| Yes We Have No Bananas
One fault that really makes a model look odd is the “banana” fuselage when the sides have not been pulled in equally at the rear; this is all too easily done, especially if the sides are not of the same density so if “scratch building” try your hardest to get matching wood.
To quote from a kit instructions: “….clamp together (at rear) and then thoroughly check alignment of fuselage visually from front and rear to ensure it is straight and twist free.” Easier said than done!
Whether with age my “eye” for these things has got worse or I’ve got more critical of my build quality I don’t know, then again it may well be these new fangled Varifocal glasses! In any case I don’t feel it is wise to leave this crucial point to luck (look!!).
There are several ways to alleviate the problem.
The best, so I’m told, is to use a commercially made fuselage jig. Unfortunately this is quite an expensive piece of equipment and also bulky to store, so I’ve never invested in one. I devised the method I use a few years ago after reading an article about how the Romans constructed their straight roads, so it has definitely stood the test of time!
Having previously attached the sides securely to at least 2 formers, mark the exact centreline on the formers and the rear post; push pins in vertically at these points. When viewed from rear move the sides until all 3 pins are inline and you’ve got a perfectly straight fuselage; remember to check at the same time that the tail plane mount is square.
It’s a bit difficult to see the effect clearly on the rear view photo, presumably a shortcoming of the camera lens as it is fairly easy to see in practice even with my eyes!
You can also see that I’ve drawn parallel lines on my building board that come in useful on many occasions.
Last edited by Greyhead; 22-12-2004 at 06:00.
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