What's new
Van's Air Force

Don't miss anything! Register now for full access to the definitive RV support community.

3D Model of an RV-4

Sully73

Active Member
Would anyone have a 3D model of a RV-4? I work with Solidworks and would find that very handy to have.
 
Need to 3d scan one. I have been thinking about it but scanner rental is almost a grand a week.
 
Need to 3d scan one.

Someone has done it:

http://shapefidelity.com/portfolio-view/rv-4-airplane/

sfi-rv4-scan-650x400.jpg


sfi-rv4-mesh-650x400.jpg
 
I recently did a 3-D scan of a cowl and engine on another airplane, in order to assess mating and create some Plenum pathways. It really depends how accurate you want it to be. I used a sense 3-D scanner (cheap, not very accurate by engineering standards), but perfectly adequate for my needs. $400 on eBay. Did the job.
 
Keep in mind that using a 3D scanner to scan a solid body is like using a desktop (flatbed) scanner to scan a document. You end up with a massive, massive file compared to a file that directly describes the content. For a document that would be a text file with the actual letters in it. For a 3D model, that would be the shapes described as shapes rather than a mesh of points.

The link for the RV4 scan says that it comprised 24 million triangles. I doubt many people have a desktop computer that's even capable of viewing that model, let alone rotating it in 3D, or adding it to other models (say to fit it into a hangar, etc).
 
I recently did a 3-D scan of a cowl and engine on another airplane, in order to assess mating and create some Plenum pathways. It really depends how accurate you want it to be. I used a sense 3-D scanner (cheap, not very accurate by engineering standards), but perfectly adequate for my needs. $400 on eBay. Did the job.

How much resolution do you think you ended up with? Ive been looking to buy a 3d scanner but its tough to justify when I can rent a really nice one.
 
Scanner resolution

It is tough to say how tight the resolution is in actual use. I think the scanner claims a 0.9 mm accuracy. I did not have an original design file to compare my scan to in order to determine accuracy. I can send you an STL file to have a look at the scan quality. Shoot me a PM with you email if you want to go that route.

Dan
 
RV-4 3D model

Hi there,
I’m a modelar from Czech Republic. I take part in local scale competitions with a 1/4 scale model of Van’s RV-4. I really love how my RV-4 flies, but it is a bit too small for our competitions. So I would like to build a bigger one. In 1/3 scale. Static judges also have a bit of a problem with the shape of the cowling of my RV-4.
I found a link at this website with a 3D scan. (this link: https://web.archive.org/web/20210306140047/http://shapefidelity.com/portfolio-view/rv-4-airplane/ )
Is there any possibility to buy this 3D scan? Or Just the cowling and clear canopy?
Or does anybody bave a drawing of the cowling?

Many thanks
best regards
Vladimir Rynes, CZ
 
Back
Top