Question on joining wing halves
 

I know there are quite a few posts about this topic but I did not find the answer searching the forums.
So far the planes I've assembled, the manuals state to coat the wing joiner with epoxy and then join the halves together.

For me, it seems to make more sense epoxy the joiner into one side, let it dry and then join the halves together. That way you're insured the the joiner is inserted to the halfway point in each side. Has anyone done it this way?

RE: Question on joining wing halves
 

I have done that on several airplanes. IIRC, that is the technique Sig recommends for building a Kadet LT-40.

If anyone has reasons that this technique should be avoided, I'd like to hear them.

RE: Question on joining wing halves
 

Shakes, That's exactly the way I've done mine. Yeah, just glue it in, let it set up, and use some 30 min. to glue the halves together. You may want to have some Qtips on hand and some alcohol to clean it. [8D]

RE: Question on joining wing halves
 

From my experiences I can't see any reason why you can't do that. Before you epoxy the joiner in make sure you dry assemble everything. Dry assemble the joiner and then make sure the 2 wing halves assemble correctly. Trust me, I've made plenty of mistakes like that. Measure 2 and cut/glue once.

Hope this helps

RE: Question on joining wing halves
 

Shakes, the way you said is the way most companies recommend. Mark the joiner at the half way point and glue it in to that point, when it sets, glue the rest in place. You have it right-- go for it. ENJOY RED

RE: Question on joining wing halves
 

Hi,

No problem with what you propose. Make certain that you remove the covering film if it is an ARF from all but the very edges of the centre ribs to ensure the best contact and ensure that you put plenty of epoxy on the joiner/dihedral brace as well when you bring the two halves together. Any surplus epoxy can be cleaned up with an alcohol soaked rag. (after success you can suck on the rag:D).

Use the slowest set epoxy you can find to give you some time to set things up and to allow it to soak into the wood for greatest strength. The slower the set the greater the strength. Most models then require fiberglass reinforcement around the join if you are building a kit.

Cheers,

Colin

RE: Question on joining wing halves
 

except... there is one possible reason... In a lot of kits and ARFS the wing joiner is made to be a little small... This allows you to set the exact amount of dihedral... If the wing joiner is very tight on both sides and the dihedral is correct, then you can join one at a time... If it's loose though, you want to do both together so it can set at the right angle... If you glue one half with it lose, the other half may not join correctly when you get there...

RE: Question on joining wing halves
 

I completely agree, there is no problem with what you are asking. Heck I do it both ways. Once I mark the center of the joiner I dry fit it in both wings. If it's hitting the bottom of the joiner box and my center mark is right where it should be I will epoxy both sides at the same time. This is rare and I can count on one hand how many times I was able to do this.

In most cases I find the center of the joiner, dry fit everything, pick a wing and epoxy the joiner into it. I'll let is setup for a couple of hours, then I will coat the ribs, joiner and the joiner box and rib on the other wing then put them together, then wipe off all the excess epoxy and tape them together.

I also have a habit of fiberglassing all of my center sections with 1 inch wide tape, but that's just me as I tend to fly my planes pretty hard so I like the added strength.

RE: Question on joining wing halves
 

Great info. Thanks guys! On my last plane I used the method of epoxy wing joiner and wing halves together at the same time but working on a new plane and I noticed the joiner can slide in a little too far and center ends up about a 1/16" - 1/8" inside the wing. Want to get it right. I plan on epoxying the joiner into one wing then letting it set then dousing the ribs with epoxy and joining them. Appreciate the discussion on this!

RE: Question on joining wing halves
 

There are two reasons why MFGRs don't recommend doing that.

1 - it takes twice as long

2 - There are a LOT of idiots out there (No offense if you're an idiot who happens to be reading this, but then again, you probably don't know it anyway) and it's just quite possible that one of these "entrprising individuals" will put the Joiner in place in one side and leave a huge blob of epoxy on the face of the Root Rib that will prevent the second wing half from seating properly.

So as long as YOU'RE not the guy the manual was written for, and you're not in a hurry, go right ahead.

RE: Question on joining wing halves
 

Or, it's possible to epoxy the joiner in upside down I suppose. Sounds like something I would do.

RE: Question on joining wing halves
 

Another post going on someone who did just that! Its easy to do if you don't mark it with big up arrows or something.

RE: Question on joining wing halves
 

I agree with glue the joiner into one side of the wing first. Then check the fit of the second wing before adding epoxy glue! Some joiners can shift a bit up or down before the epoxy sets and this can affect the wing joint fit. You don't want to have expoxy all over the wing joint and joiner and then find out that the second wing doesn't fit flush. [8D]

RE: Question on joining wing halves
 

All these guys a retarded just go to walmart buy an ass load of epoxy and smuther the crap out of the wood! duh