NMPRA

I am reserving this space for pictures and questions regarding build procedures and issues.

I have primarily, been the person building these kits, so I may have missed obvious items. I am open to all comments good and bad.

1. Make sure your pushrod outer sleeve fits through the former prior to construction. The "RED" sullivan tubing fits well. However, the clear DuBro sleeve may be tight, it is easier to address this prior to starting construction. I supply both depending on what is available when I put the kits together. I will address the hole sizes for the next run.

2. My kits all have right thrust, pay close attention to the fuselage construction to make sure you have the correct thrust angle. Formers, servo/battery trays and doublers are all marked with either arrows or letters. The arrows always in all cases point to the left side of the model if sitting in the cockpit.

3. Dry fit all the part to become familiar with the assembly process prior to gluing. I use Titebond for assembling the fuselage.

Fuselage construction:

Fuselage cont...

Fuselage cont...

Wing construction

For demonstration purposes I am showing a very simple easy non-exotic method of sheeting a wing. In this example I use gorilla glue and simple weight to keep the skins on during the drying process. I have a vacuum pump/bags and epoxy. It isn't necessary, but if you feel more comfortable by all means use your method.

1. Install the root and tip gear plate ribs first prior to sheeting. The actual landing gear plate will be installed after the wing is sheeted. Only install the ribs before sheeting. Location of the gear is noted on the plans. Note the Tip and Root rib location. Use Titebond to glue the ribs to the core.

2. Assemble your sheeting. Use 1/16" balsa top and bottom. I normally use 1 pc of 4" parallel to the LE and one pc parallel to the TE, with a triangular pc to join the two near the root. I use masking tape to hold the sheets tightly together. It is important to get a nice tight fit otherwise glue will exit and be difficult to sand later. I sometimes glue the sheets together prior to sheeting the wing and other times I leave masking tape on the outside and let the glue that bonds the sheeting to the foam keep them together. If gluing the sheets together, I use "Sigment" or "Duco" wood glue. Sands nicely and is light. Others have used CA. I don't. When making your sheeting try to maintain at least 1/8" of wood as a boarder around the core. Use the top side of the wing to determine the sheeting size, and the bottom will fit. Sand the sheets to make sure they are flat prior to assembly.

3. Lightly sand the cores and remove all fuzz and wipe or vacuum clean. Mark the ends of the cores for alignment later. Simple tick marks work well.

4. Once everything is clean and dust free, you can start to sheet. Spread the Gorilla Glue as if it was epoxy using an old credit card or plastic spreader. I used one with notches, but probably not necessary. Once evenly spread on the sheeting, I wipe the core where it is to be applied with a damp paper towel. Place the sheeting into the schuck (outer portion of the foam wing that makes up the top or bottom of the wing on the outside), and then the core paying attention to its alignment. Repeat this process for the other side of this one panel. Once done, use masking tape to align the sheeting on the core and the schucks onto the wing panel. Before moving onto the next panel. I weight this panel on a flat surface. This glue tends to dry fairly quick and this insures the panel stays flat during the entire time. I use a good flat surface and some heavy MDF boards for weight and to keep the panels flat. Simple and works.

Wing cont...

5. Trim all excess sheeting from the cores around the perimeter.

6. When installing the TE stock. I keep the bottom of the wing and the bottom of the TE block flat relative to each other during the gluing process and only remove material from the top side to match the airfoil. I accomplish by adding strips of 3/8 balsa blocks attached to the bottom of the wing to keep flat. These blocks are temporary and are used as a tool to keep the TE straight while drying.

7. The LE is made up of one pc of 3/16" balsa and one pc of 3/8". I use medium CA to glue these together to form one pc of balsa 9/16" thick with a center line for shaping. NOTE: You will need to make a left and right side LE part. The 3/16" is the bottom for reference.

Misc final picts...

Sorry, there are several missing pictures. I will try to add captions to the picts over the next couple weeks. If you have any questions please reach out. Do not PM me. I will try to check back from time to time.

Good luck with your builds.

DK