Introduction: How to Make the Stinger Paper Airplane
More by the author:
About: Paper airplane maker: 400+ designs so far and more in development!
Originally envisioned as a smaller, but more effective follow-on to the Hornet, the Stinger is a lightweight "drone" paper airplane, with a compact cropped delta wing. The Stinger is equipped with winglets, ventral fins, landing gear and trimmed horizontal stabilizer; and has provisions for ailerons, flaps, flaperons, elevators, and a trimmable rudder. These features make it a capable test aircraft, for use in places such as classrooms.
As far as potential in the classroom goes, it would be a great test aircraft. However, teacher guidance may be needed as these little airplanes were designed to fly like fighter jets after all...
The Stinger prototypes have also disproved the popular misconception that "delta-shaped wings have poor glide ratios". On average, the Stinger prototypes attained a glide ratio of 5 to 1. This is on par with several of my straight wing, high aspect ratio drones.
In June 2011, when I first began researching and developing this airplane, it was going to rather single purposed as a "figher". However, about the same time, I began seeing the many comments on contemporary instructables, voicing viewer's wishes that a more advanced design be released. I decided I'd pursued that specification with the new aircraft as well. Eventually, the Stinger became a multirole aircraft; one that could be used as a fighter, trainer, stunt or test plane.
TAA USAF Designation: D158-1
As far as potential in the classroom goes, it would be a great test aircraft. However, teacher guidance may be needed as these little airplanes were designed to fly like fighter jets after all...
The Stinger prototypes have also disproved the popular misconception that "delta-shaped wings have poor glide ratios". On average, the Stinger prototypes attained a glide ratio of 5 to 1. This is on par with several of my straight wing, high aspect ratio drones.
In June 2011, when I first began researching and developing this airplane, it was going to rather single purposed as a "figher". However, about the same time, I began seeing the many comments on contemporary instructables, voicing viewer's wishes that a more advanced design be released. I decided I'd pursued that specification with the new aircraft as well. Eventually, the Stinger became a multirole aircraft; one that could be used as a fighter, trainer, stunt or test plane.
TAA USAF Designation: D158-1
Step 1: Materials
Required:
1 Piece of 8 by 10.5 inch graph paper
Tape
Pencil
Scissors
Ruler
1 Piece of 8 by 10.5 inch graph paper
Tape
Pencil
Scissors
Ruler
Step 2: Begin Construction
First, begin by folding your your graph paper in half (excluding three boxes on the perforated side). Once the paper has been folded appropriately, make two marks--13 full boxes apart. Use a ruler to make a straight line with the length of 13 boxes directly up 1 row of boxes from the two marks you just made. Then make the elevators, rudder, spars, ventral fins, landing gear and counterweight as shown. Follow the photograph markings. Once all is marked out, cut out the fuselage.
After the fuselage is made, take another sheet of paper that is folded in half along the lines of boxes. Mark out the wing as shown (4 boxes in length, each with an intersection sweep of 1/1 (1 box length lost for every box outward from the fuselage.). Along the line running parallel to the center, inboard of the half box tips, make marks. Then cut it out.
Solid lines indicate places to cut. Dotted lines indicate fold lines.
Note: 1 box = 0.25 inches
After the fuselage is made, take another sheet of paper that is folded in half along the lines of boxes. Mark out the wing as shown (4 boxes in length, each with an intersection sweep of 1/1 (1 box length lost for every box outward from the fuselage.). Along the line running parallel to the center, inboard of the half box tips, make marks. Then cut it out.
Solid lines indicate places to cut. Dotted lines indicate fold lines.
Note: 1 box = 0.25 inches
Step 3: Making the Rudder and Ventral Fins
Begin making your rudder by separating it from the elevators. Then cut one of the two layers of paper where the rudder should be off (I usually cut off the left myself). After you've cut these 6 boxes (3 by 2) off, you may discard them. Then cut half of a box upwards from the center (bottom) of the fuselage along the line you made previously for the ventral fins. After this, split the fuselage in half and cut along the fuselage's center crease to the cut 2 boxes in you just made. Then fold the two ventral fins up along the half box line as shown.
Step 4: Making and Taping the Fuselage
After having cut out all of the fuselage. Begin folding it along the dotted lines. After you've folded all the lines correctly, it should appear as it does in the second picture. Then tape your fuselage together at the noted places in the photograph.
Step 5: Applying the Wing and Trimming
Now it is time for you to work with your wing. Cut it out and fold along the given lines as shown. Then apply the fuselage to the bottom of the wing with tape. Cut off any excess that goes being the wings' edges. Now that the wing has been mounted, flip your airframe over. Unfold the winglets, and give your horizontal stabilizers a dihedral deflection of about 15 to 20 degrees and your ventral fins an anhedral deflection of about 20 to 25 degrees.
Step 6: Flight
Like most of my other airplanes, the Stinger is sharp little aircraft capable great speed and range. However, the Stinger is a more complicated airplane, and as a result it requires more flight time to understand just exactly how to fly it. As far as performance goes, the Stinger can deliver excellent results. It has proven to be just as fast and capable as the lighter Javelin (https://www.instructables.com/id/How-To-Make-The-Javelin-Paper-Airplane/), which was developed in parallel with it. Enjoy!