please help this newbie out
 

I need to find out how to repair my plane. It was damaged pretty badly during shipping and I don't know how to repair it.

The rudder broke off. It had been attached by plastic flaps, which acted as hinges,and were inbedded into the rudder and the tail structure. Now those flaps are ripped. Can I replace these with hinges that go on surface of the rudder and tail?

There are also tears in the skin of my plane. These tears are on the fuselage, but there is no damage to the wood. How would I go about fixing these? I was thinking about just cutting the teared part of the skin out and then applying brand new skin from the hobby store to the gaps. Would that work?

Could someone explain to me how I should go about fixing these damaged parts of my plane? If not, could someone at least refer me to a website that will teach me how to make the repairs? I have done some extensive google searching and not been able to find any adequate sites that would help a newbie like me learn to repair.

Thanks for your time.

RE: please help this newbie out
 

Is this a new model from the dealer, (or manufacturer)? If so, you should check into filing a claim with the shipper. This can be quite a hassle, as I experienced with Airborne.
My Ford Flivver ARF arrived a bit damaged, and I gave up trying to deal with Airborne. I can fix the damage for about $20.
On the rudder, were the hinges already glued in? Lots of ARF manufacturers simply install the hinges to the surfaces without glue and then you do the final attachment.
Without being able to see your damage first hand, it is difficult to say how to best go about repairing it. Can you post some pics? That would be best so that we can see the level of damage.

Jesse

RE: please help this newbie out
 

Actually, the damage was done when I was shipping my plane when i moved. SO I am the only one to blame for the damage.

I don't have a digital camera so I can't post real pictures, but I drew some pictures on paint that should show you what is broken. THe pictures can be seen here http://www.geocities.com/orangeclockwork2/index.html . How do I fix them?

http://www.geocities.com/orangeclockwork2/index.html

RE: please help this newbie out
 

It looks to me like the first break is that your CA hinges have pulled out of the rudder. If that's the case then it's a really easy fix. All you need to do is to cut new slots in the fin and the rudder, and glue new CA hinges into them.

Break #2 looks like a stress break across the stabiliser. I think your best bet here would be to take off the covering from the stabilizer so that you can see exactly how bad the fracture is. If it's only partially fractured then you may be able to just re-join the wood with some CA. If it's completely broken but a clean break then you could glue the breaks and then add some balsa or basswood bracing to help keep them rigid. If it's fractured into multiple pieces then it might be your best bet to draw out the internal structure of the stabiliser to scale on a piece of paper and then build a new one (it's not very difficult to do if you have basic building skills.)

Break #3 looks like one of the fuselage cheeks has fractured. Best bet would be to strip off the covering from the inside and outside of this area and epoxy an 1/8" ply brace onto the back of the break being sure to keep the cheek alignment straight. Once the epoxy has cured re-cover and fuel-proof the inside.

Break #4 looks like a simple tear in the covering. If that's the case then trim off the loose bits and just iron on a patch of Monokote (or whatever your favorite covering material is) over the top.

Break #5 looks to be so severe that it's disappeared from the drawing ;)

Break #6 is exactly the same process as for break #4.

Good luck with the repairs!

RE: please help this newbie out
 

Well, looks like a mess.

Wat kind of plane is this?

Covering
Let's start with the covering. The holes/rips can be patched with new covering or just packing tape is you wish. Make sure to clean the area around the holes with alcohol so the covering will stick. If you are going to use monokote or something similar, you need an covering iron to heat the covering so the glue on the back will stick and t srink it.

Hinges
Next. You will need new hinges. I can't tell what kind you have now but you will need to replace them. You need to cut new hinge slots and get new hinges. I would use CA hinges with thin CA to glue them in.
Check out this article from MinnFlyer
[link=http://www.rcuniverse.com/magazine/article_display.cfm?article_id=55]CA Hinges by MinnFlyer[/link]

Cracks
Now the cracks, first the front. I am assuming that the nose is just cracked, Looks like you could just put some CA in and let it dry. It should hold. You may be able to put some wood on the inside of the fuse to help hold it. That is if you have room.

The rear horizontal stab, that one looks like trouble. Is the stab made out of solid balsa or built up with covering over it. I can't tell. You will have to get the covering off in order to assess the damage.

Well this is a start.
Good Luck

RE: please help this newbie out
 

Looks like Mindwarp beat me to it.

Good advice.

Bill

RE: please help this newbie out
 

Thanks for all the help Mindwarp and RedWing-RCU. I'll start repairing as soon as I purchase supplies.

Thanks for all of your help.
Joe

RE: please help this newbie out
 

ok im not reading responses, but heres how id fix this.

#1 reslot the surfaces and use CA hinges. (down middle of surface for equal movement in all directions)

#2 IF i understand correctly there is a crack slightly to the left of the middle of the H stab if this is correct then id put a little peice of .5 oz fiberclass on it with CA and sand down. (top and bottom )

#3 again, fiberglass

#4 i agree wit replacing the covering, that little peice should be easy for even someone with no covering experiance.

# i think i missed #5...

#6 recover that part.

if its over a .40 i recomend expxy instead of CA for fiberglass

RE: please help this newbie out
 

i'd file a claim because such a beautiful looking plane would not look so beautiful anymore after the repairs. a trainer would be a different story. i would file a claim.

RE: please help this newbie out
 

oh just fix it, if you do it right and are ok with some sanding it will look like new.