Jonny Quest "Dragonfly III"

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hornet driver

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In 1962, Dr. Benton C. Quest, at the age of twenty seven, began the design and development of the worlds first supersonic transport aircraft. Two years later his dream flew and was not challenged for over ten years. Privately funded, only a few examples were built. No two aircraft were alike, upgrades were made along the way but all were recognizable with their canard layout. No SST has ever approached their performance. Later in the 1980's , Dr. Quest developed the "Dragonfly II" , another SST with a parasite aircraft for observation missions . In the end it proved to be a failed concept and was mothballed after only three years. The original "Dragonfly" continued to soldier on for another forty years, but fatigue and the economics of the time began to take their toll. In 2010, still in good health, Dr. Quest began to develop the "DragonflyIII". While development has been shrouded in rumor it's know that it is Mach 3 capable.-----------The build begins---


Gotta have some stuff to start with-hmm-foam !--100_2363.jpg
 
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So very subscribed! Allow me to be the first to grab the popcorn. :pop:
 
This one's gonna take some --whittl'n and carv'n and a ton of sand'n -- stay tuned---It starts out rough--it gets better!
 
Love the backstory as much as what you're probably going to end up with here!! :eek:
 
Music to post this build thread by:

[video=youtube;L0kg_tzQvf4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0kg_tzQvf4[/video]
 
Early in the development of the "Dragonfly III", Dr. Quest chose to go with the proven multi engine to single exhaust technology used on the original "Dragonfly". The original had three QI-101 turbo-ramjet engines. The original design was large, based in no small part to the internal fuel load needed to feed the QI-101 engines. With a length of 179 ft. She was an impressive bird to be sure.--------100_2370.jpg----I said their would be some carv'n on this one--the mess has just begun. I epoxied my foam blocks together. I gave myself a lot of extra material to cut away.----Started to knock down the square edges and get a general shape. I'll be taking off about 16 inches of length in the rear. More mess to come---100_2369.jpg--100_2371.jpg--100_2372.jpg--Keep in mind there is no nice shop involved here. I'm building this out of an apartment. So, I'll be using a lot of the old MK-I eyeballs on this one.
 
Nice! Your foam carving ability is 10,000% better than mine. My hat's off to you!!

Thanks T, but don't be surprised if I screw the pooch on this one and have to do a do-over-over-over. Let's hope the first attempt is the last. Ive managed to talk the better half into helping me a bit with this one. I need another set of hands to start with so ,a back rub here , a foot massage there, just might pay off on this build. I like to think of it as a compromise. OH ! , COMPROMISE ! Stay tuned, the story and build continue !!
 
As work continued on the "Dragonfly III" , It was decided that two of the new QI-4101 "FAN-RAM" engines would be installed. Larger yet more fuel efficient than the original 101 engines, they boasted a 50% gain in maximum thrust. Based on the fifty year old technology of the QI-2101, the 4101 was larger and used newer materials, making it's exotic design more practical. The 2101 had been designed under contract for Admiral Harriman Nelson for use in his small squadron of "Flying Subs".Impressed by the younger Quest, Nelson helped fund many of the Quest Industries marine science projects.-------So, I ended up using some of the tools I had made for the 20mill project------to capture the nose--duct taped to a door knob--100_2373.jpg--and the tail capture device--100_2374.jpg--mounted and ready to spin---100_2376.jpg.---Deb handled the drill while I hit the blank with 60 grit sandpaper. The first run took about 15 minute and I'm getting the Shape close. I'll work on it some more latter to get it where it belongs---100_2377.jpg-100_2378.jpg-100_2379.jpg-100_2380.jpg
 
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The original Dragonly was unchallenged in it's performance at the time. However, little intrest was shown by the military.Politics and big industry doomed the queen to a small production run. Over the decades, Quest Industries grew. In time Q.I. was the big fish in a small pond. The D-3 ,as she was now known, drew the attention of the military. A preliminary order of 10 D-3s was placed by the Air Force as well as a smaller,single engine, D-4 prototype for the Navy after a heated competition with Lockheed and Stark Industries. Rumors have it , Q.I. , offered the now mature, "Para-Power Ray" to the Navy as a bribe for the D-4 contract.-----so I got to sanding and shaping some more ---100_2381.jpg--viewed from the side you can see the asymmetric shape--I needed to start work on the intake area. This was gonna be a potential problem area. I started by carving out the basic intake shape.---100_2387.jpg--and sanded and marked--100_2389.jpg--100_2390.jpg---I needed to notch the body to make the intake fit right---this could have gone --BAD FAST-- but in the end it worked out ok--100_2392.jpg-100_2394.jpg-100_2395.jpg---got some little spots to fill in here and there but the basic shape is there--more later---H
 
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How did Dr. Quest create a skin tough enough to protect little Jonny but light enough to keep that long nose out of the ayahuasca vines?
 
Got a little more done on the D-3.--DROGONFLY111.jpg---I went ahead and began filling the small seam and little dings with lite weight spackle. Normaly I don't use this stuff but it's perfect for use over foam. Once dry it weighs almost nothing and can be sponged into shape not sanded. Since it drys outside -in, I'll let it set a couple days before doing anything else crazy. I've gotten the shape as close as I'll get it . The intake might be about an inch or two long. A little reshaping is easy enough there. The marks you see represent the general vicinity of the wings. It worked out with them being a little bigger than my minds eye saw them--this is a good thing !!! That big honkin tail along with the wings have a lot of mass. That's gonna pull the cg aft where I need it in glide mode. I'm gonna get on with the final design of the pop tube now with it's ballast.---100_2401.jpg---more to come !!
 
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Had a little time on my hands so I decided to make some foam wings to nail down the shape---these are close to what I'm looking for . I put them on with toothpicks---100_2404.jpg---100_2405.jpg
 

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The D-3 was smaller than it's predecessor. With a length of just under 140 ft , it fell in between the Boeing 737 and 727. It was however, designed as an executive transport. All D-3's were fitted with air to air refueling capability and Quest Industries hosted a small fleet of tankers based around the world at it's various airfields. Many smaller nations found it more sensible to contract Quest Industries for the use of it's tankers than to maintain their own fleets, so the infrastructure existed to begin with. ----- I think I'm gonna go with the wings I've cut out with little change to their shape or span. I most likely will use the blanks I cut as cores and cover them with balsa. This will add the strength I need and I can airfoil them a little easier. As far as the canards go---I'll probably add a rear elevator to them instead of having a full floating canard. It seem a little easier to --tweak-- them. If this thing goes RC--and that's still and option--then the full moving canard will be the way to go-----ahhhhhhh---we're a looooooong way of from that now!----H
 
I'm looking forward to seeing this one completed. I loved watching that show when I was a kid.
 
I'm looking forward to seeing this one completed. I loved watching that show when I was a kid.

Ya know, I've got them all recorded. I'm building this thing and catching myself humming the intro music. -----Anyway, I'm gonna go ahead and get a coat of epoxy over the whole thing in the A.M. and let it set for a day or so. After that I'll glass the intake pod for possible RC use and begin the coring process on the fuselage. I'll be putting up some plans for the internals for ya'll to review in the next couple days.
 
Thanks, all cleaned out !!

Had the day off so I decided to tinker with the old girl a bit. I got the intake area and rear fuselage glassed in.I did this before resinning the whole structure as previously planned. Looking back on it now I think I would have been better served if I had simply resinned the whole thing and bypassed the glass. The extra resin to soak the glass really added weight I did'nt want. Too late now, so I'll go with what I got. Funny how one thing leads to another. Now I'm rethinking my airfoil section. At first I was going with a symmetrical airfoil but the added weight has me looking at other options to add lift and decrease the AOA. I've enlisted the help of a friend who is big into RC. He's going to help with designing a lite servo package should I pursue the RC route.He's tasked with designing a three axis control system and the build will continue as if it were going to be used initially or retrofitted later. Certain control surfaces can be locked should I go with a simple BG as opposed to an RCBG. Once the fuselage is coated with resin and has set for a couple days I'll do all the worst sanding and finishing and the chemically core it out. Then the real fun begins.
 
What kind of resin do you use? AFAIK the glass is what gives the resin it's strength. I'm interested in finding new things and if you have a resin that mitigates the use of a matrix I want it!


Richard :D
 
What kind of resin do you use? AFAIK the glass is what gives the resin it's strength. I'm interested in finding new things and if you have a resin that mitigates the use of a matrix I want it!
I use finishing resin. You can get it at most big box building supply stores. It's used for tabletops and such. By itself it's not rock hard but a little flexable. A styrofoam matrix works well with it but finishing can be a little labor intensive. If your building for strength there is no way to not have the glass involved. In this case , I just needed an aeroshell . So pouring or brushing over raw foam works well ---I used the same technique on the nose of the 20 mill. After it sets you can sand/grind or chemecally remove the excess foam. I suggest getting your heavy sanding out of the way first----Knock down the high areas and fill all the pinholes--honestly another thin coat does great after sanding. It's a technique that may or may not suite your needs, but it's worth practicing---There's a couple ways to do it. First--carve and sand your shape--then fill the pores with a lite weight filler--spackle will do fine --sand it down and prime---pour or brush the resin over this--a couple coats should do it---this gives you a thinner outside finish but but is not as durable as the second method. Carve and sand the shape you want. put the resin directly on the foam --apply a couple coats-- It will soak into the pores of the foam and give you a thicker more durable surface ---you still need to sand and fill later so there no shortcut here. In this case I still put glass down in the wing root area and the area where the canards are attached, also the intake area which is likely to be cut off as an access point. This technique works best for areas that are non structural and where you have compound curves to finish . At times it's a better choice than wood .
 
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Thanks for the data HD. I had a fixed idea that it always needed to be in a matrix, though I've molded nose cones of polyurathane. I'll have to get some experience with epoxy.


Richard :D
ps: hows the 20 Mill doing?
 
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At Quest Industries, the first Dragonfly III began to take shape. An entire complex was built to manufacture the new composite materials used in it's construction. Later, many of these composites would find their way into the Mars habitats and transfer vehicles. ---More done, did a little sanding to knock down the high spots and put a layer of spot putty on the old girl. I only had about an 1/8 tube left so I did what I could. I'll be hitting the store tomorrow--100_2527.jpg100_2528.jpg--100_2530.jpg100_2534.jpg
 
So, I got back on the JQ. I said it would be a long build but things should begin to move along a little quicker now. I got the fuselage sanded down and had a couple little bad spots but no big deal . I went ahead and gave the whole thing a coat of resin . Next I gave it a rough sanding and a good coat of primer/filler. It's about 90 % where I want it. the back 3 or 4 inches will be cut off to allow the body tube to be inserted and a tail cone placed. Here's what it looks like today. 100_2604.jpg-100_2605.jpg. I'll fill a couple places and sand it back down the give it a final---I HOPE--coat of gray primer.
 
good to see on track. Primer seems a bit dark for something that will end up white. What's the weight/mass looking like? Dat's an awful long nose.
 
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