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  • Building, repairs & other stuff
    • 2008 Fanfare 2 Laser alignment
    • 2010 Building the Thunderbird
    • 2014 Building the Centurion
    • 2016 Building and first flights of the Enigma K77
    • 2018 A bloody mess - a rebuild that went wrong
    • 2018 Resurrecting a 20 year old Nobler
    • 2018 A day with Ian Smith
    • 2019 Bringing the 2010 Fandango back to life
    • 2019 Building & destroying the Draco RO-Jett 67
    • 2020 Repairs to 2010 Thunderbird
    • Building the 2020 G-Max
    • The life and death of the Centurion
    • 2021 Centurion II
    • 2022 Fanfare III
      • Failure
      • Success
 
Jeff's model aeroplanesBuilding, repairs & other stuff2022 Fanfare III

Success

2023-08-24 Fanfare 3 I have no choice but to make another fuselage. I find two beautiful pieces of 1,000mm X 3.2mm which should bend evenly and have even stress on both sides of the new fuselage. The 3.2 is for the thickness of each piece; 3.2mm equals 1/8"
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2023-08-24 Fanfare 3
I have no choice but to make another fuselage. I find two beautiful pieces of 1,000mm X 3.2mm which should bend evenly and have even stress on both sides of the new fuselage. The 3.2 is for the thickness of each piece; 3.2mm equals 1/8"
 2023-09-08 Fanfare 3 I save the engine mount and cowl and make a new fuselage.
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2023-09-08 Fanfare 3
I save the engine mount and cowl and make a new fuselage.
 2023-09-08 Fanfare 3 Behind the L/G mount and ahead of the ribs is a temporary closure which I will remove later to make the pipe tunnel (after the wing is installed).
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2023-09-08 Fanfare 3
Behind the L/G mount and ahead of the ribs is a temporary closure which I will remove later to make the pipe tunnel (after the wing is installed).
 2023-09-14 Fanfare 3 I take a serious look at the wing and it is badly bent.
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2023-09-14 Fanfare 3
I take a serious look at the wing and it is badly bent.
2023-09-08 Fanfare 3 The trailing edge is a serious problem because the flap line, which was perfectly straight, is now bent. I have no option but to make a new wing as well. Installing & doping tissue on the top edge does not work
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2023-09-08 Fanfare 3
The trailing edge is a serious problem because the flap line, which was perfectly straight, is now bent. I have no option but to make a new wing as well. Installing & doping tissue on the top edge does not work
 2023-09-25 Fanfare 3 I fit new leadouts to the bellcrank of a previous model that I'd crashed. It is made from carbon fibre and I got it at a VSC one time.
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2023-09-25 Fanfare 3
I fit new leadouts to the bellcrank of a previous model that I'd crashed. It is made from carbon fibre and I got it at a VSC one time.
 2023-10-04 Fanfare 3 I decide to make a new wing but this time it will be foam. The only foam I can buy in a small quantity is 50mm thick. I will have to glue the two pieces together so this means my old foam wing templates won't work - they were made for 80mm foam.
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2023-10-04 Fanfare 3
I decide to make a new wing but this time it will be foam. The only foam I can buy in a small quantity is 50mm thick. I will have to glue the two pieces together so this means my old foam wing templates won't work - they were made for 80mm foam.
 2023-10-11 Fanfare 3 I decide to make the new templates on the mill which means fixing the template material to the table which means making a couple of clamps. This is fun.
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2023-10-11 Fanfare 3
I decide to make the new templates on the mill which means fixing the template material to the table which means making a couple of clamps. This is fun.
2023-10-12 Fanfare 3 Years ago, I made my templates from 3mm formica. Back then, I could buy these as offcuts at the store but they no longer sell offcuts because as the formica ages, it becomes brittle and can snap leaving very sharp edges. I guess the lawyers had something to do with this decision.
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2023-10-12 Fanfare 3
Years ago, I made my templates from 3mm formica. Back then, I could buy these as offcuts at the store but they no longer sell offcuts because as the formica ages, it becomes brittle and can snap leaving very sharp edges. I guess the lawyers had something to do with this decision.
 2023-10-13 Fanfare 3 Anyway, a very nice man at the formica store thought this stuff might do. It is a sandwich of two very thin sheets of aluminium with a plastic centre. He had lots of offcuts which he sold for $3. The material is used for computer-cutting signs.
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2023-10-13 Fanfare 3
Anyway, a very nice man at the formica store thought this stuff might do. It is a sandwich of two very thin sheets of aluminium with a plastic centre. He had lots of offcuts which he sold for $3. The material is used for computer-cutting signs.
 2023-11-07 Fanfare 3 This stuff with the mill was more trouble than it was worth. I used the old 40mm templates to quickly make the new 50 mm templates (and fix an error in the tip template).
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2023-11-07 Fanfare 3
This stuff with the mill was more trouble than it was worth. I used the old 40mm templates to quickly make the new 50 mm templates (and fix an error in the tip template).
 2023-11-07 Fanfare 3 The new material works fine and it makes a pair of very nice templates.
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2023-11-07 Fanfare 3
The new material works fine and it makes a pair of very nice templates.
2023-09-08 Fanfare 3 In amongst a pile of balsa that John Elias gave me was a bunch of 36" X 1/16" Sig balsa. There is enough Sig balsa to sheet both wing cores.
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2023-09-08 Fanfare 3
In amongst a pile of balsa that John Elias gave me was a bunch of 36" X 1/16" Sig balsa. There is enough Sig balsa to sheet both wing cores.
 2023-11-30 Fanfare 3 Cutting the cores: I decide to make each wing separately as a way of reducing mistakes (like gluing the wrong side of a sheet, etc.) The new templates work well enough but there is some chattering in the nichrome wire while I cut.
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2023-11-30 Fanfare 3
Cutting the cores: I decide to make each wing separately as a way of reducing mistakes (like gluing the wrong side of a sheet, etc.) The new templates work well enough but there is some chattering in the nichrome wire while I cut.
 2023-09-08 Fanfare 3 The chattering marks sand out (mostly); I fill the bad cuts with model magic filler and sand again. The wing needs to fit the flaps I'd made previously so I mark where to make the cutouts for the 1/4" balsa blocks in the wing.
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2023-09-08 Fanfare 3
The chattering marks sand out (mostly); I fill the bad cuts with model magic filler and sand again. The wing needs to fit the flaps I'd made previously so I mark where to make the cutouts for the 1/4" balsa blocks in the wing.
 2023-12-15 Fanfare 3 Sheeting the wing: I use West Systems epoxy to glue each sheet and press it down with some extremely heavy iron. In the old days, even before electricity, they used to bind books by hand and compress them in book presses. That lump of iron is from such a book press and is so heavy I can barely lift it. The cyano is foam safe and I use it on the balsa hinge blocks.
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2023-12-15 Fanfare 3
Sheeting the wing: I use West Systems epoxy to glue each sheet and press it down with some extremely heavy iron. In the old days, even before electricity, they used to bind books by hand and compress them in book presses. That lump of iron is from such a book press and is so heavy I can barely lift it. The cyano is foam safe and I use it on the balsa hinge blocks.
2023-12-17 Fanfare 3 The right wing is now sheeted and it looks great. (it's upside down)
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2023-12-17 Fanfare 3
The right wing is now sheeted and it looks great. (it's upside down)
 0 2023-12-20 Fanfare 3 Right Wing tip: Probably not the best use of a mill but it did a good job of hollowing out the wing-weight box. The balsa is the heaviest 1" I have in stock.
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2023-12-20 Fanfare 3
Right Wing tip: Probably not the best use of a mill but it did a good job of hollowing out the wing-weight box. The balsa is the heaviest 1" I have in stock.
 2023-12-20 Fanfare 3 The wing spar for the left wing is glued in place. The joint is held together with blue tape and then the wing goes back into its cradle. It dries overnight with the usual ton of weight to keep it straight. The spar is cut to finish slightly smaller than the wing and then filled with model magic balsa filler; this is much easier to sand flush. Interesting note: Back when I used wing-mounted L/G, the next step was to cut two slots for the quarter-ribs to support the L/G blocks.
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2023-12-20 Fanfare 3
The wing spar for the left wing is glued in place. The joint is held together with blue tape and then the wing goes back into its cradle. It dries overnight with the usual ton of weight to keep it straight. The spar is cut to finish slightly smaller than the wing and then filled with model magic balsa filler; this is much easier to sand flush.
Interesting note: Back when I used wing-mounted L/G, the next step was to cut two slots for the quarter-ribs to support the L/G blocks.
2023-12-20 Fanfare 3 This is how I mount the flap hinges. I have a template and use the nichrome hot wire to cut out the recess.
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2023-12-20 Fanfare 3
This is how I mount the flap hinges. I have a template and use the nichrome hot wire to cut out the recess.
2023-12-28 Fanfare 3 Last night I spread a thin layer of West Systems epoxy to sheet the underside of the left wing. I then weighed it down with a huge weight as shown before. Now, I run a bead of foam-safe cyano around each edge before trimming it.
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2023-12-28 Fanfare 3
Last night I spread a thin layer of West Systems epoxy to sheet the underside of the left wing. I then weighed it down with a huge weight as shown before. Now, I run a bead of foam-safe cyano around each edge before trimming it.
 2023-12-28 Fanfare 3 What turned out really well is using the offcuts from each sheet of 1/16" and gluing them together. This way I had just enough balsa (16 sheets required) to sheet both wing halves. The Sig balsa is extremely accurate and is uniformly 1/16" thick. This makes it possible to join the offcuts in this manner.
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2023-12-28 Fanfare 3
What turned out really well is using the offcuts from each sheet of 1/16" and gluing them together. This way I had just enough balsa (16 sheets required) to sheet both wing halves. The Sig balsa is extremely accurate and is uniformly 1/16" thick. This makes it possible to join the offcuts in this manner.
 2023-12-21 Fanfare 3 I don't like the weight box so I make a new sleeve and plug it with Delryn. There's a 4-40 thread tapped into it's centre so that I can remove it. It's only rough sanded at the moment.
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2023-12-21 Fanfare 3
I don't like the weight box so I make a new sleeve and plug it with Delryn. There's a 4-40 thread tapped into it's centre so that I can remove it. It's only rough sanded at the moment.
 2023-12-30 Fanfare 3 Time to cut the cores out.   This my setup; the nichrome wire is dragged through a hole in the wing and reattached to a special bow I made for this purpose. A length of 3/32" wire, with a hook on one end, drags the wire through and a detachable spring applies the tension.
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2023-12-30 Fanfare 3
Time to cut the cores out.   This my setup; the nichrome wire is dragged through a hole in the wing and reattached to a special bow I made for this purpose. A length of 3/32" wire, with a hook on one end, drags the wire through and a detachable spring applies the tension.
2023-12-30 Fanfare 3 To heat the nichrome wire to the correct temperature, I use a 110V variac set to 20V AC. I picked this up in San Diego at a swap meet some time ago.
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2023-12-30 Fanfare 3
To heat the nichrome wire to the correct temperature, I use a 110V variac set to 20V AC. I picked this up in San Diego at a swap meet some time ago.
 2023-12-31 Fanfare 3 New Year's Eve. One small job today is to cut the cores out. This bit always scares me because if I screw it up, I lose some extremely valuable balsa and many hours of work. You can see the glue seams where the two 50mm sections join together.
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2023-12-31 Fanfare 3
New Year's Eve. One small job today is to cut the cores out. This bit always scares me because if I screw it up, I lose some extremely valuable balsa and many hours of work. You can see the glue seams where the two 50mm sections join together.
 2024-01-07 Fanfare 3 Happy New Year.   This job took a lot more time than I expected. It is going to be a pair of adjustable leadout guides. My problem was that I tried to make these to accurate dimensions but, being nylon, it was not possible. I gave up and eyeballed it the same as always.
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2024-01-07 Fanfare 3
Happy New Year.   This job took a lot more time than I expected. It is going to be a pair of adjustable leadout guides. My problem was that I tried to make these to accurate dimensions but, being nylon, it was not possible. I gave up and eyeballed it the same as always.
 2024-01-09 Fanfare 3 Sliding blocks are finished. The 2-56 screws are titanium. Worth it? probably not.
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2024-01-09 Fanfare 3
Sliding blocks are finished. The 2-56 screws are titanium. Worth it? probably not.
2024-01-11 Fanfare 3 Sliding blocks installed. Graphite powder allows the blocks to slide easily.
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2024-01-11 Fanfare 3
Sliding blocks installed. Graphite powder allows the blocks to slide easily.
 2024-01-11 Fanfare 3 I will install this wingtip after the wing is installed. This means I can use the laser to accurately instal the wing and I don't have to struggle to get the leadouts through their holes.
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2024-01-11 Fanfare 3
I will install this wingtip after the wing is installed. This means I can use the laser to accurately instal the wing and I don't have to struggle to get the leadouts through their holes.
 2024-01-12 Fanfare 3 Temporarily install the flaps: I need to make sure that the control horn aligns with the holes already drilled in the flaps. Bending the 1/8" music wire so precisely is impossible so I'll fill the existing holes if I need to and redrill them.
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2024-01-12 Fanfare 3
Temporarily install the flaps: I need to make sure that the control horn aligns with the holes already drilled in the flaps. Bending the 1/8" music wire so precisely is impossible so I'll fill the existing holes if I need to and redrill them.
 2024-01-12 Fanfare 3 I lay out the controls before building them. This is the relationship between the bellcrank and the flaps. The flaps sit on a 1.25" radius and need 8° for the thrust-line of the front pushrod to be square. I can't set the bellcrank at 8° because it's a foam wing and the bellcrank is supported by the wing spar in the 90° position. The elevators pushrod requires 5° and are on a 1.00" radius front and back.
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2024-01-12 Fanfare 3
I lay out the controls before building them. This is the relationship between the bellcrank and the flaps. The flaps sit on a 1.25" radius and need 8° for the thrust-line of the front pushrod to be square. I can't set the bellcrank at 8° because it's a foam wing and the bellcrank is supported by the wing spar in the 90° position.
The elevators pushrod requires 5° and are on a 1.00" radius front and back.
2024-01-12 Fanfare 3 This is the back end.
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2024-01-12 Fanfare 3
This is the back end.
 2024-01-19 Fanfare 3 Drilling the holes in the flap horn exactly is easy on the mill. I rotate the vice to 5° or 8° and there is no guessing.
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2024-01-19 Fanfare 3
Drilling the holes in the flap horn exactly is easy on the mill. I rotate the vice to 5° or 8° and there is no guessing.
 2024-01-22 Fanfare 3 The finished product. I've inserted a brass bushing for the elevators and tapped a 3mm hole for the bellcrank pushrod.
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2024-01-22 Fanfare 3
The finished product. I've inserted a brass bushing for the elevators and tapped a 3mm hole for the bellcrank pushrod.
 2024-01-25 Fanfare 3 I align the control horn with the vertical scribe line.
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2024-01-25 Fanfare 3
I align the control horn with the vertical scribe line.
2024-01-25 Fanfare 3 I use the pushrod out of a foam-wing plane that I crashed in February 2020. With slight adjustment, it fits perfectly. The bellcrank is rotated about 3° from square (in plan view) to make it theoretically match the sweep of the lines. Probably an overkill; this is the first time I've ever done this and I can't imagine it making any difference.
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2024-01-25 Fanfare 3
I use the pushrod out of a foam-wing plane that I crashed in February 2020. With slight adjustment, it fits perfectly. The bellcrank is rotated about 3° from square (in plan view) to make it theoretically match the sweep of the lines. Probably an overkill; this is the first time I've ever done this and I can't imagine it making any difference.
 2024-01-25 Fanfare 3 This is what the front part of the control system looks like.
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2024-01-25 Fanfare 3
This is what the front part of the control system looks like.
 2024-01-25 Fanfare 3 Now that it's perfectly aligned, I take the whole system apart and fix it in place with red Loctite. It ain't goin' no place.
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2024-01-25 Fanfare 3
Now that it's perfectly aligned, I take the whole system apart and fix it in place with red Loctite. It ain't goin' no place.
 2024-01-25 Fanfare 3 It's too hot in the workshop today so I quit.
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2024-01-25 Fanfare 3
It's too hot in the workshop today so I quit.
2024-01-30 Fanfare 3 Last weekend we had a very sad occasion at KMFC: Dennis Percival had wanted his ashes spread at the flying field. Andrew Percival was there and he'd damaged his Dad's pane. He asked me if I'd fix it.
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2024-01-30 Fanfare 3
Last weekend we had a very sad occasion at KMFC: Dennis Percival had wanted his ashes spread at the flying field. Andrew Percival was there and he'd damaged his Dad's pane. He asked me if I'd fix it.
 2024-01-30 Fanfare 3 It was a pretty easy repair really. I had painted the plane originally for a trip to the VSC in Arizona and I still had all the original colours.
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2024-01-30 Fanfare 3
It was a pretty easy repair really. I had painted the plane originally for a trip to the VSC in Arizona and I still had all the original colours.
 2024-01-30 Fanfare 3 The finished repair.
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2024-01-30 Fanfare 3
The finished repair.
 2024-01-30 Fanfare 3 Hanging back on the wall of Andrews's garage.
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2024-01-30 Fanfare 3
Hanging back on the wall of Andrews's garage.
2024-04-18 Fanfare 3 Dennis had a brother called Arthur. He was also an Aeromodeller but he was into free flight.
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2024-04-18 Fanfare 3
Dennis had a brother called Arthur. He was also an Aeromodeller but he was into free flight.
 0 2024-04-18 Fanfare 3 Dennis stripped and repaired Arthur's plane and his daughter, Liz Lee, asked me if I could repair her Dad's plane as well. The main problem with this plane was that the tissue was so old that it had shattered in many places. The tissue was very brittle and I broke it some more during the repairs.
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2024-04-18 Fanfare 3
Dennis stripped and repaired Arthur's plane and his daughter, Liz Lee, asked me if I could repair her Dad's plane as well. The main problem with this plane was that the tissue was so old that it had shattered in many places. The tissue was very brittle and I broke it some more during the repairs.
 2024-04-18 Fanfare 3 The main problem was with the rudder/fin and it required large areas to be recovered. Along with that I had a trip to hospital to replace my heart's aortic valve. I feel very weak right now, I'm very wobbly and my hands shake too much. This is as far as I've gone to date.   Click to return
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2024-04-18 Fanfare 3
The main problem was with the rudder/fin and it required large areas to be recovered. Along with that I had a trip to hospital to replace my heart's aortic valve. I feel very weak right now, I'm very wobbly and my hands shake too much.
This is as far as I've gone to date.   Click to return
  
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