Build your first flying scale model - Chapter 1 - Tools you will need

One of the nice things about this hobby is that you don't actually need that many tools to get started. Here are the essentials: !

" sharp #nife

There are plenty of options here$ but my weapon of choice is a brass %wann &orton #nife used with their e'cellent scalpel blades. &ine is what they call the (o.) handle. &y preferred blade type is the 1*"$ but other shapes are a+ailable. The (o.11 blades are also rather good$ being somewhat more slender and ,pointy,. These #ni+es and blades are a+ailable to buy in most art shops. " cheaper alternati+e are those #ni+es with the retractable long blades where you snap off the tip when it gets blunt to re+eal a new point. -ou get about 1. chances to change your tip before you ha+e to buy a new one. There is no point in trying to carry on with a blunt blade - the balsa can crush or tear$ and it is simply not fun any more$ so ma#e sure you #eep some spares in stoc#.

%teel rule
/ery useful for #eeping straight lines when cutting out balsa parts$ also for stripping your own wood from sheet.

0ins
-ou need these for holding the parts in place o+er the plan on the building board. %pecial modellers pins are a+ailable with wide heads to hold parts down securely$ but 1 2ust use standard plastic headed ones. The finer the pins$ the less li#ely they are to split the wood if you push them through.

0liers
" pair of needle nosed pliers will be needed for any wire bending you ha+e to do - nothing fancy though$ and you will probably ha+e a pair in the house somewhere anyway.

(eedle files
" set containing se+eral different shapes is a good in+estment - they are handy for filing small openings$ such as holes for thrust buttons$ motor pegs etc.

%andpaper34mery paper
One of the most useful tools you can ha+e can be pic#ed up cheaply in pac#s of 1* at your local chemist or drug store. 1 am tal#ing about emery boards$ which some people actually use for filing their fingernails. These are ideal for general sanding wor# on model airframes$ especially as they ha+e a coarse and a fine side. 1 also #eep a some sheets of wet and dry paper handy in )5* and 5** grit si6es - the 5** being good for final finishing.

7a6or saw
0erhaps not absolutely essential$ but you will find this a +ery useful tool whene+er you ha+e to cut up a balsa bloc# 8not easy with a scalpel9. The deeper the blade$ the thic#er bloc# of balsa you can tac#le. 1f you only use it

on balsa$ this could be a once-only purchase$ as the amount of times you use it$ it should not get blunt.

Cutting mat
O:$ you can get away without using one of these$ but it does sa+e the #itchen table from damage$ and the one in the picture abo+e only cost me ;< from a local mar#et stall. 1f you use an old piece of wood or something to cut on$ the danger is that the #nife blade will tend to follow the grain of the wood rather than the part outline you are trying to follow.

Building board
0lenty of possible options here. How big you go will depend on the the length of the biggest model you are li#ely to build. &y trusty board consists of a piece of fibreboard glued to an old chipboard shelf$ The fibreboard is soft enough to push pins into easily$ and the shelf #eeps it flat. 1 #now some people use cor# floor tiles or noticeboards$ and others use ceiling tiles. Ha+e a wander round your local =1- superstore and see what you can find. "lternati+ely$ you can buy magnetic building boards$ complete with small steel bloc#s to hold parts in place. 1 ha+e ne+er tried one myself$but if you clic# here you can read about >ohn 4rnst's e'perience of using one.

"dhesi+es.
Below is a picture of my current selection.

Ta#ing each type in turn: ? "liphatic wood glue. -ou can see a couple of brands in the photo. This water-based adhesi+e is what 1 use for @*A of my airframe construction. 1t is similar to the traditional white wood glue$ but does not dry rubbery$ so you can sand it. 1t is usually tinted a yellowish shade by the manufacturers. 1t is relati+ely slow drying$ gi+ing time to ad2ust 2oins$ and does not shrin# li#e balsa cement$ so delicate structures are unli#ely to be distorted. ? Balsa cement. Traditional sol+ent based glue as used by generations of balsa modellers. The smell when opening a tube still ta#es me bac# to my early forays into the hobby when 1 was about 1*. Humbrol and "mbroid are two well-#nown brands. One ad+antage of balsa cement is its Buic# drying time$ which 1 find useful when applying fuselage stringers$ for instance. Often you only ha+e to hold the stringer in place for less than a minute$ and it will stay there. 0re-gluing will strengthen a balsa cement 2oin

considerably$ especially when gluing end grain 8e.g. a fuselage cross member9. >ust put a smear on the ends first and let it soa# into the wood. Chen it is dry$ apply a second coat and install the part. balsa cement is also useful for attaching wire parts to balsa$ in con2unction with a thread wrapping. 8peeling the glue off your fingers afterwards is part of the pleasure9. ? Cyanoacrylate 8%uperglue9. (ow please remember that this is a personal opinion$ but 1 really hate this stuff$ and only use it when there is no alternati+e. ChyD Cell$ the fumes are no'ious$ it is hea+y$ 2oins can be brittle and it stic#s far more readily to your fingers than anything else. 1t does ha+e its uses howe+er$ such as gluing in aluminium or brass tube bushings$ attaching ply facings to balsa and of course urgent field repairs$ so 1 always #eep some to hand. The bottle shown features a brush applicator$ which 1 find Buite handy. ? 0acer Eormula .5* Canopy glue. 1 would not be without a bottle of this now$ as it is the best thing 1 ha+e come across for attaching canopies basically it does what it says on the bottleF 1t loo#s li#e a normal white wood glue$ and is water soluble$ but there must be some special additi+es in there$ because it stic#s li#e cra6y. 1t also dries completely clear$ so any residue is +irtually in+isible. &ost good model shops should stoc# it$ as the 73C boys use it for their canopies too. ? GHG general purpose adhesi+e. The big plus of the GHG glue in the yellow tube is that you can use it to stic# paper fillets and panels onto your airframes without causing them to swell 8with water-based adhesi+es9$ or distort as they dry 8as can happen with balsa cement as it shrin#s9. The disad+antage is that you tend to get a few strings here and there$ and the glue always remains rubbery$ so there is no chance of sanding it. ? Hlue stic#. 1 only use these +ery rarely when building my models$ but many of my friends 8especially in the G%9 use them all the time. Their chief use is to attach tissue to airframes$ and stic# cut-out paper or tissue mar#ings onto the co+ered airframe. The adhesi+e can be reacti+ated using a trim iron to ensure edges are firmly fi'ed down. -ou can also buy restic#able glue stic#s$ which amongst other things can be used for stic#ing paper patterns onto balsa before you cut them out 8apply the glue to the paper$ and you should be left with no residue on the balsa9. "lso for temporarily stic#ing pairs of balsa parts together$ so they can be sanded to e'actly the same shape.

(o'ious fluids
Below you can see my collection of doubtless e'tremely ha6ardous chemical liBuids.

1n more detail: ? =ope. This is used to seal the tissue after it has been water-shrun#$ and add a degree of waterproofing. There are se+eral types on the mar#et$ and it is important to #now the differences. On the left there is standard nitrate shrin#ing dope - similar to the Humbrol type 1 ha+e used since the year dot. 1t is getting harder to find now$ and 1 wonder if it is only a matter of time before the go+ernment stops letting modellers buy such nice smelling products. 1 tend to use nitrate shrin#ing dope now 2ust as an adhesi+e when applying tissue - but you can read more about that later. 1n the centre is non-shrin#ing nitrate dope which is what now 1 usually finish my models with$ thinned .*3.* with cellulose thinners. On the right is Butyrate dope$ which can be useful because it is less flammable than nitrate dope. This could be an ad+antage for >ete' or 7apier powered planes. 1t is not as stic#y as nitrate dope$ so not as suitable for adhering tissue. 1t shrin#s less than standard nitrate dope$ but 1 understand it can carry on shrin#ing for longer.

? Thinners. Called Cellulose thinners in the G:$ but probably 2ust dope thinners e+erywhere else$ you ha+e to ha+e some of this to dilute your dope with. The thinners are +ery +olatile$ and contain harmful chemicals$ so best to use outdoors$ or at least in a well +entilated room. 1t is better to to get the more e'pensi+e high grade +ersion if you can$ as this will be less prone to gi+ing a ,bloom, on the tissue as it e+aporates. 1 am told car restoration wor#shops are a good place to get hold of this stuff relati+ely cheaply - if you buy from the model trade you tend to pay through the nose. ? :rylon Crystal Clear. This is the finishing medium of choice o+er the pond in the G%"$ especially in households where the rest of the family will not tolerate the smell of dope. /ery con+enient to apply from the aerosol can as well. Gnfortunately you cannot buy it in the G: 8if you #now better$ please let me #nowF9. 1 brought mine bac# from holiday with me. Crystal Clear has an acrylic formulation$ so there may be something eBui+alent o+er here - if anyone has done any e'perimenting$ 1 would lo+e to hear from you. ? %anding sealer. This is basically dope with a mineral filler added$ and it is used to prepare a bare balsa surface before final finishing. The powder will help to fill the grain$ and after sanding$ a smooth surface will be obtained 8it may ta#e se+eral coats9. 1f you cannot find it in the shops$ 2ust add some talcum powder to normal dope. 7ight - 1 rec#on that is enough to be going on with - any other stuff that might be needed will be described if and when it comes up during the build.

Build your first flying scale model - Chapter < - Hetting started
The first step will be to ma#e some home made printwood$ using a photocopy of the part patterns you downloaded. 1f you cut parts sheet ) close around the top of the fin$ you will be able to match it up to sheet <$ and produce a single ) ' 1< inch pattern as shown here:

-ou then need to photocopy this$ and also parts sheet one. 4asiest would be to copy both sets onto one sheet of ") paper. The parts sheets can be cut out 2ust inside the parallel lines 8which should be ) inches apart9. 1t would seem worth discussing wood selection at this point. The parts need to be cut out from reasonably light 1315I balsa sheet 8not something you e+er got in the original #its9. Hood wood is getting hard to find$ especially from your local model shop 8in the unli#ely e+ent you still ha+e a local model shopF9

%till$ could be worth ha+ing a loo#$ 2ust in case they ha+e anything decent in stoc#. 1 tend to buy my wood from Elitehoo#$ who sell it out the bac# of their +an at model shows around the country. They are usually to be found at the Old Carden model e+ents. "ll their wood has the weight mar#ed on in grams$ which is +ery helpful when comparing sheets. "n alternati+e source$ which 1 also use$ is the pac#s of 1<I ' )I selected sheet sold by %"&% models. "t that si6e$ the pac#s are relati+ely simple to send +ia mail order. The wood is not cheap 8J sheets for ;5.@.9$ but of good Buality$ and you can get 13<*I and 13<.I sheet as well as the more normal 1315I. Coincidentally$ 1<I ' )I is 2ust what you need for these %wift patterns. &ore details can be found on the wood page of The %"&% &odels web site

%o ha+ing got your wood$ how to transfer the patternsD Here are some methods: 1. "ttach the paper patterns to the balsa sheet using a spray adhesi+e or restic#able glue stic#$ then cut the parts out through the paper. One potential ad+antage of this method is that the paper will tend to

hold the balsa together and reduce the ris# of splitting along the grain. "s you use each part$ peel the paper off first. 1f you find paper residues are being left behind$ these can be remo+ed with lighter fluid 8apparently9. <. Tape the patterns temporarily o+er the wood and pric# the patterns through to the wood with a pin. Cut the parts out by 2oining up the holes. "ll 1 can say is$ rather you than me. ). 1ron the patterns onto the wood. =o this by placing a photocopy of the parts face down on the wood$ and running o+er it with a hot iron. This will melt the toner$ and transfer it to the wood. &ain disad+antage 1 ha+e found is that the wood will tend to curl up towards the hot side. -ou can get it bac# close to flat again by turning the wood o+er$ and gi+ing it a Buic# run o+er with the iron on the bac#. K. Gse a piece of #itchen roll soa#ed in dope thinners to transfer the patterns. This is now my preferred way of doing it$ though be warned it is +ery smelly$ so be sure you ha+e plenty of +entilation$ and that the rest of the family are out of the house. The method is illustrated below:

0lace the photocopied pattern face down on the balsa sheet. Hold a wad of #itchen roll o+er the open top of a tin of dope thinners and turn it upside down briefly. Cipe the #itchen roll Buic#ly o+er the bac# of the pattern until it all goes transparent$ and only then apply some pressure using the drier areas of the wad. Cor# your way o+er the whole pattern. 1f you flood too much thinners onto the paper$ the toner will run and go blotchy. To see how you are doing$ lift up a corner of the pattern and peel it bac#. 1f it loo#s fine$ #eep on peeling. 1f there are faint or missing areas$ put it bac# down and rub some more. 1f that does not wor#$ you need a bit more thinners in that area$ so rub again with a wetter area of the wad.

Here is the finished result. There are areas where the toner has run a little bit$ but nothing that will stop the bits from being cut out accurately.

(ow we need some 1315, sBuare balsa strips. %"&% &odels can again help you out$ as they sell pac#s of .* selected strips in 1J, lengths in +arious si6es$ in both indoor and outdoor Buality 8outdoor being more robust9. Howe+er$ 1 usually 2ust cut my own stripwood using 2ust a steel rule and a sharp scalpel. 1 2ust gauge the width of the strips by eye$ so there is some +ariation$ but if you cut a good selection$ you can sort them into groups of the same width. 1f some come out a bit narrow$ 2ust use them for the uprights or diagonals. There are proper balsa strippers on the mar#et which will allow you to cut strips e'actly to si6e - 1 guess 1 am 2ust a cheaps#ate. The wood you use for the fuselage longerons and wing spars needs to be Buite hard and stiff$ as these are the main load bearing members on the plane. "lso$ the grain of the wood you use to cut strips from needs to be straight along the length of the sheet. 1f it runs at an angle across the cut strips$ it will seriously wea#en them. Cood suitable for cutting into strips may well be found in your local hobby shop.

Less than 1* minute's wor#$ and 1 ha+e got more than enough 1315, sBuare strips to finish this model. There are two stiffnesses of wood here$ as 1 stripped from two different sheets. The dar#er balsa in the bac#gound is the harder$ stiffer wood.

7ight - let's startF 1 taped together sheets 1 and < of the downloaded plan and placed this on the building board. The whole thing is co+ered with clingfilm$ raided from the #itchen drawer$ to stop the glue stic#ing to the plan. The pinning of the first part o+er the plan is always one of my fa+ourite moments 8which probably e'plains why 1 ha+e so many halffinished models in the house9. %tart by cutting out :1 from the sheet$ and pinning it down on the plan. -ou can see 1 ha+e pinned through this part$ which is not always sensible$ but due to it's width there is little danger of splitting or wea#ening the part e'cessi+ely. (e't add the front and rear lower longerons$ gluing them to :1$ and pin down the upper longeron. 1 tend to put in the outer pins +ertical$ and the inner ones at an angle to hold the wood down onto the board. 0ins are placed either side of the 1315, sBuare strips$ and (OT through them.

The uprights and part :< at the nose can now be glued into place. To cut the uprights to the correct length$ 1 butt them up to the top longeron and mar# a notch in the wood at the bottom in line with the inside of the lower longeron. Cut the wood fully through bac# on the cutting mat. Test for fit$ and ad2ust length as necessary using an emery board until you get a snug fit. 1f you cut it too short$ do not attempt to fill the gap with glue$ 2ust cut a replacement. 1f the fit is correct$ you should not need pins to hold the uprights in place.

The tailpost is a little tric#y to get in place because there is not much room for fingers$ so a pair of twee6ers can help.

>ust one upright to go on this photo. -ou will notice my first

modification to the #it design here - the first fuselage bay$ behind :<$ has been filled with 1315, sheet with the grain +ertical. This will gi+e something more substantial to hold on to while winding$ remo+ing the ris# of stic#ing a finger through the tissue. "s the model is bound to need noseweight anyway$ why not add it in a useful structural wayD The glue should be set firmly after )* minutes or so$ and the finished fuselage half can be remo+ed from the board.

Build your first flying scale model - Chapter ) - Euselage assembly

Ha+ing successfully completed the first fuselage half$ we now ha+e to ma#e an identical second one if we want to ensure a sBuare and true fuselage. %o$ pull out all the pins$ carefully remo+e the clingfilm without disturbing the plan. (ow place the completed fuselage half o+er the plan$ and co+er it with the clingfilm. -ou should be able to pic# up the original pin holes in the plan around the outside when you pin it down$ through the clingfilm.

The :1 pieces and longerons are placed e'actly o+er the those in the first fuselage half. "gain$ angled pins on the inside of the frame can be used to hold the strips down. "dd all the spacers and diagonals$ plus the nose sheeting. Be especially careful at the nose and tail to get the uprights e'actly matched to the other half. Chen it is dry$ you can remo+e the pins and ta#e off both hal+es.

"s an aside$ one ad+antage of stripping your own wood is that you can be fairly certain that if the strips were cut from the same part of the same sheet$ they will be of the same stiffness and strength$ and this will gi+e you the best chance of getting a straight and symmetrical fuselage.

1t is worth spending a bit of time trimming and cleaning the frames up$ remo+ing e'cess glue with a sharp #nife blade$ and gi+ing them a bit of a sand to smooth away any steps or rough areas.

One thing 1 li#e to do 8and you may well thin# this o+er#ill9 is to gently sand down the frames on a sheet of well used )5* grit wet and dry paper which has been glued to a 0erspe' offcut. This is what 1 used to use to sand my plastic +ac-form #its on$ but it wor#s 2ust as well with balsa parts 8as long as you do not try to use it wet9. The ad+antage o+er the emery boards is that there is no danger of digging a corner in$ or accidentally sanding one area too much. 1 use a gentle circular motion$ and apply a bit more pressure to problem areas 8e.g. hard lumps of glue9. =o #eep chec#ing to ma#e sure you ha+e not gone too far though. 1 confess to being +ery$ +ery fussy about the smoothness of my airframes$ as this gi+es you the best chance of a neat and wrin#le-free co+ering 2ob. This sanding method is +ery helpful for remo+ing any steps that may be present$ for instance an upright standing slightly proud of a longeron. 1 guess you really only need to sand the outside faces$ but as 1 said$ this is perhaps an area where 1

am a tad obsessi+eF To begin assembly of the fuselage$ you will need to cut out parts E.M and E.J. Test fit them to the fuselage hal+es$ and ad2ust the slots if necessary to get the bottom of the formers flush with the bottom of the fuselage frames. There are a couple of ways of initially 2oining the fuselage hal+es together. One method would be to glue E.M and E.J to one half$ set at @* degrees$ then add the other half. &a#e sure the frames are parallel when +iewed from abo+e$ and that the top longerons of both hal+es are parallel when +iewed from the side.

1 thin# a more foolproof way is to 2oin the frames at the tailpost$ lining up the top longerons so they e'actly match$ then gluing in former E.J. Chec# from the top that the triangle you ha+e formed loo#s symmetrical when +iewed from abo+e.

Chen dry$ put some glue on former M$ and sBuee6e the fuselage hal+es together at the front until the longerons and #eels are snugly located in the former cut-outs. Hold until dry.

1 confess this was the point where 1 had my first brea#age. Because the grain in formers M and J runs +ertically$ they are prone to splitting if you sBuee6e them from the sides too much. (eedless to say$ that is e'actly what 1 did. The lighter the wood you are using$ the more of an issue this will be.

This photo shows the fi'$ which 1 did after repairing the former. "ll you need to do is glue a strip of 1315I sBuare balsa strip across the bottom at right angles to the grain. 1 also did this retrospecti+ely to former E.J. 7emember the former could split after you ha+e finished the model if you hold it a bit too tightly when launching$ for instance$ and it will be much more difficult to repair then.

The ne't former to be added is E.K at the nose. 1 used balsa cement$ and held it in place until the glue set. The photo shows that 1 ha+e cut as large an opening as 1 dare$ to ma#e it easier to get the rubber bac# into the plane after stretch winding. The small thrust button hole shown on the original part would be hopeless. The slot at the top centre has been reduced to 2ust 1315I deep$ so the corresponding #eel :.K will ha+e to be ad2usted to suit.

Completing the fuselage is now 2ust a matter of filling in the spaces with more formers at the top and matching cross pieces below. "fter cutting out the remaining formers from the sheet$ 1 reinforced them with 1315I strips as shown to stop me accidentally splitting them during assembly. 1f you cut the matching 1315I cross pieces to e'actly match the formers$ you will ensure your fuselage sides remain sBuare 8you can see these laid out under their corresponding formers9.

Here we see the fuselage with all the formers and cross pieces in place. The front upper #eel E.K has been also added$ plus the centre top

1315I sBuare stringer behind the coc#pit. These stabilise the structure nicely$ before the rest of the stringers are added. To get the rear upper stringer dead straight$ 1 found 1 needed to cut the slot in formers E.1* and E.11 a bit deeper.

The #it plan seems to show the rear stringers 2ust sort of +aguely ending in free air somewhere in front of the tailplane$ so to tidy up this area$ 1 added a piece of 1315, ' )315, soft balsa 2ust in front of the 1315, sBuare cross piece$ as shown here. 1t was notched to fit between the longerons$ and stic#s up 13J, abo+e them. " 1315, deep notch was cut at the centre to recei+e the top stringer.

"s mentioned before$ the front of E.K needs to be cut away inside to clear the enlarged nose opening.

The upper 1315, sBuare stringers can now be added. 1f you add them in pairs$ alternating between the left and right sides$ this will gi+e the least ris# of introducing distortion in the fuselage. The wood used for the stringers can be lighter stoc# than you used for the longerons$ as

they do not ha+e such a structural role. The stringers underneath the nose were left off at this stage$ until the undercarriage had been attached.

" dry run trying out the stringers in the former slots will show if you get a nice smooth run front to rear. 1f the wood seems to be being forced out of line anywhere$ open up the slot at that former in the appropriate direction until e+erything lines up nicely. =onNt worry about lea+ing a gap at one side of the slot$ as we will be sanding many of the formers away between stringers later anyway. (ote that 1 ha+e not worried at all at this stage about trimming the stringers to an e'act length - the e'cess can be trimmed and sanded flush later.

This photo shows how 1 ended the stringers in front of the tailplane location. The outermost ones ha+e been chamfered and glued to the top longron$ and the ones inboard of these ha+e been let into the balsa strip added earlier. 1t will all be sanded smooth later.

This photo shows the most e'treme e'ample of slot enlargement 1 had to do 8on former E..9. "lthough not absolutely necessary$ 1 filled the gaps in this case with scrap strip. The small pieces were trimmed behind the former later 8longer lengths are easier to handle9. -ou might also spot that 1 8deliberately9 bro#e the top two stringers at the position of the wing leading edge$ so 1 would get a completely flat run under where the wing sits. 1f you 2ust let the stringer run smoothly o+er this former$ it would bulge up and interfere with the bottom of the wing 8or am 1 being 2ust too darned fussy againD9 1n case you were wondering about the bac#wards lettering on the formers$ this is due to the method of transfering the patterns to the wood. "s the paper is placed face down on the wood$ you get a mirror image produced of any lettering. 1n the ne't chapter we will tac#le the undercarriage.

Build your first flying scale model - Chapter K - The undercarriage

The wire used on models for undercarriages and the li#e is generally #nown as piano wire$ which is hard and springy. 1t should be stoc#ed by most good model and hobby shops. The most common si6es used for models up to about )* inch span are <K$ <<$ <* and 1J %.C.H. The old O%tandard Cire HaugeI still seems to be the commonest method of describing wire si6e in the G:$ but is unli#ely to mean anything to people in other countries. %o$ to gi+e you an idea of the diameters in proper units: <K %CH P *.*<< inches P *..5 mm << %CH P *.*<J inches P *.M1 mm <* %CH P *.*)5 inches P *.@1 mm 1J %CH P *.*KJ inches P 1.<< mm -ou can find a comprehensi+e con+ersion guide here Loo#ing inside a couple of original /eron Tru-Elite #its in my collection$ the wire supplied is typically <* %CH. 1 thought it should be possible to get away with something a bit thinner 8sa+ing a bit of weight9$ and found a spare piece which measured *.*)*, diameter. 1 guess 1 must ha+e bought this as << %CH$ though it is a little thic#er than listed abo+e. 1 admit that wire wor# is not one of my strong points$ and 1 struggle to bend a completely true and symmetrical undercarriage$ so letNs see how 1 get on with this one. 1t helps to mar# the bend points on the wire before you start$ and 1 find a fine tipped permanent mar#er pen useful for this. %o$ place the wire o+er the patterns shown on the plan and mar# off the position of each bend.

The front leg is the easier to ma#e - here are the first bends.

"nd here it is finished. There was Buite a bit of twea#ing mecessary to get the angles loo#ing eBual$ and some twisting to get the wheel a'les in line and pointing in the same direction. -ou can probably see from this photo that 1 was not 1**A accurate in my leg length - my undercarriage came out a fraction long.

The rear legs are much harder to get right$ because they ha+e tric#y little loops on the end and some nasty double angles that are difficult to wor# out in )= spaceF -ou can see in this photo that 1 found the best way to do the loops was to lea+e e'cess wire as you bend them round the tips of the pliers. -ou can tighten the loops by sBuee6ing them with the pliers. &y first attempt ended up in the bin$ because 1 got the angles completely wrong$ and second time round 1 disco+ered that it was much easier to 2ust bend it to the plan +iew shape first$ as shown abo+e.

1n this photo 1 ha+e snipped off the e'cess wire from the loops$ and put a length of spare wire through the loops to help stabilise it while 1 put in the final bends.

The first wire part is tac#-glued to the #eels :1 with balsa cement. /iew the fuselage carefully from the side$ and compare the angle of the wire legs to the plan. -ou may need to twea# the wire slightly until the legs hang +ertically. -ou might as well also chec# it from the front for symmetry while you are at it.

Eind some cotton from your wife's sewing bo'$ or where+er$ cut a length$ and glue one end inside :1 as shown with balsa cement.

(e't smear some balsa cement on :1 in the area you will be binding$ and wrap the thread around the wire as shown. Chen finished$ cut off any e'cess and smear some more balsa cement o+er the thread on both sides of :1 to strengthen it.

Cell$ 1 did promise to show you e+erything$ warts and all$ and this +iew clearly shows that 1 got the rear legs a bit wrong. Cith the loops sprung o+er the front legs$ the rear legs 2oin the fuselage at different points$ so the cross piece is definitely not at right angles to the direction of flight. 4+en with my perfectionist tendencies$ 1 decided 1 could li+e with this$ as 1 did not want to ha+e to bend a replacement part. 1n fact$ if you +iew the finished undercarriage from the side$ there is a slight difference in the angles of the rear struts$ but it is not +ery noticable. -ou may notice also that 1 cut small recesses in the #eels :1 to sit the wire in. This was to ma#e the wire cross piece sit under the tissue on the fuselage underside$ and hence ma#e it in+isible after co+ering.

Here is the final undercarriage all securely bound into place. (ote the e'tra gussets 1 added abo+e the front undercarriage wire - as much to help with the co+ering as to reinforce the 2oin. 1 confess 1 did use a spot of cyano adhesi+e to tac# the rear legs onto the #eels before 1 bound them with balsa cement. 1t does ha+e its usesF

The tails#id is also made from wire and bound in place using balsa cement and cotton - compared to the main undercarriage$ this was a piece of ca#e.

Build your first flying scale model - Chapter . - Einal fuselage wor#
O:$ let's get bac# to wor#ing with balsa again$ which is much more fun that wire 8at least in my opinionF9

Here you can see the last stringers$ which are added under the nose. 1 found 1 needed to ad2ust two of the slots in E.1< to get them symmetrical. Chen the cement was dry$ the stringers were sanded flush at the nose$ and formers E.< and E.) added. below you can hopefully see that 1 also decided to cut out the inta#e opening in E.< rather than 2ust paint it on. Ha+ing already added some sheet inlay in the fuselage sides at the nose$ 1 decided to now carry this on and sheet between the stringers abo+e and below the nose. Besides adding some useful strength where it is needed$ this is also +ery satisfying wor# to do$ and a useful techniBue to learn for future models. -ou could probably get away with using soft 1315I sheet for this$ but 1 prefer )3)<I if double cur+es

are in+ol+ed$ to ma#e sure you can lea+e enough wood stic#ing up to sand down later to the correct contours.

Ta#e a piece of soft balsa sheet$ and cut a strip across the grain$ so the width of the strip is 2ust a touch greater than the gap between formers E.K and E... -ou can get the final fit using an emery board. Offer up the wood to the longeron$ and mar# roughly where the ne't stringer up meets the sheet of wood 8front and bac#9. Cut the sheet between the mar#s. (ow offer it up to the space you are trying to fill$ and see how the fit loo#s.

Gsing an emery board$ sand the four edges until a snug fit is obtained$ with the sheet sitting proud of the stringers and formers. -ou will probably ha+e to sand chamfered angles on all four sides. There will be a lot of trying for fit$ ta#ing a bit more off$ trying again$ trimming a bit more$ and so on. Try to lea+e no gaps at all around the edge. 1f it ta#es a couple of attempts to get the piece to fit$ then so be it Q you will get faster the more you do$ and because the wood is soft$ shaping the parts is relati+ely fast. Chen happy with the fit Q glue in place with the aliphatic wood glue.

"s you wor# up the fuselage$ the angles get more interesting$ and you ha+e to shape the bottom edge of the sheet before you can mar# the top.

Here is the completed filled upper fuselage (e't was the section at the bottom between E.K and E.1<.

The outermost pieces here were done a slightly different way$ in that they were simply slid in from the side$ and sit on the lower longerons

The centre two pieces are done li#e the upper cowling$ and are let in as normal.

Once the glue is hard$ the upstanding bloc#s of sheet can be car+ed roughly to shape with a sharp blade. The stringers act as your guide as to how much wood to remo+e. Here is the nose prior to sanding.

(e't$ final shaping is carried out using emery boards$ followed by a final OpolishI with 5** grit wet and dry paper 8used dry$ of course9.

1n this +iew you can see that 1 ha+e also started to shape the nose laminations$ and ha+e rounded off the bottom corners. "s 1 mentioned$ 1 find this wor# +ery satisfying to do$ but as we are all different$ it is Buite possible you will not. 1n which case$ this step can be easily omitted Q at least you ha+e the side sheeting to get a firm grip on while winding the model.

1 tac#led the coc#pit sides ne't. The #it design features a notepaper pattern which is glued o+er the balsa structure. This is simple to do$ but as usual 1 decided to change things$ on the grounds that paper is easily damaged and creased by careless handling of the model. 1 much prefer to use balsa for coc#pit openings - in this case soft 1315, sheet.

-ou can see in this photo how 1 used the paper pattern as a guide for cutting out my four pieces of balsa.

Here is the first piece glued in place. 1 ha+e deliberately left it slightly proud. Einal shaping of the opening and blending bac# to the rest of the structure is done after the glue is dry$

"ll four coc#pit pieces ha+e been fitted and shaped in this +iew. -ou can also see the two small filler pieces 1 added behind the headrest to gi+e me someting to stic# the tissue to later. "lso the sheet pieces for the rubber retaining dowel$ and the scalloping out of the formers$ both detailed below.

The #it shows a relati+ely large hole for the rubber dowel$ but if you

use a length of aluminium tube 8fairly standard amongst flyers nowadays9 the hole does not need to be this large. 1 usually ma#e the holes with a round needle file li#e this. Best to lea+e it a bit undersi6ed at this stage.

7eturning to those former scallops - this is the sanding bloc# 1 usually use to help with this. &ade by R-"cto$ 1 ha+e had it for years. 1 li#e the different shapes of the two ends ends - the small radius is +ery useful when sanding between stringers that are +ery close together. The larger one for when they are further apart. Cet and dry sandpaper is wrapped round it - possibly )5* grit - 1 can't remember.

Here it is in action. The reason for remo+ing the wood between the formers is simply to stop it showing through the tissue after co+ering. 1f only the stringers show$ it loo#s much neater.

(othing to stop you ma#ing a set of home made bloc#s yourself$ of course$ or 2ust rolling the wet and dry paper round a section of dowel of suitable diameter. -ou could e+en 2ust hac# out the wood between the stringers with your modelling #nife - it would not loo# +ery neat$ but nobody is going to see after you ha+e co+ered the model.

Einal 2ob was to open up the hole in the nose formers ready to accept a nose plug. The shape is not too critical$ but it needs to be as large as you thin# you can get away with$ so the rubber will fit through it comfortably while stretch-winding. -ou will see how 1 modified an emery board by cutting it much thinner to use as a sanding aid.

Here is the final nose shape after a bit more sanding - at one point at the lower corner you can see daylight is beginning to show as 1 ha+e rounded it off so much. Ce will worry about the nose button in a later chapter. To gi+e you an idea of a target weight$ my completed fuselage came out at 5 grams 8using a postal scale accurate to *.. gram9.

Build your first flying scale model - Chapter 5 - Elying surfaces

1n this chapter we will construct the wings$ tailplane and fin. The wings are built directly o+er the plan$ which should be co+ered with cling film or something similar$ as we did with the fuselage sides. -ou will need to cut some strip from a light3medium sheet of 1315, balsa - enough )315, wide for the leading edge$ and tailplane cross pieces$ and 13K, wide for the trailing edge. Ce can get away with using light wood because the sections are generous for an 1J, span model.

Begin by pinning the leading and trailing edges to the board. -ou can see 1 ha+e dared to pin some of the bits through the balsa strip - with wood of this si6e and lightness splitting is ne+er a problem. The wing tip pieces are ne't$ and the edges of these need to be carefully trimmed and ad2usted so they fit snugly. &a#e sure the outer edges at least cross the oulines drawn on the plan - we will sand bac# to the final

shape after remo+al from the board.

1 found it easier to fit the centre tip piece 8C.<9 last.

The wing ribs can now be added$ gluing them to the leading and trailing edges. "fter you ha+e cut the wing ribs out it is a good idea to smooth their upper surfaces with an emery board. 1n fact$ if you want to be really fussy$ you can pin the ribs together in a bloc#$ lining up the spar slots with a scrap bit of 131J, ' 1315, strip$ then sand the whole bloc# together so all the ribs are e'actly the same shape. 1 confess on this model 1 did not bother. The photo abo+e illustrates something strange about the ribs 7.) on the printed sheet. "fter cutting them out$ you will notice that one of them is smaller than all the rest. 1 cannot belie+e it is a coincidence that the short rib loo#s 2ust the right si6e for the outermost rib$ where the trailing edge has started to cur+e. %trange that there is only one though. &aybe the original intent was to ha+e two ribs called 7.K to use at this position. "nyway$ 1 cut down one of the larger 7.) ribs to match the smaller one$ and used them in the outermost positions.

1f you are luc#y$ the ribs will be a nice snug fit between the leading and trailing edges$ and they will stay in place without outside interference while the glue dries. %et them at roughly @* degrees to the building board using &#.1 eyeball. 1n this picture you can see the highly sophisticated ,bottle of glue and scalpel, method of holding a

loose rib in place.

The root rib is one where you do need to be accurate about setting the angle correctly. The guide from the plan was stuc# to a scrap piece of balsa and cut out to use as shown here.

(e't stage is to add the 1315, ' 13J, spars. These were cut from medium hard 1315, sheet$ as they ha+e to ta#e the main bending loads on the wings. -ou can lea+e e'cess at the root ribs$ but stop them half way into the outermost rib as shown here. " separate section is added between here and the tip pieces.

Einal stages are the addition of the two tip pieces and the gussets at the wing roots on the leading end trailing edges. 1 left the gussets where the spar meets the root rib until later in case 1 needed to ma#e any surgical ad2ustments when setting the correct dihedral.

%pea#ing of gussets$ ma#e sure you get the grain in the correct direction - if you cut them from a strip li#e this you can't go wrong.

"fter remo+al from the board$ the ne't step is to sand the wing tips until the outline matches the plan. Chile you are at it$ ma#e sure both wings match each other. 1t is not unusual to find some discrepancies between left and right wings on a plan.

Here is a potential wea# spot that needed filling with a scrap of 1315, sheet. 1f you read this before cutting the ribs out$ you would be best lea+ing e'cess wood here on the outermost ribs to sa+e a filling 2ob later on.

(ow it is time to shape the wing to a nice smooth aerofoil section. This +iew of the root rib shows the sort of thing you are aiming for.

"t the trailing edge you are only remo+ing wood from the top$ and this photo gi+es you an idea of how far to #eep sanding. " sharp trailing edge will loo# better$ and of course the more wood you sand off$ the lighter the wing will be.

There is less wood to remo+e on the leading edge$ and unli#e the trailing edge$ this is rounded top and bottom. &a#e sure the profile of the ribs is smooth and blends bac# without any steps to the leading and trailing edges. "lso try to get the upper spar flush with the tops of the ribs.

Before gluing the wing hal+es together$ chec# that the two root ribs match as closely as possible in shape - it will loo# better afterwards. 1 could not see a recommended tip dihedral on the plan$ and test fitting indicated a total of about <.M., on one tip 8so 1 )3J, per tip9. 1n my opinion this is e'cessi+e$ and in fact 1 am sure you could get away

with 2ust 13<, per tip if you were going for optimum scale appearance 8the real %wift had no dihedral at all9. Ta#ing a compromise +iew$ 1 would suggest 1, per tip$ meaning <, total when we prop one wing up.

1n order to reduce the natural dihedral of my o+er-tilted root ribs$ 1 2ust sanded them a bit to ad2ust the angle of the faces. -ou can see that 1 pinned one wing panel to the building board$ and propped up the tip of the other one with a <, wide balsa offcut while the glue dried.

1 thin# this +iew shows that 1, per tip does not loo# too e'cessi+e$ but should still be plenty to ensure lateral stability.

Einal gussets are now added to the centre section. -ou can see 1 ha+e added four at the spar 2oin instead of two. Two would ha+e been enough to reinforce the dihedral 2oin$ but four gi+es a better chance of not getting wrin#les here after co+ering. The e'tra two gussets at the front are purely added as an anti-wrin#le aid - these corners are prime wrin#le territory.

Here is e+erything sanded smooth.

Ce can turn our attention to the tailplane now$ which is almost entirely constructed using parts cut from the printed sheets. Hopefully you used nice light sheet to copy the parts onto$ so we can ha+e a nice light tailplane. " bit of weight sa+ed at the rear will sa+e a lot more at the front in terms of noseweight no longer needed.

-ou should be used to the drill now - co+er the plan with clingfilm and pin the parts down o+er the plan. "s with the wings$ "liphatic wood glue was used throughout.

-ou will find a bit of ad2ustment necessary to ma#e the parts fit snugly$ but 1 found generally the bits went together fine.

%omething 1 always do with flat plate tailplanes now is rub them gently on a sheet of wet and dry emery paper glued to a flat board until there are no steps to be felt when you rub your fingertips o+er them. This needs to be done both sides. 1 find this method much less

fraught than trying to do it one 2oin at a time using an emery board.

Here is the finished item after sanding the outline to match the plan$ and rounding off all the edges.

The final piece is the fin$ which simply needs cutting out and its edges rounding off as shown here.

Time for another weight chec#. "ll the bits made so far placed on the postal scale come to a total of 2ust @ grams$ which is most satisfactory. 1n the ne't chapter we will be loo#ing at the stage you ha+e all been loo#ing forwards to 8or secretly dreading9 - co+eringF

Build your first flying scale model - Chapter M - Co+ering the fuselage
4+en after a lifetime of building models$ 1 somehow ne+er really loo# forwards to the co+ering process. 1t still goes wrong for me sometimes$ and 1 end up stripping a piece off to redo it. -ou can gi+e yourself the best chance of a successful co+ering 2ob by ha+ing as smooth an airframe as possible$ with gussets strategically positioned in high ris# wrin#le 6ones. The type of tissue you use will also be important. Here is a selection from my stash:

The best you can get in my opinion is 4sa#i tissue 8on the right of the picture9$ often called >apanese tissue. This is +ery light and has a smooth finish which seals well with 2ust a thin coat of dope or :rylon. 1t is a+ailable in se+eral colours and if you use the chal#ing techniBue 8about which more later9 this can be e'panded to a much larger range of possible colours. 1 store my tissue rolled up in a cardboard tube. "

good source for this tissue is &i#e Coodhouse - his web site is www.freeflightsupplies.co.u# . Hood +alue$ high Buality and post free if you buy a reasonable stoc#. 1n the middle is a selection of %"&% O%uper LiteI tissue$ which comes in a huge range of colours. This would come under the rather broad description of Odomestic tissueI. 1t is hea+ier than 4sa#i$ but Buite adeBuate for most models$ where weight sa+ing is not of ultimate importance. Clic# here for the rele+ant page on the %"&% &odels web site. 4asy Built &odels sell something similar in the G% - ha+e a loo# here. -ou can also get luc#y in card and gift wrap shops sometimes$ pic#ing up coloured tissue that can be used for models. Beware though that some may not be colour fast$ and also may possess no wet strength 8an important factor when you come to watershrin#ingF9 Hallmar# produce some metallic tissue sheets that apparently wor# well for models. On the left are some old sheets of a tissue which 1 used e'clusi+ely when 1 first started out Q this was called &odelspan$ and could be bought in both lightweight and hea+yweight forms. 1t is a soft tissue$ which is Buite forgi+ing of double cur+es. Only drawbac# was that it has Buite an open wea+e$ so soa#s up a fair amount of dope before you got a smooth non-porous surface. Before commencing co+ering$ we need to wor# out how we wish to finish the model. 1n this case 1 will be doing the all-blue scheme with sil+er trim and lettering. 1 see the following possibilities: ? Co+er the model with blue tissue$ cut out lettering and trim from sil+er tissue and attach. 1f you cannot find sil+er tissue$ spray some white tissue with sil+er paint 8e.g. =esign &aster floral spray9. Gse glue stic# to attach mar#ings. ? "s abo+e$ but chal# the blue tissue with blue pastel chal# before you apply it to ma#e it more opaBue. Clic# here for an e'cellent tutorial on how to do this. ? 0aint the model o+erall blue after co+ering$ then mas# and spray all the sil+er mar#ings. ? 0aint the model o+erall blue after co+ering and apply mar#ings from cutout pieces of sil+er decal sheet.

1 am going for the last mentioned method$ as the mar#ings are relati+ely large$ and so fairly simple to cut out. -ou also a+oid the ris# of the mas#ing tape pulling off the blue paint. (ote that to get the decals to adhere properly$ you will need a gloss finish on the model. The model will be co+ered with blue 4sa#i tissue to minimise the amount of paint needed later to pro+ide a good co+erage Q it also shows up better on photographs$ ma#ing it easier to see what is going on. One common Buestion is which side of the tissue to put outwards - the rough or the shiny sideD 1 do not thin# it really matters +ery much to be honest. 1 tend to co+er rough side out 8remember rough is only a relati+e term - perhaps matt would be a better description9 because 1 thin# the paint #eys slightly better than to the shiny side. Eor a doped coloured tissue finish$ you may prefer to co+er shiny side out. 1 am going to use the dope and thinners method to attach my tissue. 0lease do not thin# this is the only way to do it$ it is 2ust the method 1 am most comfortable with. " lot of people use glue stic#s now$ or thinned down 0/" wood glue. 1 hope to add an appendi' later detailing these alternati+e methods$ but in the meantime$ here is how 1 do it.

The first step is to apply a generous coat of sanding sealer where+er you want the tissue to stic#. %o$ the edges of the wings and tailplane$ the fuselage longerons$ all the sheeted areas$ stringers and tailpost. =onN forget the outermost wing ribs on the top$ as we will be using two pieces of tissue on each wing uppersurfaces. &a#e sure you do this in a well +entilated area$ as this stuff is really smelly. -ou may need to send the rest of the family out for the day......

Chen it is dry$ gently sand off any fu66 with a bit of wet and dry paper$ or fine sandpaper.

(ow add a bead of full strength nitrate dope o+er the sanding sealer. %ome people recommend two coats of sanding sealer plus dope$ but it seems to stic# fine for me with 2ust the one.

LetNs start with a fuselage side. 1f you place the tissue o+er the plan 8or a copy of the plan if you do not want to damage itF9 you can cut out a piece of tissue to fill the area between the two longerons. (o need to get it e'act Q safer to lea+e e'cess all round. -ou should really use a brand new blade for cutting tissue$ to a+oid tears and rough edges. 1 need to bring up the sub2ect of tissue grain at this point. &ost tissue types 8including 4sa#i9 ha+e a pronounced grain 8similar to balsa9$ dictated by the distribution of fibres. Henerally the tissue should be cut so that the grain runs along the longest dimension of the part you are going to co+er. To determine the grain direction in a sheet$ simply start a tear near a corner. The tear will run straight and true in the grain direction$ but if you try to tear across the grain$ you will get a ragged shape$ and the tear will try to turn the corner to follow the grain direction. -ou will usually find the grain runs parallel to the longest side of the sheet of tissue.

0osition the tissue on the fuselage and using an old brush$ apply a dab of dope thinners to the nose sheeting. -ou will ha+e a few seconds before it stic#s fast$ so ma#e sure the tissue lines up with the balsa frame.

This close-up shows how 1 ha+e cut a slit in the tissue to clear the wire undercarriage.

(ow wor# your way bac#wards down the fuselage$ applying thinners as you go$ smoothing the tissue outwards o+er the longerons.

The slightly dar#er patches you can see on the tissue show where the thinners has been applied.

1f you get a crease$ or it starts to go wrong$ 2ust lift it up and try again. 1f it has already grabbed and you want to reposition$ apply more thinners which will soften the dope$ and you can lift and reposition. 1t is normal for the tissue to loo# a bit loose at this stage Q 2ust ma#e sure there are no ma2or folds or creases.

"fter the thinners ha+e dried thoroughly 8. minutes at the most9 you need to trim off the e'cess tissue. -ou can use a brand new scalpel blade as shown here$ or sand off the edges with a small piece of wet and dry emery paper as shown below.

The finer grit$ the less ris# of a ragged edge - 5** grit wor#s fine. 1 usually use a combination of both techniBues.

"fter co+ering the other fuselage side$ it is time to tac#le the bottom. -ou can see that 1 did not try to match the shape at all at the bac#$ but did cut the piece of tissue so it was a reasonable fit at the front. This was achie+ed by simple trial and error - cut$ test fit$ cut a bit more etc. -ou will also need to cut slits to clear the rear undercarriage wires. Once happy with the shape$ start to apply this piece to the airframe from the rear$ and attach it with thinners until you get to the cross piece where the nose stringers start.

1 thought there was a good chance that the lower stringer area could be co+ered with the same piece of tissue$ without slitting it$ if it was wetted first$ so 1 had a go. 1f wrin#les did appear$ then those sections could always be cut out later and replaced. Cater was applied with a brush$ then the tissue eased o+er the stringers and lower nose sheeting. 1t was smoothed out until it loo#ed li#e this.

(e't$ dope thinners were applied to the edges and all of the lower nose sheeting$ through the damp tissue.

Here is the same area after the tissue had dried out. Happily tight as a drum$ and not a wrin#le in sight. The e'cess at the front was trimmed$ then dampened again$ smoothed around the front$ and stuc# to the nose former with more thinners.

Here is the fuselage bottom after the edges behind the undercarriage had been trimmed 8in this case using emery paper9.

The ne't stage is to wor# our way up the fuselage$ adding strips of

tissue between the stringers. Cor#ing up rather than down has the ad+antage of gi+ing o+erlaps that face down$ ma#ing the steps in the tissue less +isible in normal +iewing of the model. Ce are relying on the dope applied to the airframe to act as adhesi+e for the tissue$ so we ob+iously ha+e a bit of a problem on the top longeron$ because this is now co+ered with tissue. Thus$ before we add the ne't strip of tissue$ we ha+e to brush a bead of full strength nitrate dope along the longeron$ on top of the tissue. 1f you get some dope on the tissue below the longeron$ wipe it off Buic#ly$ as it can cause a wrin#le in the tissue as it dries and shrin#s.

" piece of tissue must now be cut which fits neatly on the bottom edge along the upper longeron. (o need to worry too much about the top$ as this will be trimmed afterwards. This photo shows my piece of tissue being test fitted. Hetting the shape right is again 2ust a case of trial and error. 1 find a steel rule helpful in trimming the tissue edges on a the cutting board with a scalpel blade. The tissue is attached with dope thinners$ li#e the fuselage sides were$ wor#ing from front to bac#.

Behind the coc#pit$ 1 found 1 was able to use one piece of tissue to co+er two bays - the triangular section$ and the one abo+e it$ as shown here. Before adding this piece$ it is of course necessary to apply the bead of dope o+er the tissue on the first stringer abo+e the upper longeron.

1n front of the coc#pit$ you will need to add two separate strips of tissue to get up to the same height. This photo highlights the fact that when you o+erlap pieces of dar# coloured tissue$ you get an unsightly dar#er stripe. Gsing chal#ed tissue will reduce this effect considerably. 1f it bothers you$ 2ust try to #eep the o+erlaps as small as possible 8which means you ha+e to be +ery e'act in how you cut your tissue pieces9. Because 1 will be painting the model$ 1 can safely say it does not worry me at all.

" small piece of tissue fills the gap to the centreline$ lea+ing 2ust one piece to go. The last piece is the only one that has to be trimmed accurately both sides. 7emember to apply beads of dope either side before attaching using dope thinners.

Behind the headrest$ 1 found you could get away with one piece of tissue to fill the gap$ spanning two bays.

Here you see the final co+ered fuselage$ awaiting water-shrin#ing using the high-tech apparatus illustrated. -ou can use any old household spray bottle$ emptied of course and filled with water.

Hi+e it a good spray$ and you will find the beads of water tend to sit on the surface without wetting it. Li#e this in fact.

Cipe o+er the tissue with your finger to spread the water out and it will wet the surface properly$ as shown here. (ow 2ust lea+e it to dry in its own time. 1t is Buite possible to ta#e a more sophisticated approach to watershrin#ing than demonstrated here. Eor instance$ if you get hold of an old perfume atomiser and fill it with water$ this will allow you to coat your model with a fine layer of 8delicately scented9 water droplets. Eor a gentler shrin#$ you can spray the droplets into the air$ then waft the model parts through the mist. This could be a good techniBue if you are building a more delicate model than this one.

Here is the finished result$ which than#fully shows no wrin#les.

1 was a bit worried about this area$ with the undercarriage binding$ but 1 seem to ha+e got away with it.

/iew of the rear dec#ing$ again showing e+erthing nice and smooth. The ne't step will be to co+er the flying surfaces.

Build your first flying scale model - Chapter J - Co+ering the flying surfaces
(ot sure why$ but the tops of the wings seem to be the most difficult parts of a model aircraft to co+er neatly - especially if as in this case the leading edge is right at the bottom of the section. Eor this reason 1 tend to co+er the top first$ to get it o+er with.

%o$ we need to cut a piece of tissue to co+er between the centre and outermost ribs. To minimise the sag between ribs$ ma#e sure the tissue grain runs spanwise.

Line the tissue up wih the frame and apply a spot of dope thinners to the gusset where the top spar 2oins the centre rib.

(ow slosh some thinners through the tissue on the leading and training edges$ and easing the tissue outwards with your thumbs$ wor# your way down the wing$ pushing the tissue onto the wood.

"s you mo+e towards the tips$ apply more thinners as you go. 7emember we are only stic#ing the tissue to the centre rib$ tip rib and leading and trailing edges - (OT any of the other ribs.

Chen you get to the last rib$ chec# that the tissue is sitting nicely on the outermost rib. -ou sometimes find you ha+e e'cess loose tissue$ so to a+oid a wrin#le$ ease the tissue out more towards the trailing edge$ and try to chase the e'cess out along the trailing edge - wor#ing bac# towards the centre of the wing again. -ou may need to apply more thinners through the tissue so it will still slide o+er the doped balsa.

Chen dry$ the e'cess tissue at the leading edge can be trimmed with a scalpel$ then any o+erlap at the end rib$ as shown here. The tissue at the trailing edge can be trimmed using emery paper or a scalpel.

" bead of full strength dope is applied carefully along the top of the outmost rib and allowed to dry.

The separate tissue tip piece is added in the usual way by flooding dope thinners through the tissue.

"nd here it is trimmed.

The underside is much simpler as it is flat and can be co+ered in 2ust one piece of tissue. Trim the e'cess tissue using your fa+oured method$ then repeat the whole process for the other wing.

1 put this photo in to show the less than drum tight finish you would e'pect to ha+e at this stage$ %o if your tissue loo#s a bit li#e this$ don't panicF

Ce are going to ha+e to hold the wing flat while the tissue is water shrun#$ and 1 use a pair of balsa offcuts$ 13J, thic# to hold the wing off the wor# surface. This allows air to get under the wing$ and helps the underside to dry out.

%hrin# one wing at a time - here the panel has been sprayed with

water on both sides.

-ou may ha+e noticed a small piece of wood in the photo before last this is what it is used for. 1t is inserted at the trailing edge of the wing tip prior to adding the weights. The purpose is to loc# in a small amount of washout at the wing tip 8less incidence$ or angle of attac#$ at the wing tip than at the wing root9. On some models the addition of this washout can ma#e the difference between a ha+ing a laterally stable or unstable model. 1t is +ery probable that a naturally stable design li#e the %wift with ample dihedral would wor# perfectly well without any washout at all$ but 1 do tend to build it in as standard on all my models ,2ust in case,. On the %wift 1 am adding 1315, washout to each wingtip. Ce could get into a more complicated discussion here about using differential washout on both tips to help control the flight pattern$ but 1 thin# that will ha+e to wait for another article.

/ery useful things$ spice 2ars.

Here is the result after both wings ha+e been shrun#. -ou may be surprised 2ust how strong and rigid the wing has now become.

This photo ma#es an interesting comparison to the pre-shrin#ing shot. "lthough not completely perfect$ at least the ma2or leading edge wrin#le has been a+oided and 1 am sure the e'tra gussets helped.

Turning our attention to the tailplane - this is +ery simple to co+er with one piece of tissue each side.

The edges being trimmed with emery paper

"nd the finished article co+ered on both sides. The bare balsa edges do stand out a bit when using dar# coloured tissue$ which is not an issue if you are going to paint the model$ but

will be if you are relying on a coloured tissue finish. 1n this case$ trim the upper piece with a sharp #nife lea+ing a bit of an o+erlap. 7un a wet finger round the edge$ and stic# down by flooding dope thinners through the tissue. 1f you want to go a less smelly route$ stic# the edge down with a glue stic#. The abo+e applies eBually to the wings$ of course.

"t this point$ to a+oid being sued by people who aBuire bad scalds$ 1 ought to say ,=O('T T7- TH1% "T HO&4, 1nstead 1 will 2ust say$ ,be careful,. 1t might be sensible to wear glo+es while you do this 81 didn't$ which 1 suppose ma#es me wildly irresponsible9 Chy am 1 doing such a thingD Cell$ a full water soa# on this part$ which is considerably more fragile than the wing 8especially with the light wood 1 used9 is going to ma#e it end up loo#ing li#e a potato crisp 8or chip to our "merican friends9. 1t will 2ust not cope well with

the shrin#age. (ow you could use alcohol to shrin# the tissue$ which is gentler than water$ or you could waft it o+er a boiling #ettle li#e 1 did. The tissue can be seen starting to go limp - when this happens$ place on a flat surface and weight it down while the tissue dries.

1 said spice 2ars were useful. 1f there are still areas that loo# a bit wa+y after it dries$ you can steam again$ or if the problem is +ery localised$ 2ust lic# your finger and apply to the problem area. "ctually$ this tric# can be used on any part if you ha+e a wrin#le after the first water shrin#. There seems to be something in sali+a which helps to gi+e that little e'tra shrin# you sometimes need to get rid of an obstinate wrin#le. Eaintly disgusting$ but there you are.

0roof of flatness photoF This is what your tailplane should loo# li#e after the tissue has been shrun#. 1f it comes out warped$ bite the bullet$ strip the tissue off$ and try again. -ou are bound to ha+e problems later on flying a model with a warped tailplane.

Time for a Buestion - should the fin be co+ered or notD 1f you are

going for a coloured tissue finish$ the answer is ob+iously yes. 1f a painted finish$ you don't ha+e to$ but it will gi+e a more e+en surface appearance to the model$ and hide the wood grain of the part. -ou will also need less paint to gi+e the reBuired match to the rest of the airframe. 1 would thin# it adds a bit of strength too. /ery easy to do - 2ust attach an o+ersi6ed piece of tissue to both sides. The fin has pre+iously had a coat of sanding sealer all o+er$ followed by a coat of full strength dope. The tissue is 2ust cut from the sheet and applied dry$ by flooding dope thinners through it. 1f you co+er both sides at the same time there is less chance of the part warping. There is no need to water-shrin# the tissue.

Here is the trimmed item - 1 used emery paper to remo+e the e'cess tissue. 1f you find you ha+e some loose tissue edges$ run a damp finger around the perimeter$ and then brush dope thinners around the edge. The damp tissue will be more happy to sit down neatly at the edges than dry tissue.

"ll that remains is to dope all the parts we ha+e co+ered and shrun# in the last two chapters. 1 am a belie+er in the principle that all the necessary shrin#ing should ha+e already been done by the time we come to dope the model. 1f you ha+e wrin#les at this point$ you are not going to get rid of them using shrin#ing dope. 1 use non-shrin# dope e'clusi+ely - the stuff in the old preser+e 2ar here is thinned .*3.* with dope thinners$ and the whole model will recei+e 2ust one coat. 1 use an old flat brush to apply the dope and try to get a nice e+en coat. 1t is easy to see where you ha+e applied the dope while it is wet$ because the tissue goes almost transparent. Thus you should not miss a bit. This process is e'tremely smelly$ so ta#e it outside if you can$ or at least to a well +entilated spot.

4+en though the dope is sold as non-shrin#ing dope$ 1 see no point in ta#ing chances. Thus$ the wings and tailplane get weighted down for a second time for a couple of hours while the dope dries completely. Let it flash off before doing this$ otherwise they could stic# rather messily to the wor# surface. (o need to do this with the fuselage or fin though. Loo#ing at this photo$ 1 am sure there are times when my long suffering wife wishes 1 had a different$ less smelly hobby$ which too# place rather further from the #itchen.

Time for another weight chec#. Here are all the parts made to date$ co+ered and doped and ready for assembly. 1 am +ery happy with 1) grams so far - it will be interesting to see how much the paint and details will add.

Build your first flying scale model - Chapter @ - 0rop$ wheels and final details
>ust one or too final 2obs to do before assembling the model. Eirstly ma#ing the headrest from paper. This can be simply cut out from the plan$ and the folds of the two tabs scored with the bac# of a modelling #nife.

The paper can be formed by rubbing it o+er the edge of a table as shown here. 1t will cur+e li#e this$ which helps when fitting o+er the headrest former.

1 found 1 needed to alter the shape a little as shown to stop it o+erlapping the balsa former at the top.

GHG all purpose glue was used to attach the headrest$ applying adhesi+e to both tabs and under the front face. 1f you get glue

anywhere you don't want it$ dope thinners wor#s well at remo+ing it.

The headrest was gi+en a coat of sanding sealer$ plus about 13J inch onto the fuselage both sides. " specially cut piece of dry tissue was then applied o+er the white part and attached by flooding dope thinners through the tissue. The sanding sealer o+erlap onto fuselage ensures that the edges stay stuc# down as well.

(otepaper was also used to create the main undercarriage struts. "

strip was cut$ scored and folded as shown.

" length was cut to match the length of the wire leg. 1 found it necessary to cut away the inside face as shown to get a neat fit. To gi+e the paper fairing a nice streamlined shape$ it was rubbed o+er the edge of a ruler to curl the paper. The inside faces were gi+en a layer of GHG glue$ and the fairing folded o+er the wire leg 8fold at the front9. "ny e'cess glue that emerges from the 2oin at the rear can be remo+ed with dope thinners.

Here are the finished legs - 1 thin# they loo# so much better than 2ust a s#inny piece of wire. Time to thin# about the propeller and remo+able nose bloc# now. This might be a good time to decide what we are going to stic# on the front of our Comper %wift.

Here are a selection of possible propellers we could use. On the left$ 2ust for a laugh$ is an original /eron plastic prop from a 1@.*'s Tru-Elite #it. 1t is . inch diameter$ has tiny blades$ and they do not ha+e any twist in them at all. This is one of the reasons we tended to only get powered glides out of these models when we bought and built the #its as youngsters. (e't 8mo+ing left to right9 we ha+e a M inch 0ec# 0olymers prop. This is the one Chris %trachan uses on his %wift$ and 1 also had success with one of these on my second Tru-Elite >odel Bebe. To the right of this are a Tern 5 incher$ and a modern 1H7" copy of the same prop. The Tern is +ery popular with scale model flyers$ including myself$ because it has generous blade area for its diameter and a decent amount of pitch. The freewheel clutch is a wea# point$ howe+er$ and can strip at inappropriate moments - the 1H7" +ersion is beefed up in this area. The genuine Terns can be spotted by the letter T engra+ed on the prop blades.

Einally$ in red$ we ha+e a newcomer to the scene$ a 5 inch prop by 1:"7" designed by the famous C6ech modeller Loubomir :outny. 1 am loo#ing forwards to trying this one out on my =iels (a#a2ima :iK)$ as it has more pitch than a standard 0ec# prop$ and could be a +iable alternati+e to the Tern. 1t also has the ad+antage of being perfectly balanced when you buy it. Elitehoo# in the G: can supply all the illustrated props 8apart from the old /eron oneF9 and %"&% &odels can supply all but the 1:"7" one. Both offer an efficient mail order ser+ice. Eor this model 1 decided to stic# to the tried and tested Tern 5, prop.

Ce need a nose bushing as well as a prop$ and 1 find the 0ec# 0olymers nylon ones as good as any. 1f you want a cle+er ad2ustable one$ then :0 "ero &odels ma#e a nice one 8see Gseful "dresses page9. =ue to the lac# of room in the nose of the %wift 1 2ust went for the smallest 0ec# item. (ote these can be bought with different internal diameters either 13)<, or )35K,- the one shown here is for the larger wire si6e. 1 had a root through my piano wire collection until 1 found a bit that would fit both the bearing and the prop. 1n fact is was 2ust a touch loose in both$ so 1 employed my bodging s#ills to reduce the play. 1 am a bit reluctant to admit what 1 did$ as it seems so inelegant and low tech.

Chat you COGL= do is drill out the prop and re-bush it with some aluminium or brass tube of a slightly smaller internal diameter. Chat 1 actually did was smear cyano glue on a spare piece of wire$ and push it through the prop a few times. The glue collects on the inside of the prop hole and when it sets$ the hole is a bit smaller. 1 did the same with the nose bush. %hoc#ing really. %till$ it is Buic#$ and seems to wor#$ and the cyano glue is probably harder than the plastic used for the prop and bush$ so wear should not be an issue. Ce need to ma#e a remo+able nose plug$ and 1 thin# it would also be a good idea to face the seating for this plug with some thin ply. This will resist wear$ and should mean that if during the trimming you add a sli+er of downthrust$ it will not dig into the balsa nose when the motor is fuly wound$ and thus change the thrust angle.

1 aBuired a large sheet of 135K, ply a few years ago from a trader at a model show$ and 1 thin# it will turn out to be a lifetime's supply. 1t is e'tremely useful as a thin facing material. Here you can see a disc being cut out of the plywood using an Olfa Compass Cutter. This is a +ery useful tool for cutting out perfect circles in wood or paper. 1t is also relati+ely ine'pensi+e and should be a+ailable in most good art and craft shops.

" hole was cut in the front of the disc to roughly mimic the hole we ha+e in the nose$ The disc was then attached to the fuselage nose with Cyano.

Chen the glue was set$ the aperture was trimmed with a sharp #nife to e'actly match the hole in the balsa nose. 1 could also not resist sanding the top and sides of the nose to ma#e sure the ply blended in reasonably with the nose. The bare balsa areas show without doubt why it would ha+e been better to fit this disc B4EO74 co+ering 8especially if you are planning a coloured tissue finish9

The remo+able nose plug is made from two components plus the nylon nose bush. On the left is the part that fits inside the nose$ laminated from three sheets of 1315, hard balsa. " hole was cut in the middle of

each lamination to roughly clear the nylon bush. in the centre is the front of the plug$ which is laminated from a second 135K, ply disc plus < laminations of hard 1315, sheet. "ll of these were cut out using the Compass Cutter. " hole was opened up in the centre with a round needle file to gi+e a tight fit to the bac# of the nylon bush. Chat may not be too clear from this picture is that the front of the this part had an angle sanded into it. To gi+e you an idea how much$ at one side the front 1315, lamination was ta#en down to less than 13)<,. This means that when the nylon bush is pushed into the nose$ it angles o+er slightly to sit snugly on the front face. 1n this way we can build in a bit of down and right thrust.

"d2ust the shape of the rear of the nose plug until it is a reasonably tight fit in the nose. Then push it in as shown$ lea+ing it about 1 mm proud.

(ow glue on the front of the plug$ ma#ing sure you only put glue on the plug rear$ not the fuselage nose. "d2ust the position of the plug so that the angled front points down and slightly to the right.

Chen the glue is completely set$ pull out the plug. Hopefully it will not lea+e the rear part in the fuselageF The (ylon bush can now be glued in position 8using cyano9. -ou will probably ha+e to open out the hole in the rear plug portion a bit more with a round needle file$ to ta#e account of the angle.

(ow the plug can be firmly pushed into the nose$ and shaped to match the nose contours as well as possible. This plug came out rather small$ and 1 thin# if 1 was doing it again$ 1 would follow Chris %trachan's e'ample and use his ,half a nose bloc#, method. That would certainly gi+e you a bigger opening to get the rubber through.

By putting a length of wire into the bush$ you can see the downthrust angle. 1 ha+e ta#en a guess at this$ as most high wing models reBuire at least some downthrust. 1 ha+e not measured the angle$ but as usual used the TL"7 principle 8That Loo#s "bout 7ight9. Time will tell if 1 got it right....

The wheels shown on the plan are a bit undersi6e$ and the plastic wheels supplied with the #it would ha+e also been rather too thin for realism. %eems a good opportunity to show you how 1 ma#e laminated balsa wheels though$ so let's ma#e a new pair. The real Comper swift had Buite fat little tyres on it so 1 decided to laminate each wheel from K discs of )3)< sheet. The centre two solid$ and the outer ones with a hole in the middle to represent the tyres. 4ight balsa disca were cut out of light )3)<, sheet using the Olfa Compass Cutter. The diameter chosen was around <) mm$ so 2ust under one inch.

Eour of these had the centres cut out$ again using the compass cutter$ but this time set to its smallest radius. This is much harder to do than the outer cut$ and seems to wor# best if you use a chopping action with the blade as you wor# your way round. -ou will most li#ely ha+e to finish off with a sharp #nife.

Here are all the bits for two wheels

Before laminating$ 1 find it much easier to shape the inner contours of the tyre now rather than later. -ou can start things off using the more pointy end of a sanding bloc# as shown here.

"nother useful tool is a roll of wet and dry sandpaper. -ou can wrap this round a dowel$ or 2ust use freehand as shown here. The inner hole is unli#ely to be perfectly round$ so 2ust play around until it loo#s reasonable. Gse the two neatest ones for the ouside of the wheels.

(ow we can laminate all four bits together. 1 use "liphatic wood glue for this$ and place a weight on top to hold the laminations together while it dries. 1f your centre holes are not perfectly concentric$ ignore the outside$ and centre the tyre on the compass hole in the middle of the centre laminate.

Chen e+erything is set$ a piece of tube needs to be inserted through the centre of the wheel to act as a bearing. -ou can use aluminium$ brass or plastic 8which is what 1 used9. 1 ha+e what is probably a lifetime stoc# of assorted e'truded plastic rod$ strut and tube produced by Contrail for the plastic model mar#et. The hole made by the Compass Cutter needs to be enlarged first. -ou could do this with a small drill$ but 1 li#e to use a round needle file to gradually open up the hole$ wor#ing from both sides$ until the tube is a comfortable push fit.

1nsert one end of the tube into the wheel$ and rotate the tube between your fingers to see if the wheel runs true. 1f not$ ad2ust accordingly and try again. Chen satisfied that the wheel is running more or less wobble-free$ apply some cyano where the tube 2oins the wheel on both sides. Two options now. -ou can lea+e one end of the tube e'tra long$ then use this to mount the wheel in a hobby drill$ so you can use it li#e a lathe while you shape the tyre with sandpaper. "luminium tube would wor# better for this than plastic as it is much stronger and stiffer.

"lternati+ely$ stic#ing to the minimal tools approach$ 2ust cut off the tube close to the hub$ and car+e and sand the outer profile of the tyre by hand. 1f you #eep loo#ing at it end on$ you can ma#e sure that the section through the wheel is constant on both sides$ and consistent round the wheel. Cithout turning the wheel in a drill$ you are ne+er going to get it perfect$ but once on the model$ any iregularities will be hardly noticable. Here are before and after photos. Chen finished$ gi+e each wheel ) coats of sanding sealer$ gently sanding between coats.

The final parts that need ma#ing before painting are the wing struts$

which are simply cut from 1315, sheet$ and all the edges rounded off to gi+e a +aguely streamlined section. 4ach of these pieces will produce two struts$ but they do not need to be cut to length until after painting. 1f you are going for a coloured tissue finish$ they need to be co+ered with tissue. Otherwise 2ust gi+e them a couple of coats of sanding sealer.

Build your first flying scale model - Chapter 1* "ssembly and painting
1 usually li#e to assemble my models before painting$ unless this would ma#e the mas#ing difficult. Cith this colour scheme there is no mas#ing$ so assembling first was the ob+ious route$ a+oiding the possibility of getting glue on the paint later on.

The Cing was first glued to the fuselage$ chec#ing that the leading edge is positioned as shown on the side +iew on the plan. 1 used balsa cement to attach the centre wing ribs to the upper #eel. %ome time should be spent ma#ing sure it is sBuare to the fuselage when +iewed from abo+e. 1 found that the result was not particulary stiff$ and you could still roc# the wing slightly when +iewed from the front$ e+en after the glue was dry. The wing struts will stabilise things$ but 1 found 1 also needed to insert a small balsa pac#ing piece as shown here to get the wing dihedral loo#ing symmetrical when +iewed from the front.

(e't$ the tailplane was glued into position$ ma#ing sure it was sBuare to the fuselage$ and that it loo#ed correct relati+e to the wing when +iewed from the front and rear. Before attaching the fin$ 1 pric#ed a series of holes along the centreline of the tailplane with a pin. 1 do this to try and encourage some wood to wood contact when the glue is applied 8balsa cement again9. The glue should hopefully tra+el at least a little down the holes$ and pro+ide a #ey. Otherwise$ all you ha+e attached the fin to is the tissue. 1f using balsa cement$ the base of the fin 8which is end grain9 needs to be pre-sealed with a thin coat of cement before the final 2oint is made. -ou can also see here how 1 cut a little notch in the rear of the tailplane so the fin would sit snugly up to the tailpost.

Chec# all your rigging angles again +iewing from the bac#

and the front. This photo shows how the down and right thrust 1 added has mo+ed the nose botton away from the centre of the nose plug. This is Buite normal$ and nothing to be worried about.

Here is the finished airframe ready for painting.

1 ha+e often read that painting a free flight model will add a lot of weight and significantly degrade its flying performance. Thus 1 decided to do an e'periment with this model to see 2ust how much weight is added by an airbrushed coat of blue paint. The weight before of what you see here 8to the nearest *.. gram9 was 1... grams. This does not include the wheels$ struts$ prop etc. %o$ what e'pensi+e top end eBuipment do 1 use to get my airbrushed finishesD

Here it is in all its glory. Ho on$ admit you are impressed. The diaphram compressor is about <* years old$ and was Buite e'pensi+e at the time. " great in+estment though. There are plenty of reasonably priced compressors on the mar#et now specifically aimed at airbrush users$ so you should ha+e no problem finding one to suit your budget. There are$ of course$ alternati+e ways of powering your airbrush. The most e'pensi+e in the long term are the tins of compressed air you can buy at hobby shops. Other alternati+es$ if you ha+e the room$ are a tyre adaptor$ or a large industrial compressed gas cylinder with a suitable regulator. 1 cannot gi+e you much in the way of ad+ice about the latter two possibilities$ other than to say that with the type adaptor$ the bigger the tyre you ha+e it connected to$ the more constant will be your air pressure$ and the less often you will ha+e to re-inflate it.

Here is my ,well used, Badger ).* single action$ e'ternal mi' airbrush. 1t is o+er M years old$ and 1 ha+e been e'pecting it to pac# up for the last two years$ or at least ha+e to buy it some new components. "nyway$ it 2ust #eeps on wor#ing - probably mainly due the the simplicity of the design. 1t has the medium no66le fitted$ and it does e+erything 1 need. O:$ it is not capable of the fine wor# you can do with an e'pensi+e double action airbrush$ but 1 am happy to li+e with e'tra mas#ing$ if and when it is needed. " new Badger ).* currently costs about ;). in the G:$ so is unli#ely to brea# the ban#.

&y finish of choice is Humbrol enamel paint thinned with dope thinners. Eor the %wift$ 1 mi'ed my own blue shade$ which 1 ha+e to say is not generally a good idea if you thin# about ha+ing to do repairs se+eral years down the line. Howe+er$ Humbrol &idnight blue is e'tremely dar# - probably too dar# for this model$ so 1 added some Erench blue to lighten it a bit. This photo shows the neat paint poured into the glass airbrush 2ar.

The Buantity of dope thinners you add is important. Here you can see the 2ar with the dope thinners added. 1 #now 1 should really$ but in

practice 1 ne+er measure Buantities e'actly. "s a general rule 1 would estimate a ratio of somewhere around K parts paint to ) parts thinners. "lthough adding cellulose thinners to 4namel paint is not something Humbrol mention anywhere in their literature$ you will find they mi' +ery well. 1 thin# the dope thinner helps the paint to adhere better to the doped tissue surfaces$ and the paint dries much Buic#er. 1 also thin# you get a smoother finish than when using enamel thinners.

Here is the first paint hitting the model. -ou cannot see if 1 am wearing a mas#$ which is probably 2ust as well. "t least 1 ha+e some e'traction from the booth in the corner$ and a window wide open. -ou lot out there should definitely be wearing mas#s thoughF -ou will soon find out if you got the thinners to paint ratio correct or not. Too little thinners and you will ha+e trouble persuading the paint to come out of the airbrush. 0lus$ you may get se+ere orange peel$ or

little lumps of paint splattering on the model. Too much thinners and you will find the paint has little co+ering power$ and you may see little pinholes appearing - almost as if tiny spots of grease were on the model$ and the paint was running away from them. Trying to co+er them o+er with more paint 8without ad2usting the mi'9 will 2ust ma#e things worse$ and the pin holes will become little craters.

Build up the paint layers gradually until you get the paint density you want. On this model$ using the blue tissue has gi+en a good base for the blue paint$ and so reduces the amount needed to ma#e the surface reasonably opaBue.

:nowing when to stop can be tric#y - the temptation is to #eep on piling the paint on. This picture clearly shows the difference between the painted right wing and unpainted left one. 1 managed to stop myself before ca#ing on too much paint. 1 still used about <3) of the 2ar though.

Here is the model fresh from the paint shop. The gloss finish may not be to e+erone's taste$ as it does highlight all the lumps and bumps. 1t will howe+er ma#e the decals easier to apply than if a matt or satin finish had been used. There is always the opportunity to spray on a satin or matt +arnish coat afterwards though if you really cannot li+e with it. These last two photographs ma#e the blue loo# lighter than it really is - my digital camera seems to ha+e a problem with dar# blue for some reason.

1 weighed the painted fuselage$ and guess what - the paint had only added *.. grams to the total. 1t now weighed 2ust 15 grams. 1 ha+e to confess 1 was rather surprised 8and pleased9 how little it had gone up.

Build your first flying scale model - Chapter 11 &ar#ings and finishing touches
"s mentioned earlier$ 1 chose to add the sil+er mar#ings to the blue airframe using painted decal sheet. 1t is fairly time consuming$ but has the benefit of reBuiring no mas#ing at all. "lso$ if you mess up$ the decal can easily be remo+ed and a new one put in its place. 1 would only recommend trying this route on a gloss$ or satin finished model - with a matt painted model you will ha+e difficulty getting the decal to slide o+er the surface$ and adhesion will not be as good.

Eirstly 1 airbrushed an "K sheet of clear decal sheet with Rtracolour sil+er enamel but you could 2ust as easily use a suitable spray can. Clear waterslide decal sheet is a+ailable from many model shops$ but 1 buy my mine in bul# from Tango 0apa =ecals in the G%". They do high Buality white and clear sheet at +ery reasonable prices 8e.g. an "K sheet of clear is 2ust @* cents9.

Here 1 ha+e cut out a section of a copy of the plan with the first two wing registration letters. " section of painted decal film slightly larger than the paper pattern was also cut out. The paper was taped o+er the decal onto the cutting mat as shown.

Cith a sharp blade in the #nife$ you must now cut through the paper pattern and 2ust into the decal film. There is no need to cut right through the decal paper - 2ust the painted film on top. -ou can use a steel rule for the straight bits$ and cut the cur+es freehand 8not as difficult as you probably imagine9.

Chen you ha+e finished$ the paper letter will lift off as shown$ and is a good sign that you ha+e not missed a bit.

"fter you ha+e finished$ the tape and paper can be remo+ed.

Cut around an indi+idual letter as shown and soa# in water.

Once the decal sheet has started to slide$ remo+e the bits from the outside and inside lea+ing 2ust the letter on the decal paper.

(ow the tric#y bit - you must persuade the decal letter to slide onto the wing. Gse plenty of water to #eep it mo+ing - 1 find a wet paint brush wor#s well to help push it around without damaging it. -ou may get a tear here and there 81 did9 but these tend to be in+isible once the decal is dry. -ou can see on this photo how the tissue starts to swell and go wa+y due to the applied water in spite the layer of paint.

"s you can see here$ howe+er$ the tissue and decal both tighten up nicely when dry. The letter " has 2ust been applied$ so a slight rippling can be seen under this letter$ but not at all under the H which is completely dry.

Here is the complete registration on the top wing. The letter positions were based on those shown on the #it plan$ using the wing ribs as a guide to correct placement. The lettering under the wings was done in e'actly the same way.

Eor the fuselage stripe 1 made a card template to copy onto the decal film. Here is the stripe prior to applying it to the fuselage.

The first decal bro#e into three pieces$ but 1 got it on in the end happily the brea#s are +irtually in+isible.

The fuselage lettering is cut in e'actly the same way as the wing registrations

To help line the letters up$ the paper pattern can be a useful guide. Hold it o+er the decals and see if they line up with the holes. 1 put on the H and the last C first$ then wor#ed bac#wards until 2ust the dash was left.

Here is the finished result.

(e't step - let's get the prop on the front. " hoo# must be added to the prop shaft and 1 chose a diamond shape for this model to #eep it simple. "fter you ha+e done it$ twiddle the shaft between your fingers and chec# the bottom point of the diamond loo#s stationary and does not wobble. "d2ust the shape if necessary - this will minimise +ibration.

0lace the prop on the shaft and let it rotate. (ormally one blade will always fall to the bottom because it is hea+ier than the opposite blade. To balance it$ either some weight should be added to the light blade$ or material remo+ed from the hea+y blade. The latter is the most

common method.

0lastic can be simply remo+ed from the top of the hea+y blade by scraping it with a modelling #nife blade. "s you can see$ this can get rather messy. :eep chec#ing e+ery so often$ and stop when the prop balances when put bac# on the shaft. " balanced prop will tend to stop at any random position after you ha+e spun it. %craping is also sometimes used to reduce the weight of a plastic prop to a+oid a nose-hea+y model. Both blades can be scraped until they are +irtually see-through if you want to go that far.

Eor washers$ 1 usually use slices cut off the bac# of plastic nose buttons. 1 did not worry about getting them particularly thin for this model$ because there is not a huge amount of clearance between the prop blades and the lower nose. Thic# washers help to push the prop out a bit further.

The shaft is threaded through the bac# of the nose bush$ the washers added$ then the prop. "t the +ery least you then need to put in a @* degree bend in the wire so it engages the freewheel clutch moulded into the front of the prop. 1 also carried on and included a winding hoo# before cutting the off the e'cess wire.

Cith the nose plug installed in the model you can see the relati+ely small amount of clearance between the lower blade and the nose. -ou can also see that 1 painted the nose plug sil+er to match the stripe$ and added some strips of sil+er decal abo+e and below the nose to lin# up the two stripes.

Control surface brea#s can be added using a fine permanent mar#er pen and a ruler$ though 1 chose to depict them using decals. 1 printed a series of fine blac# lines onto clear decal film$ then cut them out and applied them. 1 only 2ust got away with it$ as the dar# blue colour means that any bit of sil+ering under the clear decal film shows up li#e a sore thumb. This was the best one on the whole model 8which is why 1 photographed it$ of course9. On gloss white or sil+er finishes it wor#s a treat. One benefit of this method is that you can reposition the lines before they dry. On a model finished with coloured tissue you can apply outlines from thin strips of blac# tissue

(e't the wing struts which we painted earlier need to be cut to length and fitted. 1n order to gi+e wood to wood contact$ 1 cut small rectangles out of the tissue at the attachment points.

The struts were cut to the correct length by trial and error$ then the ends chamfered to gi+e a neat fit. They were attached using aliphatic glue.

Einal 2ob was to paint the wheels made earlier$ which had pre+iously been gi+en two generous coats of sanding sealer. Eor tyres 1 li#e to use a +ery dar# grey rather than blac#$ because 1 thin# it loo#s more realistic.

The wheels are #ept on the wire a'les by pushing short lengths of plastic tubing o+er the end of the wire$ then spotting cyano on the end. "luminium tube could also be used$ and this could be #ept on by crimping with a pair of pliers if desired.

%o$ here she is$ finally finished - Kth >une <**..

1 am +ery pleased with the way the model loo#s$ and also with the weight$ which is <*.. grams without noseweight or rubber. 1 now need a calm day to try some test glides in the garden.

Build your first flying scale model - Chapter 1< - Cill it flyD
1 was optimistic that the %wift could be persuaded to fly without too much difficulty$ so did not want to go through a long winded and methodical trimming procedure. This tends to be a last resort with me if 1 ha+e a model that refuses to beha+e. Howe+er$ one thing that needs to be chec#ed before the first glides is the balance point. This can only be done accurately with the rubber motor installed$ so this is the first thing we need to sort out.

Eirstly you need to open up the holes for the rear motor peg. Holding the model up to a bright window can help to locate them. 1 use a round needle file to gently enlarge the holes until the peg is a tight fit.

The best thing to use for a rear peg is a length of aluminium tubing of suitable diameter. This allows you to to put a wire through the middle to hold the model securely if you are using a winding stooge. The more traditional approach is to use a piece of hardwood dowel or bamboo. 1 used a length of bamboo from a #ebab s#ewer for the simple reason that 1 disco+ered 1 had somehow run out of aluminium tubingF

(ow to the rubber. Eor most flying$ the currently a+ailable Tan sport rubber is 2ust fine. The selection here was bought from &i#e Coodhouse$ who will supply a mi'ed batch li#e this on reBuest. -ou can see 13J,$ )315, and 13K, rubber here. To a+oid degredation o+er time$ you should #eep rubber in a light-proof container such as an old biscuit tin. This lot will #eep me going for ages.

One loop of )315, rubber will gi+e a +ery spritely performance for this model - in fact 1 am sure it would fly O: with rather smaller rubber than that 8maybe *.1.*,D9 Howe+er$ as )315, is widely a+ailable$ let's see how we go with that. 1 am starting with a loop that is < times the peg to prop hoo# distance. Ce can e'periment with longer motors after the thing has been trimmed out.

The #not is 2ust a standard reef #not$ but tied twice.

The strip rubber needs to be lubricated before use$ usually after the #not has been tied. On the right are a couple of bottles of traditional rubber lubricant$ from E"1 &odel %upplies and %"&% &odels. On the left is a 2ar of silicon oil$ as supplied by &i#e Coodhouse$ who also sent the 2ar of white powder ne't to it$ which is colloidal silica binding agent. 1f you dip the ends of your slippery silicone co+ered rubber into this stuff$ you can then tie a #not that does not come undone.

1 #now some of my G% friends use silicone sprays sold in car accessory shops for lubricating their motors$ and 1 belie+e ,%on of a Hun, is one brand that is popular.

To help #eep the rubber on the prop hoo#$ 1 wrap a small rubber band round and round the rubber as shown. Once the rubber is placed on the prop hoo# you can roll the small loops up so they sit almost at the hoo# as shown.

%o$ now you need to persuade your lubricated rubber motor into the fuselage until it gets past the rear peg position. %ome sort of stuffing stic# is useful for this. On the %wift you are hampered by the small nose aperture which you can barely get the #not through. 1 find it best to #eep the #not at the rear$ so it does not come out of the nose again while you are stretch-winding the motor. By peering through the nose you should be able to push the motor peg through the fuselage so it goes through the loop of rubber.

"fter winding a few turns on to get the rubber more or less e+enly distributed along the fuselage$ ha+e a loo# at where the model balances by holding it at the wingtips. -ou can 8hopefully9 see that the balance point is well behind the front spar$ and would certainly result in the model stalling if we tried to fly it. %o$ some nose weight was added 8+ery rarely do you get away without ha+ing to do this on a rubber powered scale model9. How 1 did this was a bit hit and miss$ but rather than adding unsightly lumps of BluTac to the outside of the nose$ 1 sBuee6ed a bit of Eormula .5* canopy glue inside the nose aperture so it dribbled down inside the nose and formed a small puddle at the bottom 8at least 1 assumed it did - 1 could see nothingF9 1 then dropped some small lead shot 8from a fishing shop9 through the nose so they fell into the glue inside. 1 assumed they got stuc#$ because 1 could hear no rattling when 1 shoo# the model. The model was left for <K hours for the glue to set. This mo+ed the balance point forward until it was about ) mm behind the wing spar$ so somewhere where 1 was happy to start trimming glides. Clic# here for mo+ie of test glides 8@)* :B9 This should play if you clic# the lin#$ or you can right clic# and select ,sa+e lin# as, to put it on your hard dri+e. The glide loo#ed pretty close straight off$ though note how it has a sharp tendency to turn right. This is because my fin came out slightly cur+ed$ and 1 did not stic# it on Buite straight. 1 thought it was a shame that 1 could not demonstrate what a stall loo#ed li#e$ because that is the classic thing that usually happens trying to trim a rubber model li#e this. Often test glides show a stall$ so you add nose weight until it goes away. %o$ 2ust to show you what a stall loo#s li#e$ clic# here 8M5* :B9 to see test glides after 1 added a lump of Blu-Tac to the tail$ to simulate not enough weight in the nose. Cith the glide loo#ing hopeful$ a few winds can be added to see what happens under power. The ne't mo+ie here 85.* :B9 shows a hop with about <.* winds on. 1t still loo#s fairly good. 1 suppose 1 ought to describe the techniBue of stretch-winding here$ which is the way you get the most turns on a gi+en length of rubber

motor. Basically you hoo# your winder$ if you ha+e one$ on the prop hoo# and stretch it way out of the front of the nose of the aircraft maybe three times the rubber length. -ou then put the winds on$ and gradually mo+e bac# to the model$ still winding$ as you come up to the reBuired total of winds. This techniBue gets the #nots in the rubber spaced as e+enly as possible. -ou learn to feel the tension in the rubber$ and when things start to really tighten up$ you #now you are close to the limit. Best not to go there unless you are ma#ing a competition flight where the time aloft is important. " blown motor can ma#e a right mess of your fuselage. 1 use the :0 "ero &odels 1*:1 winder for +irtually all my models - it seems to cope with up to K strands of )315, rubber$ and is a +ery handy si6e. %"&% &odels sell it$ as do Elitehoo# and se+eral other Eree Elight specialists. (e't we ha+e a flight with .** winds on - clic# here 81.5 &B9 to see it. (ow this does re+eal a problem when the rubber runs out. Because the rubber is dri+ing the prop$ the model will react and try to rotate in the other direction$ though ob+iously much more slowly because of all that wing area resisting it. %o$ under power$ the left hand wing is pushed down 8model tries to rotate to the left as +iewed from the rear9$ which resists the natural tendency of the model to turn Buite sharply right. Chen the rubber runs down$ the torBue effect disappears$ and the model is free to follow its natural tendency to turn more steeply to the right. The right turn is too steep howe+er$ so the model spirals in.

Chat we need to do is reduce the amount of right turn on the glide$ so a small acetate trim tab was glued into a slot in the trailing edge of the fin and bent left as shown. The mo+ie here 81.J &B9 shows what happened on the ne't flight. The model now goes almost straight on the powered part of the flight$ but begins to turn right as the rubber runs out$ then glides to the right$ though not as sharply as before. %traight powered flight is not a good idea if you want to hang onto a model$ so we need to do something to get the power and glide parts of the flight more similar. The way to do this is to alter the thrust angle of the nose bush. -ou can balance out the torBue effect of the prop by adding right thrust to the nose bush. Hlue in a strip of 135K ply to one side of the hole in the nose. To gi+e right thrust$ glue it to the left hand side of the nose when +iewed from the rear. The prop should now be pointing a bit more to the right. -ou can add additional strips later as needed$ but it is best to gradually add thrust ad2ustments so you can see the cumulati+e effect as you add each strip. 1n that way the model should now turn right during the power phase without ad2usting the rudder trim tab. "t this point$ things too# an une'pected turn 8literally9 when the model went left after launching$ and ended up rather high in an oa# tree. (ow if you put right thrust in a model that was 2ust about turning right anyway$ there is no way it should turn left$ so the nagging

thought came into my head that perhaps 1 had put the ply pac#ing piece on the wrong side of the nose$ and gi+en it some left thrust instead. (o way of telling unless 1 managed to get the model bac# though. Ce had to lea+e it where it was$ and the plan was to come bac# with a pole three days later on the following %unday 8it was about )* feet up9. 1 was not optimistic of e+er seeing it in one piece again$ as on the Eriday we had torrential thunderstorms. Howe+er$ much to my ama6ement$ when 1 went bac# to the field on %unday e+ening$ there was the model now 2ust 1< feet up$ with its prop wedged in a for# in a branch$ swinging merrily on the end of its rubber. The prop was po#ed free using a branch we found on the ground$ and down the model came. "ma6ingly there was no damage at all$ e'cept one wing strut missing$ which is easily replaced. 1t must ha+e got +ery wet on Eriday$ because one of the decal aileron lines had come adrift and floated o+er to the wingtip$ before drying in a crumpled sort of heap. 1t 2ust goes to show the waterproofing effect of a thic# coat of enamel paintFF Cell$ guess what - 1 disco+ered the pac#ing C"% on the wrong side of the nose$ so 1 Buic#ly pulled it off and glued it on the correct side before anyone noticed. They say confession is good for the soul - but perhaps this is also a good illustration that e+en e'perienced modellers ma#e mista#es sometimes$ and is a useful reminder to chec# all your trimming ad2ustments twice before launching the model. 1 wound it up to see if all the rain had affected the trim at all$ and can report that the model set off in a steady right hand circuit as if nothing had happened. 1 will put some more +ideo footage on the site when 1 get to chance to fly it at a bigger field. 1t is certainly great to ha+e it bac#F &any than#s to Laurie for manning the +ideo camera. Here is a Buic# update on the little Comper's flying e'ploits during >uly <**.: "t the %cale Cee#end at Old Carden 1 managed to brea# the wing off

twice when it decided to do a 7H death spiral from launch under ma'imum winds. 1 thus chic#ened out and altered the trim to ma#e it fly left. This in+ol+ed being fairly brutal with the fin - in fact crac#ing it down the hinge line and regluing. 1 then nearly lost it on %unday when it did a thermally assisted 1)* second flight$ fortunately dropping out of the lift 2ust at the boundary hedge.

Than#s to 7ichard Crossley for sending this great shot of mine and

Chris %trachan's %wifts 2ust after we had launched them together. Hraham 0otter too# a +ideo of the %wift flying a couple of wee#s later at the %"& ). Hala at Old Carden - clic# here to see it 8).) &B