ORIGINAL: Gringo Volador
I always hear this phrase ¨I am going to buld it light¨ But what exactly does it mean? What do you guys do to shed the ounces. My first kit was a Funky 40 from CA models, its a 3d machine that looks like swiss cheese bc of all the wood they cut out of the kit to lighten it. For the motor I have on it, it has marginal pull out power. I am sure I built it a little heavy as it was my first kit. I am thinking about buying another kit and trying to build it as light as possible.
So how do you guys keep your birds skinny? I am wanting to cut the weight down as much as possible and cut out every thing that is not absolutely necessary. Below is a pic of the plane ready to cover.
Glues are another area of weight saving. Avoid epoxy except where you need it like the firewall and stab. CA will be lighter.
Landing gear and wheels as mentioned. NiMHD batteries or Lithium will be lighter than NiCd too.
I saved a pound on my GP Patty by dumping the wheelpants and using CF gear instead of the stock one.
Hope this helps.
Pete