wonwinglo
SMF Supporter
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2004
- Messages
- 6,754
- Points
- 113
- First Name
- Barry
Many world war 2 fighters and other types have enormous wing fillets which fair in the centre section of the wing to fuselage joint,being very much part of the character of these aircraft they cannot be ignored and a way to make them whereby the wing can be still easily removed has to be found.
Well here is the way that I tackle this problem and it seems to stand up to fair wear and tear,this is how it is done-
Firstly assemble the wings to the fuselage and trap some plastic sheet were the joint goes from the wing to fuselage joint,we do not want a permanent glue joint to the wing do we ? the system that we will employ here means that the fillet is attached to the fuselage and not the wings themselves,one advantage is that fuel is less likely to get into the structure this way round and it also forms a solid integral part of the fuselage.
Now take some ordinary card,cereal box card is ideal for our task and cut a strip the length from wing leading edge to the portion that protudes just aft of the trailing edge,carefully with a small pair of scissors trim this rear portion to blend into the wo surfaces,now carefully lay the card onto three or four layers of carpet underlay and with a small wooden roller roll the card so that a curve appears in the shape spanwise onto the fillet,now carefully eye up the fillet by laying it against the fuselage and note with a pencil where the fairing needs to change shape over the wing aerofoil,now with the scissors carefully snip the fillet so that it can be bent carefully into shape over the wing,take some pins and just pin into shape tucking and glueing the card as necessary to make a neat joint,when set remove the pins and glue the fillet to the side of the fuselage itself.
Now take some ordinary bandage and with PVA glue stick this to the cards outer surface so that it is firmly bonded,allow to dry and then trim the edges.
Now aply a couple of more coats of PVA to seal the bandage and also lock everything into place,when dry paint as required.
To add further strength turn the fuselage upside down and add some small 'V' shaped balsa fillets between the walls of the fuselage and the wing fairing,this will give a bit of much needed support and lock everything into place nicely.
With a little work you will have a simple solution to this problem,light but strong.
I use PVA as a suitable substitute for horribly sticky and smelly fibreglass which does not go down too well in a domestic environment,someone I know did some fibreglass work in the lower floor of a flat,the result some very unhappy people above where the smell had got into everything as the cured glass fibre volatile vapours were slowly rising on a hot day,not very pleasant.
With PVA there are no smells to worry about and a quick coat of paint makes everything waterproof.
It is also very cheap as a big tub from a DIY shop lasts you for ages and can be decantered into small jars for convenience..
Well here is the way that I tackle this problem and it seems to stand up to fair wear and tear,this is how it is done-
Firstly assemble the wings to the fuselage and trap some plastic sheet were the joint goes from the wing to fuselage joint,we do not want a permanent glue joint to the wing do we ? the system that we will employ here means that the fillet is attached to the fuselage and not the wings themselves,one advantage is that fuel is less likely to get into the structure this way round and it also forms a solid integral part of the fuselage.
Now take some ordinary card,cereal box card is ideal for our task and cut a strip the length from wing leading edge to the portion that protudes just aft of the trailing edge,carefully with a small pair of scissors trim this rear portion to blend into the wo surfaces,now carefully lay the card onto three or four layers of carpet underlay and with a small wooden roller roll the card so that a curve appears in the shape spanwise onto the fillet,now carefully eye up the fillet by laying it against the fuselage and note with a pencil where the fairing needs to change shape over the wing aerofoil,now with the scissors carefully snip the fillet so that it can be bent carefully into shape over the wing,take some pins and just pin into shape tucking and glueing the card as necessary to make a neat joint,when set remove the pins and glue the fillet to the side of the fuselage itself.
Now take some ordinary bandage and with PVA glue stick this to the cards outer surface so that it is firmly bonded,allow to dry and then trim the edges.
Now aply a couple of more coats of PVA to seal the bandage and also lock everything into place,when dry paint as required.
To add further strength turn the fuselage upside down and add some small 'V' shaped balsa fillets between the walls of the fuselage and the wing fairing,this will give a bit of much needed support and lock everything into place nicely.
With a little work you will have a simple solution to this problem,light but strong.
I use PVA as a suitable substitute for horribly sticky and smelly fibreglass which does not go down too well in a domestic environment,someone I know did some fibreglass work in the lower floor of a flat,the result some very unhappy people above where the smell had got into everything as the cured glass fibre volatile vapours were slowly rising on a hot day,not very pleasant.
With PVA there are no smells to worry about and a quick coat of paint makes everything waterproof.
It is also very cheap as a big tub from a DIY shop lasts you for ages and can be decantered into small jars for convenience..