If you ever wanted a 3D printed RC plane, here‘s a real beauty for tinkerers: The Kraga Kodo has a wingspan of 1.6 meters and is ultra-light thanks to 3D printing.

If you’ve ever been piloting an RC plane, you know it’s a great and rewarding hobby. But there are so many things that can go horribly wrong – especially if your inaugural flight takes a nosedive. Sure, you might end up with some spectacular footage for YouTube. But that doesn’t make up the hours you’ll spend in the workshop repairing your RC plane. That’s a lot of sanding, aligning and gluing.

Here‘s where 3D printing comes to help. It’s easier and cheaper to replace broken parts with the help of 3D printing. Or you could even construct your 3D printed RC plane.

If you were looking for a fully 3D printable RC plane, there was the 3D LabPrint website (All3DP reported). You could download the blueprints of several 3D printable RC airplanes for a price of $5 to $20. Most of the models are replicas of German and British World War II planes like the Spitfire Mk XVI, P47 N-15 Thunderbolt, Messerschmidt Bf 109 H/F.

But what if you want a 3d printed radio controlled plane that’s not about the looks, but also about the flying capabilities? And what if you wanted a really big 3D printed RC plane?

3D Printed RC Plane Kraga Kodo With an Impressive Wingspan

Enter the „Kraga Kodo“. The Kodo is a 3D printed RC plane with a wingspan of 1.6 meters and a length of 1 meter. According to Tomas Gallovic, the founder of Kraga, “the whole evolution of my plane took more than one year, and it’s final result is Kodo. I’m happy to say that it is really a joy to fly. Surely it can be improved in many ways. But it is a very good plane and an excellent proof of concept.”

Thanks to the virtues of 3D printing, this 3D printed RC plane weighs just 482 grams. Add a motor and wiring and you’ll end up with a ready-to-fly weight of 850 gram – not too bad for a 3D printed plane.

There are two kinds of 3D printed parts – some should be printed solid, some should be printed with 0% infill to reduce the weight of the plane. “You can use any material you like,” states Gallovic. Also, you’ll need some carbon tubes, carbon rods, hinges, a propeller and covering film for the wings.

The 3D printed RC plane requires a 4-channel RC and a printer that has a build volume of 15 x 15 x 10 cm. The motor size can be up to 30 mm. Your printer will be busy for roughly 50 to 75 hours to print all the parts. Kraga also provides a build guide on YouTube.

The digital blueprints / STL files cost $24.90. Once you bought them, you can print the parts as often as you like.