Added the control cables to the fuselage. Decided how to attach the wing to the fuselage. Thanks to the many posts of the RCU of the Great Planes F-14 and F-15. I'm going to put anchor blind nut in the wing and bolt the wing from the bottom of the plane. No holes to see from the top and only two are needed. Plywood plates are installed for the bolts to run up to.
Next some bulk heads in the duct areas and fuel proof the fuselage compartment with Sig Dope.
< Message edited by Jim_Purcha -- 1/26/2008 11:32:07 PM >
Here are the added bulkheads and formers. The front of the ducts will be rounded off when I start finishing the model. How does butyrate dope cure at -5degrees C (23 degrees F) in a garage? Actually it's warm for this time of year.
< Message edited by Jim_Purcha -- 1/29/2008 12:02:01 AM >
We had a heat wave here in Canada today .... -3 degrees celsius. The garage was warmer than that, so I applied the sig dope to the fuselage. I have some prep work to do for the wing, so the fuselage can dry for a day or two. It's just the odor which has to dispense from the air.
I broke one of the shafts for the sullivan rods. I decided it was time to epoxy these in place and trim flush to the side of the fuselage. Noticed in the instructions, I should not have glued the firewall in place until after the stabilizer sections were in place. Have to work around that too.
< Message edited by Jim_Purcha -- 2/1/2008 4:07:02 AM >
Working out the assembly of the tail feathers. Epoxied the blind nuts into the firewall. Yikes ... I have 6.75" inches width at about 3" from the fire wall. I'm going to have to put the motor further out on the beams to get some prop clearance. Quick measurement ... I might have to use a 9" prop for clearance sake. Don't want to trim the tail on the maiden flight.
Also marked out and cut the slots for the hinges at this time. Using CA hinges for a tight fit. Like that Slot Machine.
On my other models, the super tiger 40 prop is about 4-1/2" from the firewall. I setup the firewall 4-1/2" from the edge of the building board. The center of the model is at 5 inches. Yup, there's clearance for a 10 inch pusher prop.
< Message edited by Jim_Purcha -- 3/10/2008 12:42:48 PM >
Epoxying the stabalizer in place. Everthing is weighted down and blocked into position. Tomorrow the tail section sheeting can go in place and the nose block. Wing ribs were cut weeks ago.
< Message edited by Jim_Purcha -- 3/10/2008 12:42:21 PM >
Ok the tail section is finished. Have to still work on the nose block, but after that no other work on the fuselage until the wing is done. Need the wing to build the turtle deck. Might bring this project to Wednesday's club meeting.
Test fitting the twin vertical fins. Starting to look like an F-18. Needs a wing and business office though. Might change the fins and add some balsa in top and bottom across the grain to stiffen the assembly. I can see it flying now!! After taking the fuselage to the Wednesday club meeting of the Big Sky Flyers, I was told to 1)start sanding some of that balsa off 2) maybe cut a hole or two at the back of the plane, 3) reduce the size of the bulk heads in the ducts so that the air can pass through with less obstruction. Will do item 1. Have done item 3. Item 2 I have to thing about.
< Message edited by Jim_Purcha -- 3/10/2008 12:44:14 PM >
Managed to chop up a piece of balsa for the nose block this weekend. Used a trick mentioned on RCU and split the block down the middle with a 1/16" piece of plywood. Glued two 1.5" pieces of balsa to the plywood, which were cut to the same profile on my scroll saw. Did some filling and sanding. It's a start, the shape is roughly there. Starting the wing tomorrow.
< Message edited by Jim_Purcha -- 2/19/2008 6:31:08 PM >
Cleaned up the table. Hung up the fuselage to save space and hanger rash. Starting the wing. Ribs were cut out first on this project so the wing should build up quickly. The original article which covered the 60 size model, said the middle section was left open for the 60 version only. Since the wing has to be taken apart, the bottom will be fully sheeted and fiberglassed. The plan just fits the Great PlanesBuilding board.
< Message edited by Jim_Purcha -- 3/9/2008 3:21:32 PM >
The wing construction is quickly progressing. Glued the bottom sheeting together, main, front and rear spars. Making sure to support the tips for 3/16" of wash out. Good thing I never cut the spar locations in the wing ribs, I can make adjustments in the spars for a better fit.
< Message edited by Jim_Purcha -- 3/9/2008 4:22:19 PM >
Used a couple of techniques learned from an older college from work who used to do C/L many years ago and built from plans. Never had a kit. To cut spars accurately, glue some sand paper to the spar size required and saw the notch in where you need it. Never tried it before, but the two 1/4" spruce spars are angled in the wing plan form. No problem with this method. Thanks John.
And RCU's Rainedave's suggestion of using a single edge blade for straight spar cuts against the grain works great too.
< Message edited by Jim_Purcha -- 3/10/2008 11:49:23 PM >
Have the ribs being glued in place on the wing plan. Forgot to make holes for the aileron connections thru the ribs. I'll do this before the wing skins are in place. Haven't decided which bay to place the servos in yet, so I cut holes in the first two ribs for servo wires. The original plan had torque rods in the wing.
< Message edited by Jim_Purcha -- 3/9/2008 4:19:51 PM >
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All Forums >> RC Airplanes >> Scratch Building, Aircraft Design, 3D/CAD >> RE: Mike Pastro's CT-114 or F-18 
RE: Mike Pastro's CT-114 or F-18 - 
