Redwulf__34

Nice Sweet Stick sscherin. What's the paint finish? Do I also detect some dihedral in the wing? My sweet stick had a flat wing. I do see a few other modifications. Did you also add dihedral to the wing?

Didnt think about the blue tape vintageflyer. Doping it worked for the cut. It made a real nice cut but when I doped the covering on was when it would string. Your method sounds like it would take care of that problem. Someone also mentioned cutting with pinking shears. Maybe next time I'll try pinking shears and blue tape together.

skylarkmk1

Redwulf,

The pinking shears may cause you to have many little bits of Koveral instead of a long string. Suggest trying the shears and tape on some scrap before committing to the plane. I almost always have little threads coming from the pinked points when doing rib stitching. Good luck.

Sir Crashalot

Sean
I read through the whole thread, and I don’t think you have said how your Dus has balanced out with your HB .40 PDP. (Nose heavy?) Also, I went to the MECOA site that you posted a link to, and read the specs for that engine. It list the practical rpm’s as 1,800 to 19,000. WOW! That engine is a screamer! (I do believe you mentioned you were using 1/4 inch bolts, tapped into a ½ inch steel plate firewall. Now I know why.) That's gonna pull that stik around with no problems! Do they still make HB's anymore?
Thanks
Bob J.

Redwulf__34

Hey Bob,
I don't know if they still make the HB or not. I think they do but haven't located them. They were German made I think.

I did an early test balance and it was a tad nose heavy. I figured it would be just about perfect when finished.

Since it's really a .40 but physically it's very close to a .60 I was expecting to find it "tail heavy". I was surprised to see it was nose heavy. I'm thinking by the time I finish out paint and all it's going to be about right. I had this thing on my Sweet Stick and had to put the battery pack just behind the servo tray and behind the last bulkhead in the radio compartment to get it to balance. I'm guessing no trouble with the DUS. Or should I say "hoping" no trouble. It sure did pull my Sweet Stick around well! I hope no trouble with DUS. What size prop would you recommend????

Sean

Sir Crashalot

Sean
I use a 10x7 prop on my Super Tigre .40, But it’s about 3,000 rpm off the top of your HB. I have no experience with engines that rev that high. I don’t know want the difference would be. As far as what the ideal prop would be. There are a lot of RC’ers out there with more experience than myself. Maybe they could chime in and help out. If not, you might have to do some test trials to see what works best. Sorry I couldn’t help. Good luck, and keep up the good work.
Bob J.

P.S. If you want, you can just mail me the HB. That way you won't have to worry about props. Buy yourself a nice new OS or something. Just trying to help!

Birman

They don't seem to make the HB .40 anymore but they do still make to HB .61 at a price of $169.99

http://www.mecoa.com/prices.htm#mecprice

Redwulf__34

Hey Bob,
I actually ran a 10X7 on my sweet stick. It was probably the wrong prop! I'll seek some wise advice when I get to that stage. It probably needs to be an 11X7 or so.

With the HB engines it's the PDP that makes it run on steriods. I checked the link Birman put up. They show the 61 and 61 PDP. PDP stood for Perry Directional Porting. It was like feeding the things MLB grade steroids!!!!!!

Sean

Redwulf__34

Will be painting soon. I got my paint from Warbird Colors. Blue, Red, White, and Black. The blue is a real nice shade. I can't waite to see it.

I know I've never painted properly before. I assume I should start with the light color first? Normally I would pant the base color of Blue all over. Probably I would not paint the tail section. Then I would tape off the tail section and paint it red. Then tape off the white areas on the wings and fuselage paint those, then tape off the crosses. Is that the right way to go about it or should I paint the white areas tape those off and then paint the blue around them?????

If you haven't seen the color scheme go back to post #194. I made a crude photoshop. I'd appreciate any advice!

skylarkmk1

Redwulf,

What color primer are you using? A dark primer will often dull down colors while a light primer can tend to brighten the colors. You are correct, normal painting has the light colors are applied first, masked off, and then the darker colors are applied. Your idea of masking the tail off and painting it separately is good.

Painting the blue first and then painting the white is not a good idea. The blue will show thru the white, requiring more coats of white to cover (more weight).

My suggestion is to (after prep);
1 - Apply a light (white or light grey) colored primer over the whole plane. Check for pin holes, fill if needed and re-check.
2 - Apply white just larger than the areas needed (wing squares, fuselage squares, on the rudder to outline the cross and the red/blue separation line of the fuse).
3 - Mask the white wing/fuse squares and the tail section and paint the blue.
4 - Remove the tail mask and mask the fuselage and cross outline area on rudder and paint the tail red.
5 - Remove the white mask on the wing, fuse and rudder and re-mask for the cross.
6 - Paint the crosses.
7 - If desired, give the whole plane a coat of clear.

Redwulf__34

Thanks for the advice Skylarkmk1. That is very helpful for me. I'm using a grey primer. Dupli Color High Build. Would you tape off the white areas or just paint the area and let it "feather" out? I've always had problems with tape lines. Probably painting too heavy.

Every paint scheme I have ever done was a light base and darker trim. This is sort of a first for me, to have the darker base colors. I'll follow your steps. What kind of clear do you recommend over Warbird Colors? Have you used them before?

Sean

skylarkmk1

Sean,

I haven’t messed with the Warbird Colors (I use dope most of the time) and I would use their clear if they have one (the site is a pain to navigate on dial up). Follow their directions (go back and re-read them) on making sure any wood areas to be painted are sealed from moisture.

If they don’t have a clear (they should), I would use another water based polyurethane clear coat (no, I don’t have a suggestion on what brand). DO A TEST on a separate (non-plane) scrap to test compatibility.

Preferably, I would spray the white areas just a little larger than the final size and feather the edges with the spray gun. If the grey primer is dark grey, then maybe give the whole plane a THIN coat (or 2) of white primer, just enough to cover the dark grey. Light grey primer should not need an over coat of white.

Rule of thumb, a few thin coats are better than 1 heavy coat. Build you paint depth (color) in layers of thin paint, don’t rush it. And always TEST on scrap.

You may want to do a search on using polyurethane paints here on RCU or over on RC Scalebuilder for more info.

Redwulf__34

Thanks Skylark,
They do have a clear. I thought maybe you had used them before and knew of something else. I consider my primer a light grey. It's not real real light. Probably lighter than dark. There are some pictures of the primed wing back a few posts.

I was planning to get some work done tonite. But man, I get home from work with all the best intentions, but by the time I eat dinner and get some time with the boys, the energy is GONE!!!! [&o]

Sean

Redwulf__34

Skylark,
I don't know if your familiar with [link=http://www.metropartsmarket.com/autopaint/duplicolor-c4s2.html]Dupli Color[/link] primers or not. Things are coming out better than expected so far! I've had a thought. I'm using the High Build sandable that is surely going to add more weight than regular primer. It's doing a great job making my seams completely invisible. My thought is to sand just about all of this off leaving only the buildup over the seams and low spots then come back over with the Primer Sealer just before painting. The high build sands very very easy. Is that a crazy idea? Should I just use the High Build as I doing right now, which is sanding it nearly down all the way leaving the low spots built up then hitting it with a second coat and sanding it down almost to the surface and then painting right over that?????

skylarkmk1

Sean,

Sandpaper is your friend. A high build primer is ment to be sanded way down, leaving primer only in the low spots. Apply primer, sand, apply, sand and repeat if needed. The object is to fill the weave of the fabric and have a smooth surface for the finish colors. I don't think you would need the Primer Sealer, it just adds weight. Again do a test on a scrap piece first before doing things on your plane. The picture below is of the wing of the Antique Grand Champion at Oshkosh this year, a 1932 Waco QCF-2 from the Creve Coeur Airport/Historic Aircraft Museum. The restoration was completed just shortly before Oshkosh. You can see how the fabric has been filled and the weave has disapeared.

Redwulf__34

Thanks skylark,
I've now gotten everything ready for paint except the wing. It needs some TLC. I'm going to put up some pictures of what i'm considering ready to paint a little later. I'm leaving some primer on. I see you say sand way down only leaving primer in the low spots. Maybe since I'm trying to build up and mainly hide the seams, I've gotten a bit more primer remaining than what I think you mean. But it has been sanded way down. Nearly through but not all the way. You can almost see covering under the grey.

When the wing is ready, I'll post some close ups and appreciate your input. I'm using CA hinges. Is it best to glue them in after I'm done painting? I thought I might go ahead and glue the control surfaces (elevator, rudder, etc) in right before I paint.
Or is it best to waite until after?

Thanks!!

sean

skylarkmk1

Sean,

Hinge after painting. I am not a fan of the CA Hinge, but others seem to like them, paint in the hinge line might want to crack the hinge. If you have a hole drilled in the center of the hinge slot (---o--- like this) to help wick the CA down into the hinge, you can use a tooth pick, bamboo skewer or small dowel stuck in the hole(s) to hold the elevator, rudder or ailerons for painting.

It sounds like you are sanding just the right amount. "You can almost see covering under the grey." You don't want to sand into the covering.

Redwulf__34

What kind of hinges do you use Skylark? I'm a bit leary of the CA hinges. I've never used them. I've been thinking about doing something different.

Here she is, dressed in primer grey!!! I'm very very close to paint. I really don't have as much time in this as you guys may think. I just haven't been able to work on it. This is the last primer coat before paint. I'll sand this down and start painting. Next pictures you see shoud have some more interest.

Happy Thanksgiving All!!!!!!!!

Sean

skylarkmk1

Sean,

I am using Robart hinges (epoxied) on the RCM Sticks I am building. I have used the Dubro flat nylon hinges (epoxy and pinned) in the past and will probably use them again or the Robarts depending on the application. An example are using Robarts (look almost scale) for the elevator and rudder on the Waco YMF and the Dubro with some plastic rod to simulate the piano type hinges on the ailerons.

Redwulf__34

I think I'll try the Robart hinges next time. Since I've got this all ready for the CA hinges I'm gonna go ahead and try em. I'm used to using the flat hinges pinned in place too. The thing I never liked was the pinning. I probably didn't do it right. The only way to hide the pins was to put the control surface in before painting etc. I then usually wound up with a bit of a mess trying to get the covering etc in between the two surfaces. The robarts look real sweet. Expensive but they look good. If I have any trouble with these CA hinges maybe I'll change out.

I've been out of town a few days but I took a vacation day for Monday. Gotta haul a few loads of mulch to make momma happy but then maybe some final sanding and I can start laying on some color!!!!!!

skylarkmk1

Sean,

When I use the flat Dubro or Klett type hinge, I replace the individual hinge pins with a long common pin going through all the hinges on one side and make each surface removable. This does require that the hinge slots and hinges be placed very accurately so that the hinge pin will slide in and out easily. Once the hinges are glued in place, you can remove the hinge pin and surface and put the pins (toothpicks) in place to hold the hinges, sand smooth, cover and paint with out fighting to get the covering between the surfaces, just a slit to fit over the hinge barrels. If the new hinge pin fits a little too tight and does not allow free movement, go down in diameter one size and you should be good to go. I have also used a common hinge pin with the unpinned Robart hinge.

An easy way to get accurate hinge slots is to laminate pieces of 1/32” balsa (for DuBro large hinges), leaving a gap at each hinge location, into your hinge line. This does require a little pre-planning for hinge locations and making new leading and trailing edges as wide as the hinge is deep ahead of time, but it has saved me time and frustration trying to dig out the slot in an already built surface.

Redwulf__34

Don't know if I'll get any painting in this weekend or not. It's getting cold here again and I'm worried about the temps in my garage. It's not a big garage and it's not heated. I can pull in an electric heater or something but I'm afraid I'll loose the heat faster than I can produce it. So we'll have to see how it looks. Today would be a great day to paint but I'm at work! [>:] Tomorrow is supposed to turn colder and rain/sleet here. I also have to get the Christmas tree up and I think my water heater blew a lower element. That may be a bigger job than I hope for!

Wondering if any of you guys have any weights on your DUS. Bob, I'm curious what yours was with that cowl on the nose. I want to see how mine comes out with the Koverall. Because of a few mistakes I made I had to get a bit heavy with my primer. Heavier than normal anyway. I think I'm going to be fine with the weight. But I'm curious about where I come in against some of the monokotes etc.

Sean

Mustang Fever

My Feedback: (2)

Sean:

Mine came out real nose heavy, even after I got rid of the cowl and the plywood pieces that it mounted on. I have 2 oz of stick on weights under the tail, plus 2 - 230 grain 45 caliber bullets. Also, when it got bused in half last year, I used a lot of expoxy and micro ballons to "mold" the parts of the aft fuse that were missing. It balances somewhere around the main spar. Probably still a bit nose heavy, as it is impossible to stall or spin. Just sort of mushes when I try either one.

Redwulf__34

Mine was looking like it was going to be nose heavy too. I was surprised since I was using a .40. But we'll see how she finishes. That was before covering and primer etc. I'm assuming covering, primer, paint on the tail was going to be enough to balance her out. What is your total finished weight?

Sean

Redwulf__34

Ready to paint. I just need to get some good temperatures now. The weekend here was pretty hectic but it wasn't a good day for painting any way. All in all I'm pretty pleased with how it's come out. I was able to cover some mistakes. It took some extra work but it's going to come out pretty good. This will be an all around everyday "beater" anyway.

Sean

Mustang Fever

My Feedback: (2)

Sean:

140 oz.

Quite a pig, huh? [:'(]

The build sheet that came with the RCM plans says it should weigh 96 oz. A good bit of that is having 4 wing servos instead of 1. That adds 5 oz in servo weight, and some additional for the plywood servo hatches, etc. Mostly I think it came out heavy because I used oversize wood here and there, and beefed it up a lot in the areas I thought would break. I don't remember exactly.

"Survivability, not light weight" must be my motto, or, "Long Live the Eisenschwine".