Wing fillet and glassing question
08-10-2006, 10:59 AM
#1
Wing fillet and glassing question
I will be doing the Top Flite G.S. P51 ready to cover and I will be glassing it. My question is this: the wing fillets are made of fiberglass or something like it. Should I glue those on and fill the cracks between the fillets and the fuselage and then glass it over should I make smaller fillets out of balsa or should I do something else all together???
Thanks,
Jim
Thanks,
Jim
08-10-2006, 11:31 AM
#3
RE: Wing fillet and glassing question
Here's a great thread on building up fillets...
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.a...wing%2Cfillets
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.a...wing%2Cfillets
08-10-2006, 12:08 PM
#4
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RE: Wing fillet and glassing question
Richard's method will give great results. It is very possible with some effort to have a nice tight fit. So many planes have a really noticable gap at the joint, its a shame. Dave Platt uses a similiar method adding a slight build up on the wing so that the seam is vertical instead of horizontal.
Carl
Carl
08-10-2006, 06:06 PM
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RE: Wing fillet and glassing question
The kit's fillets work well, they are light, and fast. I mounted the wing, glued on the fillets, and feathered them to the fuselage with filler later. As Carl suggested, you can fair in the wing to the fillet, it's easy to do. With the wing installed, glue a strip of 1/16"X1/4" basswood or spruce on to the wing, right up against the fuselage fillet. When dry, fair in this strip to the wing, I went out about 4" using soft balsa. The seam looks good, quite scalelike in appearance. Hope this helps.
John
John
08-11-2006, 09:00 AM
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RE: Wing fillet and glassing question
Another method is:
If you want to do a small fillet on the wing for a vertical seam you can sand the edge of the fuse fillet just a bit to give some thickness to the edge. Cover the fuse fillet with tape then mount the wing. Use epoxy and micro balls or polyester resin to fill the edge of the fuse fillet to a smooth flow on to the wing. The gap will be the thickness of the tape. I image this could be done with the kit fillet. I do this after the wing is glassed and before primer. For the best fit you don't want to add any thing but a thin coat of paint to the mating surfaces.
Carl
If you want to do a small fillet on the wing for a vertical seam you can sand the edge of the fuse fillet just a bit to give some thickness to the edge. Cover the fuse fillet with tape then mount the wing. Use epoxy and micro balls or polyester resin to fill the edge of the fuse fillet to a smooth flow on to the wing. The gap will be the thickness of the tape. I image this could be done with the kit fillet. I do this after the wing is glassed and before primer. For the best fit you don't want to add any thing but a thin coat of paint to the mating surfaces.
Carl
