gfdengine204

Thanks Dave!

Well, today was a prime example; building the rudder, I snapped the 1/8" square balsa TE piece while bending it to shape.....that irritates me a ton!

It's a great practice in building up that patience, though.

aviatordave

Its actually good meditation for the mind as well. This takes enough cooncentration that you forget about lifes problems. I found out that when I was working on the small stuff that I desperately needed glasses.....I guess 40 aint bad for the first pair.

Now if you cover this with Solite, you will test the ultimate 'patience level'

smokejohnson

I know I'm a little late in the game but it's a great build thread Kev. Good job.

pd1

Hi Kev,
There are a few different ways of bending strip stock.
Steaming
Soaking in water
Wetting with Windex or alcohol

And pressure, lay the strip on the workbench, then place a solid item( back of a razor saw works good) across the strip and pull the strip out from under the saw.
Maintain pressure on the wood strip and the strip will take a natural curve.

Paul

gfdengine204

I had glasses for distance in 8th grade.....had LASIK 2 Septembers ago, never looked back....as for up close, well, I can still see that without problems....

For covering, I am using the Hobby Lobby covering material that came in the combo package, so we shall see......anything you care to share about the Solite that might help a newbie? (Oh, how was flying today?)

James,

Thanks much! Hope you enjoy! And, yer never too late to say nice things!


Paul,

As always, you are da man in the know! Thanks for the tips; I have filed them for future reference.

Care to come out and help me finish this bird?



Tomorrow Steve is coming to help look her over and see how she's progressing. Started some sanding; will continue that and start the covering......

gfdengine204

Finally, a little time to work on Missy. Things have been crazy around here, what with the weather and work, and with my daughter Bekah needing ear surgery yet again. (New tubes for her ears, the kind that don't fall out easily. Hopefully this helps with fewer ear infections for my princess.)

Anyway, I've been asked for some mock-up pics, and here they are. Pardon the masking tape, wasn't sure how else to get them all on there for now. The wings have no dihedral in the pics, as I mocked it up before I sanded in the dihedral. But after the pics, I've been doing an hour to an hour and a half of sanding, and everything is sanded thru 320grit. Feels smooth in most areas now, so I figured I would take a break and upload these pics.

Grasshopper

Looks good Kev! When's the covering begin? What colors are you going to use?

gfdengine204

Thanks Tom. Covering as soon as Steve can come by to help me, and when he agrees with me that she is sanded enough. Colors are both transparent; red and yellow, with bright yellow Krylon for the white cowl.

I'm a little concerned about the dihedral; as I sanded it, I noticed it creates some gappage (is that a word? if not, it is now) between the wing panels. The instructions state to use epoxy to hold them together; I suppose it will work well. The instructions also state that there are not strong forces exerted on the wings, as it only requires 2 rubber bands to hold to the fuse, so I am hoping it will be ok. The gap is small; perhaps 1mm or less, and there IS a good area where the pieces mate completely. Maybe I am just worrying too much.

pd1

Hi Kev, Where's the gap?

If it's on the fuselage sides at the wing saddle you can add a small strip of balsa to fill it.
Before you cover the fuse.

If the gaps are at the wing joints, you might have a little more sanding or filling to do.

Plane looks good so far, get us some pictures of the gaps.

Paul

gfdengine204

Paul,

They are at the join between the center wing panel and the outer wing panels. I am afraid if I sand more, it will increase the dihedral more than that called for in the plan; it is set so the tips are 3 inches high, and they are there now....

I will go get some pics of the gaps though, and see what you think.

gfdengine204

Ok, here are the pics.....


Here is the complete joint, between the center panel and the right (as viewed from above/behind) panel. Note the slight gap at the bottom.

The gap is slightly more that 1mm at the bottom; gee, almost looks like a CSI photo shoot.....LOL

The top and middle of the joint; note no gap. There seems to be a good amount of area here for epoxy to work on.

A view from the bottom of the wing; this is the Leading Edge half. No gap here.

The bottom view, Trailing Edge. If I squeeze it the gap disappears.

OK folks, I am open to suggestion here. Is it possible the gap will disappear when I epoxy and clamp the panels? (Man, I can't wait to build a lazer cut model.....LOL)

Sky Sharkster

Hello Kev,
Good progress on the build so far, you're almost done!
The pics of the dihedral break show too much gap. Generally, everything should fit together, front, rear, top, bottom, with no additional pressure or squeezing.
What they meant by not much pressure on the wings and using 2 rubber bands, was, there's not much force trying to move the wings off the wing rest.
However, the force generated by (say) pulling out of a dive, loop or other vertical maneuver is very strong, and is mostly absorbed by the dihedral joint. I wouldn't be too far off by saying the dihedral joint is the single most critical joint in the aircraft.
So, more sanding! Try this method...For 3" total dihedral, place a shim so that ONE wing panel is raised 1-1/2" up and the root (center) rib is right on the end or edge of your board. Holding the sanding block exactly vertical, sand the rib and end of the board at the same time. What you're doing is using the board as a straight-edge, to as to not sand a curve in, or sanding the front and rear more than the center, which is what's happening now. If you just hold the wing panel (above the board) in your hand while sanding, it "rocks" or wiggles slightly, resulting in the curve or uneven sanding. With your other hand, hold the Leading edge and trailing edge tightly, so the wing can't move backward and forward, even the slightest bit.
Also, do not let the sanding block move off the vertical, or there will be another gap, similar to the one you're seeing.
Repeat for other panel.
Sorry to be so picky, but you've done a great job so far, keep up the standard! This is a critical area, be exacting and it will pay off.
Ron

gfdengine204

Thanks Ron,

Picky is fine. I am picky too. I just don't want to sand too much and be up a creek, so to speak.

pd1

Hi Kev,
I agree with what Ron said.
And on sanding the edge, sand slowly.
It's much faster to sand slowly and not have to repair the joint.

All joints should be as close as possible.
Wood to wood is a lot stronger joint than trying to fill a gap with glue or epoxy.

I've made mistakes too, and if you sand too much you can actually glue some sheet wood on to use as filler then sand that to size.

Do they use any spar ties?

Paul

gfdengine204

Nope no spar ties. It is noted that they would not be required, especially if the covering is strong. <shrug>

Anywho, I did what Ron recommends, and it tightened up the joint nicely. I think it will work much better now. That suggestion about the sanding board was GENIUS! Dang, I have so much to learn.

Anyway, I've mocked it up again to take to Wednesday's club meeting. We'll see how the local experts feel too.


How about another opinion from you guys. The instructions seem to imply I should cover the wing panels individually, then epoxy them together. Sound like the best plan, or is there an advantage to epoxying them first, then covering. Also, if this matters, I am planning on covering the center section in a different color (red) than the outer panels (yellow).

Thanks for all the help, folks!

pd1

Kev, It's personal preference on the covering sequence.
I like the wing all joined before I cover it.

Personally I always use some sort of spar tie.
I will use 1/32 ply cut with a scissor or even a balsa spar doubler.

Since I have never seen that plane fly I am only guessing.
And again, that's only my personal feeling.

Paul

Liquidity

I am on the other side of the fence. I would cover it before gluing the wing together. That way you get a nice tight cover job with zero overlap at the middle of the wing.

Oh also have dihedal built into the wing, covering that when they are together is no fun, for me at least.

gfdengine204

Well, I am leaning towards gluing it up before covering it. It just seems the logical sequence. Despite that 15degree angle in the dihedral.

I'll give a good look to the wing spar thought; though, many others have flown it without and I have yet to hear of a bad situation without it, but I will give 'er a look-see.

Paul, I don't care what Tom said, you are a good egg!

Grasshopper

I would tend to agree on assembling the wing then covering. If you cover each panel, you will want to wrap the covering over the edges then you will have the covering material in between the ribs you need to join together. It's best to have as much wood to wood contact as you can get in those areas.

gfdengine204

Broham,

Was typing my previous post before this was up, and just saw it. I see that point as well.

I am going to wait til Steve comes over to help me cover it anyway, and I will defer to his expertise, but will keep all the other input from here in it as well. I am sure she will come out quite flyable. I hope to have a nice docile camping flyer for my camp trips.

gfdengine204

Oh, decisions, decisions......LOL

You guys are great, yanno. It's too bad this All-Electric club we call Wattflyer has it's members spread over such a WIDE area......

pd1

Kev, The best method is to use whatever method Steve wants you to use.

Paul

gfdengine204

Paul,

Very well put. I mention the ideas from here and we kinda discuss pros/cons, then go from there. He's a great mentor.

gfdengine204

OK Here is the mockup withthe dihedral. And, to my surprise, the wingtips come to within 1/8th inch of the same height.

Airhead

Hey Kev,
That looks like a really neat job. Keep up the good work..