Holidays are over so I have time to get to putting my SSE kit together. Since I completed my LT-40 at the end of the summer and I'm still learning to solo on that plane I can take my time building this one... I also live in the NW - wee bit rainy here at the moment so good flying weather is a few months away.

Learned a lot from my LT-40 build so I am excited to build this one with a little more experience under my belt.



I noticed that this kit has far less material than the LT-40 and a lot less ply material for the fuselage. Nice that they roll the plans for this kit as well (LT-40 plans were folded).

Have an O.S. .46 AX for the engine and Futaba Flight Pack w/R127DF Rx & (5) S3004 Servos w/ (2) 6" extensions.

Haven't figured out what color scheme I'm gonna go with yet.

Here is the list of mods I'd like to do in this build:

o Sheet the turtle deck
o Custom cowl for the engine (rotate the engine 90 - inspiration inspired by this)
o Larger control surfaces(maybe counters)

That's about it at this time. Gonna dig some more into the SSE threads on this board in the next few days.

Tonight I just sorted the hardware into the small tackle box at the top right corner of the pic and checked out the materials in the kit.

Gonna get the room setup into build mode tomorrow night and get to building!

somegeek

Another SSE - the more, the merrier! Keep us posted on the progress and we're here to help, so fire away!

Somegeek- I enjoyed watching your LT40 build as many others did. Good luck on this build as well. Another great choice for a build!

Here is another suggestion for a mod. WING BOLTS! I hate those little j hooks. If I had it to do again I would put hardwood plates in the root rib and in the fuse with a blind nut in the wing and use bolts to hold the wing on instead of zipties like I do now.

I hope thats not your 'building bench'!!!

Woo Hoo! Another SSE Build.

I'm a little over halfway on my build so far. Might I suggest a stronger tail wheel wire (preferably something that puts the weight on the stab instead of the rudder) and use ply to reinforce its mount area (in replacement to the lite ply backer). I enlarged the control surfaces on the stab and cut out counters for both. I also play to sheet the turtle deck and have been planning a custom cowling. The one you found is wonderful and inspiring... I might have to make an SSE adaptation of it.

Here's to your build! Looking forward to following it.

i've built a couple SE's, here is my definitive list of mods. (i've printed this out and gone by it during building for myself!) (images are broke, still rebuilding my server and site)


http://rkramer.hn.org/planes/extra_mods.shtml

The ceiling tile I used for my LT-40 build was out in the garage for the last few months and became a little warped(wet fall/winter/spring in the NW)... enough that it would not provide a level surface to build on. I cut a 2' x 4' piece of 3/4" MDF board that is really flat for my pinning surface to mount to. I taped it down at several places to the MDF so now it's flat.



Got my build setup set up and glued up the spars... These things are quite a bit smaller than the LT-40s. Seemed tiny in comparison.



Was going to clothes pin them together but the stock was slightly warped so I pinned them down... was excited to get started, it didn't dawn on me to save my left wing plans from some extra pin holes. DOH!

To hold these down, I put the t-pins in at an angle and lined them up so that the top of the pins lay parellel to the stock and right over the top. Then turned them 90º. They are then flexing but also pushing down on the stock. Used a straight edge and a few pins to straighten them.



Cut and capped the wing tubes.



I'm using Titebond II for this build except where epoxy and CA is required.

Thanks for the tips guys! Nice reference, smokingcrater. Great idea on the sheeting to get it to warp to your advantge.

Got the ribs mounted on the bottom spare of the left wing assembly tonight...



These laser cut pieces are nice! In my LT-40 kit, about half of the pieces were stamped out of the balsa sheets so the edges were rough and needed some clean up. These SSE pieces are all laser cut so the edges are nearly perfect.

Each rib has an extra tab that supports the rib during the build that will be removed later. Hold the rib in place and a push in a few pins to hold it sercurely on the back.



Before I glued up my spars last night I tested my T-pins(left) on a 1/2" piece of the 1/4" stock and it cracked it since the pins were too large. Picked up some smaller sized pins(right) tonight and no worries now.



Drilled out, tapped and CA'd the servo mounting holes in the trays before mounting this and ribs 3 and 4.



Was given this tip from a few people on my last build. Drill the servo screw holes. Put a screw into each hole to create the threads. Remove the screws. Put a drop of CA into each hole. Make sure to 'pop' the web that the CA might create in the hole. Once this dries mount your servo. The CA will strengthen the hole/mount.

Had more time so I mounted the first fuselage doubler.



This lighter balsa doesn't require much pressure to lay flat so I just used 65 lbs of weight over pieces of MDF to press the two glued pieces together on top of some wax paper. Will let set overnight.

The glue actually started to cause the doubler piece to warp a little as I was spreading the glue due to the moisture it was absorbing but I'm sure it will dry flat now. :P

This works great, remember to do the servo tray as well before gluing it into the fuse.
Makes radio installation down the road very fast and easy.

When gluing the doublers it's good you use something straight + weights to hold it flat to avoid warping. I also suggest you put a few pins to make sure the sides don't move.
(After applying glue and weighting the sides down they might slip, glue makes them slippery, this is best prevented with a couple of needles)

Enjoy the build, the SSE is a fast, easy build to enjoy.... (I'm thinking about getting a couple more of them actually)
If you look around in the forum, there's plenty of SSE's being built.
Here's mine: [link=http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_3540270/mpage_1/key_test005/tm.htm]Test005's SSE[/link]

Thanks, Test005. I actually had the wing tube and the dowell in there for a while and then removed them so they would not get glued in there. Good idea though to just put a couple pins in there for good measure. Will do that when I glue up the other side.

The tube and dowel is great for aligning the pieces together, but a recommend fixating it with pins.
Those fuse sides get really slippery and tend to move a bit... I use wood glue.

Next time in the hobby store I recommend you to pick up a Dubro 8oz fuel tank and a pair of good 3" foam wheels.
I also changed the elev pushrod to Sullivan hardware and went for metal clevises everywhere, but that's a personal preference.

Thanks for the suggestions, Test005.

I have an 8oz tank left over from my LT-40 build that I can use.

Will check out the 3" wheels.

Was planning on using carbon fiber rods vs the nyrods similar to my LT-40 build.

Somegeek - lightly sand the edges of the laser cut parts where glue will touch. This will allow better glue penetration into the wood than the slightly charred surface will. Stonger joints.

If I remember correctly the instructions for the SSE tells you to do just this. I could be mistaking it for another kit I have done, but I learned how to do this from an instruction manual and I want to say that it was for the SSE. IMHO it really does make a big difference in the strength of the joint if you do lightly sand the edge. I use 220 grit sandpaper and just do a very light touch on the edges. You want to take the charring off without changing the shape of the part.

Ken

Think of it this way. How well does your glue bond with charcoal? Will it bond 2 pieces of charcoal together?

Actually, I'm looking at my SSE Manual right now and it says NOT to sand the parts. Here's the paragraph:

IMPORTANT: The laser cut parts contained in the kit are extremely accurate in outline and fit. They are meant to be used directly out of their sheets, without any trimming or sanding unless specifically called for in the instructions. The Laser cutting process produces a brownish edge to the parts and, in some cases, a blackout edge may result when cutting harder plywood parts. CA adhesives work perfectly on these parts and they do not need to be sanded to remove the discolored edges. In fact, sanding the edges of laser cut parts can change their shape and/or dimensions, resulting in a poor fit. DO NOT edge sand the laser cut parts in this kit.

For me, I trust the experience here at RCU. If Ken and Bruce both suggest lightly sanding the joint then so be it. I think the key is not changing the shape. Furthermore, I wonder if the Sig advice is based on using CA and not wood glue?

MA

You definitely don't want to reshape the parts. Only break/remove any char glaze on the gluing surface. A couple of light swipes with a block sander should be enough.

Thanks for the tip guys.

The instruction book advises explicitly not to sand the laser cut edges, even mounting surfaces. I do however like the idea of getting a better bond by sanding the surface lightly.

I guess it wont hurt to sand as long as you don't take off too much.
I did not sand every piece, built with wood glue and have pulled seveal "full-speed-full-elevator and or aileron" with no failures.
Personally I don't think it's important to clean every piece since everythin is interlocking.
Those glue joints, sanded balsa or not, will be stronger than the balsa theyr'e attached to anyway.

In what stage are you of buildind the SSE?

Layed down the fuselage side that already had the doubler mounted on it to make sure I was gluing up the other fuselage side correctly. I left the weight on for a few minutes and then pulled it off to wipe excess glue and then put the boards and weight back on. Pulled the tube and dowel a little while later. Will dry overnight.



I had to let my wing dry last night but still wanted to work on my plane. That's why I started working to get the fuselage put together.

So,do you reccomend the SSE to me?
I haden't ever build any kit,so this is my first!