50 night flying illuminated creatures in an AeroQuarium

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reckb
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50 night flying illuminated creatures in an AeroQuarium

Post by reckb » Sun Feb 24, 2008 11:35 am

Hello all,
Illuminated remote controlled model aircraft are an amazing sight
at Burning Man. This year I want to make a place where those
aircraft can fly in an above ground AeroQuarium that will look like
school of otherworldly creatures interacting. For that to work we need
lots of aircraft. 50 sounds like a good number.
Check out the website at:

http://aeroquarium.com/

There are some pictures of past efforts and more details on the idea.
Looking for pilots, builders, artists etc...

placebo

Antranik
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Post by Antranik » Tue Feb 26, 2008 10:47 pm

That's cool.

What planes do you use?

What happens if the planes hit each other? Did we just lose everything? haha

And then another thing that I keep thinking about is... if there's 50 lit-up planes flying, what if you confuse which one is yours as you criss-cross... that would suck too, haha

Anyway it looks really awesome and i wouldn't mind getting the plane but if there's a good chance of it getting destroyed AND they're costly, then i rather be a spectator. :D
-Antranik

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BitterDan
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Post by BitterDan » Wed Feb 27, 2008 10:11 am

Did you guys see the aliens in those videos!?!?!
Camp FuckIt + MT - 7:15 & D (maybe)

reckb
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Post by reckb » Wed Feb 27, 2008 6:14 pm

>That's cool.
>
>What planes do you use?

>What happens if the planes hit each other? Did we just lose everything? haha

>And then another thing that I keep thinking about is... if there's 50 lit-up >planes flying, what if you confuse which one is yours as you criss-cross... >that would suck too, haha

>Anyway it looks really awesome and i wouldn't mind getting the plane but >if there's a good chance of it getting destroyed AND they're costly, then i >rather be a spectator. :D

They hit each other all the time when people do slope combat. That is what one of the videos is of on the aeroquarium.com web site. Most of the time the collision is controllable, more fun if you make the other plane crash.

The planes are very tough and made of foam. IF something breaks it is generally a 5 min repair to get back into the air. You could do it for a few hundred bucks. Less if you scrounged and had some folks provide chargers and the like.

As for confusing which plane is yours, that is not much of an issue if you have a unique design.

I am in the process of adding more info to the site. I'll try and track down
some good designs and equipment choices.

best

Placebo....

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thisisthatwhichis
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Post by thisisthatwhichis » Wed Feb 27, 2008 6:53 pm

YEA!!.... I'd like to see that, this year....
Keep us posted... Where, When......

Could ya dive bomb the CritTit photographers during that event?.... Jus asking..... 8)
TITWI

To be on the wire is life. The rest is waiting.
It's show time, folks.....Joe Gideon

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wedeliver
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Post by wedeliver » Thu Feb 28, 2008 5:07 am

I wasn't aware there were 50 freq's for this kind of radio activity.... cool
I'm a topless shirtcocking yahoo hippie

www.eaglesnestrvpark.com

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mdmf007
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Post by mdmf007 » Thu Feb 28, 2008 6:29 pm

Wont it get extremely confusing at night to track your plane with 50 of them bopping around?

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thisisthatwhichis
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Post by thisisthatwhichis » Thu Feb 28, 2008 6:31 pm

mdmf007 wrote:Wont it get extremely confusing at night to track your plane with 50 of them bopping around?
Well, yea..... Isn't that the point???.......... 8)
TITWI

To be on the wire is life. The rest is waiting.
It's show time, folks.....Joe Gideon

reckb
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Post by reckb » Thu Feb 28, 2008 9:08 pm

[quote="wedeliver"]I wasn't aware there were 50 freq's for this kind of radio activity.... cool[/quote]

Between the standard air freq of 11 to 60 I miscounted by 1, but with 27 Mhz and the 2.4 Ghz options I think we are covered.

best

placebo

reckb
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Post by reckb » Thu Feb 28, 2008 9:12 pm

[quote="thisisthatwhichis"][quote="mdmf007"]Wont it get extremely confusing at night to track your plane with 50 of them bopping around?[/quote]

Well, yea..... Isn't that the point???.......... 8)[/quote]

Indeed. Amazing fun as a pilot. Get access to being 8 years old again.

best

Placebo--often accused of being an 8 year old

transgirl
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Post by transgirl » Mon Mar 24, 2008 4:53 pm

At the last Burn, I was entranced by a rc electric wing flying over my head in the night playa, and it encouraged and inspired me to go to my local hobby shop and get a Hobbico Hobbistar nitro trainer and find a club in my area.

Now I'm a qualified pilot and have a home built brushless electric foamie wing that I LOVE flying around since it's so aerobatic...

I was hoping to bring it out if I go this year...I'd love to participate in your project I think... :D

If anything, I was going to fly on my own. Although I haven't tried night flying yet, but I should go ahead and hook up some el wire and practice.

This sounds like a lot of fun though! I'll be following this thread....

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ZaphodBurner
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Post by ZaphodBurner » Mon Mar 24, 2008 5:10 pm

Awesome. I loved the Illuminati Eye in 2005, and listening to the shroom-heads around me who were utterly convinced that aliens were checking out Black Rock City.

("What Illuminati Eye? There was no RC aircraft at 2005...")


Looking forward to seeing this!
"The Red Baron is smart.. He never spends the whole night dancing and drinking root beer.. "-The WWI Flying Ace

transgirl
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Post by transgirl » Mon Mar 24, 2008 7:36 pm

Those look like Zagi's or something in the video. Are they?

My little wing is not as stealthy looking as those. Plus, my wing is not a pusher, the motor is mounted on a square wood dowel hanging off the front of the wing.

Would you want people to try to fly all the same type of planes? I just checked out your link but that thing doesn't look very aerobatic. I just need to find some plans for a knock-off Zagi-like wing, and I'll go to Lowes and buy a stack of foam. I'd come out with a couple hundred dollars worth in extra motors/ESC/battery too, just to keep the fun going in case electrics get crashed.

I've been wondering, what's the effect of the dust on the motors/batteries/ESC's/receivers/transmiters? At night I guess the dust settles down so maybe not too big a deal.

Lastly, anyone know someone who flies out on the playa named "Firefly" or something like that? He's who inspired me to get into this hobby.

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Post by reckb » Tue Mar 25, 2008 10:06 am

The slope video is probably a mix of Zagi's, Boomerangs and I think I saw a JW.

I prefer pushers because they are safer, the motor is not the first point of
impact on crashes/collisions.

I would prefer that everyone fly very different planes. It will be so much
more interesting a visual sight.

There are lots of ways to make planes, 1/4 inch blue fanfold will produce
decent wings or you can hotwire cores but that is a hassle if you are
not setup. My delta's are hotwire cut leading edges with fanfold
remaining. They fly great and provide lots of area for cool designs.
I'll add it to the web site in the next day or so.

Everything gets very dusty, the dust just gets everywhere. But
electronics tolerate it well. I have had no issues with motors/escs/servos/radios.

I think I met firefly in 2005. Had a cart and illuminated zagi style wing.

Placebo

[quote="transgirl"]Those look like Zagi's or something in the video. Are they?

My little wing is not as stealthy looking as those. Plus, my wing is not a pusher, the motor is mounted on a square wood dowel hanging off the front of the wing.

Would you want people to try to fly all the same type of planes? I just checked out your link but that thing doesn't look very aerobatic. I just need to find some plans for a knock-off Zagi-like wing, and I'll go to Lowes and buy a stack of foam. I'd come out with a couple hundred dollars worth in extra motors/ESC/battery too, just to keep the fun going in case electrics get crashed.

I've been wondering, what's the effect of the dust on the motors/batteries/ESC's/receivers/transmiters? At night I guess the dust settles down so maybe not too big a deal.

Lastly, anyone know someone who flies out on the playa named "Firefly" or something like that? He's who inspired me to get into this hobby.[/quote]

reckb
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Post by reckb » Tue Mar 25, 2008 10:11 am

>Awesome. I loved the Illuminati Eye in 2005, and listening to the >shroom-heads around me who were utterly convinced that aliens were >checking out Black Rock City.

Thanks for the praise. It was an incredibly tough project to
pull together and I learned a lot. I hope to fly the eye again if
I can get Slimehags's agreement.

The giant sperm was less effective but a much better aircraft.

P

>("What Illuminati Eye? There was no RC aircraft at 2005...")
>Looking forward to seeing this!

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Post by ZaphodBurner » Tue Mar 25, 2008 12:08 pm

How strict are the frequency restrictions out there? I have Futaba PCM radios and servers from both Battlebots (US, don't remember the freq) and Robot Wars (UK...the freqs are used for cab dispatch here, or vice versa) that would free up one more R/C freq for other fliers. Different freqs for each which do not conflict with anything in the US except for possibly taxi cabs.

With that equipment I should be able to lift some serious El-wire! Otherwise, I'll have to try to swap it out for some non-anarchy equipment.

Either way, see you there! -zb
"The Red Baron is smart.. He never spends the whole night dancing and drinking root beer.. "-The WWI Flying Ace

reckb
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Post by reckb » Tue Mar 25, 2008 12:18 pm

>How strict are the frequency restrictions out there? I have Futaba PCM radios >and servers from both Battlebots (US, don't remember the freq) and Robot >Wars (UK...the freqs are used for cab dispatch here, or vice versa) that >would free up one more R/C freq for other fliers. Different freqs for each >which do not conflict with anything in the US except for possibly taxi cabs.

Those radios are probably on 75 MHz which is reserved for surface use.
Aircraft are on 72 MHz with about 50 channels to work with. Then there is
the new 2.4 GHz stuff that doesn't use channels.

What models are the Futabas? You may be able to switch modules--I
have synth modules for 8-UAF and related transmitters. And crystals for
the receivers you may have.

p


>With that equipment I should be able to lift some serious El-wire! Otherwise, >I'll have to try to swap it out for some non-anarchy equipment.

>Either way, see you there! -zb

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blueballs
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Post by blueballs » Mon Mar 31, 2008 2:55 am

hello reckb! My wife and I met you yesterday at the Burner Lab in NYC. I gave you my email address and would love to get involved in your project. I wish that I had seen your plane in flight at the Lab, but the video links that you provided give me a clear picture of how exciting this could be. I look forward to hearing from you soon. When are you thinking of doing your next workshop?

reckb
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1st Building/planning night

Post by reckb » Mon Mar 31, 2008 9:31 am

[quote="blueballs"]hello reckb! My wife and I met you yesterday at the Burner Lab in NYC. I gave you my email address and would love to get involved in your project. I wish that I had seen your plane in flight at the Lab, but the video links that you provided give me a clear picture of how exciting this could be. I look forward to hearing from you soon. When are you thinking of doing your next workshop?[/quote]

I will have a building/planning/playing night Tuesday April 1 in
Williamsburg.

Let me know if you don't get the invite.

breck

transgirl
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Post by transgirl » Mon Mar 31, 2008 1:20 pm

I think Mugi's would be good for this, right? Free plans online at
http://mugi.co.uk/

reckb
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Post by reckb » Mon Mar 31, 2008 1:42 pm

[quote="transgirl"]I think Mugi's would be good for this, right? Free plans online at
http://mugi.co.uk/[/quote]

I looked at the Mugi Evo. If you can transport it then great. The
electric/led illuminated version is solid. The problem with delta wings
is getting them into some sort of airline friendly format for transport.

Last year I cut them in half longitudinally half way back from the nose
and could fit them in a hard snow board case (a sport tube). I'll post pix
on the site if you like.

breck (Placebo)

reckb
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Post by reckb » Mon Mar 31, 2008 1:57 pm

>I think Mugi's would be good for this, right? Free plans online at
>http://mugi.co.uk/

I didn't realize that the material was coropast (twinwall to them) which is
going to hurt anyone/anything it hits. Not a good idea. The design is fine,
I would consider building out of DOW Fan Fold Foam housing foam which will
be much friendlier.

Check building supply places, you want the 1/4" stuff. It will be a huge
pile with enough foam to build 15 planes.

breck (Placebo)

transgirl
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Post by transgirl » Tue Apr 01, 2008 3:42 pm

I was actually wondering about safety issues that would surface during an event like this...

reckb
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Post by reckb » Tue Apr 01, 2008 4:14 pm

[quote="transgirl"]I was actually wondering about safety issues that would surface during an event like this...[/quote]

Safety is a big concern. I want to emulate what they do on flying fields which
is basically separate the spectators away from the likely crash zone and keep the planes light enough/soft enough to prevent serious injury.

I was thinking of defining the outline of the "aeroquarium" with lasers
so we could have a very easy to setup no-walk zone for spectators.
I also want to have the flying zone away from high traffic areas.

We already are sharing the airspace with parachutists who have gotten in touch with me so that should not generate any problems. They are doing a night jump on friday. Should not be an issue during the day.

breck

reckb
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How to add lights to your airplane.

Post by reckb » Sun Apr 13, 2008 5:52 pm

I have added a section to the aeroquarium site for how to illuminate airplanes with LEDs and/or el wire.

http://aeroquarium.com/planeLighting.html

Feedback apprecated, it is a work in progress.

breck

reckb
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Finalized design and videos with $100 parts list

Post by reckb » Fri Jun 13, 2008 6:37 am

At Brooklyn Aerodrome we have been hard at designing our
new design "The Towel" which is meant to be safer (keep checking back
for improvements) and flies great in still to moderate winds.

We also have lined up a $100 parts list that includes a radio.
http://brooklynaerodrome.com

Night flying video in Burning Man like environment:

reckb
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Re: Finalized design and videos with $100 parts list

Post by reckb » Sun Jun 22, 2008 7:39 pm

More towel documentation with some plans, pix and radio gear sorted.
http://brooklynaerodrome.com/articles/2 ... spx?page=1

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Cassidy
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Post by Cassidy » Tue Jul 08, 2008 6:54 pm

ha ha - - - please note that I know nothing of little flying planes, but I think it would be really funny to see the "giant sperm" fly into the "Illuminati Eye"...

wheeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!

reckb
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Post by reckb » Tue Jul 08, 2008 10:16 pm

[quote="Cassidy"]ha ha - - - please note that I know nothing of little flying planes, but I think it would be really funny to see the "giant sperm" fly into the "Illuminati Eye"...

wheeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!![/quote]

That's pretty funny. The eye may yet fly again, as for the sperm, I just
recycled the tail into towels. Hmmmm....

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