Jan_Petter

Hi,

I studied doublebs pics before doing my fairings, a very good help. I still made one big mistake, I used too long pieces of balsa along the wing. Thought it would be more streamlined with two long pieces instead of several short ones. Big mistake, I had to sand down to allmost nothing to get i so-so. Do it just the way doublebs shows, and you will be fine.

And, if you make a mistake, it is allways possible to start all over

Good Luck!

doublebs

today i got my hinge pockets all SIX of them .after studying the instructions more i see i need EIGHT !!! DOUGH!!!!! so i'll have to order more . at least i can start one side .

berrick

Jan_Petter

Hi Berrick.

Eight !?! How do you place 8 hinges in that confined space??????????

Had to test my flitemetal today, and what a challenge! Allmost impossible to avoid wrinkles, air bubbles, and holes... Need to practise a lot, this wasn't easy, and result no good. Anyone having any experience with flitemetal, tips are welcome

Snaer810

Hey Guys,

Jan, the flitemetal on those doors still looks pertty darn good.

Not sure why you would need 8 pockets though. Wouldn't you need just 4 for the interior doors? But then I have not ever used pockets before so you may have to enlighten me. Aren't the pockets used to slip the hinge points in so they are adjustable when setting the set screw? What size hinge pts. did you use on the inner doors and if you use 1/8' hinge pts. would you use 1/8" pockets?
These are all new to me...........[sm=confused.gif]


Evening Berrick
I was wondering if you ended up staying with the soft mount or went to a hard mount with your DA? If you went with the hard mount could you send out some pics on the installation.

BTW the glassing on the wing is looking real nice. Did you stay with your Z-poxy?


Tom,
Good luck on your wing fairings.....I know most on most of the write ups that this was kind of tricky and time consuming. But it was also said that taking your time with this portion of the project will yeild great results.


Talk to Fella's later.


Mike

doublebs

hello evry1 , ok , the hinge pockets are what the hinges slide into . first there are the verticle pockets . 2 per dorr x 2 = 4 . second . last night after reading [ interpretting ] the instructions , i realized that i must also put pockets in the door skins ! 2 per door x 2 = 4 , so that makes 8 pockets and 4 hinges . this allows for adjustment both vertically and side to side . isn't this right ??? now i don't know what to do !!

here is a pic of tom's . am i wrong about this tom?

help .....

berrick

Snaer810

Hey Berrick,

Thats what I was wondering.......could not tell by the picture if there were pockets in the doors also or not. Almost looked like the hinges were epoxyed into the wing skins and then being able to adjust them in the pockets that are installed in the wing hinge platform. But I think I see a set screw at the hinge pt. in the door.

Kind of interesting that Wayne's instructions are not more specific.

What about your motor mount Berrick.....When you get around to it...........

Thanks

Mike

tomtope

Yes you are correct on the hinge pockets and this gives you unlimited adjustments. when i ordered my doors i asked wayne to send me everything i needed and he sent me eight. Thanks for all the great pics on the wing fillets. i took the half scale cross sections that showed them and blew them up full scale this gave me a starting point. unfortunatly still at starting point but making some progress Thanks again everyone.


Tom

Jan_Petter

Sorry for contributing to the confusion, of course hinge pockets are twice the number of hinges. I used wheel collars my self, and it worked out fine.

Today I have continued the glassing of the fuselage, and finished the glassed wings using 240 grit sandpaper. It all came out pritty nice. I've also transferred the panel lines to the top of the wing, only 38 panels [:-]

I guess my patience will be tested once more, when I start applying the 38 pieces of flitemetal... (And this is only the top side of the wing...[X(])

dragonfly24_24

hey jan that fiberglass job looks top notch did you use the epoxy finishing resin?

tomtope

Ok seems to be going good now thanks for everyones help here are some picks.


Tom

P.s. Feel like i had my hand held through the fillets LOL.

Jan_Petter

Hi all,

Used Z-Poxy finishing resin. Very easy to put on and to sand. I put the bottles in hot water 5 mins befor mixing, makes it easy to just "paint" on with a brush.

The fairings are coming a long very well Tom. And you will have a big smile all over your face, when you are finished

Today I have put FliteMetal to the test. Tried to follow Ed Claymans advice, and it wasn't as difficult as I feared. With small panels, it was quite simpel to get it smooth. BUT, this 1/4 of a wing tok me 5 hours to finish.....[X(]

So I was right, this is really a test of ones patience

tomtope

looks great Jan


Tom

Jan_Petter

Thanks, but I guess the ultimate test will be to scrutinize the complete aircraft in direct sunlight

Still hope it will look OK.

dragonfly24_24

the big test will be wether or not it will stay on in flight. since you are useing small panels to cover the wing it leave room for air to get under all thoughs seams. it shure does look good though. hope everything comes out. i took my wing panel down off its pedalstool its been on for about 2 months and cut one servo hole out and put it back on the shelf.

Jan_Petter

With all those rivets, I think it will stay on

Seriously, i hope it will stick. The glue on the flitemetal seems very strong, and I have burnished the aluminum quite heavily, so I hope for the best. And I will try to keep sub-sonic the first flights

QUESTION:

Anyone having a drawing or picture, or link that shows the panel lines on the underside of the wing? Cannot find it on the net... []

doublebs

hey jan , tonight i will post the only panel line pics i have .i'll scan it iut of a book i have .

tom , what did you use to mount the cylinders to the inner doors . i know there is a slot to cut out and i did slot and glue a piece of ply in there but doesn't say how to attach cylinder . i was going to scuff up some brass plate and glue it in . then just drill out a hole for the attachment point . i spent all long weekend working on the doors and got them done . i will post pics of my progress later tonight .

jan i think your f.m. looks fantastic!!!! . did you buy the 1/5 kit from them ? do you think i comes with enough material ? i heard best results come from using a 3 view drawing to cut out panel lines . what are you using ? keep posting pics i would love to see more . can't wait until i'm at the stage where your at .

Jan_Petter

Hi berrick,

I ordered the 1/5 kit, and got three rolls of f.m. I've finished the top surface of the wing, and I still got some left on the first roll. So i guess it should be enough to go around.

I simply transfered the drawing on the last page of the TF manual to the top of the wing. I just used an inch rule and judged by the eye, came out close enough for me.

Would of course like to apply panels close to scale under the wing as well, so I'm looking forward to your pics. (And of your doors )

BR;
Jan P.

Edit: I will post some more pics of the wing later.

tomtope

Berrick, I used a piece of brass rod and epoxied it in place. If i did it again i would use machine screws with nut inside so i could remove the doors from cylinders. as it is hard to get to bottom of wheel well to take loose.

were you able to make outer doors function with the inner plastic? If so guess i need one new inner door. Well maybe i need a couple more sets LOL.


Tom

Snaer810

Jan,

The flite metal work looks great.....Nice Job. When they talk about "burnish" the covering is that actually rubbing in or down the FM with some type of tool. Never used this stuff.....just wondering.

Doublebs, be great to see your gear door installation.

Still stuck here, waiting for my gear doors and engine package.

Later all,

Mike

FliteMetal

Hello Jan:

I noticed you didn't prime your surface before beginning to apply Flite-Metal.
How smooth is the surface of the resin and glass? Doesn't the fiber-glass show
beneath the Flite-Metal? Any surface imprefections showing?

Normally, we see the plane's surface prepared as it if were about to be painted
prior beginning the application of Flite-Metal.

Typically, each Flite-Metal panel requires between thirty and fourty-five seconds
to apply. If you are taking longer, you are burnishing too hard and in too small
a stroke with your "index finger" before using the burnishing tools per directions
accompanying Flite-Metal. Otherwise, you are doing a lot of unnecessary work.

For example, the typical F-100 BVM fuselage requires about seven hours to cover.
That is with a lot of surface detail burnished through to show on the outside.

I noticed you are using regular masking tape instead of 3M Fine Line Polypropelene
tape to outline each panel. The edge of regular masking tape is soft and does not
provide the crisp edge required to quickly and cleanly cut the perimeter edge after
you have burnished the aluminum across the masking. This is probably where you
are spending a lot of extra time and effort.

If you can not find 3M Fine Line mauve green tape look for a plastic masking tape
which is harder/firmer than regular masking tape. definately do not use what is
sold as "Painter's Tape". It is a soft blue colored masking. It is of no better use
than regular masking tape except for its adhesive being a quicker cleaner release.
3M Fine Line tapes are available internationally...the product 218 would be what
you are looking for in 1/4 to 1/2 inch widths.

I tried to cover as many areas as possible to help expedite your covering process
while making it much easier to do. The adhesive on Flite-Metal is aggressive and
does not need to be burnished heavily to achieve the intended results. On larger
panels squirt a small amount of Windex onto the surface to provide a slip to your
aluminum to position it properly prior to beginning to burnish. The adhesive is so
strong it will tend to cling to the surface without burnishing.

If there are questions you would like me to address...post them within the thread
and I will provide an answer...hopefully :^)

dragonfly24_24

thank you ed clayman for your help and techniqe's about application. it should do us all a great deal of good.

FliteMetal

I try to cruise the web reviewing the progress of customers. I look for questions about
application and finishing of Flite-Metal. Because the product result is somewhere around
40% customer creativity and 60% material attribute, I typically learn something new to
share about Flite-Metal on a daily basis.

A product of this nature relies on innovative use and experimentation. Because it is used
in a competitive arena...many tips and how-to's appear in RCU and elsewhere on the web
frequently. The creative talent of our customers is a reward enjoyed by all. Flite-Metal is
nothing without its customer's artful skills.

Four people can apply Flite-Metal to exactly the same airframe with four entirely different
results of detail and finish. Its fun to see different processes and new uses.

Jan_Petter

Hi again all,

Good feedback and good help Ed, thanks!

I didn't prime the surface before applying Flite-Metal, I only sanded carefully with 240 grit paper. This will of course not give a 100% flawless surface, maybe only 85%. The fiberglass does not show, but a few imperfections will of course show. The Flite-Metal are unforgiving that way (Like most coverings)

But, this is my first "Flite-Metal project" and the model is not a competition model, only sport scale. For me it's a great learning process.

Yes, I realize that I have overdone the burnishing. Have found that a smal straight piece of balsa block give the best result as a burnishing tool. It is soft enough not to make any scratches, and still hard enough to burnish well. I halved the processing doing the bottom wing this way. I guess I still can save a lot of time using the tape you recomend, clearly specified in your instructions (But hard to get in my local shops) Regular masking tape is hard to cut at the right place because it is to soft, and often leaves a trace, which is time consuming to remove, without destroying the seam.

I have covered relativly large panles on the bottom wing, and it has worked out great, even without windex. The trick seems to be to strech the Flite-Metal well, before lowering on to surface, and be sure that only the centre section of the panel touches at first. The burnished from the "centre line" outwards.

Even if this is my first experience with Flite-Metal, and it seemed quite tricky at first, I am now very happy with the result and progress. I should of course have listened to Eds advice, and started with the bottom section before I did the top side, because now the underside will be much nicer than the top. I guess I'm in for a lot of inverted low passes...

I just had to mount the wing temporarily, just to get an overall impression.

BTW 1: I removed every other theeth on the riveting tool to make it more scale like.
BTW 2: Ed, I believe a short video showing the basics of the application methods would be a kick start to new customers

Cheers all.

dragonfly24_24

looking good jan i only hope once i get motivated enough to start working on mine again, that it looks as good.

doublebs

thanks jan for the f.m. info .haven't had time to read responses here but i saw f.m. jumped in . cool! i will read what he says later . i'll try to quickly upload panel lines i got . tonight for sure i will throw up some pics of my weekend progress . just got a parcel from tower . should have strut couplers for door attachment and my new airbrush kit . who ever said that christmas only comes once a year needs to get into this hobby . christmas comes with every order we make .

later

berrick