Hi everyone,

Recently I bought a Kit off of the market place here on RCU. I always wanted a plane for my .25FX and .37SX (Heli) engines. I wanted something that can be wildly aerobatic and possibly hover. I found a wonderful kit by Mark Shoppe Models (The Menace fun-fly airplane). After building many ARF's and recently re-building a wing for my profile airplane, I started liking the whole "building" part of the hobby. I havent flown the freshly repaired profile plane yet but rebuilding the wing made me like it alot more and I will definitely enjoy flying it more. Now this new build will be so much fun for me. Unfortunately, I will be going back to college for the upcoming semester so I wont start building it till summer (or possibly spring break if I make it home and not get tempted to go to Cancun ). I will be posting up pics of the build and everything here. Now I have most of the tools that I will need to build the plane. All I need is some fresh sandpaper, a building board, some airplane hardware, and some clamps to hold everything together while it dries. What clamps would you guys recommend I get? Im trying to find some nice ones to order soon, but I would really like to get some recommendations.

I am greatly looking forward to the build and sharing my experiences with you guys since I have been on these forums for a long time and had ALOT of questions answered...

Thanks!

Samolot

You can never have too many clamps. I buy every kind you can find and how ever many you can afford. It would be impossable to buy the wrong ones!

I have many different types, and agree that you can't have too many clamps. Of the ones I have, I use these fairly frequently:

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...&I=LXK854&P=ML

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...&I=LXK855&P=ML

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/search_10...x=0&y=0&vName=

If you have a Harbor Freight nearby, they have loads of cheap clamps. You can get some good assortment sets there.

X2

Like mclina and Garyharris said, Harbor freight clamps come in an assortment, just as good as any clamps i have seen elsewhere and MUCH cheaper I bought 4 of the 18 pack small plastic clamps for 3.99 it is in a plastic tube on the clamp aisle. I think you get 14 small ones and 4 medium ones in the pack. They recently had the mini bar clamps for 99 cents each and they work great! just get what you think you need for your style of building. be sure and get or make some small 90 degree angles to help with ribs and bigger ones (like the drafting kind) for keeping other stuff staight. I REALLY like that kit!!!!! I would love to build one myself! oh get 100 or so each of the small and large T-pins from your local hobby shop too, you should do a build thread! keep us posted with pics at least please!

To quote everyone else, get whatever you can find coz they're all useful. Some of my most commonly used ones the small plastic "clothes peg" types that I picked up from a dollar shop. I also use some cheap sliding clamps about 10" long, and some heavier G clamps I found in the hobby section of my local hardware store. It's also a great idea to get some lead shot (or even sand), fill a couple of zip-lock plastic bags with it, and put the bags in old socks to use as "soft weights" for holding down sheeting while it dries. Masking tape is very useful too - get a couple of rolls, and if you can get packing straps they're great for holding slabs in place (eg: round the curved edge of a firewall) till the epoxy dries.

Just about anything can be used for weights. Here I use some large left over washers from work in ziplock bags. And some pics of clamps.

You'll often find a need to hold parts down for gluing or support parts that won't lay flat on a bench. For this you can use plain old sand in zip lock bags. I double bag and then staple the zipped edges so they don't come apart at the wrong time. They are also good for holdint the fuse or wings in place when applying the covering.

Wow! I never expected so many replies! Thank you guys so much! I will definitely be making some purchases soon. Like I said before, it wont be for another while longer before I start building the kit, but I definitely want to make it a memorable experience and by posting it up here on RCU, I think it will end up being an awesome experience. Ill definitely be going to a beach soon to get some zip lock bags filled (i think that was the best/cheapest idea so far). As far as the clamps, I guess a good variety would be my best bet. I saw a bunch of different ones on amazon, but ill keep looking. I am really excited for this build and I hope I do a good job on it. Thanks for the input so far, and I will definitely be keeping you guys updated!

I also get a lot of use out of my barbell weights. Whenever I laminate parts I put 10-20 pounds of weight on them until they are dry. I get more use out of my weights building than I do exercising.

Go to the local fabric store and get some 'T' pins also. I wouldn't bother with the tower hobbies stuff. They look like a real pain to work with plus the set up looks weak unless you pile on the rubber bands. Stick with the spring clamps that are suggested, from Sears and Harbor Freight. Lowes, Home Depot and similar stoes will have the same.

You'll find that at times you need less clamping power than offered by spring type clamps (for example when clamping two fragile pieces of balsa or when using Epoxy.) In these instances I find the Hayes clamps work really well. Like any tool, different clamps have different uses. Start with the essentials first, and as you build you'll recognize other tools (or clamps) that you may need.

Watch the bay for Rocket City T-pin clamps. They are little round pieces of plastic that slide onto a T-pin and clamp down against whatever you are pushing the pin into. You'll only find them in old hobby shops or on the various auction sites since they aren't made anymore...to my knowledge anyway.

I really get a good bit of use out of them and my versa clamps.

Mini size Quick Grip clamps are really handy

samolot,
I've never used clamps on any plane I've built and I've built dozens. I'm sure they would come in handy in some applications but I've never had to stop building to go buy clamps. I certanly don't see you needeing them building the menace. Bags of rice make nice weights along with a few 5-10 lb weight lifing plates. Good T pins and blue masking tape are also valuable tools when building.

You can make an excellent, cheap, flat building board out of sheetrock. Cut it to size, then tape the edges to keep the plaster from getting all over the place. Put it on a flat surface and build away. It's just as good as the "comercial " building boards.

rrragman

T-pins, rubber bands, tape (Blue masking) glad bags with sand are what I have used over the years. I know clamps look like it would make building much easier. I know Harbor Frieght, Sears, Home Depot and Lowes are a great source for building clamps!

Steve

[8D]

I probably have well over a hundred different types of clamps but the ones that get the most use are the ones made using the old spring loaded clothes pins The next most used are the bar clamps, I have about 12 of the 6 inch ones and 6 of the longer (up to 36 inches) and all get a fair amount of use. I never use pins unless there is no other choice as it can weaken the wood. Several bags of lead shot also get a lot of use, those about 12 inches long and a diameter of about 1.5 inches are ideal. Of course the old binder clips from the stationary department get a lot of use too.

Clamps, Harbor Freight, auto parts stores, hardware stores, super markets and even the Dollat Stores. If I see them I pick some up. When I go to the stores with my wife I put my brain into RC mode and look at things in a different way then most people. Weights, I used to hand load my shot shells so I have hundreds of pounds of lead shot that I put into plastic bags, I too double the bags, nothing like little lead shot all ove the floor but it happens. GUess I do have a lot of clamps in the shop plus a lot of rubber bands and T-pins. I even save the pins from new shirts.

It's probably because I am not going to the right store, but I haven't been able to find small sized lead shot in large bag sizes (20-50 lb.) That's the next thing I need to get; for now, I use anything that comes handy for weight...

As mentioned, sand may be a better choice, lead shot conforms better but it has gone way up in price. Big Five, Bass Pro, most any gun shop has the lead shot. Look for shops that carry loading supplys.

Thank you guys for all your suggestions! Ill be getting my supplies over the next two months and I will definitely start building at the end of February (man I dont want to go back to college...). Ill be keeping you guys posted on what I buy and of course, the build thread.