Some building questions
 

Alright, I am trying to finish up this pylon racer of mine. I'm having a few problems though, and need some help.

First off, how should i join the wings? They are balsa sheeted foam core, and i need to figure out how to join them, and have a good joint? Is there a speacial way to sand them, or what? I know how to join them, but just not how to get the joint.

Secondly, I need to put the bottom piece of the fuse on, all of wish are light ply. Would wood glue work for these, or epoxy, or should i go get some CA? Also, should the wing hold down screw block be epoxied, or just use wood glue or CA?

And lastly. This is a midtail plane, and when i first cut the slot for the horizontal stab, to go into the vertical stab, i cut it slightly large, but only by about a quarter of an inch. Should i just put triangle stock there, or what?

-Chad

Oh, and one more thing, I had to put a very blunt piece length of wood on the front of the wing, and it said sand to shape, but i am going to be sanding alot off for this to be of shape. Does this sound right?

RE: Some building questions
 

I can't answer all of them but I will what I can.
Bottom of fuselage? wood glue is ok. I would also put a fillet of wood glue along the seam.
Wing block? Epoxy
Leading edge? Yes alot of sanding, I use a razor plane to rough shape it then sand.
Use a sanding block on the wing joint to get a good flat finish, be carefull to keep any dihedral needed, test fit often as you sand.
Not sure about the tail feathers?

RE: Some building questions
 

Thanks missileman.

One last question. Whats the best way to clamp the wings together when you epoxy them together? I wish i had a 52" clamp.

RE: Some building questions
 

ideally, your joint is good enough that no real pressure is needed to join the wing halves. I'd recommend epoxy for this. With a good joint and the wingtips supported, tape should be all you need to hold things in position. After this is dry, you're probably best off to apply a strip of fiberglass cloth around the outside using finishing resin or CA with good ventilation. Keep in mind the epoxy you're using to stick stuff together is not finishing resin..... One of the big diffences between this stuff and finishing resin is that finishing resin is sandable and typically is much runnier (wets the cloth better). You can use your non-finishing resin epoxy for the fiberglassing... Add some alcohol to thin & don't plan on sanding it!! Or use CA and don't knock yourself out with the fumes.

RE: Some building questions
 

Thanks alpine star, I'll work on getting it sanded tonight, and if i get enough done, i'll join it.

RE: Some building questions
 

Does this acutally belong in the beginners forum???

RE: Some building questions
 

Bill,
I suppose it would be better to have it in kit building. My bad.

RE: Some building questions
 

Chad,
I'm moving this thread over to the kit building forum as that's a better place for it.

Ken

RE: Some building questions
 

Thanks for the move, i should've put it here in the first place.