Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

In this thread it will show how add the tips, ailerons, and cover the wing with fiberglass cloth.

Below are the sheeted wings that are the start of this thread:

Love your threads Scott. Looking forward to this one.

Thanks,
Joe.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

Start by marking a center line on the leading edge.

Rough shape the leading edge with a razor plane and sanding block.

I followed with a sanding block and special L.E. tool.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

The tips were trimmed with a razor saw and sanding block until the tips were square.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

The wing must be trimmed at the trailing edge.

Measure and mark a line so that the wing will have a 9 7/8" cord.

A razor saw was used to trim the width. I followed with a sanding block with 60 grit sand paper.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

A sanding block was used to sand the trailing edge until it was shape.

Note: The trailing edges on my wings have two or three pieces of 1.6 once fiberglass cloth between sheets of balsawood.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

I traced a wing tip from a Sam-Rai on to a lightweight balsa block.

A jig saw was used to cut them out.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

The outside outline of the wing was traced on the balsa blocks.

I continued cutting them out with the saw.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

Gorilla glue was used to attach the wing tips.

Begin by wetting the surface with a damp towel.

Apply a small amount around the outside and tape parts in place.

Set the wing out of the way to dry.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

Strips of 1/64" plywood are traced and then cut out using scissors or equal.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

The slot location was identified with an ink pen and then cut with a razor saw.

The strips of wood are inserted into the slots and then glued in place with thin CA.

I sand off the excess glue at the joint with a sanding block.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

The tips were trimmed and then sanded to match the airfoil of the wing.

A ruler was used to check if additional shaping was required.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

A line was marked 5/8" from the glue joint.

Another line was marked about 5" from the trailing edge and goes to the corner (at the trailing edge).

I begin by shaping the front half with a pocket knife. Then shape the rear part.

After the tips are roughed a course sanding block is used to finish shaping.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

Some spackle is applied at the joint to fill as required.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

Pieces of dowel must be added to the cores to reinforce the area.

Approximate the location of the holes on the top of the core.

Small holes were drilled to verify the location on the plywood hold downs.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

A hole saw (drill) was used to drill the holes in the wing.

Just turn the bit by hand until it is through the surface and core.

Close the hole on the bottom of the wing with a piece of electrical tape.

Cut pieces of dowel to fit and glue them in place with a mix of finishing epoxy and micro balloons.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

The following pictures show how to apply the fiberglass cloth to the wing. They are from the Candy Kane thread.

A piece of Taffeta (dress liner) is used as the hinge surface on the ailerons.

I cut pieces about 1" wider and longer on each side than the ailerons.

Apply a thin layer of finishing epoxy over the surface and lay the Taffeta over that.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

I follow with a piece of fiberglass cloth big enough to cover the entire wing. The weight can be from 0.5 ounce to 1.6 ounce glass cloth. I typically use 1.1 to 1.6 ounce fiberglass cloth on this surface.

The wing tips are subject to abuse and they can be made tougher by adding another layer of cloth. I used 1.6 ounce on the tips.

The center section is reinforced with 3 or 4 layers of additional fiberglass cloth (1.6 ounce).

3M77 is helpful in holding the cloth in place. I just apply a small amount to hold the glass in place.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

I piece of peel ply (taffeta, or nylon polyester blend fabric) is cut big enough to cover the wing.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

Mix about 1 1/2 ounce of finishing epoxy and add a cap of 91% alcohol for thinning.

Drizzle this over one side of the wing. Use a squeegee to spread out the epoxy.

Mix another batch of finishing epoxy and spread it the same.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

Cover the wing with the peel ply and lay the wing on the wing bag.

The wing bag is made from a 4 mill thick piece of tarp. It is cut big enough to fully cover the wing and peel ply.

Place a long piece of paper towel over the top of the peel ply. Place a piece of rope at the wing leading edge.

Run a bead of latex caulking where the tarp joins.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

The tarp was folded over to close the surface.

Most of the air was removed from the bag by running the vacuum pump. The bag was then placed between the wing shucks and some weight (qts. of paint) was applied to keep parts in place.


The pump was turned back on to remove the rest of the air. The vacuum pump is set to keep about 6 inches of Hg on the surface.

The wing is allowed to dry as required.

Finish a sheeted Q500 Wing
 

The wing was removed from the peel ply and a sanding block was used to trim the edges.

The surface of the wing was lightly sanded with 220 grit sandpaper on a sanding block.

Finish a sheeted Q500 Wing
 

The fiberglassed wing weighed in about 14.6 ounces.

Finish a Sheeted Q500 Wing
 

This morning another wing was fiberglassed and placed in vacuum bag. The method was the same as the earlier one in this thread.