West Wings Skylark build thread

[angry_muppet]

The point of no return...

Dihedral angle triple and quadruple checked... 2.25" at the wingtip for 4° dihedral.  Who is going to now tell me I'm wrong? 

[Happy Days]

Hang on David. I've just zoomed in on that picture and looked at the wing saddle area of the fuselage. I see there is a fuselage former in the middle of the saddle area, along with two dowels.

Are you quite sure that when the assembled wing is placed onto the saddle, that the underside of the wing only comes into contact with the top edges of the fuselage, and is not touching either the top of the former or the dowels?

Just a thought ol' fruit

Keith

[angry_muppet]

I've checked this morning Keith and I can report that it doesn't appear to come in contact with the former or dowels.

The wing sits level and doesn't rock either...  I really didn't want to risk damage, so really light bands were used.



Weight as in the picture below is 370g (just a shade over 13oz) at present.  The aircraft is sitting "free", there are no supports on the wing, so it seems relatively balanced?



Although, note to self: 30 minute epoxy does not solidify in 30 minutes... Nor does it solidify in 2 hours... But it does overnight.    the wing root has shifted by approx 1 -  2mm. It's preferable to having the wing chewed by a daft mutt, but lesson learned... 

[Happy Days]

  the wing root has shifted by approx 1 -  2mm. It's preferable to having the wing chewed by a daft mutt, but lesson learned... 

The wing root is the part of the wing that is closet to the fuse.. In what manor has it shifted David?

Yes the balance looks good so far, you'll know more when the ailerons are fitted and all the covering is on.

Regarding glues,......I think that 30 minute setting time refer to the amount of time that you can "work" with the glue. (Move the parts around before the glue sets to the point where it becomes too stiff to allow further movement.) Although in my experience a 30 minute glue normally means about 10 minutes!

Overall the models' looking good. well done

Keith

[angry_muppet]

When I say the root has shifted, what I mean is that the root of each wing no longer sit flush.  One is approx 1mm higher than the other.  This will have had some effect on the dihedral as the wing has rotated on the outer end of the brace.

Ailerons, elevators and rudder have been cut to allow hinging with tape.  I need to affix control horns to the ailerons - I've found that my little bottle of CA glue has hardened. 

[angry_muppet]

Tonight's work...



I already had it sanded and covered; based on Keith's suggestion of hinging method, I stripped it back and resanded the profile to hinge easily with tape.  I think 1/2" Blenderm tape would have sufficed...

So far, it's looking like I could have it ready for a birthday launch  (April).

[jumbo]

I always run my blenderm tape the full length of the control surface, it stops bits of grass and stuff getting stuck in there and ensures a more even motion of the surface.

Hinging is always a bit of a PITA so normally I firstly use two or three tiny pieces of cellotape to hold the control surface in the correct position, then I apply enough blenderm to extend over both ends, finally I trim the overhanging tape to be flush with the edges.

[Simon]

Amazing scale build gliders with accuracy.

[EI1638]

Plus 1 for Jumbo's reply. I use masking tape to line things up rather than cellotape. It comes off more easily.