Newbie Seeking Advice

As i can see a lot of people have been 3d printing their mast and wings i thought i could do the same. Even though i dont see that many people coming with updates to see if it works.
So i found a shape on some existing foil somewhere i used for reference. And made it easier to stack in 10cm sections.

I just dont know if its enough with plastic as a guide and then fiber glass?

my first homemade foil was done around a core plywood… can’t have been much stronger than plastic… most of the stress is taken by the fiber shell around it, just make sure it’s thick enough…
glass can work as well as carbon, it might just be a bit thicker and les stiff…

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Wow great video :+1:
May add some space for something to stiffen up the mast.
You seem to know what you are doing when making the board :slight_smile:

you can use carbon fiber tubes, light and stiff, and not too expensive… or design some kind of ribs going up the mast like a few of us did to make 3d printed wings here…

actually, not at all, that was the second board ever I made :slight_smile:

I disagree about het drive requiring more tuning. I think it is all relative no mater if you use direct prop or jet. If your really committed it would take a lot of tuning to get that direct drive prop and the duct tuned so the motor is not over drawing extra current/overheating/wasting battery power. The smallest 1-2% blade or duct tweek will change performance 10-30% we found.

As for 3D printing the masts, i know many companies are putting in aluminum incerts to strengthen them Or making them solid to avoid bending which we have had once already with an aluminum mast. I cant see 3D printed lasting long unless they are done really well with a carbon wrap and reinforcements. You can get amazing masts like the slingshot ultra strong for line $100. There is no need to make one inmy opinion.

No, you need an hard even surface, greased, and the washer stays there just because of the “push” from the thruster. I will show you a photo, later

That a good idea with the carbon fiber tubes.
What kind of ribs? And do you have a stl file for wings?

Pretty impressive then if its your second :open_mouth:

@VeFoil The only problem in buying is the expense where im from. Everything is Almost double the expense than the US.

@MaB Thanks man

if you make some grooves at the surface and fill them up with a mix of resin+fiber, it gives a lot of stiffness…

the fusion file is close to the beginning of this post:

but in the end, @VeFoil has a point: it might be better to buy a good aluminum mast… won’t be much more expensive, you’ll have more space for your cables and you’ll save a lot of time.
i used a Liquid force one to be compatible with the foils i already have, the slingshot ones are a cheaper and as good.

I agree. In the “early days” of kitefoiling, DIY your own foil was almost a necessity. Very few (crappy) models on the market, expensive and hard to get too! To obtain something solid and functional…requires lots of effort and “technology” well beyond 3d printing.
I started with shaped plywood and carbon wrap on vaccum bag, to upgrade to epoxy resin molds shaped on styrofoam cut wings and mast (hot wire and templates cnc cut, like airplane modelers do, inserted on vacuum sack over a support), then I had cnc cut split molds, out of MDF… stuffed with carbon cloths, and cured with a diy “owen”… Then…all of a sudden…All the world had gone crazy with kitefoiling and any company was building HF, copying each other but also doing very good products cheaper and cheaper every year…so what’s the point in DIYng something if you buy it ready and better for less money? Once built the first couples the “builder monkeys” on your shoulder leave you alone and free to move on the next crazyness, the next almost-impossible-project to build a “no more without it” toy!
Don’t know where are you located but there’s plenty of good aluminum mast to use for our project, very unexpensive, often used.
Wings… you can try to design your own, those are relatively esier to build, with the help of a 3d printer.

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Im located in denmark and cant seem to find any masts for a decent price. Cant even find a single used one.

I hear ya with higher costs but the mast is a critical issue art of the efoil setup. If you mast breaks during use its going to be a desaster for your board, wiring, electronics and safety in my opinion. If you are going for durability and safety you beed a quality mast, motor, esc, and battery.

At this point slingshot and ride engine have the strongest masts we found and super affordable. We had issues with china brand, and also hears issues with other us brands from backers. Let me know If you need one.

Do you have these masts?
Where are you located?
May make a diy 3D printed one and see how I goes otherwise I probably need to buy one.
I just like the hole diy aspects

I will probably buy a foil from GongSUP, they have masts starting from 49€.

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Check also RL Boards, masts are very well built, and comes relatively cheap. Any brands offer at least one aluminum version of kite foil and almost any brand sell mast or mast plus attachement plate as spare part.
There’s no point in doing a 3d printed mast, it’s a very long and rather expensive task (lots of plastic, should be 100% infill rather rigid, but no PLA if you don’t want a melted mast next summer, when you forget it in your car!).

I really don’t see 3D printed mast working well and you can get a good one for $100-200 delivered within a few days which is nothing really or a critical part of this device. I bent a good aluminum mast, and take a look at the new lift efoil mast that just snapped and its built super tough Broken Lift Efoil - Products - FOIL.zone

Guess buying is the way to go then

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@Gobbla which coupler did you order from Amazon? Can you provide a link please? I am finding the infamous blue fixed coupler to be impossible to mount without a wobble. Thank you!

I m using same as this one,
https://www.amazon.fr/BephaMart-Aluminium-Flexible-araignée-connecteur/dp/B074ZZ96N4/ref=mp_s_a_1_16?__mk_fr_FR=ÅMÅZÕÑ&qid=1538862370&sr=8-16&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=Spider+coupling&dpPl=1&dpID=41tiAGsD81L&ref=plSrch

You can use it like that 8-8 or drill it to 10

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Thanks Gobbia. Did it fit within the standard sealmount?

Sorry I m not sure to understand your question. With this coupler you can connect reducer to your proppler axes. Thrust bearing can be in contact with it. There is some standard sealing you can use in your design with this coupler.

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