I`m in the process of building a Sig Seniorita,my first build in a long time.

I want to get the joints snug and secure,without the use of CA Glue,,I`m using Sig Bond just to try and build the plane "Old school"

Is there a problem if the glue runs from the joints,or gets "Gloppy"?

I do my best to clean up the joints with a scrap piece of balsa,but sometimes it is still "Thick"

I`m trying to get it as strong as I can with no gaps for a nice build.
(I know I`ll probably end up crashing it my first time out,,but still want to build it nice)

Thanks for any advice
Rt4957

as long as the glue is not running into any important areas like where the ailerons are I would not worry about it.. you will not overload the plane with glue trust me I have rebuilt trainers many times and some of them are more e-poxxy than balsa and they still fly great so.. use your best jugment and you will be fine

I used white glue on the rear birdcage and left some little glue fillets between the sticks.

Been flying fine for 25+ years.

Tom

Iwas out with my Seniorita today, and weight isn't an issue with that plane unless you are using the low end engine. Mine has a Super TIger 40 on it and it is way over powered

If you put the bottle of glue in the plane, after slobbering glue over every joint, it would still fly just fine. There is a lot of wing for not much weight on that plane.

""i'm trying to get it as strong as I can with no gaps for a nice build.
(I know I`ll probably end up crashing it my first time out,,but still want to build it nice)""

Get an instructor to help you maiden the plane. Istill do that when I"m a bit unconfortable with a new plane. Some times when I'm on an old one I haven't flown in a while. There is always someone better than you or I, that stand a better chance of bringing back a plane that has some issues. They are only useful though ifyou allow them to do their stuff.


Don

Anything that shows outside of the joint seam is too much. I like aliphatic glues - if you keep a damp rag and a little dish of water you can wipe off all the excess. Just make sure ypu keep it well pinned or weighed down to a flat surface so it won't warp as it dries.

A package of 100 bamboo skewers I picked up at Dollar Tree come in handy for scraping glue out of small tight places. They also make decent small batch epoxy mixers/applicators, and are strong enough to use for light weight crash repair splinting jobs.

Another trick is to use a resin brush and apply the glue with that. Rise it off in warm water and it will last indefinately. It's a lot easier to control the dose than a glue bottle nozzle. It is also great to pull excess glue off the wood and corners around a joint

I helped an Explorer post build four LT-40's with Titebond II. Of the four teams, one used 1/2 of a bottle. One used TWO BOTTLES. The other two teams each had some left from one bottle.

All flew fine.

But, as a rule of thumb, lighter flies better. Just enough of anything is the goal in airplanes - models or the real thing.

All of the above advice is right on the money. Plus you sound like you are on the right track trying to keep extra glue off the plane structure. That will help a lot. If you miss a drop or two don't get wrapped around an axle because of it. Glues like alphatic and white glue lose a lot of weight as they dry, so a little bit of extra here and there isn't going to be a plane killer.

Ken

Good choice of trainer by the way. The strength will be in the accuracy of the joint. Glue works better when the wood is in contact with wood. Gap filling is to be avoided. It is a matter of degees though. My joints are not always perfect but I keep trying to get nicer fits with every build. A little bit of filet in the lesser angles is ok too.

The best applicators I have found besides bamboo sticksare the childrens liquidmedicine dispencers that come with the medicine..... also the ones with the curved tips can be purchased. The wood stir sticks from Starbuckswith the round ends make perfect fillets when drug along the joint at 45 degrees.
Mike</p>

 The best applicators I have found besides bamboo sticks  are the childrens liquid medicine dispencers that come with the medicine..... also the ones with the curved tips can be purchased.   The stir sticks with the round ends make perfect fillets when drug along the joint at 45 degrees.
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G'day I gave my Seniorita to a friend recently. It was one of the lightest and best flying planes I have had. Everyone used to remark on just how light it was.

It was not perfect though. When I joined the wing halves I managed to introduce a small twist. A bit of rudder trim fixed this.

None the less, it flew really well with a Magnum 30 four stroke initially and more recently with a PAW 15 diesel. These days I believe it has a Thunder Tiger GP 25 in it.

What engine do you have in mind for it. The little four stroke was wonderful in it.

For the engine,,initially I am thinking either a New OS 30FS,or a used OS 26FS,(If I find a good E-Bay deal)

Want to go small so I don`t train with a Pylon Racer,,want to be nice and docile so I can correct it before it`s in the next county.

Radiowise I`m looking at getting either a 6 or 7 channel utaba,as Even though I`ve not flown yet,,I do have a collection of kits,one being a Top flite Cessna that I want to do the max with,Flaps,and lights and figure I need the additional channels for these options.

I was heavy into getting into R/C in the late 80`s/90`s,but then got married,which cuts hobbytime by 90%
I bought a lot of stuff to build and completed some like a few Pilot Models Cessna 152s,which have been beaten up in and by storage that they need lots of repair work just to fly,and a few Midwest kits,an Aerostar 40,and Aerosport 20 and 40,,also bought a Flair Fokker Triplane waiting in the garage rafters.

Really enjoy the building aspect,,putting a pile of wood together to make it fly is fun.

Rt4957

I've got a Seniorita, somewhat modified, with an HP .20 four-stroke engine. This is a really weak (though extremely cool) rotary-valve four stroke. I did try very hard to keep it light; I think I hit the bottom of the weight range suggested on the plans. With a real engine, a few blobs of glue aren't going to be any problem at all.