Didn't feel like jumping on the Five33 hype train for a simple 3" quad, so I decided to design my own frame that is comparable as far as weight and prop size goes. Decided to make something that can be used for racing as well as freestyle. The big push for me to make something of my own is because I have a CNC Router in my shop and a stack of carbon sheets so I figured why not!

Main Design goals:

-Durable
-Easy to build
-Fits HDZero 90fps cam
-AIO protection
-Top/bottom battery mount option


I'm not by any means a competitive racer. My local racing chapter has agreed to include my frame within their Tiny Trainer spec race as long as we keep similar setup the same. (3" props, 3s, 160-200g). This frame meets those requirements. We plan to race this Sunday at an indoor R/C car track facility. I'll be sure to post some video of the quad ripping around. Maybe I'll hand it over to one of the guys who is fast so I can see it in action.


Here's some pictures of the build. I did make some changes to shave a few grams from the frame plates vs the first iteration so that helped a bit. Right now I'm at 120g and 123g on both of my builds before battery. Add a 550mah 3s pack and I am at 170-173g.

Link to purchase:

https://ungercnc.com/drone-frames/ols/pr...-frame-kit

Here's a couple more pics

That is awesome!
What’s your frame weight (just frame, tpu, standoffs etc, no motors or electronics)?

(28-Jan-2023, 03:28 AM)Lemonyleprosy Wrote: That is awesome!
What’s your frame weight (just frame, tpu, standoffs etc, no motors or electronics)?

I'm at roughly 44 grams like that

Frame plate is 3mm carbon and top plate is 2mm

I’m looking forward to seeing some video.

Hi Lukeman,

Cool     Nice Build  

Added some LED lights for the race we did over the weekend. Both of them flew great! Lots of crashing and no broken frames!

They each have a different set of motors on them so it was difficult to switch between the 2. One has the Tiny Turner 4533kv motors and the other has Emax 3700kv motors. Crazy how much faster the 4533kv motors are. 

The stock hdzero antennas were also not great. They feel cheap and lightweight and I ended up breaking one of the antennas in a crash. Ordered some foxeer lollipop 4 antennas to replace those. We will see how they hold up. I might try to design a captured antenna 3d print so I can prolong the antenna lifespan. Right now they are fully exposed which isn't ideal for a racing environment. 


Some changes I'm planning to make for V1.2: (Currently on V1.1)

- Add 20x20 and maybe 16x16 holes for more electronics compatibility
- Fine tune the radiuses and smooth out some of the sharper corners

Some 3d printable parts to make next:
- Design a micro cam mount (currently only have 14x14 nano cam mount)
- Design a center pod to house the LED lights. It will diffuse the harsh LED's I currently have installed lol
- Revise the rear antenna mount to allow for more antenna protection


I'll keep you guys updated as I go! Let me know if you have any suggestions to add to the list! 

Here's a quick video I made of the Race Day we had over the weekend if you want to watch. Only a few clips of the drone flying as it was way more fun watching the fast guys lol. I have some DVR as well and this was with the slower underpowered Emax 3700kv setup. You'll see some prop wash as I never was able to tune it. Was my first day of flying both of these quads lol.

SWEET  

Very nice.

Alright so I added a couple extra holes to allow for 16x16 and 20x20 stacks. This will increase versatility with the frame. 

I also added another battery strap slot so you can mount the battery horizontally if someone plans to run a top mount battery. This adds to the versatility aspect of this frame. 


Next updates:

- Design some 3d parts around the DJI O3 system. Need to make some sort of adapter to hold the air unit in place as well as design a camera and antenna mount. This frame has the space to run it so we might as well go for it!

I’m enjoying watching this thing evolve.

Ok some more updates!

Made a chamfering jig for the frame plates. Just machined out some pockets into some scrap plywood for the depth of each part. Top plate is 2mm and bottom plate is 3mm. Then they are both flush with the surface of the plywood. They fit tight like puzzle pieces so I was rather happy with that level of precision on my Shapeoko router. 

After running about 3 parts through the top plate pockets they loosened up to the point of needing some additional holding power. Now I add a small piece of double sided tape to keep them down for the chamfer job. Only takes about 3 minutes to run the chamfer job for 2 frames. Then flip and hit the go button again and they're done. 

Debating on making the chamfers a little deeper as I'm only doing .5mm chamfer. It's just enough to make the part nice and smooth and get rid of those sharp edges. Might try .75mm next to see if it's more noticeable. Do you guys prefer to see a nice chamfer on your parts or is smooth carbon good enough?

Added some pictures of the process. Let me know what you think!

I like a nice chamfer. It gives it that clean professional look, and supposedly helps prevent delamination.

Plus, if a frame comes with a nice chamfer then it keeps me from having to a crappy job myself with sandpaper and files.

I’m sure you already know this, but just in case you don’t- make sure you don’t breathe in that carbon fiber dust, it’s worse than asbestos.

Hi Lukeman,

Very Good Job.    

A little chamfer is a nice finishing touch especially for a production frame
or a frame being cut for others. It just makes the product feel more
professional.

On the other hand, if I was cutting a frame just for me, then I wouldn't
bother with it. Also, if I like a particular frame, the chamfering is nice,
but wouldn't deter me from acquiring it. As long as it works, it works 
for me. Just me 

(05-Feb-2023, 11:51 PM)Lemonyleprosy Wrote: I like a nice chamfer. It gives it that clean professional look, and supposedly helps prevent delamination.

Plus, if a frame comes with a nice chamfer then it keeps me from having to a crappy job myself with sandpaper and files.

I’m sure you already know this, but just in case you don’t- make sure you don’t breathe in that carbon fiber dust, it’s worse than asbestos.

Thanks for the feedback!


Yep! I've got a 3 stage dust collection setup on my cnc router currently. Then wash the parts in my utility sink under water when they are complete. Good time to hit any stray burs with a file too.