how should i tackle this helicopter boom?


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quinn
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hello everyone, im new to this forum as well as working with composites. I am designing and building performance rc helicopters using fusion 360 and a cnc that i designed and built. i have already finished my first prototype 700 class (700mm blades) heli and it was a huge success but there are a couple improvements i would like to make. One slight issue the heli has is tail vibrations at very high rpm. currently for the tail boom i am using roll wrapped 1mm wall, 0/90 degree carbon fiber tube. It is 30mm OD and 800mm long. it has excellent bending strength but because of the 0/90 weave, it is lacking in torsional stiffness which i am convinced is allowing the vibrations at higher rpm. I have actually confirmed this before by trying the same kind of tube on other existing heli designs which had an aluminum boom as stock. In my opinion, the solution is adding 45 degree weave with a braided sleeve to give it torsional strength. Using aluminum is another option but for best performance possible, weight is very important and use of carbon fiber is certainly going to make a lighter part for same strength. Easiest solution would be reinforcing an existing tube with braided sleeve on the inner or outer surface but i would like to take it one step further. usually these booms are braced by 2 rod supports at an angle reaching about 2/3 of the way down the boom, but a couple of manufacturers have made heavier duty tapered carbon fiber booms that dont need boom supports. Overall it looks better and can save even more weight. this is what i would like to do on my heli. I have attached 2 pics, one of the whole heli with the tapered boom on it, and the boom by itself. the boom is 800mm long, 30mm diameter out at the end and 40mm wide by 48mm tall at the base. this isnt the final design, i just quickly modeled it to give a representation of what it will be similar too. I am thinking most of it will be about 1mm thick wall with some extra layers at the base to bring it up to 1.5mm or so. fasteners will pass through the wall of the boom and thread into aluminum pieces placed against the inner wall of the boom so the boom wall is clamped against the side frames of the heli. 

so here are my questions. Considering i have a cnc at my disposal, what method is going to give the best results for an efficient part? As i mentioned, weight is very important so every gram counts, which means i would like to have as low of ratio possible of resin vs carbon fiber. since i need to have continuous 45 degree weave for torsional strength, that means i need to use braided sleeve which im sure complicates things since i cant just join 2 mold halves together after wetted out fabric has been layed in each side. 

here is what i picture working best, but i dont know exactly how to do it. 2 female mold halves and an air bladder to push the weave tight to the walls, but since im using sleeve, i need to be able to apply the sleeve layers to the bladder (partially inflated?) before laying it into one mold half, then bolt on other mold half, then inflate bladder.  im assuming this means i need to make a custom bladder that can be partially inflated that will be slightly smaller than the final size so it can be layed into the mold after weave has been applied and wetted out. i assume this type of bladder would also be made in a mold of its own, but needs to be smaller than the final mold. 

I have plenty of other questions about what to mill the molds out of and how to make custom bladders, etc. but i figured i should start by asking if i even have the right idea of how to tackle this, or if theres a better or easier way. any advice is greatly appreciated.  



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