RickShaw739

Tip for Rx. padding. Try using some of that foam in a can that you use for filling holes around your house. But first rap the Rx. in plastic rap, because until the foam dries it's wet.

A friend of mine gave me this idea after I ran out of any other usable padding and we wanted to fly. I wasn't real sure about this idea at first, but it was an old trainer plane put back together a few times, so I tried it.

After two great flights and landings, I lost the use of the elevator (servo failure we think) the plane took a hard hit, noise first into the ground. Had to dig the engine out of the dirt.
The Rx. was just fine. I've lost one other Rx to a hard hit before that was rapped in foam rubber.

You could just peel away the foam with your hands. It also kept that part of the fuse it was mounted in still in tack. When the rest of the plane was just about dust.
It was light and took the shock will.

I'm thinking of trying it for other use's as will. Like around the gas tank to keep vibration down and tank foaming. Don't know if it'll work or what fuel may do to this stuff, but I may give it test try.

Another tip: If you ever need nylon bolts for anything like holding landing gear on with. Don't buy them from your hobby shop. Get toilet seat bolts from Wal-Mart or hardware store. They work great and are less than half the price. You may have cut them in half but they work great!

Another Tip:
For a very light weight and strong wood filler try using Elmer's glue and Baby Powder mixed together till it feels like auto body filler, works really great!

Just keep adding the baby powder till you get the thickness you want. Apply just like body filler and sand down flat.

William Robison

My Feedback: (3)

Use this tip with care, it will be best to make a test cell before using it in your plane.

Some of the industrial foams in aerosol cans will keep swelling for as much as a week, and they have enough force to split the plane open if not allowed free room.

Also, after expanding to the full many will then shrink.

The two part foam, NHP brand available from several outlets, will set into a rigid foam in about 24 hours, and I've not noticed any shrinkage after, but care is still needed, allowing for full expansion.

Also note these foams set firmly, they do not flex as a foam rubber will, they offer no "Shock" mounting at all.

They are good as a fill-in reinforcement, or for a flotation filler on a boat or the floats of a seaplane.

Bill.

Lightfoot

My Feedback: (1)

I submitted this idea to R/C Modeler about 10 years ago for the "For What It's Worth" section. I got a couple of books from their Anthology series for the idea.

tucker1865

My Feedback: (6)

If you need foam rubber you can get all the scraps you need at a shop that reupholsters couches and chairs. I had a couch reupholstered and got all the scraps I will ever use, many 4 to 6 inches by 9 feet and about 2 inches thick. Dave

lex2bits

My Feedback: (12)

Hmmmm.... I wonder if bubble wrap would work?

Lex

exeter_acres

My Feedback: (2)

I know several in my club use this....

lex2bits

My Feedback: (12)

Seems like the perfect material to me. Just have to make sure splinters don't get to it.

Lex

daver29

mouse pads... used mousepads.
you know, the ones that are too dirty or worn to use anymore...

stuk_at_work

My Feedback: (111)

I'm with Bill on the expanding foam issues. It dries fairy rigid and will transmit a lot of vibration to anything "wrapped" in it. As filler or for flotation .. no problem.

Personally, I use Foam Rubber carpet padding as my "replacement" for hobby brands of foam rubber, although I still tend to use it as "filler" with a single layer of Hobby foam rubber directly around my receivers. Too much at stake to gamble here!

Fighterpilot

My Feedback: (2)

Use foam around your receiver. Everyone that stated the expanding stuff out of a can will not provide vibration insulation is absolutely correct. The owner of Radio South has told me that he wraps all of his receivers in at least an inch of foam because vibration is the worst enemy of a receiver. Do not tie them down so tightly that you crush the foam they are wrapped in. This will ruin the vibration insulating properties of the foam.
I always wrap my receivers in an inch of foam and hold them in place with a loosely wrapped piece of velcro, glued somewhere in the airplane. The velco will stop the foam wrapped receiver from sliding and will hold it in place.

Geistware

My Feedback: (16)

Do you have pictures of this?

RCKen

My Feedback: (9)

I have to agree with using foam for padding. If you need a cheap (a.k.a. free) source for foam, go to you neighborhood computer shop. I own a computer shop and I have supplied all of my flying buddies with enough foam to last them for a couple of lifetimes. Most of the equipment we order comes packed in high quaility foam, or "egg crate" foam. Most shops throw it away. Take them a garbage bag and explain what you want it for, and I'm pretty sure they'll save it up for you. Depending on how busy the shop is, you should have enough foam to last you forever in no time at all.

P.S. IT departments at larger companies usually have plenty of foam too.

Hope this helps out.

Rodney

The comment to use toilet bolts is, IMHO bad advice, much to strong. Now if you only want a removable wing, probably okay; but, most want the wing to shear in a crash. To do that use 8X32 or 10X32 nylon--yes 1/4X20 is much to strong. These are available in most hardware stores or from such suppliers as Micro Fasteners at very low prices. Even two 6X32 nylon bolts will hold any 60's wing on as they have a 50 Lb. tensile strength. I agree, that foam in a can has very poor vibration resistance and is not suitable for receiver padding.

LuckyArmpit

I work at a place that makes seats for the furniture industry (I run a CNC router). Each of these seat frames gets foamed. Thus, I get foam for free! After losing a Cessna Skylane due to a fractured xtal, all my glow planes have now their rx's wrapped in foam.


Dave...

WCB

In the craft section at Wal-Mart they sell foam for seat cushions. It comes in packs of 4 and is 16"x16" square and 1' thick. A pack is like a few dollars. I use it all the time and it works great. One pack will do a bunch of planes.