- 3D printed drone sets new verified speed record of 408 mph
- DIY quadcopter regains Guinness title after record changes hands
- The project shows how hobby engineering continues to push the speed limits
A fully 3D-printed quadcopter has set a new speed benchmark for DIY aircraft, reaching 408 mph during verified test flights.
The drone, called the Peregreen V4, was built and flown by engineer and YouTuber Luke Maximo Bell with his father.
At that speed, it’s probably the world’s fastest DIY aircraft ever, faster than the P38 Lightning at about 414 mph, though still trailing the Tu-95’s roughly 575 mph figure.
A new Guinness World Record
The speed was recorded as part of an official trial overseen by Guinness World Records, using an average of two runs to account for wind conditions.
The fastest upwind run reached 659 km/h (410 mph), while the fastest upwind pass recorded 599 km/h (372 mph), producing a verified average of 657 km/h (408 mph).
That achievement puts the drone ahead of its immediate competitors in the do-it-yourself category, reclaiming the record held by Australian engineer Ben Biggs.
Biggs had previously set a record of 626 km/h with his Blackbird drone, briefly taking the title from the Bell team.
The Peregreen V4 project took more than two years and relied heavily on computational fluid dynamics simulations and repeated flight tests.
Its airframe was printed as a single continuous piece using multiple materials, including PETG, PA6-CF and TPU.
Bell said: “The new printer’s larger build volume and dual nozzle system allowed the body to be printed as one continuous piece. This gave us smoother aerodynamics and a much higher surface finish than before.”
Three different motor designs were evaluated before the team settled on the T-Motor 3120, prioritizing temperature stability over peak load.
The motors selected were modified from 800KV to 900KV to allow higher rotational speeds and improved peak performance.
Aerodynamic improvements also included grinding and polishing the body and trimming the propellers from 7x5in to approx. 6in.
Although unusually fast for a quadcopter, Bell has hinted that the record is unlikely to stand for long, and development work on future versions is already well under way.
If you want to make your own drone and try to take the record for yourself, we can only wish you the best of luck and suggest you take a look at our list of the best 3D printers to get started.
Via Tom’s hardware
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