I grew up building with Ducco Cement (ambroid) and I think CA is a major step forward but there isn't one correct method either. Just don't use the alphatic on CA hinges.

Yep - I plan to use CA on the CA hinges.

Heh.... but why remove sarcasm? C'mon... you're cheating the world from the original sarcastic remark

What sarcasm?

Got the last piece of sheeting in place on the top of the wing tonight.



Some pieces you install on a plane really make it start to look like a piece of a plane. This was one of those that really made it look like a wing. Pretty cool!

This build is going slower than my LT-40 build... kinda like it - get to enjoy the build process for a little bit longer this go around.

My first one took a month and a half, my second one took one week RTF.

I have the top of the wing sheeted, tubes in and secure. I've lifted the wing off the building board and I'm ready to sheet the bottom of the wing. The manual calls for a straight 1" board a little longer than the wing to set the trailing edge on. Both the spar on the bottom and the trailing edge need to be secured flat against the building surface. This wing is still a little flexible so I take it the mounting of the bottom sheeting along with the lower spar and trailing edges being parallel with the building surface will tie it all together and I wanna make sure I get this right. The wing is tapered so once pinned down this side will be flat while the other orientation will have the trailing edge a bit higher on one end than the other.

Am I thinking of this right?

Appreciate any input!

somegeek

Yes, the sheeting of the bottom will create the "D" that gives the wing it's structural integrity. If you don't use the 1" piece to support the trailing edge you could build a twist into the wing that will be permently locked in. Some plans call for washout (not the SE) where you raise the outer trailing edge and then lock it in when sheeting. If you have a table saw you can cut out the 1" from scrap 2x4.

you are correct, here's a picture of mine when I finished sheeting it. I was worried I screwed something up, but it's exactly right & both sides were identical.

When I finished sheeting the top of my first wing & flipped it over on the straight edge it had a slight twist & didn't lay perfect. I just put some weights on it while I sheeted the bottom & it firmed right up & stayed straight. I recall the manual stating that when you finish this step it will lock the wing into shape.

If you dig through some of the old build threads there are some who see this as a flaw in the kit because a symetrical wing should be perfectly symetrical, but I think the odds of you or I trying to modify the wing to make it perfectly symetrical are probably not too good.

btw, your wing is looking good!

Great - thanks for the sanity check, tuwood!

If you look at the finished plane it almost looks as if it has anhydral (the wingtips down like some fighter jets) In actuality the bottom is flat like you said and the top of the wing does indeed slope down towards the tips.

*** brainfarted - post removed ***

Wow, this is so encouraging. I have been in this hobby since 1979, and have built many models.....

goldberg Eagle
Andrews TRainermaster
Great Planes sportster Bipe
Protender (scratched up modified topflight contender some local club members were kitting up).

After a long respit.......got back into the hobby in 2001.

Sig LT 40 for my son
SSE for me....most recently

Current project (dynaflight Super Cub)

In the box (Top Flight contender)


I have always been surprised at my love for the building process. In fact, I think it might be a true statement to say that I like to build more than fly them. You will notice there are a lot of people at the field like that. In this hobby there is room for so much interest. Another interesting factoid....I had a club member teach me during my first build, the Goldberg Eagle 63. That was long before the Intranet....and I could not have been successful without his help. What you are doing is a wonderful thing for those interested in building.

Sorry for hijacking your thread...but just could not pass up the opportunity to encourage the 'builder'.......

Chris

SomeGeek....yes the wing configuration is strange on this. when I built mine I was sure I had screwed up. but the 'wash in' is important for this birds stability. You will love this plane.......

cdub50 - this board is a helluva resource for sure and a great community.

Lotta great build threads that folks have done when they built their planes. Nice to document it in a thread and discuss with other board members. I've got an LT-40 build thread I did for my first build here. Learned a ton on that build and applying it on this build. I am enjoying taking my time on this build.

Your engine will be great. I installed an Irvine .53 on mine. I still have it, and it still flys great.

Got the wing secured on a 1" block and the building surface. Mounted the front edge of the front sheeting and the rear piece of sheeting.



The wing had a little twist in it before I got it secured. Used several pins to get it secured flat.

I only had a 3/4" board so I glued on two layers of scrap balsa to make it 1" thick.

Got the sheeting and cap strips completed. Removed the wing from the building board and cleaned up the ends.





Gonna wait until I get the fuselage built to install the inside rib cap. Had a little bit of an arch to the rib (maybe 1/32 of an inch) so I wanna see how this sets against the fuselage before I start sanding/truing it up to make sure I do so in a way that it is flush with the fuselage. Nothing major.

Put some putty on the LE since the stock had a bit of a flat side to the lower edge vs being fully rounded.

That's a really good idea Geek. You have probably read about people having a gap on the fuse where the wing sits. It would be easy to shim under the hardwood rib rather than over it.

Thanks, BasinBum. Actually hadn't read about that but pondered I need to remove some material for a flush surface so it leaves room for error... well further error that is since I'm correcting my bowed rib.

Got the basla end-cap installed...

Also,
As long as you are using balsa filler (not Bondo or household spackle) don't be shy with it. Fill in and sand it down and fill in some more. Look for any low spot or opening that shouldn't be there. It'll pay off when you cover it later and the stuff gets really hard with time.

Started on the right wing build...



Also got the wheel pants cut out(Dremel ftw!) and glued up. Used a different method then called for in the instructions(read about in another SSE thread)...[ul][*] cut out the areas that form the holes for the wheels.[*] sand down each side on sandpaper.[*] sand the inner surface near the seam.[*] tape the sides together along the seam[*] apply epoxy to the inside seam
[/ul]


I need to touch up the holes a little for asthetics, but the wheels just fit through the hole so I am set. Will also need to use some filler on them to smooth the seam.

What kind of filler can I use to fill any low areas in the seam of these plastic wheel pants?

somegeek

When I did mine, I used med. CA to glue the halves together and then put a bead of med. CA along the seam. Then I finished the joint off with a fine mill file followed by fine sandpaper. That worked well for me since I covered the pants with Ultracote. Painting might require priming and sanding to get a better finish.

Somebody hasn't been paying attention.

Geek,
If you are going to paint them you can use the balsa filler or Bondo. The balsa filler gets really hard once you paint it. It's been a while since I did mine but I'm pretty sure that's what I did. Dust them with the color you are going to use and sand to find the low spots. After they are filled you should use primer. Be patient (shouldn't be hard after using alphatic on the model) and only spray a little at a time to avoid runs.

To what do you believe I should have paid attention to? I believe [link=http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=3709868]you can see[/link] that I had no problems whatsoever.

Ross, nice job on the wheel pants however, the Geek here has been building his entire model with alphatic resin glue and no CA. That's what makes this build thread interesting and differant from the 18 other SE build threads.