Aluminium Aeroplane

A simple paper aeroplane became the most dangerous Instructable I've published for some time.

Seriously.

Step 1 Requirements & part 1 of Safety

I made this plane from an aluminium drinks can, using a heavy craft knife, scissors, a piece of scrap timber and a mallet.

There are serious risks during this Make, because the cut edges are very sharp.  You may want to consider wearing gardening gloves to protect your hands, and make sure you know where your first aid kit is, because cuts from jagged metal can bleed quite profusely.

Comments

[steveastrouk]

To anneal the aluminium, rub a piece of it with a bit of soap. Heat in a gas flame until the soap turns black - its now annealed again.

Steve

[Coolcody8]

Cool!!!!!

[Kiteman]

Thank you!

[CamoBedding]

This is to cool. I am going to go try and make this now.

[Kiteman]

Post a picture?

[xinistrom]

Great idea! i cut cans open all the time but this never occurred to me xD

[Mutantflame]

Awesome!

_{But first throw it in a hot fire for a few minutes before throwing if you happen to be aiming at people...}

[Kiteman]

Quick science lesson - aluminium is a very good conductor of heat.

If you want to throw a hot-nosed plane, use a thin sheet of steel.

[Mutantflame]

Hmmm, that didn't come to mind at the time. Probably because the cans from what I drink are already made of steel (and plated with a non corrody metal).

Steel would still burn you too, If you were to throw it with bare hands.

[Kiteman]

It's a poorer conductor than aluminium - you could heat the nose to red heat, and still be able to hold the tail with your hands, if you're quick.

[sunshiine]

I should have guessed! Very good! How about using silicone to cover the raw edges? Too heavy? Duct tape? Bending the edges over maybe? Liquid rubber? You know the stuff on handles of tools. I don't know what they call it. I wonder if one might do this with tin foil? Fabric? It could work, using interfacing. There are a lot of wonderful fabrics that would look super on a plane!
Sunshiine

[Kiteman]

Thanks.

Maybe soak fabric in PVA to make it stiff enough to hold the shape?

[sunshiine]

Not sure what PVA is but a starch yes. Would it make it too heavy? What about tin foil? Has that been done?

[Kiteman]

PVA is glue - wood glue, craft glue. It's mostly water, and dries to a clear plastic film.

[sunshiine]

Thanks!

[Mutantflame]

I believe that PVA is known as Elmers glue in the US. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyvinyl_acetate

[rimar2000]

Good idea, Kiteman, I will made one of these.

[iceng]

Fun Idea, well executed ( death dart :-)
I was thinking the wing area would probably need to be expanded in proportion
to the weight ratio of the Al / Paper.
Intriguing concept, this one would drive me to try and try and try if I try it ;-D

A

[Kiteman]

Darts don't really have "lift" - their wings are more like guidance fins.

If anybody else makes one, I hope they post a picture.

[OrigamiAirEnforcer]

Not necessarily, some darts rely on lift, like the Raven pictured below.

[Kiteman]

Show off!

[OrigamiAirEnforcer]

Hopefully someone may try this process out on other models like the Raven and others on here. I'm quite interested in seeing an aluminum paper airplane. I haven't made one myself in about two years.

[AndyGadget]

 
Just a thought - There's a lot of interest on the RC aircraft forums in Klein-Fogleman aerofoils, especially the KFM2 on smaller models.  In its simplest form the KFM2 is a thicker section of wing for the first 40% of the chord which provides a low-pressure pocket behind the step and therefore, lift.
Quite easy to do on your tin can dart, Kiteman, and quite probably on paper aircraft (with OAE's skills).

[Kiteman]

Just skimmed that article - KFM2 might be interesting to try on boomerangs.

[bentcyclist]

I'll have to give that a try on the next rang I make!

[ponyballs1]

This is nice.