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Construction guide

Status: digital design workflow. No physical validation is claimed for an exported wing.

Choose a route

Route	Files	Stays in the wing	Still to design
Direct printed wing	Outer wing STL or print kit shell/core/optional rod walls	Printed bodies and reinforcement	Printer profile, orientation, supports, bed splits, joints, material and load validation
Retained core with composite skins	Inset core STEP plus ply patterns	Core, skins, bondline and reinforcement	Core manufacture, laminate/process qualification, joints and reinforcement
Molded composite wing	Upper/lower female mold STEP, inset core STEP and ply patterns	Core and composite laminate; tooling is removed	CAM or tool printing, release system, layup and cure process, assembly and validation

The plain STL is the outer wing, not a core reduced for composite skins. The print kit is an aligned multi-body slicer input, not a segmented wing kit. Wrapping either changes the outer surface. Core STEP reserves the specified skin and bondline allowances. Check them against the actual cured laminate.

Coordinate system and preparation

Dimensions are in millimeters. X is chordwise, Y spanwise and Z thickness. The model orientation is a design coordinate frame, not a recommended printer orientation. Check dimensions after import: STL itself does not store units. Use CAM for STEP tooling, or convert to a mesh for tool printing. Printed tooling needs a material, surface finish and temperature/process compatibility review.

No automatic bed sectioning, alignment-joint sizing or structural glue-up recipe is included. If splitting is necessary, record the split planes, joining method, reinforcement continuity and alignment tolerances before fabrication.

Molded composite sequence

1. Save the design and choose the laminate, core allowances and tooling settings.
2. Resolve fatal preflight errors. Review cutter and pull-direction warnings;

accepting a warning records a compromise, it does not prove manufacturability.

1. Manufacture and inspect the tooling. Confirm opposing halves align. Prepare

the surface and release system for the chosen resin and cure process.

1. Prepare the core and cut the scheduled plies. Verify patterns on the tool,

especially tips and ply drop-offs. Plan darts/splits where required.

1. Place the scheduled outer-to-inner plies in each tool, core/bondline and any

independently designed reinforcement. Use the material supplier's qualified cure process. Exported schedules do not specify validated resin or cure data.

1. Demold, finish and inspect. Record dimensions, mass, defects and the validation

plan before any ride testing. Keep the files and revision with the build.

First physical build: printed core with composite skins

Selected by Zach on 2026-09-22. The printed core stays in the finished wing. Builder: Zach. Printer: Zach's Prusa; model and usable bed dimensions still to record. Initial core material candidate: PETG. Zach is open to another filament if coupon results or process requirements justify it. This route is planned, not physically validated.

1. Save the wing and the proposed laminate schedule. Set core skin and bondline

allowances from the intended cured laminate, then inspect the resulting core.

1. Export Core STEP. Convert to a printable mesh and verify millimeter dimensions.

Do not substitute the full outer-wing STL, which has no wrapping allowance.

1. Record printer, bed size, core material, print orientation, wall/infill settings

and supports. Design any bed splits, alignment features and joints separately.

1. Before printing the full wing, print a small representative core coupon using

the intended settings. Apply the proposed surface preparation and composite skin, then record the result under the intended resin, consolidation and cure process. Establish the laminate and reinforcement plan before proceeding.

1. Print and inspect the core sections. Record dimensions and mass. Dry-fit and

join them with the reviewed alignment and reinforcement plan. Ply patterns are planning aids; verify fit around the actual core, tips and joints.

1. Apply the composite skins using that process. Record materials, ply order,

overlaps, resin and cure settings. Finish and measure the resulting surface.

1. Record defects, mass and dimensional results. Complete an appropriate

structural validation plan before riding. Retain the design revision and build evidence together.

The current manufacturing bundle targets female-mold construction. It is not the file checklist for this first build, which starts with Core STEP and the reviewed ply schedule/patterns. Automatic core sectioning and joint design remain open.

Physical evidence needed

Construction route: printed core with composite skins. Builder: Zach. Printer: Prusa, model to confirm. Filament: PETG candidate, not yet qualified. Record design/revision, printer or machine, bed/stock, material batches, settings, splits, joints, reinforcement, laminate order, resin, cure, finish, photos, measured dimensions and mass. Record structural test setup, loads, results, acceptance criteria and unresolved limitations. A successful export alone does not close this checklist.

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