Rumble

My Feedback: (10)

Don't want to start a fight, but would like some honest Pros and Cons of Foam Core vs. Build Up wing construction. I am considering the purchase of a 40% edge or yak in the near future and am only familiar with the built up construction type.

Ken Bryant

My Feedback: (10)

Good thread question. I am also wondering which is better and why. I like the foam core that I have on my Edge, it's is far less suseptable to damage. My built up Ultimate wing will puncture so easily.

jsm77777

My Feedback: (4)

For the most part, foam wings usually will be stiffer, and easier to build than built up wings. Once skinned on a flat surface, you will have stiff, strong, straight wings. Built up wings will be lighter, but if you know what your doing the foam wings won't weigh that much more. Also, more kits are manufactured with foam cores versus built up wings. Each have their advantages. Scott

juanes1969

I have had the two types in giant scale airplanes and now I`m cutting my own foam wings. Not that I don`t like the built up ones, but because it is easier to build with foam and they are easy to repair too. There was a thread about this somewhere here but can`t find it. There are pros and cons but it is really a matter of preference. For example there is more strength at the tip of a foam wing that there is on a similar built up and supposedly you don`t need it, and it is supposed to produce more inertial moments when you roll the plane. I find it easier to repair my foam wings by cutting the piece that is bad and shaping and glueing the new one and re-sheeting. I could go on with the pros and cons, there has been some talk about it here, but for me the truth is that it is a matter of what you are more confortable with.
I didn`t know much about foam wings until I got my first plane that had them, then I learned how to fix it when I crashed it (it was a .40 pylon mustang) But I still appreciate the built up wings on my other kits.
As I said before, I know there is a thread about this... sorry I could not get it for you.
If you don`t find it, there are other guys you can contact directly. (Dick Hanson just to name one)
Just my 2 cnts.
John

earthecreature

EPP foam is a magnificent product. We can cut it, fly it, bounce it off buildings and other planes. I have build four planes ready to cover in one night. It is so fast to build with. Look at our club site at www.utahflyers.org and look at the foam cutting video and the Unicorn combat video and then tell me a good reason to build balsa. It really is that good.

I have flown 34 years and built hundreds of planes many of which are balsa. After all of these years I don't do anything but EPP planes now. I want to spend my time flying not building and the planes fly just as well and just don't need repairs very often.

Lee

T. Bob

My Feedback: (9)

Foam wings are better
Not so much for the wings but the ailerons are stiffer.
A lot more resistant to flutter.
Anything above 100'' should be foam.

scottfl78

I concur with the above.. Foam wings hold their airfoil better throughout high G maneuvers/aerobatics.. Easier to build and repair as well..

JuniorPilot

foam will hold up better with vibration

Rcpilot

My Feedback: (78)

Built UP WING:

PROS:
Simple building tools--razor knife, glue, sanding block
Lightweight
IMO--Faster than a foam wing

CONS:
More parts to glue together
Easier to screw it up--it you can't build straight
Some say, more sanding, but not if you do it right.

FOAM WING:

PROS:
Lower parts count
Easier to repair
Not as easy to poke a hole in it

CONS:
Specialty tools required for building--Bandsaw, weights, maybe a vacuum bagger, long sanding bar for the butt edges of sheeting.
Heavier--which can have a positive effect on your plane--or a negative effect. Depends on what you WANT and how you FLY
Gotta be carefull with the heat when covering. It's possible to melt the foam under the skins if you apply too much heat.

I personally prefer a built up wing. I've been building for almost 8 years. I've done about 8 or 10 foam wings, turtledecks, hatches, etc. Everything else has been built up.

I can stick all my pieces--ribs, spars, TE, LE--down on the board and glue it all up before your even done sanding and glueing the skins together. You just measure and trim stock balsa to length before you glue it down. Makes for less sanding later.

I just use a small protractor to get all my ribs aligned. Leave the root ribs loose on the top--so you can set the dihedrahl later.

Sheeting the LE and TE of a balsa wing is a piece of cake. Just get the CA bottle out and start slammin'. Need cap strips? Thats not really a big deal either. Only takes a few seconds to cut a cap strip with the razor saw and glue it down.

I hate butt sanding skins for foam wings. If they aren't perfect--you'll end up with a bubble in your skin after it's stuck down--then what you gonna do???[:@]

I don't have a bandsaw--so I gotta borrow one from a friend. Load the wings up in the truck and make the trip over to a friends house. Get it all out and square it up. Then cut out my ailerons and flaps. Load it all back up and then waste the rest of the afternoon B.S.ing with my buddy.[:-]

There's NO argument, a foam wing is heavier than a built up wing.

I'm NOT trying to start a fight either. Im just stating my opinion--and it's only based on my own experiences. I just like built up better, for various reasons.

There are PROS to foam wings. But, for me, it doesn't outweigh the PROS of a built up wing. But, thats just my situation. Maybe if I had a bandsaw, it would be easier. But, I got a very bad back (2 surgeries in the last 6 months) , and lifting a bunch of weight up on the bench for every wing I build is a bad idea for me. So, foam just isn't the best thing for me.

T. Bob

My Feedback: (9)

All good points.
But don't you think after a certain size (ie 100'') foam is better?