SM Glider: My First Designed Model

by simplemaker | June 5, 2018 | (7) Posted in How To

This is the SM Glider, my first plane design. I made it to be a "chuck glider" for beginners like myself, and so it has been designed with simplicity and durability in mind. It features an under-camber style aerofoil for lots of lift at low speeds and two doublers on the nose to support the body through crashes. 

This was my first time designing a foamboard glider, and while I've made many paper airplanes, this offered new challenges I had not yet faced. This glider has lots of lift and little inertia. To make it glide reasonably, you must add weights. I used washers and taped them on the sides. 

A significant part of this design process was forming plans that were somewhat similar to the tiled FliteTest ones. After designing the model in Fusion 360, exporting images of the model's parts in LibreCAD, setting DPI in GIMP, and Tiling using Adobe Reader DC, I had some usable, scaled pdfs.

Parts Tiled.pdf

Body Tiled.pdf

If you would like to make your own SM Glider, download and print the plans, glue onto foamboard, and cut out all of the pieces along the dark lines. The wing should not be cut on the centerline, and should only be scored on the line across its width.

Use hot glue to attach the doublers to both sides of the main body; insert the wing into the plane and glue in place; do the same with the tail. Then fill the cavity on the top of the wing with glue and let it dry.

Attach some weights, and have fun with your easy Glider!

COMMENTS

Abouttime67 on July 6, 2018
Nerdnic came up with a great idea for adding the weights. He cut a quarter sized hole, inserted two quarters, and then sandwiched them in with the doublers... thus securing and hiding the weights. Adjustment on your first model will determine location and weights needed. See his Mustang build here:
https://www.flitetest.com/articles/nnchuckstang
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SM Glider: My First Designed Model