.



Wire routing holes cut in with a hot piece of wire. I made holes from each electronics bay to the next, as well as through the wing roots for the servo wires.



FC and ESC locations. I will be trying to move them around so I can get the right CG without adding any extra nose weight.



VTx mounted in place with SMA embedded in fuselage. This may also have to change as I attempt to move as much weight as I can forward.



FPV camera embedded in the nose. I used the same hot wire technique I used for the routing holes to cut out the camera pocket, as I've never been happy with the results of using a craft knife. The knife also tends to leave overshoot cuts wherever two cut lines meet, and these lead to cracks and tears in the future as the nose inevitably takes abuse from rough landings and impacts

You’ve got plenty of space in this frame! Can’t wait your maiden flights, it’s gonna be speedy beast!

Any more news on the maiden...?

I had gotten the Drak “bug” last year, while taking a flight with a friends Big Drak, and I was hooked instantly! They fly amazing if set-up correctly and they can really haul a$$ with the right components.
The only drawback is that they’re quite expensive and require quite a bit of work...
I’ve 4 Draks, and all are in the building stages. 1 Big Drak, 1 Mini Drak, and 2 Nanos. The Nanos both have the 28” and the 40” sets of wings, and one of the sets of wings are “lightened”, meaning they’re laser cut and that helps with weight, and besides they look very cool. ? Also have a Boom Kit for one of the Nanos. I haven’t decided which Nano is going to be fitted with the boom yet? So far they’re all completely built and now it’s time for motors, servos, flight controllers (all Matek f405 wings which I already have) running iNav, crossfire (already have) and the Big Drak and Mini running DJI caddix systems, while the Nano’s remain analog.
Yeah, I got the Drak “bug” big time. lol I most likely won’t have them complete until the end of the season. So, I may not get to take them out until early next year, unless my finances allow for it. This was no cheap endeavor, but I’m OCD when it comes to my aircraft and I can’t say enough just how Bad a$$ The Draks fly! Wether performance, which my Nano’s will be, or long-range, which the Big D and Mini will be, they’re amazing aircraft and a ton of fun.

Hope to see your maiden soon and that it all goes well. CG is SUPER important with these, and a bit nose heavy can be okay.
Best ✌?

What is the AUW of the Nano Drak 28"?

Am new to wings just a quick question?
The hitec servo are they metal geared hv and alot better than your standard servo, like what I got in my sonic AR Wing? Looking at that will maybe be my first upgrade.
Really enjoying your build dude

Nice build man! I am actually going to be building a wing very soon. I have grown accustomed to the Sonic Modell AR Pro. Is there a reason you are not going with a folding prop? I like the concept of them but wonder if they give the thrust desired.