McG 6969

Hello Danny, No apologies needed, sir. As I saw your model's picture, I realized that it wasn't at all looking like an usual anti-slip device. And for now, as you wrote, back to Mr Fane's "brilliant blog". Happy detailing Chris Brussels, Belgium

Hello to all, Hello Danny, There must have been some confusion here. Indeed, Scotchgard - without the ‘u' - is definitely a fabric protector. But I meant the anti-slip protection tapes & threads trademarked Scotchguard - with a ‘u' - by 3M when I was in the place. Now, for a totally obscure reason (to me), some marketing guru in Minneapolis decided to rebrand it 3M Safety-Walk (TM). Without, of course, letting me know during my nearly 30 years of absence… … Anyway, the product (non-mineral, textured, slip-resistant vinyl surface) still exists and is available in different colors - clear, white, grey & black - & textures - from fine (for showers, tubs, surfboards, around hot tubs and pools) to medium (for locker rooms, airplanes, boats, personal watercraft, water skis, exercise equipment) and coarse (for industrial applications, construction equipment, stairs, escalators, etc.).     As for the Chipmunk, I really don’t know what material has been used in those days and certainly did not want to discredit Mr Fane’s ‘mimic’ to it. I just thought it could be easier using some strips of the… now rebranded stuff, that also looks like ‘rubberized’. Apologies to him anyhow. And sorry again for my ignorance(s)... ... Happy Safety-Walking Chris Brussels, Belgium   Edited By McG 6969 on 17/08/2015 14:31:34 Edited By McG 6969 on 17/08/2015 14:33:36

Hello Mr Fane, Sorry to jump in 'uninvited', but concerning the wing walk, you could use a few pieces of 3M Scotchguard. It perfectly imitates an anti-slip device as that's the reason it was created by 3M ages ago. No affiliation whatsoever w/ the brand except maybe that I was employed by them & selling the Scotch product range some many, many moons ago... Sorry again. Happy detailing Chris Brussels, Belgium

Have a well earned holiday, Mr Fenton. But beware of too many "Colin's liquids" during sun lounging... or you could end up counting all those bright & shiny 'rivets' in the sky after sunset... Happy counting Chris Brussels, Belgium

I can only second Mr Hopkin, your build is just worth a huge... WOW... Happy foaming Chris ps: ... I must admit though... if it was made out of Belgian chocolate, I'd simply say... MJAMMIEEE...

Hey Foxfan, hello to all, I've already been posting this before but I thought this could be of help regarding finishing techniques for foam or Depron. This method is not really intended to add some structural strength though, but still very applicable where no lamination is required. Freddie B's Secret Sauce... Not such a big secret, as Freddie B - an American foamie guru - himself talked about it in an RCgroup’s earlier thread. Here are some photos to help 'show and tell' in case some of you'd want to try this. Basically, it’s a filler & primer coat (all-in-one) that doesn't weigh much but works really well. He does this on his foam builds often when there is no covering, lamination or other coating involved. While many have been amazed by Fred’s finished airframes, this was the process he used. Let’s have it in sequence. 1). Take some light weight spackle (Polyfilla or cellulose based filler) and put a nice size plug in a little mixing bowl. This time the plug of filler is about the size of a nut. 2). Next add some Polycrylic clear varnish (water based of course), about the same volume as the plug of light weight spackle. 3). Get some Talc Powder. Baby Powder or Foot Powder, but the Baby kind smells best… Watch out because many powders are Corn Starch, which we don't want! Talc is the magic that made balsa filler work in the old days of tissue and dope finishes. It is very fine and does a great job of getting those tiny imperfections filled, but sands away nice. Note the 'pile' of powder about equals the volume of the light weight plug we used too. 4). Add two or three drops of acrylic paint (craft paint, water based), and it can be white paint, but often you can use a colour to see the work in process and the finished results shows up better. Anyway, use a colour that works for your intended top coat. Light for light topcoats, gray for everything else. You can use Yellow in the primer if you are painting Yellow top coats, because Yellow (and Reds) don't always cover well. 5). Now mix it well. It is very thick, but get it creamy and all one colour and texture, working out any chunks. Now add water until it is like very thin whipping cream, thin shaving cream, or even thinner like a very thick paint. Brush this on your pre-sanded foam, making sure to completely wet everything and force mixture into any hollows, dings, scratches, etc. Let this dry. Then sand it all with some 180 grit, and 220 grit papers, mounted to some sheets of beaded white foam. The foam sanding blocks are flat, but 'give enough' to not cause grooves and scaring. Just make sure to remove sanding dust often and use a reasonable pressure while sanding. When you have sanded most of this formula away, you will see some original foam, but also many areas of filled and flush mixture and the surface will be very smooth. Little weight gain, yet ready for top coating with paint. You can sand with even finer papers, depending on what top coat paint you will be using. This is good enough using craft paints, but if you intend to spray with Model Master or Tamya paints, you could go to 320 or 400 grit paper. All three kinds of paint work well with this process. I’m truly convinced by Fred’s method and really worth trying this out on a piece of scrap foam or Depron. Last photo is a sample on a scratch build FFF (Folding Fan Foam) Russian Mig that Freddie B built with his filler/primer method. Happy filling Chris Brussels / Belgium

Hello to all, Unbelievable detailing, Mr Fenton! But, could some potential riveting on the canopy not be a valid excuse 'not to break out the silver' right away??? Or is your sudden impatience forcing you to have the 'silver' airbrushed in multiple steps? Magnificent job, Sir. Happy airbrushing Chris Brussels, Belgium

Hi Stephen, hello to all, Sorry to jump in 'uninvited' but I thought this could be of help to some of you regarding finishing techniques for foam. This method is not really intended to add some structural strength though, but still very applicable where no lamination is required. Freddie B's Secret Sauce... Not such a big secret, as Freddie B - an American foamie guru - himself talked about it in an RCgroup’s earlier thread. Here are some photos to help 'show and tell' in case some of you'd want to try this. Basically, it’s a filler & primer coat (all-in-one) that doesn't weigh much but works really well. He does this on his foam builds often when there is no covering, lamination or other coating involved. While many have been amazed by Fred’s finished airframes, this was the process he used. Let’s have it in sequence. 1). Take some light weight spackle (Polyfilla or cellulose based filler) and put a nice size plug in a little mixing bowl. This time the plug of filler is about the size of a nut. 2). Next add some Polycrylic clear varnish (water based of course), about the same volume as the plug of light weight spackle. 3). Get some Talc Powder. Baby Powder or Foot Powder, but the Baby kind smells best… Watch out because many powders are Corn Starch, which we don't want! Talc is the magic that made balsa filler work in the old days of tissue and dope finishes. It is very fine and does a great job of getting those tiny imperfections filled, but sands away nice. Note the 'pile' of powder about equals the volume of the light weight plug we used too. 4). Add two or three drops of acrylic paint (craft paint, water based), and it can be white paint, but often you can use a colour to see the work in process and the finished results shows up better. Anyway, use a colour that works for your intended top coat. Light for light topcoats, gray for everything else. You can use Yellow in the primer if you are painting Yellow top coats, because Yellow (and Reds) don't always cover well. 5). Now mix it well. It is very thick, but get it creamy and all one colour and texture, working out any chunks. Now add water until it is like very thin whipping cream, thin shaving cream, or even thinner like a very thick paint. Brush this on your pre-sanded foam, making sure to completely wet everything and force mixture into any hollows, dings, scratches, etc. Let this dry. Then sand it all with some 180 grit, and 220 grit papers, mounted to some sheets of beaded white foam. The foam sanding blocks are flat, but 'give enough' to not cause grooves and scaring. Just make sure to remove sanding dust often and use a reasonable pressure while sanding. When you have sanded most of this formula away, you will see some original foam, but also many areas of filled and flush mixture and the surface will be very smooth. Little weight gain, yet ready for top coating with paint. You can sand with even finer papers, depending on what top coat paint you will be using. This is good enough using craft paints, but if you intend to spray with Model Master or Tamya paints, you could go to 320 or 400 grit paper. All three kinds of paint work well with this process. I’m truly convinced by Fred’s method and really worth trying this out on a piece of scrap foam or Depron. Last photo is a sample on a scratch build FFF (Folding Fan Foam) Russian Mig that Freddie B built with his filler/primer method. Happy filling Chris Brussels / Belgium

@ vic evans NO, the main wing and tailplane of the Raptor V2 & the Phoenix 2K from Volantex are NOT the same but they are the same than the 'older' Raptor. The main wingtips & the washout are quite different. They look very similar but you can only notice the differences when you hold them next to each other. The polypropylene fuselage is the same for all the Raptors though but then again the V2 (the one w/ the grey look) has an 'upgrated' motor mount with a lot more upthrust. So, you can upgrade an 'older' Raptor w/ the V2 mount just by screwing it on. Personally I didn't hear about tip stalling tendencies w/ the V2. If you want to load your craft heavily w/ a lot of FPV gear, a good trick is to reinforce the wings by laminating them w/ a thin laminating vinyl film from your local signman. And don't trust the foam hinges neither (specially rudder & elevator), at least reinforce them w/ Blenderm/fibertape or better install some CA hinges. Happy FPV Chris Brussels, Belgium

Hello to all, I’m not a glider addict (yet), but I’m distributing some FPV gear (FPVRaptor, Raptor V2 & Ranger EX) from Volantex in Belgium and as you very probably know, the Phoenix 2K is manufactured by Volantex (formerly Lanyu Hobby). Maybe the following info could be of help not only for repairs (would never wish that to anyone) but also to fix whatever to the inside of the fuselage of the Volantex blow molded fuselages. Concerning the Raptor/Ranger & Phoenix fuselages, they are made of PP (a polypropylene 'mixed' by the boss of Volantex himself) and NOT of PE (polyethylene). It seems that the best solution - imho - for repairs or gluing 'something' to it, is the use of Loctite® Plastics Bonding System (Henkel Group brand / item #681925). It's a two-part cyanoacrylate adhesive (solvent marker & CA tube, but no mixing required) that sets in some seconds, dries clear and cures without clamping. In fact, the solvent marker comes first & dissolves the plastic surface; then comes the CA which is then able to penetrate and 'weld' the items together. A lot of glues will somehow 'stick' to the polypropylene but will never be properly 'glued' without dissolving first. It bonds plastics such as Plexiglas®, polycarbonate, polystyrene, PVC, polyethylene, polypropylene and even polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) also known as Teflon®. It glues those plastics to leather, cork, paper, cardboard, wood, chipboard, fabric, metal, ceramic, rubber, O-rings, ... It is OK for polystyrene, but I wasn’t sure at all that it was suitable for 'expanded polystyrene' or derivates, as the 'primer' (with Heptane solvent) would probably melt the foam (or EPO). I've been looking around for an easy way to find the Loctite Plastic Bonding, but it appears that the retail 'blister' packaging is quite hard to find. So, I contacted Loctite Belgium and did some investigation together with the very helpful local technical service guy: >>> the 'retail packaging' has been discontinued in Europe due to lack of public interest... OMG! ... BUT the products are still around for professionals. The polyolefin primer is the Loctite SF 770 (better know as the 770) in a 10gr bottle, while the CA is the Loctite 406 in a 20gr plastic bottle. Of course the professional packaging is somewhat bigger, so we can mod/crash a lot more! The other good news is that the Loctite technician confirmed me that the 406 is foam-safe even on 'very common' Styropor... So, now everybody can make some PET/EPO/PP 'sandwich structure' protections or repairs to our crashing babies... and no, I'm not affiliated in any way to the Loctite nor Henkel Group... Hope this helped some of you a little. Happy glueing Chris Brussels, Belgium

Thank you, John. I'm somewhat relieved about the 'wheel' then. And learned about the definition of the 'PORT wing' all together... Still wondering about the possible definition of 'starboard' then? Chris Brussels, Belgium

Sorry to show up 'uninvited', Mr Leighfield. As a nearly 'silent witness', I'm following all the Chipmunk's builds, but are you sure - following your last post - that you are fitting a "nose-wheel" to yours??? As a total newbie to modeling & RC, I'm trying to learn as much as possible, but somehow I have an unexplained tendency of feeling a bit 'disturbed', now... Happy gluing anyhow Chris Brussels, Belgium

Hey to all, As 'eflightray' already mentioned, what's wrong with SketchUp? It's free... a huge amount of people use it worldwide & you can find from props to servos including LiPo's or whatever in online libraries... it as numberless plugins for modelling use... as w/ the 'Flattery' plugin, you can 'unfold' your creation with just 'one' button, group it onto 1 sheet... & print it to '.pdf' in the scale that you decide (if created 'full' scale beforehand, of course)... Easy, no? But of course if your lifetime dream is to 'talk' CAD/CAM & the surrounded software, you should at least invest in a decent CAM- or CNC router or/and an high-end Trotec 500 laser cutter device as well... Happy CADding Chris Brussels, Belgium

Hi Herri, We used to regularly need some Lexan/Perspex polishers for 1:1 scale planes. The best method around to recover the original smoothness was by using Novus Plastic Polish for all acrylics you can imagine. These products are even listed in the maintenance manuals of for ex. Boeing & Cessna. Novus comes in three different grades. Item #1 is for cleaning, #2 is medium coarse for small scratches while #3 is a rubbing compound for 'heavy' repairs. You start w/ the highest number & always ends w/ #1 cleaner. Also never use any paper towels as they contain cellulose (wood particles) that will scratch your acrylic again... Only use soft cotton or microfiber & use a new piece of cotton for each different grade you're working with. If you can't get it locally, you can find some 'Starters Kits' w/ 1 small bottle of each grade on eBay. I used to distribute them, some time ago, for Western Europe & the Starter Kit was retail-priced at +/- € 14 (including some cellulose-free cleaning pads). I may have some left if you have trouble finding them. Happy polishing Chris Brussels, Belgium

Hello Barry, I modified this pic of a Chippie panel, posted it on Mr Fenton's build page a while ago but the server here seemed to have swallowed it since then. But maybe this is not what you're looking for? Happy printing Chris Brussels, Belgium

Dear Mr K, Hello Martyn, I'm a silent witness of your build as I desire to learn as much as possible regarding balsa construction. So far each of your steps turned into a new lesson for me. Allow me a question though: when you unpinned your horizontal stab, you decided to reinforce it with some triangular(-ish) spar on the top. Looking a bit closer at the concerned picture, it looks like the front angle of the leading edge of the stab is not on the center line of the fuselage (in relation to the small pencil line marked on the spar). As I don't think it being some picture parallax issue, is there some technical reason or explanation to it? Many thanks & keep on posting. Chris Brussels, Belgium

Hello Nigel, I'm exactly in the same situation as you are. I enjoy building but I'm always a bit afraid of trying to take them in the air on my own as there is no flying club here at less than a one hour drive. So, recently I decided to go for it and bought a PNP trainer. I went for the Trainstar from Volantex (they also make the Phoenix 2000 motorized glider, the Raptor V2 & the bigger Ranger EX). You can find a PNP or RTF version at HK. High wing / Span 1400mm / Taildragger I think it's main advantage is that the fuselage is made of blow molded PP (polypropylene) in one single piece and is nearly indestructable. Wings/tailplane are EPO & bolts to the fuse (no glue). Flaps are even foreseen but not cut out completely. The only mods I've done is reinforcing (enlarging for a better load distribution) the internal ply plate for the landing gear & cutting the foam hinges of all control surfaces and replacing them with 3M Blenderm tape. It's not really a 'small' trainer but very stable & solid. Really glad I went for it. Happy flying Chris Brussels, Belgium

... dexterity only beaten by experience... or the other way around... Amazing tutorial, sir. Just one sugar & a 'cloud' of coffee cream will do, Mr Fenton. thank you & regards Chris Brussels, Belgium

Hello Mr Colin, hello to all, Sorry to jump in 'uninvited' but I thought this could be of help to some of you regarding finishing techniques for foam. This method is not really intended to add some structural strength though, but still very applicable where no lamination is required. Freddie B's Secret Sauce... Not such a big secret, as Freddie B - an American foamie guru - himself talked about it in an RCgroup’s earlier thread. Here are some photos to help 'show and tell' in case some of you'd want to try this. Basically, it’s a filler & primer coat (all-in-one) that doesn't weigh much but works really well. He does this on his foam builds often when there is no covering, lamination or other coating involved. While many have been amazed by Fred’s finished airframes, this was the process he used. Let’s have it in sequence. 1). Take some light weight spackle (Polyfilla or cellulose based filler) and put a nice size plug in a little mixing bowl. This time the plug of filler is about the size of a nut. 2). Next add some Polycrylic clear varnish (water based of course), about the same volume as the plug of light weight spackle. 3). Get some Talc Powder. Baby Powder or Foot Powder, but the Baby kind smells best… Watch out because many powders are Corn Starch, which we don't want! Talc is the magic that made balsa filler work in the old days of tissue and dope finishes. It is very fine and does a great job of getting those tiny imperfections filled, but sands away nice. Note the 'pile' of powder about equals the volume of the light weight plug we used too. 4). Add two or three drops of acrylic paint (craft paint, water based), and it can be white paint, but often you can use a colour to see the work in process and the finished results shows up better. Anyway, use a colour that works for your intended top coat. Light for light topcoats, gray for everything else. You can use Yellow in the primer if you are painting Yellow top coats, because Yellow (and Reds) don't always cover well. 5). Now mix it well. It is very thick, but get it creamy and all one colour and texture, working out any chunks. Now add water until it is like very thin whipping cream, thin shaving cream, or even thinner like a very thick paint. Brush this on your pre-sanded foam, making sure to completely wet everything and force mixture into any hollows, dings, scratches, etc. Let this dry. Then sand it all with some 180 grit, and 220 grit papers, mounted to some sheets of beaded white foam. The foam sanding blocks are flat, but 'give enough' to not cause grooves and scaring. Just make sure to remove sanding dust often and use a reasonable pressure while sanding. When you have sanded most of this formula away, you will see some original foam, but also many areas of filled and flush mixture and the surface will be very smooth. Little weight gain, yet ready for top coating with paint. You can sand with even finer papers, depending on what top coat paint you will be using. This is good enough using craft paints, but if you intend to spray with Model Master or Tamya paints, you could go to 320 or 400 grit paper. All three kinds of paint work well with this process. I’m truly convinced by Fred’s method and really worth trying this out on a piece of scrap foam or Depron. Last photo is a sample on a scratch build FFF (Folding Fan Foam) Russian Mig that Freddie B built with his filler/primer method. Merry Christmas & successful 'building 2015' to all. Chris Brussels / Belgium ps: I'm a 'silent witness' of all the Chipmunk builds around here & already love that Depron/balsa hybrid approach. Learning a lot and really looking forward to follow your project's progress. Thank you all.

Hello to all, Sorry to jump in 'uninvited' but I thought this could be of help to some of you. Freddie B's Secret Sauce... Not such a big secret, as Freddie B - an American foamie guru - himself talked about it in an RCgroup’s earlier thread. Here are some photos to help 'show and tell' in case some of you'd want to try this. Basically, it’s a filler & primer coat (all-in-one) that doesn't weigh much but works really well. He does this on his foam builds often when there is no covering, lamination or other coating involved. While many have been amazed by Fred’s finished airframes, this was the process he used. Let’s have it in sequence. 1). Take some light weight spackle (Polyfilla or cellulose based filler) and put a nice size plug in a little mixing bowl. This time the plug of filler is about the size of a nut. 2). Next add some Polycrylic clear varnish (water based of course), about the same volume as the plug of light weight spackle. 3). Get some Talc Powder. Baby Powder or Foot Powder, but the Baby kind smells best… Watch out because many powders are Corn Starch, which we don't want! Talc is the magic that made balsa filler work in the old days of tissue and dope finishes. It is very fine and does a great job of getting those tiny imperfections filled, but sands away nice. Note the 'pile' of powder about equals the volume of the light weight plug we used too. 4). Add two or three drops of acrylic paint (craft paint, water based), and it can be white paint, but often you can use a colour to see the work in process and the finished results shows up better. Anyway, use a colour that works for your intended top coat. Light for light topcoats, gray for everything else. You can use Yellow in the primer if you are painting Yellow top coats, because Yellow (and Reds) don't always cover well. 5). Now mix it well. It is very thick, but get it creamy and all one colour and texture, working out any chunks. Now add water until it is like very thin whipping cream, thin shaving cream, or even thinner like a very thick paint. Brush this on your pre-sanded foam, making sure to completely wet everything and force mixture into any hollows, dings, scratches, etc. Let this dry. Then sand it all with some 180 grit, and 220 grit papers, mounted to some sheets of beaded white foam. The foam sanding blocks are flat, but 'give enough' to not cause grooves and scaring. Just make sure to remove sanding dust often and use a reasonable pressure while sanding. When you have sanded most of this formula away, you will see some original foam, but also many areas of filled and flush mixture and the surface will be very smooth. Little weight gain, yet ready for top coating with paint. You can sand with even finer papers, depending on what top coat paint you will be using. This is good enough using craft paints, but if you intend to spray with Model Master or Tamya paints, you could go to 320 or 400 grit paper. All three kinds of paint work well with this process. I’m truly convinced by Fred’s method and really worth trying this out on a piece of scrap foam or Depron. Last photo is a sample on a scratch build FFF (Folding Fan Foam) Russian Mig that Freddie B built with his filler/primer method. Chris Brussels / Belgium ps: I already love that sequenced bomb dropping system. Really looking forward to follow your project's progress.

Hello to all, Hello Mr Fenton, Since a few weeks I'm a 'silent visitor' of this remarkable thread. I'm a total newbie (dummy?) to RC and jut started the restoration of a crashed balsa Graupner Bussard glider from the nineties as my first project. So, all the technical information I can gather here and there is mostly welcome. I'm amazed by everything I discover and certainly the research of details and solutions that Mr Fenton is applying to this build. When I saw the picture of the dash, I was a bit enoyed by the shadow at the top of the picture as it would probably interfere with the 'real' ambient shadow when installed in the cockpit. Looking a bit closer, I thought the little blue sticker (registration #) would very likely not match w/ the 'registration' carried by the model. Then I thought about a more 'generic' approach that could be of use for other fellow-builders. So I cleaned it up a bit, removing the reg#, the bottom white sticker, cleaning up the top shadow, adding a bit to both left & right sides for a more complete dash covering, etc... Note: the bottom of the picture = the underside of the dash & the artificial horizon is centered horizontally. Sorry to chime in 'uninvited', but thought this could be of help for some of you. Happy glueing Chris Brussels, Belgium ps: ... hope I can get that pic online...

@ Bruce, If you have to deal with vinyl stickers on foam, please don't forget that expanded polystyrene (EPO and others) has been previously molded and therefore at time of fabrication, the molds were covered with a 'demoulding agent' which is still present on the surface of the foam. And precisely that takes care of all the troubles we have with either painting or sticking to it. As Pete stated, the window cleaner is an ideal solution to be able to position precisely and get all the bubbles out of underneath the sticker but will be no guarantee for a durable fixation. There is an additional trick though. Damp a piece of cotton fabris with 'rubbing alcohol' and clean off the involved surface first. Then let evaporate and you created a sticker-receptive surface. A second, even 'better', solution is to treat the local sticker surface with a (very) thin layer of UHU Por glue (after the rubbing alcohol treatment), waiting for some minutes to start curing and then applying the vinyl sticker when still a bit wet (without the window spray technique). This closes all the pores of the foam giving you a perfect surface for reliable gluing. In fact, it's also the best method to use when improving the standard factory foam surfaces (especially elevators) hinges by the 3M Blenderm method. For FPV use - a lot 'heavier' and 'demanding' than gliders - we always cut out the standard factory 'foam' hinges and replace them with Blenderm tape (or even CA hinges). Happy stickering McG

Hello to all, @Bruce > concerning your spinner, you could try to find the prop/spinner from a (Volantex) FPVRaptor V2. (not the older Raptor only the V2 with the ‘inclined’ motor tower). The prop is 10x6 (although the V2 carries a 1000KV motor) and it’s the same spinner. Of course, the V2 being a ‘pusher’, you should reverse the blades. Some time ago, the ‘older’ Phoenix 2K were carrying a D4023 / 850KV motor. But I don’t know if the more recent ones have been ‘upgraded’ or still carry that motor. Volantex is often making improvements to their products without ‘Worldwide Press Conference’ involved. Maybe the actual ones carry a 1000KV as well? Anyway, the 10x60 works very well with both combinations. Or you can contact Volantex directly ([email protected]) and ask for the genuine spare parts for the 2K. Factory Ref. # 742308 for propeller 10x6 full set with spinner. Factory Ref. # 742309 for 3 & 4mm shaft adapter. As I wrote, I’m concentrating on FPV-stuff and as such do not stock other Volantex’ products parts. Maybe I should to help European people out of problems… @ Rex & Chuck > glad to be of help with the glue info. McG Brussels, Belgium