Ken and bruce - - - you are making sense, and apparently I would be a fool for going against your advice [sm=bananahead.gif], if anyone would know what they are talking about it would be you and bruce - - - so, I am going to follow your advice and glue blindnuts into the holes I drilled for the screws and do it the proper way . Thank you for sharing your thoughts and advice. Will post pics soon with the corrections.

Well, here is half the fix anyways
Turns out I only had two blindnuts in stock (kit did not supply) so I will have to go to local Carr Hardware Tuesday to pick up some more. They are something I should keep in stock cause they are always used in hobbies like this.

Firewall is installed with epoxy - with the 1/4" hardwood sticks for support - why did the kit not supply the usual tri-stock for this purpose?

Enough of the firewall for now until I get the blindnuts.

EDIT: In the last two photos it shows the supports I had to put on the front of the firewall as the gaps were too great, but the important thing was to get the firewall onto the fuselage without changing the thrust and to also keep the edges pressed against the fuselage doublers. I think I did an OK job as the thrust is the same as it is on the plans. I hope nobody has negatives thoughts on what I did with the supports, as they were needed to strengthen the firewall and I did it in such a way as to not interfere with the steering arm. And they would be a pain-in-the-a** to break off without damaging the firewall.

Tiger, you've just described how this plane performed for me. Heck out of the box I had to spend and afternoon getting all the wrinckles out. After a couple of flights all the scheme started to peel off, specially from the tail (tower sent me a new set of tail after complained) and the picture does not show it but it is actully peeling. I don't fly this plane any more I harvested all the equipment for another model. Other than that once in the air she is a beauty. I tried different types of tires/wheels and replaced the wire landing gear for the alluminum set which help in reducing the bouncing just a bit. One thing I must say about my model at least is that she took a beating since day one and never gave up on me she still looks good and at times i pull it down from storage to get some dust off. You are doing a great job with this build keep it up. Oh the stock engine (tower 46) on my plane had to be replaced as well out of the box it came with a defect, but tower exchanged it no questions asked. You will have fun with this plane and you really don't need anything higher than a .40 in her.
Keep em coming.

First of all . . . Merry Christmas to all!!!


Photo 1) Front fuselage doublers (cheek pieces) trimmed to fit the supports in front of firewall.
Photos 2, 3 & 4) Cheek pieces glued with thick CA and clamped in place.
Photo 5) Front window glued in place with thick CA.
Photos 6 & 7) Rear window glued in place with thick CA.
Photo 8) Almost finished engine compartment.
Photo 9) Dried front and rear windows ready for sanding.

The remaining two blindnuts have been installed, held in place with epoxy.
The engine compartment, both sides of the firewall and the fueltank compartment are all fuelproofed with epoxy.

I have placed my order for the Pitts Special and I ordered more tools and field equipment. Here is the partial order I purchased (did I forget anything?)


[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/WTI0001P?&I=LXM406]House of Balsa Upright 90 Degree Alignment Jig [/link]
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/WTI0001P?&I=LXK380]Great Planes Groove Tube Grooving Tool [/link]
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/WTI0001P?&I=LXPU13]Great Planes Slot Machine Cutting Guide [/link]
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/WTI0001P?&I=LXSD22]AP Engines Wasp .061 R/C [/link] for Pitts Special
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/WTI0001P?&I=LXK854]Hayes Small Clamp 1-3/8" [/link]
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/WTI0001P?&I=LXK855]Hayes Large Clamp 4" [/link]
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/WTI0001P?&I=LXD710]Dubro 4-Way Socket Wrench [/link]
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/WTI0001P?&I=LXK260]Great Planes AccuThrow Deflection Meter [/link]
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/WTI0001P?&I=LXTX42]Hitec HS-55 Economy Sub Micro Servo [/link] for Pitts Special
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/WTI0001P?&I=LXAR03]Midwest Aero-Mate Starting Stand [/link]
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/WTI0001P?&I=LXMUM1]Sig Fieldboss Field Box [/link]
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/WTI0001P?&I=LXK262]Great Planes Precision Hinge Marking Tool [/link]
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/WTI0001P?&I=LXK817]Hayes Motor Mount Norvel NV-06 .061 [/link] for Pitts Special
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/WTI0001P?&I=LXLGF554]Hitec Laser 4 4-Channel FM Micro/2 HS55 Servos 54 [/link] for Pitts Special
[link=http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/WTI0001P?&I=LXVK57]Herr Pitts Special Kit .061-.074,30"[/link]

Hatch completed. I am using a nylon hatch clip instead of a screw for this build.

Position the main landing gear on the bottom of the fuselage , using the plans as reference (the pointed edge of the base pointing towards the rear of the model). Place one of the landing gear straps onto the gear and mark the location of only ONE of the holes. drill the mark and secure the strap with a sheet metal screw. Measure the distance from each tip of the main landing gear to the tail of the fuselage. Adjust as necessary to make both measurements equal. Once the gear is in position, place and mark the locations for the remaining three landing gear straps. Secure the landing gear to check for final fit, then remove and add a drop or two of thin CA into each hole. After the glue has set completely screw the screws in halfway to reset the threads and strengthen the holes. Set aside the landing gear until after covering. They suggest using #2x3/8" screws but I used #4x1/2" screws instead. With all the bounce in landing that I heard this plane does I want stronger screws holding the landing gear on.

The framework of the fuselage is now complete. Sand all areas smooth and put the fuselage aside for now until Step 1 of "mount the horizontal stabilizer" in the manual. The installation of the engine, servo tray, pushrods and radio system will be completed later on in the manual as well.

Tigerdude,
Man, you got to put a shirt on when you take those pictures!!!! I needed my sunglasses on to look at the pics!!! [8D]


BTW, the build is looking good otherwise!!!

Ken

THE WING:

Photo 1) Wing pieces laid out on the building board ready to begin assembly. Going to start with the right wing panel as suggested in the manual, so here we go.

Photo 2) Wing guide tool assembled from the ply die-cut 1/8" pieces. The side marked "O" will be used to check the ribs to see if they are verticle. The other sides will be used later.

Photo 3) All ribs removed from their sheets, placed together and lightly sanded.

Sorry RCKen, please forgive me [sm=red_smile.gif], is this better? [sm=72_72.gif]
Nice weather for flying.

Plane looks great so far.
You may already know this by now, but Tower sells the decal sheet for their .40 trainer LXENM7
I am looking forward to hearing how it flies when it is all done.

Paul

Really, if you are going to do a "topless" build PLEASE find a better model. And I don't mean the plane.

Yes, I believe you are correct, I am getting older and heavier [:'(]. But then aren't we all? I will be careful next time I post

It wasn't the weight (much less than mine) It was the gender.[:@]

EDIT: Sorry again, I have this rotten habit of taking things too serious, its because of sh*t that has happened to me in highschool, but I am cool. You guys are the best - you have been a tremendous help in my RCing, and really I could not have done much without you all's help. We all bes cool now

Tiger, I don't think anyone was offended. Certainly not me. Yer taking life too serious man. We be messin wit ya.

WING CONSTRUCTION
Starting with the right wing panel


The wing of the Tower Trainer 40 is designed with simplicity and ease of building in mind for the first-time builder. The build of the wing is so simple it basically holds itself together to make gluing easier and quick. Here are the steps to building the right wing panel:

1) First pin the 3/8”x3/8” bottom balsa spar over its location on the plan.
2) Slide ten 3/32” balsa R-3 wing ribs into place on the bottom spar.
3) Place the shaped leading edge against the front of the ribs and pin in place.
4) Place the shaped balsa trailing edge against the rear of the ribs and pin in place.
5) Lay two pieces of 1/16” sheet scraps for shims under wing rib R-2 to position it properly to allow for the sheeting later. Place R-2 into position.
6) Carefully insert the 3/8”x3/8” balsa top spar into the notches in the ribs.
7) Make sure all the R-3 ribs and the leading and trailing edges are resting flat on the building board. The guide tool is used to check that the ribs remain vertical.
8) Apply thin CA carefully to all the joints involving the ribs, spars, leading and trailing edge (PHOTOS 1 – 5). Be very careful that all the pieces remain perfectly aligned during the gluing process, and always be wary of the straightness of the wing at all times. Be extra careful also when gluing the spars to R-2, making sure to keep the spars centered between the dihedral brace notches of R-2.
9) This step is NOT mentioned in the manual but I find it very necessary to reinforce ALL joints in ALL areas of contact with wood glue, being sure to leave fillets at all joints (PHOTOS 6 – 8).

SHEAR WEBS - steps 10 thru 12

10) Remove the pins holding the spar in place but leave the panel pinned flat on the board by the leading and trailing edges.
11) Cut the shear webs from the 1/16”x 2 ½” balsa sheet. With plenty of wood glue, use enough to squeeze out when you press the parts together, install all the shear webs to the spars (PHOTOS 1 – 9). It is not necessary to glue the shear webs to the ribs as the purpose of these webs is to support the spars.
12) Reinforce the front of the shear webs where they contact the spars with a line of wood glue (PHOTO 10).

Marking and shaping the root end of wing panel - steps 13 & 14

13) Position the β€œ4” degree side of the guide tool exactly where the end of the bottom spar is shown on the plan. Use a pen to mark an angled line on the top and bottom spars, the leading and trailing edges (PHOTOS 1 – 4). Note that the top spar will be slightly shorter than the bottom spar.
14) Unpin the wing panel from the building board. Using a sanding bar and/or razor saw cut back the spars, leading and trailing edges to the line you drew being careful to keep the edges at the proper angles (PHOTOS 5 – 8).

Reading ahead in the manual

Trimming and sanding the tip end of wing panel step 15

15) Use a razor saw to cut of the excess spars, leading and trailing edges sticking out past the last rib R-3 at the wing panel’s tip end. Sand the tip end smooth and flush.

The right wing panel after sanding both root and rib ends

The next series of photos show the right wing panel after the trimming and sanding of the root and tip ends

16) Carefully measure and cut a 2 ½” long piece off the aileron stock. Glue the 2 ½” piece to the wing trailing edge at the tip end as shown on the plans (PHOTOS 1 – 4).
17) Cut the 3/16”x2”x24” balsa wing tip material into two pieces. Glue this wing tip piece to the tip end of the wing panel with wood glue, use plenty of glue so that it squeezes out from between the pieces (PHOTOS 5 – 7).

Let all the constructing and gluing dry overnight before trimming and shaping the wing tip, and lightly sanding the entire wing panel to remove glue bumps and uneven areas.

The prior steps above were done last night, but it got to be too late to post, so now today I am at this step. With the right wing tip trimmed and sanded to shape.

Now I am looking for advice, suggestions, tips (what-have-you) on the covering of the wing tips. I have never built a kit that had flat wing tips so how do you go about covering them without getting deep wrinkles and creases? Do you cover the tips first and then the bottom of the wing, and then finally the top? Or do you pull the covering tight into the tips as you normally would? Please advise.