Page Aviation 80"Cub build

[retiredVTT]

Here are a couple of pics that explain the joining of the two wing sections.

..a cedar dowel near the leading edge,
..a carbon fibre "alignment pin" near the trailing edge,
..and in the middle a small piece of threaded rod with a wing nut to keep the two pieces together prior to mounting.
The threaded rod item may be overkill, but that's typical of my builds..!
The wing nut will be accessable through a hatch in the center portion of the wing.
The wing struts will bear the load, and provide the required rigidity.

Ailerons and Flaps are next, along with shaping the LE and TE.

Bill

[retiredVTT]

Did some fuselage front end work today.

Couple of tips I picked up over the years....apply water or windex to the outside of the balsa sheet that you want to bend, ease it down without cracking it, but don't glue it while it's wet. Instead apply rubber bands and let it dry. When dry remove the bands and glue in place. This method prevents shrinkage and splitting that could occur if the balsa is glued while wet.

With the balsa front in place it was time to try fitting the fiberglas cowl. This required the removal of wood where the two bottom corners of the cowl fit over the fuselage. I'll need to open the front holes of the cowl with a dremel tool before getting a correct fit.

Bill

[retiredVTT]

I could not leave 2015 without assembling the various components to get a "in the bones look" at my achievement over the past 47 days.

....here she is,

Bill

[retiredVTT]

....more progress,

After cutting out the front cowl holes it was time to start the motor installation.
The designer had a + (cross) at the offset position on the firewall indicating where he wants the motor centered and a few washers under the mount will kick the shaft a bit right and a bit down to get the correct thrust. Not sure how many washers so I'll send an email off to Adrian for his comments.

Anyway, with the cross X mount centered on the firewall cross, the actual mount holes are drilled and blind nuts installed. With that done and knowing that I required 1.75 inch "standoffs" to get the prop located properly outside the cowl, it was time for the first "motor fitting" as shown below.

Bill

[retiredVTT]

Sometimes it's the little things that take several hours to come together.

Such was the "window" in the center section of the wing above the pilot. I wanted access to this area for tightening the wing nut that actually holds the two wing sections together. I had this perfect 4 inch brass piano hinge from Lee Valley, so I made up this hatch with a 1/32" ply top, and cut out the area for a plastic window insert. A magnet will keep it closed.

Bill

[retiredVTT]

I've been finishing up some loose ends with the fuselage, like a dash, and front end cf braces that you see when looking into the windscreen on the real Cub, and fitting a scale like tailwheel (with springs) a Dubro item.

And finally got around to working on the ailerons and flaps. Using Robart hinges for the flaps and got one done, after a lot of "blue air".
To do a better install one requires a couple of jigs that I don't have; I learned all this online, after much frustration..! All part of the process.

pics to follow,

Bill

[retiredVTT]

...ailerons and flaps started,

Bill

[Duster]

Well done, Bill, great job, looking forward to seeing more of your progress , ive been testing the foam tac on balsa, and im almost impressed a tiny bit goes a long way is correct using it.

[retiredVTT]

..........first shots of the complete wing structure. Gotta get the struts built now.

Bill

[retiredVTT]

update on Feb 12th...

We have wing struts now, and we are not to leave home without them, if we plan to fly this model..!

Made a bit streamlined by gluing different sized dowels together. I then got some long lengths of heat shrink and hit them with the heat gun.

..another piece of the puzzle..!

Bill