FT Delta Swappable - Scratch Build

by FliteTest | July 25, 2012 | (68) Posted in How To

FTScratchBuild-Beginner

Click HERE to see the original FT DELTA BUILD VIDEO.

See how to build the swappable fuselage here:
SWAPPABLE FUSELAGE - BUILD

Recommended Electronics

Here are the plans for this build:

FT Delta Swappable FULL SIZE PLANS

FT Delta Swappable TILED PLANS

Click HERE to see a complete list of FLITE TEST SCRATCH BUILDS

Learn to build a swappable Delta wing! This Delta is designed for taking that next step in your RC flying with the ability to do rolls, loops, inverted flight and more! 

The third installment in the swappable airframes series is this Delta wing, designed with a unique KF airfoil step design. The KF step on this Delta is created with a folding technique that will offer for a clean scratch built design!

Josh also goes into detail in constructing the "folded" fuselage which can be swapped out and used with the other wings like the Nutball, FT Flyer*. 

*The FT FLyer swappable airframe can be seen in the Choose your Prop Adventure episode here

 


This Flite Test scratch build project is made from Dollar Tree brand foam-board which offers a cheap, lightweight (yet, sturdy) platform for scratch built projects. 

This specific Delta and fuselage was created from 2 pieces of foam board.  

 Get more details by clicking the link below "join this discussion" and check out the forum!

- Find this article & others like it at www.FliteTest.com -

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COMMENTS

zachlevet on July 30, 2012
Hey i am new to scratch building and was wondering how to print outr the plans because out of my normal printer it does not print the same size as it should be
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jdwhite007 on September 10, 2014
I had the same problem, how did you fix this?
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JohnnyFun on July 26, 2012
Josh another great job explaining what to do and why. As a beginner you made this look very easy and something I am gonna do this weekend. StoneKap rules...
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Mirabile Visu on July 26, 2012
What a brilliant idea. I hope to build the full series. Very many thanks for the inspiration.
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lpinho on July 27, 2012
Can this be used as a trainer or this is just too fast?
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rick_harriss on October 11, 2013
Best start with the nutball or the ftflyer - as Josh says keep the motor on the small size and the throws minimal and you should be ok (ish).

Learning to fly by yourself is a process of moving from crash to crash until you get better.

That's one good reason the flitetest approach and models are so good - they are cheap and easily repaired or rebuilt.
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djn1400 on November 23, 2012
Josh,
You refer that the tail skid is on the plans. I don't see a jig, design, or template for the tail skid bending. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I actually bought a small 3/8" wheel that I want to put on it, to complement the 1-3/4" mains; and I'll use a similar bend to keep it on. Just need some guidance on a diagram.

Love the whole swappable series!!!
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dj sonicfreak on August 13, 2012
love the delta i want to know how to make it faster with adding a little of weight

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Fly Guy on January 17, 2013
Regarding the landing gear, when Josh says use 0.7mm music wire I think he means 1.7mm (1/16+") I used 3/32" (2.4mm) .7mm is too small.
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rcchips on July 26, 2012
Been following you guys since the tricopter episodes. Keep up the great work! Going to build one now. It there a link to the FT Flier SWAPPABLE version plans?
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Jimmy_au on July 25, 2012
awesome work guy's.

i have just built up a "FT Flyer" (Blue dart) using your "folded" fuselage design.

looking forward to trying a Delta when my skills catch up to my ego.

Cheers Jimmy
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Bob Howard on July 31, 2012
This is really going to get me started. Thanks
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silverknight on July 26, 2012
Best build video ever. Nicely done guys.
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constantmotion on August 24, 2012
Thanks for the updated information. Helped out alot.
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akash on August 23, 2012
where is plans and measurement

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wingnut on July 26, 2012
Great build video guys and thank you. This Doller Tree foam board. Could someone please let me know the UK name for it, and where to get it. Wingnut
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reaverman on July 31, 2012
Foam board, about £7 in Rymans

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wingnut on August 1, 2012
Thanks for that reply Reaverman. I will give them a go.
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reaverman on August 1, 2012
You're welcome, btw it's usually near all tge large card stock

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rick_harriss on October 11, 2013
If you go to a hobby craft shop or their web site:

http://www.hobbycraft.co.uk/hobbycraft-a1-white-foam-core-board/565407-1000

They sell foam board for 3 sheets for £8 so £2.66 a sheet (single sheet £3.99) - these are A1 in size (594mm x 762mm) so a little larger than the ones Flitetest are using - (20" x 30" ).

Giant shark:

http://www.giantshark.co.uk/

will sell you the rest of the bits at probably the best price in the UK.

I have nothing to do with either company.
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constantmotion on August 22, 2012
Can we get some good plans? The plans provided are hard to use if all the measurements aren't added.
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Crazyfrog on September 18, 2012
Salutations les amis je suis Suisse et je trouve cette idee de faire plusieurs models d avions avec le meme fuselage superb cool bravo. A quand un jet?
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Eric Deagle on July 25, 2012
Really cool concept, and super easy to build
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reaverman on July 31, 2012
Trying to sort out the CoG, where am I measuring it from. On the wingtips, it always tips
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Hal9000 on August 21, 2012
Regarding Foam Board sources.

Try your local Art Supplies store! Yes believe it, the local arts supply store.

I was most surprised to find 3mm and 5 mm white and black Foam Board, balsa, and metal rod (for landing gear and servo push rods). I bought a large sheet enough for the FT Flyer for $NZD13, but the left over was 50mm too short to build the Delta. Dammit!

The stuff they have was all at least half the price than my local hobby store charges (and its exactly the same stuff!).
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ukbozzy on July 26, 2012
Great instructional video josh, the swappable series will help bring new fliers into the hobby and also aid in there progression.
It did make me laugh how many times you said " Perpendicular "
Keep up the good work... Steve
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mattplaneflyer on November 24, 2012
I just finished building this plane but have not flown it yet. It was fun and easy to build, the instructional video realy helps on the details.
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Nicholas Love on July 25, 2012
It will be my next plane after the FT Flyer. Great Build Video. And keep it up with the Locals :)
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HAYDEN J on December 25, 2012
I just wanted to say thank you to you Josh and Josh... your videos are interesting, entertaining, and informative. I have been deployed for the last several months and I get to head home in February. Maybe my son and daughter will join me in building these flyers. Thank you for the great video and links to the sites to buy the equipment. Sincerely, HAYDEN J
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JimmyHendrix on July 25, 2012
very cool!
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Illiop on July 26, 2012
I built one very similar to this with out the (semi) vertical stabilizers, and my kf step I made like 7" from the nose (not tapered to the ends of the wings). It is pretty squirrely. Should I add the (semi) vertical stabs, add taper out to the ends of the wings, or both? any suggestions would be appreciated. How can I add a picture of what I have fore reference?
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John Mangiameli on July 28, 2012
I love me the Delta. I can't wait to get a chance to put this on my fuselage.
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Griffo on August 1, 2012
Does anyone know where you can buy this foam in Australia?
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denigami on August 16, 2012
Hi i'm just new into RC stuff and i hound this one amazing one thing I can't find though is the Red Brick 25A ESC, can I use a Red Brick 30A ESC instead of a Red Brick 25A ESC or a TURNIGY Basic 25A v3.1 Speed Controller. I need your help.
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rick_harriss on October 11, 2013
As long as the speed controller (ESC) is around +25% to +50% of your motor current you should be OK. Some look for twice the motor current if weight isn't an issue.

You should be able to find the motor current listed on the information that came with it or on the sellers web site.
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Jakson Carnio on January 22, 2013
I built this project and is very easy and fun to fly.
Some friends on the field did not believe that would fly, and then were impressed with his performance.
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Darthturner122 on September 30, 2012
What battery did they use in the video? It's not the one that was in the parts list. Will the parts listed still make it go vertical?

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bmsweb on July 25, 2012
5 Star article no two ways about it. So many tips here that go way beyond just the Delta Wing!
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kitty.boots on March 12, 2013
is it me or am I missing the other side of the wing with the "key side" on the tiled plan?

Thanks

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NoUsername on March 7, 2013
A quick question, when is the best time to do the painting on the plane? My guess is before the assembly.
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Lunarswift on June 1, 2013
Hey I made a Delta but am having problems. Where is the CG on this plane? I was thinking it was 40% while making the plane but then heard it was 25% .... so what is it? I also have a 20C 1800mAh lipo weighing round 100g which im putting on and the motor manages to lift the plane vertically with a 9x4.7 slow flyer prop. Yet it still cant really fly. Is it too heavy? Tail heavy? Built wrong?
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müttley on August 8, 2013
Have the same problem, any luck finding the cg?

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millow_99 on August 30, 2013
The CG is printed on the plans. It is a round marking with a cross in it.
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rick_harriss on October 11, 2013
Depending on your motor I would think a 9 x 4.7 prop id over sized. Lots of thrust but high current use and possibly the motor will over heat unless it is BIG!.

CG is marked on the plan - a circle with a cross in it.
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joann69 on June 23, 2013
Thanks Josh for this wonderful flying Delta Wing. I built it a month or so ago and it has flown several times. She is beautiful in the air. I now have the Nutball, Delta Wing, and the FT Flyer completed and are flying when weather permits. Almost finished with the the building of the Bloody Wonder. Thanks again for great flying machines.
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myppiart on June 7, 2013
I want to try these but there are no dimensions. Where can I get them?
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rick_harriss on October 11, 2013
You need to use the plans available for free from the link under the video.

To print them out full sized. - select poster print from your printer dialogue. select show - also select cut marks so you can align the sheets.
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Steamwork on August 31, 2013
instead of placing the prop to the nose, can i modify the design and place the prop between the ailerons?will this effect the flight?CG wont be changed...
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Tom_moore on March 14, 2014
no it does not, i recently built one converted into a pusher and it flies amazing handles well in the wind. you just need to remove some of the fins and elevons and hot glue in a ft simple firewall
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Deepak Chopra on October 10, 2013
Hi,
Please can you advise where the Cand G should be on the DELTA...thanks.It would be nice if typed instructions are on the site with the videos....thanks !!
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rick_harriss on October 11, 2013
Cg marked on the plan - Circle with a cross
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sddemoss on October 23, 2013
I started with U-control about 1971 then about 1983 I built a Sig Kadet nitro, a Heath Kit radio and receiver on the 6 meter band and taught myself to fly. I got out of the hobby for quit some time but about 4 years ago after retiring I got back to it. My gosh how the technology has changed! I always did like building. This Swappable series is really a lot of fun. Josh and Josh, David and the crew are a great bunch. I've learned a lot! I've had a blast with the Nutball and the FT Flyer! Had to do some rebuilds but that was half the fun of it. I just finished the FT Delta and I'm looking forward to putting it in the air. I just hope these 71 year old eyes and reflexes are good enough to keep it in the air. To the Flite Test Crew -- Keep up the great work!
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PaladinDG on January 18, 2014
I scratch built this plan, thinking it would be a good plane for my son, but I can't get it to fly. I used the heavier brand foam board and balanced the plane right where the CG is marked. I am using the blue wonder and a 1300mAh battery that is almost to the servos to get it to balance. I have been flying 10 years, but I am missing something with this plan.... any suggestions??
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sheldonc on January 22, 2014
Built a stretched version of the original, added winglets and an extra KF step. Pretty slick and fun plane.
I've also added a skid type deal to the front of the power pod to aid in grass belly landings. has two sides sort of bullet shaped, joined by a piece that goes flat on the underside of the pod. It's held on with the two skewers that are used if using landing gear.
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dfleroy on February 28, 2014
This model flies like an absolute dream! Very tame with the Suppo 14.5kVA motor and a 2C 1000mah battery. Needed to place this batter really far back and it balances just forward of the CG on the plans. Much easier to fly than the Nutball which I've yet to keep in the air longer than 10 seconds! lol
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Eric's rc on May 9, 2014
I know that this is kind of pathetic, but I have no idea which channels to plug the servos into on the rd. I only do rc cars, and this is my first plane. The plans were great! Thanks Flute Test!
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Eric's rc on May 9, 2014
Sorry I meant rX
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PeterGregory on July 9, 2014
Interesting Question - I think it depends on your system. I have the Spektrum DX6i and it is in the Tx user guide. It tells you how to set up elevons - aileron channel to port-side elevon servo and elevator channel to the starboard side elevon servo. Then , they tell you how to set up mixing of the channels, or google your transmitter for elevon mixing. FT did a video on mixing.
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kevintmckay on April 27, 2014
I would like to see a pusher mod for this.
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Maxwilcocks on August 26, 2014
Hey guys I just want you to know this is my first scrach build. Its also my first real rc plane. I have done ok with simultaors so we will see.
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jregner1955 on February 5, 2015
I would like to see this plane converted to where the powerpop was converted into the body of the plane and twin duct fans mounted near the middle of the wing against the converted powerpod
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womersdc02 on March 14, 2015
I didn't have any foam so I used cardboard
(Lego box) WORKS GREAT!
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anon on December 1, 2015
Can anyone give me dimmension / angle of the fin gauge" I didn't get one in my speed build kit. In fact the little poster it came with has it labeled as the flyer.
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anon on December 4, 2015
FIGURED IT OUT!! I used a lot of complicated math, some cross multiply and divide carrying over a bunch of numbers, then using earths rotation and the moon phase to round up some of the fractions.
once that didn't work i opened the un-tiled plan PDF and took a screen shot and printed it out.
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kwdleo on August 22, 2015
Just completed its maiden voyage and was surprised and thrilled with my first scratch-built airplane—the FT Delta. Josh has designed a great flying plane that was fairly simple to construct. The recommended servos (blue) operated at different speeds however with some fine tuning on my Tx, I was able to control surface throws with no problem. I decided to leave the landing gear off opting to hand launch the plane which worked fine on the first flight. During the subsequent launch, the prop flew off as I powered up the plane. Would prefer an alternate method of attaching the prop other than an O ring as on the suggested power plant. Otherwise, the plane needed little trim to fly great on its first flight and tracked straight and true on low rates completing lazy rolls effortlessly. High rates made flight a bit difficult due to increasing wind speeds at the site but still looked great to onlookers! Definitely will be building more of these in the near future!
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kwdleo on August 30, 2015
Maiden flight video, et al...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLmx83hsIRc
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mildman on November 20, 2015
loved building and flying this...my first ever RC plane!! Can't believe I'm flying!!

https://youtu.be/IBlYIWBrHeI
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ta33ers on December 4, 2015
I would also like to add that the tiled plans do not have the fin gauge, I also noted that the cover page shows 16 pages, but the file only has 12. As a side note I have built the FT Delta with the pylon, and pontoons from the Snow Ball, will report back on how it flies.
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Yorick1117 on September 26, 2016
I realize this is an older plan so I hope someone reads this, if not I will jump on the forums. I'm an absolute newbie to flying and building. After pouring over you tube, websites, podcasts etc I decided to jump in to building with this model. I have a very beginner question. I followed the plans and watched the video which was very helpful. After I was about two thirds through a question occurred to me. Is there some structural reason to have two wing halves and join them? If one is scratch building this model, wouldn't it make sense to build the wing as a single piece from the get go? I understand that the speed build kit might come that way to facilitate smaller shipping containers, is that the only reason for a two piece wing on this particular design?
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SoylentGreen4570 on October 19, 2016
the joined half detail is simply a result of it having to be made compact for shipping their kits ... yes .. as a scratch build its directly a one sheet wonder and goes sheet to fleet in less than an hour

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LeoAlioth on June 24, 2020
I've made the plane recently but i am having some problems flying it. It flies great when at speed, but from time to time it starts spiraling down and i can't recover it. I tried moving the CG slightly forward, which does seem to help a little, but it still does it. Any recommendations on what i can do to fix that?
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FT Delta Swappable - Scratch Build