ORIGINAL: longdan
I'm sure this question has been asked before but I'm asking it again. What glue should I use to secure those flexible hinges that come with ARF planes?
Before everyone says 'CA'. I'd like to rule that out. Mainly because of a couple of failures. And I find that when glueing in aileron hinges, there is not enough time to do the epoxy on the torque rod and the CA on the hinges before it all starts to set even before the aileron is pushed into place. Its all too much to do in too little time (for me anyway).
I was wondering if anyone had tried using aliphatic or PVA to secure their hinges.
About 40 years in this hobby. Here is what I do. For CA hinges where you have a torque rod involved (from the point everythings is fitted and ready to install):
-
drill a 1/16 hole in the center of each hinge slot (this facilitates the wicking process)
-install the CA hinges dry (with a pin in the center of each one to hold it centered) and the
torque rod into Tightbond and wipe off the excess
-now bend the joint as far as you want it to move and drop
4 drops (this will vary with the size of the hinge, but the CA should not puddle up in the joint) of CA on each hinge and no more
-flip it over and do the same from the other side
-now take some matching covering (or clear) and go around the torque rod and seal it to the elevator on both halves
-when dry, and this is important with CA hinges,
seal both side of the gap with clear or colored covering, touching in the center.
Now you have a tight joint that is essentially one long hinge. When the Tightbond is dry, it is a perfect pocket that won't allow the torque rod to move in the wood. You have worked at a nice pace with no reason or need to rush anything, and this hinge set WILL NOT FAIL. I have had many crashes that didn't blow the hinges installed in this way!
This Extra had CA hinges installed just this way. As you can see, they are about all that is still in tact. I'm of the opinion that most problems with CA hinges stem from poor installation, and too much CA is just bas bad as not enough.
Now I do still use hinge point and flat pinned hinges as well, but CA hinges are not the devil.