Ron Gray Posted July 10, 2023 Share Posted July 10, 2023 If it is the foam ‘hinge’ that you are worried about then you can either use tape (Blenderm is good for this) along the length of the hinge line or cut the elevator off and insert new hinges. Over the years I’ve carried out both types of repairs and they work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toto Posted July 10, 2023 Author Share Posted July 10, 2023 Hi Ron, It's not the hinge that concerns me, it is the tear that runs 90 degrees to the hinge line. It is at probably the most fragile part of the assembly that it could be. I have started taking it apart again but if I get the chance, Iwill photograph it and post it up later. As I said , for the sake of say even £ 20.00, I'e rather replace the part and have greater confidence that it's not going 5o fail and plummet to the ground then I am £400.00 down all for the sake of £20.00 and a bit of a wait. Toto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Gray Posted July 10, 2023 Share Posted July 10, 2023 Right, sorry I was mistaken! Put a photo up so that we can see it, you'll be surprised at a) how easy it is to repair foam models and b) how strong they are after! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Walby Posted July 10, 2023 Share Posted July 10, 2023 Toto, I am surprised at what manufacturers don't include in the way of strengthen or structural support, but if they do extensive testing and nothing fails then its strong enough. Worth bearing in mind that they don't design or built models to survive crashes and as you increase the AUW with repairs you will notice the degrading flight performance...as they say "build in lightness". I have flown both very well used/crashed models and then their brand new stable mate and its quite noticeable how much better the latter flies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyB Posted July 12, 2023 Share Posted July 12, 2023 (edited) On 10/07/2023 at 08:15, toto said: Hi Ron, It's not the hinge that concerns me, it is the tear that runs 90 degrees to the hinge line. It is at probably the most fragile part of the assembly that it could be. I have started taking it apart again but if I get the chance, Iwill photograph it and post it up later. As I said , for the sake of say even £ 20.00, I'e rather replace the part and have greater confidence that it's not going 5o fail and plummet to the ground then I am £400.00 down all for the sake of £20.00 and a bit of a wait. Toto Just make some short cuts at 90 degrees to the tear line, push in some appriate pieces of carbon strip, and wick in thin superglue - job done, and no need for a spare part. Foam is always repairable if you are determined enough! Edited July 12, 2023 by MattyB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toto Posted July 12, 2023 Author Share Posted July 12, 2023 Hi Matty, I'll let you see the damage. I thought it was 8n a bit of a vulnerable place ... on thin foam. I just didn't want to risk and 0ossihly end up sacrificing the whole model for a relatively cheap replacement part. I'll let you make your own mind up once I get the photo's up. Cheers Toto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toto Posted July 12, 2023 Author Share Posted July 12, 2023 OK ...... the dicemination of the Beaver crash .... First of all ... the reason the hinges are showing is because after i decided to abort the repair, I started with a scalpel at the newly glued hinge trying to take it back off. That is neither here nor there now. You can see the crack where the elevator came away from the main horizontal stabiliser. When this happened the elevator section had completely seperated along the length of the wing as well as the cracked area running at 90 degrees to it. The cracked section had not completely went along its full length at that point but with little interferance or pressure being put on it ...... was getting worse. That is when I held it to the light and could see the crack although not complete seemed to have a fracture of some point. You could see it was going to go completely. I glued these balsa inlets into a rather convenient indent along the back edge of the elevator to offer some strength. I did this both sides with the intention that if the repair held ...... I would cover it with white wing tape or similar to lessen the aesthetic damage. these balsa strengtheners are both topside and underside of the elevator. ( a sort of sandwich ) .... another shot of the fracture. Also the cowl took a hit ....... and ..... I'm not worried about the cowl as it is either £10.00 for a new one when I order the elevator section ...... or attempt a repair with some epoxy and matting material. I dont mind trying that element as it is not a critical / structural part so if it fails ...... no big deal. OK ..... there we have if folks ...... I'm heading indoors for a beer. toto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Gray Posted July 12, 2023 Share Posted July 12, 2023 TBH Toto that crack is an easy one to fix, or would have been before the balsa strips were added! I would have run some Gorilla Glue clear into the crack then taped across the crack to pull and hold the pieces together until set. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toto Posted July 12, 2023 Author Share Posted July 12, 2023 Hi Ron, The reason the balsa strips were added was that I couldn't get enough compression in the joint to make it solid enough. The balsa was added after trying the repair on it's own. It appeared too flimsy a joint so I added the balsa to try and help maintain strength at the trailing edge. I wanted as strong a joint as possible if I was going to accept the repair ..... send this back in the air and risk a £ 400.00 model for the sake of a £20.00 part. I just dont have the confidence that what's left of the wings strength is enough. Plus ..... more inexperience on my behalf for cmaking ompetent repairs especially in foam. Many thanks Toto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Gray Posted July 12, 2023 Share Posted July 12, 2023 I can understand your concerns and that is to be expected with a 'first repair'. You will soon build up the confidence to effect repairs that will be stronger than the surrounding material! Here's one I did 7 years ago: Before After Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toto Posted July 12, 2023 Author Share Posted July 12, 2023 Wow ...... Mines seemed to pale into insignificance compared to that. Very impressive. Toto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyB Posted July 13, 2023 Share Posted July 13, 2023 Based on those pics there a still room to insert 2 or 3 short sections of 2-4mm wide carbon strip across the cracks and secure with superglue. That would have taken only a few mins and been plenty strong enough without the balsa, but leaving the wood there now won’t do any harm now. Certainly no need for a replacement part. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toto Posted July 13, 2023 Author Share Posted July 13, 2023 Hi Matty, I have two very short lengths of carbon stick in the joint. They are short though as one of the halves of the material being jointed is only about an inch and a half long. However even that offers additional strength. I think my mind is settled on replacing the part for my own piece of mind. However, I shall retain the repaired pieces just in case I cant get the replacement. Thanks for your input. Cheers Toto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyB Posted July 13, 2023 Share Posted July 13, 2023 (edited) 1 hour ago, toto said: Hi Matty, I have two very short lengths of carbon stick in the joint. They are short though as one of the halves of the material being jointed is only about an inch and a half long. However even that offers additional strength. I think my mind is settled on replacing the part for my own piece of mind. However, I shall retain the repaired pieces just in case I cant get the replacement. Thanks for your input. Cheers Toto A larger number of short lengths is generally the way I do repairs like this; I would put the carbon in these locations if it were me, but the precise lengths and positions are not that important if you have enough of them. Done like this it would be rock solid, but go ahead and replace the part if that gives you peace of mind (just be aware this is the kind of failure is one that can happen quite easily on foamies). Edited July 13, 2023 by MattyB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toto Posted July 13, 2023 Author Share Posted July 13, 2023 Thanks Matty, I have ordered a new horizontal stabilisers and a nose cowl from Kings Lynn Models. What I am going to do is take off the semi repaired piece , install the new one when it arrives ( mid august ) and retain the original. I think I will attempt to do a fuller repair on it and shall probably resurrect this thread when I do it. At least this way I am happy that the Beaver can fly until a robust fix is achieved. I think it's fair to say that I have already be pit off a bit from looking at other foamies for the time being. Never say never but I'll try and stick with balsa from now on ......... until I learn ( probably quite quickly ) how easy they are to bend as well. Maybe a bit unfair on the foamie as this was not an " impact " damage. It seemed to happen in mid air. I honestly thi k there has been some kind of flaw with this but it's impossible to say for sure . Thanks for your input and time taken to upload your illustration. Toto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattyB Posted July 13, 2023 Share Posted July 13, 2023 Yeah, foamies have their pros and cons, but they as a means to an end they are pretty effective. Once you are familiar they can be pieced back together super quickly too - don't take this as a criticisim (t isn't meant as one), but I could literally have completed this repair with some cyano, carnbon and a razor saw in less time than it took to type my combined responses in this thread! Such is the repairability of foam... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toto Posted July 13, 2023 Author Share Posted July 13, 2023 No offence taken good Sir. It's more down to my lack of experience , knowledge and confidence that stops me from taking the risk on. Maybe as time passes I will become a little less risk averse. Cheers Toto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toto Posted January 12 Author Share Posted January 12 Update on the horizontal stabilisor replacement. Availability was meant to be for November 2023 ..... now pushed out to end of Fenruary 2024. A real heartache as this has prevented use for months now. I was going to also replace the super hard wheels for Dubro wheels but don't want to risk the money on something that is not guaranteed to hit the air again. If I can't get the replacement part ..... then it's the biggest waste of £400.00 I have ever had. Shouldn't take this long. Toto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Gray Posted January 12 Share Posted January 12 Take the elevator to your club and get one of the more experienced guys to look at it. As several others have previously commented, it can easily be repaired. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel R Posted January 12 Share Posted January 12 Seems like it's an easy fix to repair the bust elevator. I wouldn't be writing off that 400 just yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Outrunner Posted January 12 Share Posted January 12 The longest part of repairing that elevator is waiting for the glue to dry. You've already had some helpful tips on how to fix it. Fix it, fly it. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toto Posted January 12 Author Share Posted January 12 I'll post up some photo's of what I have left myself with after my original " Fix " attempt. maybe then you will have a fair idea of what is in the mix. it will be either tomorrow or Sunday night. I will need painfully obvious, numpty proof instruction. If its deemed possible to do .... I'm up for it if you are. from a patience point of view ...... don't say you have not been warned. toto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toto Posted February 6 Author Share Posted February 6 I may just have struck it lucky. It would appear that my order for a new horizontal stabilisor has been accepted from the FMS shop stateside. Verification of order and accepted payment via my credit card has been confirmed by email. £25.99 in total including shipping. Let's wait and see if it actually arrives ......... and when. I could have my Beaver back in duty after all. I wil need to dismantle the broken parts so I will post up photo's as mentioned previously above. Cheers Totol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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