 1 2020 G Max construction - 13 March 2020 Sadly, Peter Hogarth, an excellent builder/flyer from many years ago recently passed away. Among the things he left behind were major assemblies for a model that he probably started to build about 20 years ago |
 2 2020 G Max construction - 13 March 2020 Hazel, his widow, contacted me and told me that she had a lot of Peter's model stuff and asked if I or anyone else could put it to good use. |
 3 2020 G Max construction - 14 March 2020 A nearly complete wing, a complete tail and some fuselage sides were among the treasures he left behind. |
 4 2020 G Max construction - 14 March 2020 The wing and tail were beautifully built and Hazel said that she'd love for someone to take them and to finish his model. |
 5 2020 G Max construction - 14 March 2020 I volunteered and, as luck would have it, Garry Lynch was looking for a new model. He bought it knowing that it would be at least six months before I could complete it. He paid me up front so I kept $50 for miscellaneous items and gave the rest of the money to the club. |
 6 2020 G Max construction - 14 March 2020 Peter had made fuselage sides but they were warped beyond redemption so I made a new fuselage. |
 7 2020 G Max construction - 14 March 2020 I made the fuselage completely from the balsa that Peter had left behind and made it to fit a Stalker 61, also from Peter's collection. I sold the rest of his engines and other items and passed that money on to the club as well. |
 8 2020 G Max construction - 19 March The wing needed some serious repairs before I could use it. It also required cutting into the bellcrank area to replace the Du-Bro nylon ball joint that had completely frozen. |
 9 2020 G Max construction - 19 March 2020 Other than that, construction proceeded normally. |
 10 2020 G Max construction - 19 March 2020 The quality of Peter's work was exceptional. Even after 20+ years, the stab and elevators were in perfect condition. |
 11 2020 G Max construction - 2 April 2020 I'm quite proud of the cowl and the way it fits. I also like the twin, swept back inlet ducts. |
 12 2020 G Max construction2 April 2020 The landing gear is a Bolly that I modified to suit. I don't intend fitting wheel pants. |
 13 2020 G Max construction - 2 April 2020 In this picture, you can see the two holes in the right wing that I had to repair. Unfortunately, these repairs will show in the finished product. |
 14 2020 G Max construction - 2 April 2020 At this stage, I sent these pictures to Hazel and she was delighted see it progressing so well. I'll take the finished model to her place when it's finished. |
 15 2020 G Max construction - 2 April 2020 Because of the problem I've had with tissue splitting after many years, for the past couple of planes I've used heat shrink fabric as a wing covering. It's a little heavier I suppose but it's vastly more robust. |
 16 2020 G Max construction - 2 April 2020 I've fixed the fairing between the landing gear and the fuselage. Here it looks like a wad of chewing gum. |
 17 2020 G Max construction - 2 April 2020 Now it's time to finish the plane and put some graphics on it. Garry was a bit surprised when I told him it was still a couple of months away from completion. |
 18 2020 G Max construction 4 April 2020 One of the things I wanted to do was to hand over a ready to fly model complete with handle and lines. I've made a new set of lines and handle to complete the package. |
 19 2020 G Max construction - 12 May 2020 The white 2K base coat is on |
 20 2020 G Max construction - 12 May 2020 The glossy white surface has been removed with 3M Scotch Brite. The whole surface is very flat and the tiny brush marks are no longer visible. |
 21 2020 G Max construction - 12 May 2020 The first horizontal line goes on with 1/16" orange K Tape. |
 22 2020 G Max construction - 11 May 2020 I take a picture of the tail and import the image into Correl Draw. I then sketch the graphics design over the top of the image |
 23 2020 G Max construction - 14 May 2020 After the sketch is finished, I delete the picture of the tail and I'm left with the graphics design. The "28" is the last two digits of Garry Lynch's Aus number. I then export this file to the Robo Cutter to firstly draw the stencil and then to cut it. The computer is a Windows 10 machine. |
 24 2020 G Max construction - 14 May 2020 I make many passes with the drawing, adjusting it each time, until finally the sizes and shapes are correct. I then replace the pen in the Robo Cutter with a knife to cut the stencil. |
 25 2020 G Max construction - 14 May 2020 To get the lettering stencil square with the pitch axis, I align the laser across the wing. |
 26 2020 G Max construction - 14 May 2020 I then move the laser vertically and make a small pencil mark near the tip . . . |
 27 2020 G Max construction - 14 May 2020 . . . and then another pencil mark at the root. I do the same for the opposite wing. |
 28 2020 G Max construction - 19 May 2020 |
 29 2020 G Max construction - 19 May 2020 |
 30 2020 G Max construction - 20 May 2020 |
 31 2020 G Max construction -20 May 2020 |
 32 2020 G Max construction - 20 May 2020 |
 33 2020 G Max construction - 21 May 2020 |
 34 2020 G Max construction - 21 May 2020 |
 35 2020 G Max construction - 27 May 2020 |
 36 2020 G Max construction - 27 May 2020 |
 37 2020 G Max construction - 2 June 2020 |
 38 2020 G Max construction - 4 June 2020 |
 39 2020 G Max construction - 4 June 2020 |
 40 2020 G Max construction - 5 June 2020 |
 41 2020 G Max construction - 5 June 2020 |
 42 2020 G Max construction - 7 June 2020 |
 43 2020 G Max construction - 7 June 2020 |
 44 2020 G Max construction - 16 June 2020 |
 45 2020 G Max construction - 16 June 2020 |
 46 2020 G Max construction - 23 June 2020 The finish is a disaster. Major areas in the blue and black need to be re-masked and refinished |
 47 2020 G Max construction -23 June 2020 In fact, every colour needs retouching of some kind - even the white |
 48 2020 G Max construction - 26 August 2020 Finished |
 49 2020 G Max construction - 26 August 2020 The black trim lines are the final addition to the graphics. |
 50 2020 G Max construction - 26 August 2020 I did not spend enough time sanding the dope/talc and the finished product is the poorer for it. |
 51 2020 G Max construction - 26 August 2020 |
 52 2020 G Max construction - 26 August 2020 It's a bit depressing to think that I put so much time into this build but it's not to my usual standard. |
 53 2020 G Max construction - 26 August 2020 Construction completed 26 August 2020. |
 54 2020 G Max construction - 29 August 2020 A few days later, the G-Max meets its new owner, Garry Lynch. |
 55 2020 G Max construction - 29 August 2020 Garry was excited and nervous. He wanted me to take the first few flights but I was very reluctant to do this. |
 56 2020 G Max construction - 29 August 2020 For me, Garry's first flight was memorable. I take first flights very cautiously and use those flights to set tip weight, balance, handle settings and so forth. Garry flew a few level laps and then went upside down and then did some loops. I couldn't watch and walked away. Return to the home page |
