Gemma Jane Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 Well there is an old saying that goes something like, "those that have never made a mistake, never made anything" Today, Well the first was bad enough. I printed out some decals on my computer several weeks ago and left them to dry. They are quite tricky as they are stencils for the tail serial number and take a lot of cutting out both before and after they are applied. Having very carefully applied one side and cutting away the unwanted bits I started on the other. Taking a rest to admire my handy work, I looked in horror at the first side where the six digits ended with 6 7 9 realising the other side started with 6 7 9 Not too deterred I decided it must be a good day to paint my first pilot bust. Having printed off a couple of tutorials I thought hmmm this is more involved than I at first thought. First bit of good advice from the tutorials was to mount the bust on some plasticine so it didn't need to be handled when it was being painted. Good plan, I had a big lump in a model kit so formed a shape and plonked him on. Several hours of painting later, well it is OK I suppose, more work needed, best put it somewhere to dry out. The top of a radiator seemed a good idea. I came back an hour later and thought, that is weird he's sitting on the top of the radiator an not the plasticine base... then I saw the puddle under the radiator Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Mullins Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 My stupidest thing, hhhmmm, I know. Last year there was aglider comp at school, great I thought, just my kinda thing. I went about designing a glider on my CAD software and printed it off. The glider ended up being far to tail heavy BTW, the Tail was to long. Anyway Imade her all up, using the same technique as the West Wings Merlin (?). Marvellous, built fine and all. Then It came to the covering. I slaved over the model, red solarfilm and domestic iron for hours. Gor that was hard work, 4 Hours to cover it! It came to 'fly' day and it didnt really go all that well, stall and crash . Got the remains home for an investigation on how I went wrong. First thing to do was remove the covering. Wasn't too difficult seen as I had iron it on with the backing still on. THE WHOLE GLIDER. Arrrgghhh, will never do that again. Well, luckily my plan was good so I won the comp, and the £150 prize money! That went towards my E-Pioneer rather well! Ben. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Harris - Moderator Posted February 9, 2009 Share Posted February 9, 2009 I remember feeling rather upset several years ago (when I was about 14) when the tissue covered wing that warped after I'd doped it burst into flames like a latter day Hindenberg while trying to take the warp out in front of an electric fire. Luckily the house didn't follow suit... Don't know about the rest of you but my builds are littered with so many little *!!*££! moments that it's not easy to pick one out but one that comes to mind is when I went to great pains shaping and pre-covering the opposite handed cheek pieces to fit over the backs of the engines on the Slim Twin in my avatar - I always dread building 2 left wings etc. - and with a smug glow of satisfaction that I hadn't made the obvious mistake of making them both the same, I went to glue them in place. It was only then that it dawned on me that despite the fact I was working on left and right fuselages they were supposed to be identical with both engines pointing the same way...doh! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Richards Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 My worst mistake in my short building career was on a kit built fun fly wing. It was a one piece wing with no dihedral. I started placing the ribs on the bottom spar starting from the centre following the spacings given in the instructions. When I got to the end of the spar there was about half an inch of spar left beyond the last rib. It was then I realised that I had not started in the middle due to too many pencil marks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Grigg Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 On my Magnatilla I started the fuselage.Having already built the wings,stabilizer,fin and elevators I was an expert..So I built the 2 sides to the fuselage and when they dried started to rub them down.As I admired my craftmanship ,I offered them up with a view to pinning and joining onto the plan.I d made 2 left sides! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IanN Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 Not long after going solo, found myself at the patch on a great flying day but no other members present. Practising non stop approaches and overshoots with my Tranquiliser (60" parasol wing Peter Holland design, nice aeroplane) and having a great time. All going swimmingly so decided to progress to touch and gos. First attempt, seemed a bit quick for comfort on short finals so went round again. Second try. Lower this time but the same thing happened. Third attempt, throttled back to barely turning the prop, down to a foot over the patch and it still whistled straight past me with no inclination at all to set down. That was when the penny dropped and I remembered that there are very good reasons why we don't land downwind Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Cotsford Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 many, many years ago, I maidened my newly built KeilKraft Sea Vixen with Jetex power. It looked fantastic as it climbed gently away, flames and smoke gently billowing back from around the motor, until they spread to the wings, at which point it lost the ability to fly and dropped into the (dry) grass. Oh what fun running round in circles stamping on the burning grass and the scorched remains of the Vixen! Guess who'd scrimped on the asbestos-type insulating paper around the Jetex motor? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
001 Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 Waiting for 2 part epoxy to harden, nothing happened for hours, then I realised I had mixed part 1 to part 1 (again) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Perry Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 Yonks and yonks ago I thought the best way to get rid of a "little" old fuel in the gallon container would be to stuff a rag in the top, light it and chuck it as far as I could. Now I have always loved fire, being a bloke and all, so even though i KNOW this was daft, the temptation was, and is, still far to strong. Let me tell you children, the flames in a gallon container part filled with model fuel run a LOT faster than humans can. And the bang, oh the bang! And the whoosh as the plastic bottle flew past me was pretty impressive too! Wouldnt be that daft now though...oh, hang on, there was that time with the petrol... david (still a pyromaniac!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Grigg Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 Watched an expert with electric,maiden flight ,he threw it and it flew back and just missed him,motor was running backwards Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ken anderson. Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 hello gemma-one of many is when i dripped super glue on the newish vinyl floor covering and couldn't move my trainer--her indoors was at her keep fit class(remember them)so i carefully removed it with a modelling scalpel and coloured it in with the kid's felt tipped pen's as i say one of many ken anderson................................. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flytilbroke Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 Eric said it Cut out a template from light card. Did two I did, as I needed them. Both the ruddy same when I needed a left and right So I did it again..... Got distracted fitting the wing bolts to a Seamaster at Loch Insh. Twenty minutes later I had a high speed boat after the wings flew off out of control. Was ok though, a quick dry out, bolt up and and,,, did it right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Claridge Posted February 10, 2009 Share Posted February 10, 2009 my first attept at powered flight was a cardboard tube rocket powered by home brew propellant ,me and a friend set it up in his garden and lit it about two seconds later it went up to about 50 foot turned horizontal went 200 yards then went vertical earth wards. it went straight in to a greenhouse then exploded no one was hurt luckily and we scarpered quickly the local plod said it was probably kids with fireworks and didnt bother investigatingEdited By Timbo - Administrator on 28/02/2010 13:16:19 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
001 Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 I used to live next to a school, the large playing field was on two sides of my garden, one evening after school was closed I tied a large rocket to a small balsa chuck glider, set up two rakes as a launch ramp. The 'plane/missile' went off straight at an incredible speed, after about 50 yards it suddenly did a U-turn and came back into the next door neighbours garden. The stars and noisy bits came out all across the lawn. Peeping through the fence I could see the neighbours wife sitting their summer house about 5 metres away from the arrival.. She didn't move. I packed up the rakes quickly and went (hid) indoors. A few days later she showed me a small piece of blackened balsa and said to me "I knew it was you". You need neighbours like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Ashby - Moderator Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 Apart from the usual plethora of workbench situations I still wince when I remember the time I ran over a chaps model at the patch....er....in my car He plopped it down in front while I was leaning out of the window chatting before pulling away. You have to smile - everyone was waving frantically at me and there I was waving back thinking that it was nice for so many of them to wave goodbye! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A.A. Barry Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 NOw, this goes back some years, 1972, I built a ( i think, it has been recreated in our mag, last yrear) "Matador" off plans,one flight, tipped over on landing, busted off the fin (no cyno those days), so I take out the radio and 3 servos (on the park), and reinstall it into, the faithfull trainer (Gorden Burfords HUstler), NO worry's, just like before, off she went, yes off she went, one turn, and no response, up or down, left or right, chasing the plane, until it was out of sight, Bugger, i said, Put an ADVERT, over the local radio, come monday. 2 weeks go passed, and I get a call from a chap who has found a model, on his farm 20kms from town.he returns it , and tells me that it must have flown over all the "bush" around the place and landed on it's wheels on a sandy flat. NO damage at all.... Mate, WAS I happy. Taking the wings off, I had not "clipped" the push rods clips over the servo arms.......... DUMB ME Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 among the many and the most recent was hand launching a small semi scale Rc model with a Cox 049 up front. those who have a Cox will know what happened next but to those unfamiliar with this type of engine, it has a reed valve to suck the fuel mix in and is therefore quite happy to turn in either direction.............. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Channon Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 Hehehe, i remember many years ago building a Flair SE5A, the build went well, then i covered it in good old tissue and dope, I was building the aeroplane in my Fathers garage in January, it was cold. Anyway the dope was taking ages to dry, so being an inventive sort of chap, More heat needed !!! Hot air gun ( not the covering type, the paint stripper type ) down the fuz, Lots of flame, lots of smoke, what was left ,in the bin !!! Just half hour ago, building a Flair Pupperteer, i managed to glue my thumb to the fuz whilst holding down the 1/8th balsa under the tank !!!! Blimey, just realised, i could go on for hours !!! Regards Chris. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lima Hotel Foxtrot Posted February 11, 2009 Share Posted February 11, 2009 I cyano'd my right index finger to my... ...eyelid. D'oh! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
001 Posted February 12, 2009 Share Posted February 12, 2009 Well, I did it today. I went to the flying field. Prepared my Stik 60.Checked out all the controls, all working. I had changed the receiver so double checked (but did not do a range check.) Started the engine, not that easy because of the temperature. Carried the model to the runway, checked again, started take off run, no control, no elevator, no rudder and couldn't shut the engine down, luckily it ran across the grass into some long grass and turned over. Retreived it, no damage. Checked controls again, all working, absolutely OK until.....................walked a few yards away, no control. Took wing off, took receiver (35 mhz) out, checked aerial -- no problem. Then I realised, I had changed receivers and had put a sc crystal into a double conversion receiver. It actually worked until the model was about 4 metres away. Next time I will do that range check, could have been very dangerous. Worth noting. 2.4 ghz users you will not have this problem Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malcolm Fisher Posted February 12, 2009 Share Posted February 12, 2009 Years ago with a three channel trainer I had a failed servo on the rudder. Swapped it for another of the same make. Next time out, checked everything worked, started up and took off. Plane banked left, right rudder made it worse and the model ploughed in fortunateley with virtually no damage. I was using old equipment - no servo reverse on that set and had used a servo which operated in the opposite sense to the one it was replacing... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IanN Posted February 23, 2010 Share Posted February 23, 2010 This morning's effort... having spent an age trimming a piece of solarfilm to get a good fit around a fillet between wing and tip plate, I then very carefully ironed it into place. And at that point found I'd been concentrating so hard on getting the shape cut correctly that I'd forgotten to remove the backing paper. Language follows that would not gain the approval of the mods.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Mackey Posted February 23, 2010 Share Posted February 23, 2010 No...but it would be well known to us Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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