hi.
i am new to kit building and need some help.what glue i will use for the wood kt building? ca or epoxy?
i will need to glue the formers and any ribs and spars for a 85 in dauntless kit. it is a big one and dont know what glue to use.
how about wood white glues?better or worce than ca or epoxy?
thanks achilles

You can use CA, epoxy or alphatic resin glues to build your plane. CA is for instant gratification, epoxy and resin glue are for more strengh, however they both take longer to cure. The CA glues can cause you trouble as they do not allow you alot of working time and some folks cannot handle the smell or are allergic to it. Good Luck, Dave

Epoxy glues are good for spots where high strenght is needed such as for attaching the firewall and joining wing halfs. Epoxy would be too heavy to use for the entire construction. Wood glues (Alphatic resin and PVAs) are good for general construction and have been used for a long time. They have good strenght. Excess can be wiped up with a damp cloth, so weight can be kept at a minimum. These glues have a fair amount of working time which can be an advantage when needing to adjust the positions of parts, but may also requre pinning and clamping while the glue dries Alphatic resins sand well too. CAs have very short working times and good strenght. This allows for faster construction, but gives little opportunity for adjusting the positioning of parts. Some people aslo develope an intallerance to the fumes, which can irritate eyes and lungs.
I use all three, plus a few others, like silicone, Goop and Gorilla for certain applications. I do most my general construction with CA and alphatic (Original Titebond). I glue up and attach my skin panels with alphatic. I've used urethane glue (Gorilla) for attaching tail feathers to fill any gaps in the saddle, as urethane glues foam up and expand. Epoxy, I use for attaching firewalls, gear rails, joining wings, fireproofing and fiberglass covering. Silicon can be used for mounting pushrod tubes, sealing fuel lines through the firewall. I use goop (a fast contact cement) mostly for attaching canopies.

Scott

hi,
thanks very much for the help!
Achilles

That's going to be a very challenging build if it's your first. I started on my Top Flite Spitfire as my first build. After framing up the wings, I took a break from it to do a simpler build, a 4 * 40. It was far easier, but allowed me to make a few mistakes before going back to completing the more complex build.
I too have an 85" Dauntless kit from DP Systems. I still plan on doing one or two more 60 size kits before tackling it.

Scott