Calvinman

Hi Hsukaria,

I agree with what Jerry says, don't be afraid of a built up wing. While it is nice to use two incidence meters and a laser, you can get away with using short pieces of dowel between the two #1 ribs in the wing jig holes and aligning the shear webbing on the spars to the wing plan when joining and it will be very straight indeed.

Mike

YellowBlueBird

The nose blocks are starting to look about right. They were sanded with the engine in place and well wrapped.

YellowBlueBird

This is how the elevators are split using two push rods and a homemade part soldered and wrapped with copper wire.



Looks like more than an adequate amount of elevator movement.



Has anyone had a problem with the Robart ball joint coming out of the control horn?

Calvinman

Looks good Jerry, I like your soldering, is that silver solder? My solders sure don't look that "professional"

YellowBlueBird

This addition to the Robart centering tool helps keep the hole centered when drilling into a chamfered edge. The smaller size bit has less of a tendance to walk to the side. The second bit sticks to the hole of the first smaller bit and the 1/8" bit follows the second one without wanting to pull to the side.



The solder came from Radio Shack and may have some silver in it. I will check.

Jerry

Sport_Pilot

Sig doesn't make a pattern plane. The Kouger is similar, but has wing washout and other features to make it easier to fly. The Sig planes may be OK for novice though.

YellowBlueBird

The solder is tin, copper and silver from Radio Shack When I started using this things started looking better.

YellowBlueBird

This is where placing the wings to the plan is very important. Some kit instructions state that the rigs are to be snugged up to the shear webbing and the slight differences will not matter. That next to the last rib is what I use to set the wing. The tape measure rests solidly in the juncture of the rib and trailing edge. place a straight pin in the center of the end of the fuselage and measure to it shifting the wing until both measurements are the same. Hold the wing in place with masking tape and drill the wing hold down holes using a guide block to set the angle. Notice the slant of the 1/4 20 tap.

YellowBlueBird

This worked well for setting the horizontal stabilizer and fin to the fuselage. The wing was set to the fuselage earlier. After the wing center section has been epoxied and covered it will be checked and the wing saddle will be sanded to match. This was done in the first stage of construction. The setting usually changes after more work is done but not by very much.


The laser is a new addition to my tool collection. A carpenters level and a triangle from the school supply store has worked well for the last 60+ years. I like gadgets and this was an excuse to pick up another one.

We have had some decent weather in NC this past week. Building took a back seat to flying and gardening. Lots of sanding left and then covering and painting.

Jerry

Calvinman

Good work Jerry, you probably won't even have to trim her out!

Calvi

YellowBlueBird

Just a note to let everyone know that I have not gone away. The one who pours fun drinks (see post 51) is a fan of ACC Women's Basketball. We have been in Greensboro most of our waking hours this past week and today.

There is not much to show during the sanding phase. I plan to weigh the airframe before starting the covering process and again when it is finished.

Jerry

Calvinman

Looking forward to seeing more progress Jerry. I thought I was at about the same stage as you are with my Ultra Sport 40 but all I have done is the wing. I have glued the fuse doublers on though.

Calvi

Calvinman

Still sanding Jerry?

I glued up my fuse yesterday, going to get the firewall ready to glue in tonight.

Calvi

YellowBlueBird

At last the sanding is complete and the first two coats of nitrate have been applied.
Here are some weights
Wing no nitrate or covering with ailerons not yet cut to shape 492.6 grams
After fiber glassing center section 543.8 grams

Fuselage 454.4
after one coat of nitrate with talc 454.6

coating fuel bay and inside of cowling wit epoxy added 9.2 grams

The wing is now covered with Sig Koverall.

It is starting to look good.

Jerry

dmbaerry

Hey Jerry nice build. I am in Burlington NC and am currently working on a Bluejay LoadStar 40. Your build looks fantastic. Keep up the hard work.

YellowBlueBird

Thanks for the encouragement. The Koverall is in place and the model is now in the doping phase. Not a lot to photograph. I do enjoy watching all of the wrinkles and waves go away under the heat gun, never to return.

Jerry

dmbaerry

very cool.. I am thinking of using laminant film (Doculam) on the load star and then painting..The wood in my kit is a bit inconsistant how is yours?

YellowBlueBird

There are two building seasons in NC. Winter and monsoon. This is monsoon. Some of the measurements did not make sense, most likely due to moisture changes in the balsa. If the weather holds tomorrow should be good for an outside picture of the finished airplane

Weight of wing after fiberglass 490.4 grams
After covering with Sig Coverall 535.6 grams
After two cots of nitrate 559.2
After final coat of nitrate 582.8
After final coat of white butyrate 657.0
After clear butyrate 695.0


weight of fuselage after coating with nitrate 450.4
After sanding with #400 sandpaper 450.0
After coating engine and fuel compartment with epoxy 459.2
After white butyrate and red trim 532.6
After coating with clear butyrate 560.4

Calvinman

Hi Jerry good to see you back at it(or have you been sanding all this time?) I am going to have to try glassing a plane sometime, I am just lazy going with monocote all the time

Calvi

YellowBlueBird

Hi Calvi,

The summer has had many good flying days. Some weeks I have gone flying as many as three days. My wife wants to know how I stay so long. Its not hard, I tell her i will be home when I run out of airplanes, fuel or daylight. Our rental business demands much of my time during the summer. The outside areas of each building require a lot of maintenance during the summer,mowing, pruning, etc.

There are three models in the shop at the same stage of completeness, each needs the final finish coat. Two are doped and one has received a coat of two part auto clear and now needs to be sanded and re-coated in hopes of reducing the orange peel affect.

Today was lawn maintenance day so tomorrow afternoon may be a fly day if the weather permits. NC is in for a lot of rain during the next several days..

A picture of the chaos will be coming when the weather permits.

Jerry

Calvinman

Ah yes the fun of living in a part of the country with seasons, winter hibernation, spring clean up, summer work and fall clean up. It sounds like you got some good stick time in though. When I go out I go for the day also, taking 3 aircraft and trying to get 3flights on each before I pack it in for the day. I have only made it out maybe 5 times this year, but hopefully we have a long warm fall so I can get a few more marathon sessions in. Looking forward to seeing the pics.Calvi

ablair12

Jerry, I have enjoyed reading your build right up to the climatic end! I am getting ready ready for a killer chaos build and of course your build fits right in there. I originally would ready the first posting and then jump to the end, but typically I didn't get much out of it. So, I changed my ways and just like a good book I have read all the way through. Now to complete my journey where is that final pic?

I really enjoyed reading and learning quite a few things from you and Calvinman. Take care and put a final pic up please!
Anthony

YellowBlueBird

unable to upload pictures will try again later

Calvinman

Wow very nice, clean looking build Jerry!

Calvi

ablair12

Jerry, I am a little late but thanks for the pics! Great job looks nice!