Ritewing Zephyr II

[icebear]

Hi all,

I just finished building a Ritewing Zephyr 2 to use with the Gluonpilot.

It was a quick build and the wing looks sooo nice if I may say so myself. Laminated and with all RC gear it weighs in at 1000 grams - about 1350 grams with a 3S-3000 mAh pack. Probably one of the lightest Zeph's around since I dont intend to have any FPV gear - just the GP and a nice camcorder (Replay HD or GoPro 2 HD).

Here's a snapshot - maiden tomorrow...

/Björn

PS: Too bad I didnt measure the trunk of my car first - this 56" wing doesnt fit very well... Now I am already looking for a 1.2 meter wing (50")...

[Tom]

Hi Björn,

Indeed one of my favorite wings (allthough I don't have one myself). Also a bit large for my car

Could you send a picture of what's inside the canopy? Is that a hyperion motor you're using?

[icebear]

Hi,

Yes, a very nice design and the new Zeph has another EPO-version that is more like Elapor.
As you can see from the pic - nothing much insde apart from a large battery...
You are right about the motor - a Hyperion Zs 3014-12. My first Hyperion but it seems high quality for sure...

/Björn

[icebear]

Hi,

Didn't do the maiden today, so I installed the Gluonpilot instead...
Very easy installation in the roomy compartment - some screws, hotglue and cable ties and done!

Here's a picture - hope to do the maiden tomorrow...

/Björn

[Tom]

There is a lot more room than in my crammed 1 meter wing. This one is 1.5meter, right?

[icebear]

There is a lot more room than in my crammed 1 meter wing. This one is 1.5meter, right?

It's a little bit smaller than that - 142 centimeters to be exact (just measured) since it is the Zephyr 2 (the 1 was 60 inches which is closer to 150 cm).

Still a little big - I'll see how it plays out when I get it airborne, but I think the perfect size for me would be 120 cm. Small enough to fit in the car, yet big enough to carry a GoPro or Replay HD and still have wingload low enough for long runs AND big enough to be stable...

I saw that epp-fly where your 1m wing came from has a glider wing that is 1.2 meters... "Glider Nurflügel 1,2 m " http://www.epp-fly.de Maybe that could be an option?

I did a testrun with the 2S-2100 pack on my 90 cm Popwing today and it flew for 31 minutes before landing on auto with "panic" set at 6.3 volts... 2% left in the pack so I better make that 6.6 volts next time!

I also cleaned up the Popwing installation after inspiration from your clean build and it is now a little more aerodynamic

/Björn

[Tom]

Looking clean! Indeed I also believe 120cm is perfect: still large enough to fit in my car! I set the panic at around 6.8V I think.

[icebear]

Looking clean! Indeed I also believe 120cm is perfect: still large enough to fit in my car! I set the panic at around 6.8V I think.

Thanks! I just ordered the 120 cm wing from Germany...

And here's an update on the Popwing - new motor (Hyperion!) and new camcorder - the #16 cam v2 with included 120 degree lens...

/Björn

[Tom]

Now with the hyperion motor you can try to beat your endurance record (did you find the optimal prop?).

I Didn't know there was a keychain #16 with integrated wide angle lens. Is the quality good?

[icebear]

Now with the hyperion motor you can try to beat your endurance record (did you find the optimal prop?).

I Didn't know there was a keychain #16 with integrated wide angle lens. Is the quality good?

Yes - Now it's time for a comparison. I will try the 9x6 APC-slowfly with the Hyperion motor. It draws around 12A on full throttle (15A with the old motor) which gives a good cruise speed on 45% throttle. Wil be fun to see if the expensive motor wins! It sure looks and sounds good...

The new #16 cam has a wide angle lens option and it is a bit wider than the add-on lenses. A little too much fish-eye for my taste but otherwise it looks good.

I just did a quick side-by-side - see attached pictures. Real life test will show which one is better. We have some windy days right now but I will be able to test at the end of the week and will report back duration and video quality!

/Björn