Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

Well a couple of guys mentioned they wanted to see the Desire as it went together so here goes my first attempt at a build thread and a jig built balsa pattern ship. I've done a couple of things that are new to me with this plane. First the jig for the fuse, second the press for the wing and stab and last the urethane method of glueing the cores and skins.
OK, we're off. The jig is the one GW has on his sight that is designed by Keith Hoard. It is extremely sturdy and pretty easy to build. After I got my formers and bulkheads built and got some light balsa in put the sides together here's what it looked like. It is strait and light, the strait part may be a first for me.:D

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

Pic out of jig, motor and mount for it. I'm widening out the nose a little bit from the original design.

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

Tom, Nice job,... looks good!! Keep the photos and information coming, it just might inspire me to buld one as well, ha!! You mentioned that you will be using a fiberglass canopy for your Desire. Where are you planning on getting the canopy?? Will you have to purchase the whole fiberglass turtle deck/canopy and cut away the canopy section??

Thanks for the photos.

Signed,
Steve T.
Monson, Massachusetts

P.S. Here is a photo of a Desire I once saw that I was inspired by!!

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

Looking good Tom!!![sm=thumbup.gif]

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

I cut the canopy away from the turtledeck since I'm only using it not the back part. I'm making the front a little wider so I won't be using the chin cowl either. Will post some more pics when the wing tube gets here. I'm making it a plug in wing also to help with the pipe and fixed gear.
thanks, Tom

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

tph1, very nice plane ! Looking forward seeing the progress on this one;)

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

Great stuff, I love these build threads!

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

Here is my year old Desire 60, also with plug in wings, FG and an open pipe. OS91 FX on a Hatori small pipe, pipe pressure only. Wght. 7.5lbs. It flies really well for a small plane, snaps well and has good rudder authority. JR coreless 4131 servos on 6v and standard Dubro hardware. I really like this plane and for well under $1,000 it´s very affordable. The OS91 is powerful (13x10 or 14x8 gives 10,400 RPM) and very reliable.

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

that looks sweet Rodney. What kind of gear is that?
Tom

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

I'd guess bolly F3A standard. But I could be wrong....

-Mike

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

It´s home brewed aluminum swept back and the wheel spats are local CF. But yes, has the same specs as a Bolly F3A standard. We were trying to keep costs down. A Bolly FG and CF tube would save a few more grams, but we got to a pretty decent weight anyway.

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

How did you mate them to the fuse?

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

Tom, In this case, the legs slide into a 3 ply box, which is epoxied and gusseted to the top of the pipe tunnel and held with 4-40 blind nuts. I´ll send a pic over the weekend.

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

Ok thanks Rodney.
Going to post more pics Saturday of the modified wing press and the wings being skinned.

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

Well I got a little more done this week in the evenings. I got the fuse almost ready to finish. I'm just waiting on some CF pushrods to get here for the elevator before I do the bottom and turledeck. I got the wing tube in the fuse and tacked after about 30 times of measuring and remeasuring, it doesn't pay to try to get something exact when you're tired and sleepy.

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

I also today got my wing tube holes cut finally. I ended up with a forstner bit and a golf shaft with some wooden block guides and about 3 million different levels, squares and other implements of destruction. It worked though and the tubes are tight and the cores line up well. Now to skin the wings with my modified press. Will post those pics as soon as I get started.

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

Well, got the wing tubes and false ribs in today. I took the tube and put 1/64" ply on the end and CA'd it to the tube then sanded it flush to keep the epoxy out, seemed like a good idea at the time, I guess it wil work. Then I took the skins and prepped them like Toymaker told me to do and put one side in the press. It looks strait soI'll know in the morning. I beefed up my press after the stabs because I saw the MDF board stating to bend using it end to end so I added two braces and turned them perpendicular to the cores and put 16 ga. channel under them also. Weighs about a ton now and is a real bear to put on the work table. But anyway here are 2 pics of the wing and the tube cover I made for it.
Tom

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

Well here is a pic of the first wing core hot out of the press. Looks strait to me, put the other one in and is curing as I work over it in the fuse jig. Finally starting to trial fit some stuff. I can't finish the fuse until my CF tubes get here this week but I think everything is ready. I haven't weighed anything on this one because I'm not that concerned with keeping this long term as a comp. plane but it doesn't look or feel like it's going to be heavy. The balsa I got was very light.
Tom

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

I got the hor. stab and elevators ready to hinge and finish and the wings sheeted and the leading and trailing edges on them with white glue. The control surfaces look very small to me but they are 1/8" deeper that shown on the plans, oh well. I really like the way the skins worked out with the urethane glue and taped seems instead of edge glueing everything. Going to star back on the nose of the fuse now until I get everything dry and sanded.

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

Look good Tom!!! I really like the press idea for skinning wings! I am going to make me one of those!!!

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

If I had it to do over, I would get 2 10' sticks of unistrut cut in 2' pieces and use it 5 on top and 5 on bottom instead of the channel on bottom and the strut on top. But it works well.

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

Gee Tom,
I have to believe your press is lighter than the 2 pieces of pool table slate that I use for sheeting wings - about 90 lbs each. One on the bottom and one on top. Then I add more weight on top (about another 100lbs for wings.
How long does it take for the urethane glue to cure? I usually allow at least 24 hours of cure time using epoxy.
The Desire looks good so far!!
-Will B.

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

Yes the press is lighter but, I put 10, 1/4" bolts throught the 5 pieces of unistut and tighten them down equally, so I get plenty of downward force without having to use a zillion lbs. of weight. The directions on the glue says it cures in 4-6 hrs. but I have been leaving them in the press at least overnight 12-14 hrs average.

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

Getting the control surfaces ready to put on the hardwear. Bought a 1/2" diam. piece of brass tubing and sharped the end and bingo, a hole for the 1/2" dowel. I have MK horns and CF rods for the whole thing so I'll learn how to do the CF on this one before I tackle a 2 meter. Also got the vertical stab sheeted and almost ready. Had to add a 1/32" piece of balsa to the bottom sides because it wasn't wide enough.

RE: Desire 60 build, first jig built balsa.
 

I got all the surfaces on and gues what, it's looking pretty darn strait, according to my measurements the levellility and perpendicularness are right on the money. I haven't checked the incidences yet but they look pretty good also. Here's a pic of it all stuck together, accept for the turtledeck I'll finish today or tomorrow.