CL-415 group-build thread

[Michael]

I don't understand: "I rounded the leading edge of the elevators and tail and sanded a hollow into the trailing edge of the vertical hand horizontal stabilizer, so they have a nice fit with little gap. "

Please explain, and/or show a close-up image.

[electroflyer]

  Hey Michael,
What Rob and I did was create concave profile on the rear edge of the horizontal stabilizer and convex profile on the leading edge of the elevators. This creates a nicer looking gap.
The concave profile is created by wrapping sandpaper around a half inch dowel and sanding as required.

   Glenn

[Michael]

I think I get it:

__    __
__CC__

Right?

[electroflyer]

  Yes, exactly!

Sure beats this ><

[electroflyer]

  So I now have wing tip floats and wing tips for the main wing built. As with my tail, I fully sheeted  the wing tips and built it slightly differently than the plans.

[Michael]

Lower wing front sheeting glued to ribs and inner leading edge.

Ailerons constructed.

Beveled wing trailing edge in front of aileron. Hinges will be at the top of the wing.

[octagon]

Michael, your construction looks very clean and neat, good job. I have just finished what was a real challenge for me, the tip floats. Man, they are full of compound curves and were for me a real bugger to get right. One is done. I think it might be easier to make them out of foam.  You might consider that as I know you have good experience working with the stuff.

[Michael]

Next, I'll clean up my working table, and build the wing tips and tip floats.

I won't do the top sheeting, front leading edge, hinges, servo bays, etc., until I build the nacelles, and figure our exactly how they fit into/onto the wing.

[electroflyer]

  Things are looking good guys. Nice work.

   I have finished the vertical fins located on the Horizontal stabilizer and will start to work on the Vertical fin and Rudder. The drawings and cuts are definitely off on this, from what I have been seeing. But the beauty of working with wood is the ability to change and improve to suit your needs.
  I hope to start the Fuselage tomorrow and would like to see it more or less complete(not the wing) before I take a little vacation in December.
Here is a photo of my stabilizer.

 

[Michael]

Very nice, Glenn.

[Michael]

Winglets (wing tips) built, with 4 ribs (2 shown on plans), and flush with both sides.

Rib shaped pieces cut from trailing edge stock, for the outward angle.

Not sheeted.

[Michael]

I deviated from the plans on the tip floats.

The plans clearly indicate that the tip floats are weakly attached to the wing, in order to break of, in case of a mishap from lateral forces on water, in order to limit damage to the wing.

It makes sense, but based on my previous experiences with broken-off tip floats, I felt that some additional strength would be ok.

I installed 2 1/8th inch diameter carbon fiber tubes, which will fit into balsa blocks in the wing.

[Michael]

Sheeting started.

You're right, Rob; This is slow and delicate.

[octagon]

Michael, love the carbon rod idea, I have incorporated it into my floats. Glenn was suggesting he might do something so that in the event a tip float breaks off it will stay attached to the rest of the plane. I have been thinking that maybe a coil of dental floss or some braided fishing line, attached at one end to the bottom of the wing and the other end attached to the float itself would work.  The line could be stuffed down inside the float strut. this might prevent having to try and retrieve the float from out in a body of water (assuming we can find someplace to fly off water next year).

[piker]

Good idea.  Glenn has seen my tip floats floating free in the Bay many times.  He's planning ahead