Cannot find: 2.5 (2.4) inch Square PVC pipe
 

This pipe is used for the fuselage on a Combat Gremlin. I just broke my first and only fuselage. I'm basically poor and looking for a good known source for 2.5" PVC sq. downspout pipe. If I understand it right, it's normally used in the industry to carry water vertically from your roof to the ground. Aparently this pipe used to be commonly available, or so I hear. I've had absolutely no luck. I've tried both hardware and electrical supply stores. Google search results are ambiguous at best.

I found one source, but it was brown and I haven't yet investigated the minimum order quantity. Does anyone know where I can just order a couple lengths of it, say around 20ft total? That should do me for a while. I'm looking to get away with an order for that much material for under $CAN 50 shipped.

Another thing is nylon bolts. It's stupid to pay $1 each from the local hobby supply if I'm going to be breaking them this often.

- NightFlight.

RE: Cannot find: 2.5 (2.4) inch Square PVC pipe
 

change styles and use cutting board bodied airframes, then all you loose is the wing which you can cut yourself see them at RCCA

RE: Cannot find: 2.5 (2.4) inch Square PVC pipe
 

Cutting board bodies? Are we talking cutting board plastic here?

RE: Cannot find: 2.5 (2.4) inch Square PVC pipe
 

Email Jim Reith at: [email protected]
He runs RA Cores (the original manufacturer of the Gremlin), and should be able to supply replacment fuselages.

If that doesn't work, go to: http://www.tandlfarm.com/catalog67440.html
American PVC pipe is at the bottom of that page along with ordering instructions.

For nylon bolts, take a look around: http://www.microfasteners.com/catalog/products/NYL.cfm
I've ordered from Micro fasteners several times - their prices & service are GREAT!

One way to help save your fuselage in the first place is to use four 1/4-20 nylon bolts to hold the engine mount plate to the fuselage (see pics below). The bolts allow the engine mount to break away before the PVC fuselage fails. Usually, just the bolts have to be replaced after a crash.
http://www.x-plane.org/users/demon/Engine%20mount2.jpg
http://www.x-plane.org/users/demon/Engine%20mount1.jpg

HTH,
D

RE: Cannot find: 2.5 (2.4) inch Square PVC pipe
 

I faced the same situation re: finding downspouts. The problem here is that IT DOESN'T RAIN, so the major hardware stores don't even carry gutters and downspouts. The few pieces of gutter I found had a substantial layer of dust on them.

Made a box out of ply to take the place of the fuse formers I needed. I just epoxied another piece of 1/4 inch ply as a firewall to it. Might even be an easier solution!

RE: Cannot find: 2.5 (2.4) inch Square PVC pipe
 

Well, I found the motherload! Visiting a local small town's Home Hardware... going on a Flying Club Members lead I found as much as I needed. It was out back in a locked trailer, but I grabbed 4 12ft peices and snickered all the way home.

Since then, I've managed to crack a wing and started putting it back together today. I removed all the nice coverning and now thinking it might have been a bad idea. I was going on someone elses idea of using just paper covering, painted. I tried brown paper. The glue just shriveld the paper rending it useless.

I'll figure it out.

Thanks all who replied.

RE: Cannot find: 2.5 (2.4) inch Square PVC pipe
 

Nightflight...you can find all the 2.5 downspout..pvc you want at your local Menards!!It's the Canadian thinwalled stuff..$6.00 for a ten foot piece!!!


Have fun
rc manaic

RE: Cannot find: 2.5 (2.4) inch Square PVC pipe
 

Instead of Canadian or American downspouts, try building a square fuselage using 4 mil. Corplas. You essentially form the corplas around the gutter pipe, glue, and then slide out the pipe. Viola ! you have a fuselage that is tough, yet has enough kinetic give to take hits, unlike rigid gutterpipe fuselages.

I've been using this design and have yet to break the fuse.

RE: Cannot find: 2.5 (2.4) inch Square PVC pipe
 

how many pieces. how long you want

RE: Cannot find: 2.5 (2.4) inch Square PVC pipe
 

Genova Products in Michian--RW200 comes in 10 foot lengths--They will cut it to any length you need and will take plastic over the phone--Great people to deal with

RE: Cannot find: 2.5 (2.4) inch Square PVC pipe
 

This would be nice if I could just find the gutter pipe. Today I went to 5 different hardware store and no one had the stuff . So I'm going to try to make the fuse oout of coral alone and see how it comes out.:eek: