Broken tail, what to do?
 

I Broke my tail installing the fuel tank and after fixing it the previous tme using pins to hold it in place then applying CA. Anyone have any tips to help?

Edit: big pics.

RE: Broken tail, what to do?
 

medium or thick CA, Fiberglass or epoxy it. After it dries, recover that area with some monocote or medium temp covering. It might knock the ballance off a bit, but certainly no more than the pins you already used. I'd put a strip of covering over it at least 1 1/2 inches on either side of the break ... just to help it hold better.
Something else you might try is like 3/32" or 1/4" dowels.

RE: Broken tail, what to do?
 

I can't see the pictures.

RE: Broken tail, what to do?
 

Dave,

You need to re-size the pictures before posting.

That elevator pushrod just doen't look right, Looks like it will have a LOT of slop. Such a thing is even worse when the horn is on the bottom and one needs push for up.

Pull up, push down is not just for the transmiter sticks.

Ken, AMA 19352

RE: Broken tail, what to do?
 

Ok, I fixed the pics.

What I would do is to get some 3/16" dowel and drill 2 or 3 holes into the fin. Epoxy dowels into the holes (About 3/4" deep) then drill holes into the fuse and epoxy the fin back on.

RE: Broken tail, what to do?
 

grin......... Next time use a shorter fuel tank.


Just kidding...........
Whenever you repair something that's gotten dirty or greasy from use, clean it up really well before trying to reglue it. K2r is a carpet cleaner for cleaning spots on rugs and you can find it in the grocery store. It's great for pulling oil out of wood. Denatured alcohol works slightly better than Windex (which works ok) for cleaning off the coverings.

When you're regluing something like your stabilizer and it's a butt joint like shown in the photo, it's worth thinking about how it stood up to the abuse that broke it. It really might be worth the slight extra effort to put in some extra bracing. After looking at your photos, it looks like there would be room for a strip of triangular stock on each side of the fin that'd glue to the stabilizer and to the top of the fuselage. If you skinned the top of the fuselage back there, and the lower part of the fin, the triangular stock would improve the strength back there a TON. Then cover with a strip of monokote. It's easier to cover than the original joint would be.

BTW, just trimming back the covering at the bottom of the fin and the area of the fuselage around the fin, and then putting a small fillet of epoxy along the joint would increase the joint tremendously. Mix some microballoons into the epoxy if you're worried about weight or your CG.

RE: Broken tail, what to do?
 

[sm=lol.gif]

RE: Broken tail, what to do?
 

This is a situation I have disagreed with since I started in this hobby.
All of the manufacturers want you to build the plane and then install the insides and engine.
I prefer to get all of my gear possible in prior to mounting the tail feathers.
I do mount the engine and then remove it before the tail feathers go on. Now all of my holes are drilled and taped.
This way you won't bust anything off while moving it around to get everything to fit.
Granted, you may need to move some stuff for balance but if the servos and engine mount is installed these are the
hardest items and you don't usually move them around for balance.

This works for me anyways.
KW_Counter

RE: Broken tail, what to do?
 

Hack out the remains of the fin. Then use the main section that broke off as a template for making a replacement.

I did this using 5mm balsa cross grain laminated with 1.5mm each side. This was for both horizontal and vertical stabs, which turned out far stronger and barely heavier than the original pieces.