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Airfix 1/72 Boulton Paul Defiant - electrified with lights and motor


DocJonno

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New project. Never added electric to this model whereas I've done plenty of electric spits so I'm not sure on placement of usb charger or switch.  May end in tears but here goes....

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/192157755@N08/50943237141/in/album-72157718289198793/

 

This is the wiring idea.... I'm not an electrician so no idea of how real circuit diagrams work so not sure how accurate it is but it looks like it will work.  Added a charging light to this as allows me to see that battery is charging whereas in the spits it was blind faith that it was working

 

20210214_171410

 

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Going to stick with the USB charge in radiator.  The top hatch idea might not work too well as limited space and opening and closing batch might scratch too much paint

 

20210215_124556

Wired up a micro usb b female and araldite in place. Need to give it several hours to become rock solid.  Will cut a hole above radiator to pass wires through later. A bit of filler as well maybe to fill gap above the port.

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Slow progress... waiting for some lipo batteries and switches

 

Will need space for wires to pass under so cut past c4 at the bottom.

20210216_092836

 

Unfortunately space is too narrow for a switch so to make space for the switch (which will sit where the air intake is) i have to melt a bigger gap.  Solder iron is useful here.  Ugly looking melt but there is a good space for stuff to fit under. 

20210216_092903

 

Also scratch built a clear part indicator light for the top of the defiant.  I'll attach a led here later that will operate when the battery is charging. Looks a bit big at moment but will sand down a bit later. 

 

20210216_092928

 

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9 hours ago, LOX said:

I always found the defiant a curious plane, odd but beautiful in a way.

And a lot of electrical items stuffed in a small plane. Good luck !

 

Thanks.  Fingers crossed for sticking the other half of fuselage together.... hopefully wired everything correctly!

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3 hours ago, DocJonno said:

Thanks.  Fingers crossed for sticking the other half of fuselage together.... hopefully wired everything correctly!

Test, test and test again. Then, just as you apply the glue to the sides of the fuselage, do another test! 

 

Looks good bud. Must admit, I'm becoming more and more fascinated with the idea of bringing kits to life with electronics. 

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3 hours ago, Lewis95 said:

Test, test and test again. Then, just as you apply the glue to the sides of the fuselage, do another test! 

 

Looks good bud. Must admit, I'm becoming more and more fascinated with the idea of bringing kits to life with electronics. 

Thanks.  Tested so many times and thankfully it's worked. 

20210217_140819 20210217_140739

 

The motor is much more powerful than anticipated!

 

The landing light button adds a nice additional part. 

 

Will neaten up and paint and demonstrate soon!

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23 minutes ago, redleader said:

Well done! Cramming all that into a 1/72! Where did you source your electrics?

Cramming stuffing into a 1/72 does sacrifice a bit e.g cockpit detail.

 

Source most bits from ebay. Good source for various lipo batteries. I got the 0.1mm leds from amazon as slightly cheaper.

 

Next project is a mosquito!

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I used a 3 pin mini slide switch from ebay. They're about 8mm long and 4mm wide. 

 

The motor is 6x12mm 40000rpm, although maybe too powerful. I use a 4 x 8mm motor for 60000rpm for spitfires which are much gentler although the spindle is very short so much more difficult to attach the propeller.

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