Landing Gear - Rear - single or double suspension

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UPDATE (Aug - 20 - 2025) - Front Landing Gear Model with adjustable suspension published. Also, retractable Front Landing gear is almost done and I will publish it soon.

 

UPDATE (Aug - 03 - 2025) - added wider angle suspension parts. If you need to install the landing gear more vertically oriented than ~45º a wider angle can be helpfull. All the other parts is the same. You can play replacing just the fisrt suspension stage, just the second or both.

 

UPDATE (Aug - 03 - 2025) - added one stage / single suspension option print profile. All the other parts are compatible. 

 

 

 

I printed a Raffaele RC model from Monkey Brains (link here), such an awesome design! I'm new to the RC world and used standard PLA to test the model, as I'm working with a Bambu Lab A1 Mini. For parts larger than 180mm, I had to slice them into smaller sections to fit my printer.

I reviewed the suggested landing gear design and explored other options online. After some thought, I decided to create my own custom landing gear from scratch.

I'm not a mechanical engineer (though I am a software engineer!), and I'm not experienced with advanced 3D modeling software, but I gave it my best shot through trial, error, and iteration.

Soon, I'll share my designs for the Rear Landing Gear (Single Suspension version), the Linear Wing-Aligned version, and the Front Landing Gear (also with single suspension). I hope you find them useful!

I also included two tire sizes, printed in TPU, which perform exceptionally well. Both tires use the same wheel, making assembly more straightforward.

I added lock pins as an alternative to using a screw washer with a small screw, giving you more flexibility in assembly.

Print Profile Recommendations:

• Layer Height: 0.2 mm (strongly recommended for optimal results)
• Infill: 15% (100% infill is possible but likely unnecessary)
• Supports: Required for some parts but easy to remove. If you're using Bambu Studio, the 3MF file is pre-configured with supports.

Testing Notes:

• Pressure Resistance: I successfully tested a standalone landing gear with over 5 kg of pressure. When mounted on the plane, the airframe is likely to break before the landing gear does! 
• I tested in a different and heavier plane! A Scout with a 130 cm wing span and 1.8 Kg RTF weight. Printed the LG in PETG, and so long three perfect take-offs and landings. The rear landing gear has the same angle, and the front landing gear is the same model, but with an improvement, it is steerable. Soon, I will publish the steerable front landing gear.

Suspension Design:

• The suspension needs to be tensioned. I used 2x 11x2.5 mm o-rings for the second stage and 1x 5x2 mm o-ring for the first stage.

 

Feel free to leave any questions or feedback in the comments. Happy printing!