I got a set of these plans from BT , AND this plane looks impressive , for
its size , but having it lazor cut would be really pricy. does anyone know if you
could build your own lazor cutter, for just small parts. like ribs and formers??

thanks RCU

'lemme understand here. You are trying to build a $8-40, thousand laser cutting machine for less than it costs for a set of parts? Did you schedule in the weeks of CAD work involved too?

Wm.

I believe C.A.P. is alive and well in the UK, maybe you could just order the kit from them?

it would be cheaper to build a cnc router to machine the parts.it does not take long to cut the parts yourself for that plan.if you have a band saw,scroll saw and a small table disc sander it would only take about 2-3 hours.less if you have a router table or table saw for cutting nothes for spars.

thats how much they cost? holy #$@%^%$#@&&

theres not many cutters that will just cut ribs and formers, Jesse at LASER LIZZARD
Will, thats the only one i know of

I'LL e bob holman and ask if i can get a kit, from jolly old england and mabey,
with some luck , get some assessories.

C. A. P. is out of bizz, bob does have canopy's and tooling for a cowl.
I may be cutting my first airplane , as far as this is concerned.

Cut them yourself! I just cut out two 1/5th scale and 1 1/6th scale airplanes with a coping saw, exacto knife and rasor saw, a balsa stripper, a sanding bar, and a anceint Dremal saw with the small disk sander on the side. The 1/6th was a Dornier D1 biplane and the two 1/5th planes have tappered with 19 ribs each side varing from 17 1/2" to 4 3/4" long. I did it all in mys spare time in a little over 2 1/2 weeks and I work 2 jobs. Its isn't had just time consuming. I copied the plans in pieces and glue the paper to the wood with rubber cement so I had a pattern. The biplane is straight winged so I clamped the wing ribs together and sanded them so the were all the same size. I even cut my own spars. The 1/5th scale planes have plywood fusalage formers and incorporates a builder's jig made from wood srips cut with a master Airscrew balsa stripper. The most expensive tool of the group is the Dremel scroll saw which if you watch garage sales you can find it or something like it for $20 to $30. Try it you like it!

Whiterook, are you proficient at CAD or Corell Draw per chance? The hardest part of laser cutting is getting the parts drawn up in a digital format. If you can draw the parts yourself getting them cut should be relatively inexpensive.

Chad , i took a cad class and , it didn't go too well, i couldn't even complete one drawing. I have a scroll saw and i'm going to give it a shot.

OKC , getting the plans to the wood will be interesting, rubber cement?
and what is the best way to cut stringer and spar slots in the formers and ribs? how bout a router bit in a drill press?

thanks guys

you can do it the old fashioned way of gluing sand paper to the correct size spar material and then sanding till flush.i use a square cutting bit in a router on a raouter table or using a hollow ground blade in my table saw raised to the proper depth for 1/8"wide slots,swicthing to a dado cutting blade for wider cuts.these are all inexpensive craftsman desktop tools bought used over a 20 year period.

WhiteRock, I did lots of kit cutting in the pre-laser days and my favorite method of laying out parts was simply to use a light coat of 3M spray adhesive to stick the template to the wood. Once you get the hang of how much it's easy to get it to stick while you're cutting but still come off when your done and not leave a bunch of sticky residue. The trick is to use a high quality spray adhesive like 3M Spray 77 and not the cheap stuff. Cut close to the line and then use a disk or vertical belt sander to sand down to the line. I usually just cut my notches with a scroll saw and a steady hand. On balsa you can cut your notches slightly undersize and then run a piece of the proper size square stock through it to force it to the exact dimension. Not so easy on plywood though! If you have access to a spindle sander or sanding drum chucked up in a drill press those are great tools for doing inside curves. Good luck with it!

PS - Kent Walters won the Masters multiple times back in the '80s with a C.A.P. Dauntless.

very helpfull, there are some formers where the insides are cut out, arround the canopy areas, a router probly would come in handy, but i may be able to just drill
a large circle with a hole saw and go from there. It looks like i'm going to have to make copies of the ribs and formers and some other important parts.

the drawings show how to make a cowl. its got an odd shape , it flairs out, sort of like
a G BEE cowl , but i'll cross that river when i get to it. its a really big plane for a 69
inch . its like the small ziroli 47 . very robust. the plan shows no retracts , fixed gear.
to tell you the truth i dont care. interesting plane

it will keep me busy during these long maine winters

when you do the ribs use rubber cement to make a stack of 2 or more of the same rib and cut out at the same time,

whiterook

Here's a thought that WILL help you immeasurably!

Take your SCROLL SAW, drill 4 holes in it so you can mount it UPSIDE DOWN underneath a work table. It's a little awkward perhaps to turn the trigger swich on/off but the machine is solid and your work is flexible. Drill a 1.5" hole in your worktable, line up the blade thru it and mark your placement for the mounting screws. If they come thru the top of the table simpy break them off and sand the working area smooth.

If you use DRYWALL SCREWS, they'll hold fine, but they are very brittle. Consequently, your ability the simply break off the excess. Don't go overkill and use BOLTS. The drywayy screws will hold 100%.

Now all you have to do is BRING YOUR WORK to the cutting blade.

Remember this: "IF IT'S TOO SMALL TO BRING THE TOOL TO THE WORK -- BRING THE WORK TO THE TOOL"

Bon Chance

marwen1

RC Model World (www.traplet.com ) list a plan for a 69 inch Dauntless and list a canopy CA2106CY and a F/G cowl CF2106CL for it. Traplet plan No MW2106

I believe Traplet aquired the C. A. P. plans rights some years ago and this may be the same plan.

Double sided tape is very handy to fix templates to wood or fix two bits of wood together for shaping. Use just a couple of pieces half inch long.

Presumably the under bench mounting refers to the Black and Decker type hand held scroll saws (jig saws ) - I think these have a much greater stroke and use coarser blades and are therefore more hazardous to the fingers! Buy a proper bench type electric fretsaw ( scroll saw ) as they are so cheap now ( 35 pounds sterling in UK / about 70 dollars ) and use 18 tpi blades. The pin ended type can be quickly uncoupled and inserted into a 1/8 hole to cut inside formers. Otherwise use a hand fretsaw, coping saw or a piercing saw which is easier to use on small work. Ensure the blade is used as pull saw especially on the coping saw - it is easier to saw straight.

Use an engineers file with a safe edge ( plain edge ) to finish notches to exact size.

I agree that the scroll saw blades are a bit course so that's when I'd reccomend putting a metal cutting blade in there.
(FINE TOOTH) If there is a SPEED CONTROL on the unit, so much the better.

On the other hand - you are 100% correct -- get a proper tool --- what I was referring to, was the fact that the gentleman inferred that he only had a scroll saw. Take advantage of what you have -- if that's all you have.

marwen1

hey KDC , THANKS, I went to the site and they have the canopy and cowl.

their USA office is in Champaign ILL

Even this is less than a CNC Lazer cutter. Not available just yet. But it will be.

Or you can get a Carvewright/Compucarve. I got one in Feb-07 Less than $2,000

I am totally in the dark about CAD design, BUT with practice one can do almost anything from patterns to pilots, wheel hubs, cockpit kits for vac forming, your talent and patience is your limit.



Now I'm working on wood parts for my all composite airframes. That was the worst part for me.

Pics timed out, next time

Steve

i tried to call traplet , when i got through , the operator, said the number was
no longer in service. here we go

Somebody else complained about Traplet USA not answering some months ago. At that time I phoned Traplet in England and confirmed they are still in business. They have just published their latest mag last week Phone No in England is 44 (0) 1684 5888599.

they close at 12:30 pm , thats why i couldn't get em. i ordered online. it went through
and i got a confirmation. strange hours , but i guess i'm all set.

tally ho
















;

DrDoom,

When is that kit coming out? All glass, nice!!! How big and how much does it weigh? When can I have one? [8D]

looking at the plans, this one is going to be a bear to balance, CG is REALLY close to the nose and the front of the cowl is not very far from the fire wall. IT Shows a .60 size plant, but i doubt its going to be enough weight and i would rather not add lead.
I was planning on using a ST 90 , but it isnt going to add the weight i think i'm goin to need.

very short nose SBD, I'LL have to mull this one over.

i think its the vic catalasan SBD fiberglass fuse , 350.00 , comes with a cowl and is based on the BATES , but you have to use the older plans , i think. way out of my league.