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Super good news, a new shop with RC parts has been opened in the city, so I don't have to travel 150 miles in order to buy a servo that costs 5 bucks....It appears that I will be able to catch the last days of good weather for the test flight. :)
This is the test for the foil building technique. Layered pieces of paper are cut in the shape of the airfoil and printed on to the polymer mold. The mold is made out of modeling polymer (bioline) that hardens when exposed to the temperatures greater than 100 degrees Celsius. At the end this should produce unified shapes that can be replicated and used either as a mold for casting wing cross sections or as a guide for cutting them out of balsa. This foil is for the fan blade for the fanwing design that will come later on (these two are not the same designs). Once the shape is solid it can be sanded until it is smooth enough for further usage.
It appears that the practice with the layered paper paid off and it paid off by "returning" the motor skills to my hands (from typing and clicking right mouse button to actually doing something physical). These are the foils and my attempt to even the curvature with sand paper. By taping the foils together and cutting off the part for the trailing edge (that will be added later) I was able to even the length of the airfoils. However the errors on the leading edge emerged right away. So I've started to sand them and during that process I've found out that the tape, can be used as a "mask" for the areas that you want to keep intact. So once the leading edge is finished (I know that it is not done by the book) I will continue to sand the rest of the airfoil until it becomes reasonably useful. Than I will drill and cut holes for the spars and glue the foils onto them. Hopefully by the end of the week, the wings will be finished.
This is a sort of more precise sketch of the wing. Unfortunately the method I thought that it will work, doesn't so I will build the wing in the traditional fashion. This one goes into the CAD program for real drafting where it will be adjusted and printed as a plan for building.
After ruining couple pieces of balsa, I've decided to practice more with the layered paper and build the paper mock up of the airframe. This is the tail with the rudder and the frames for the horizontal stabilizers. The mockup should provide me with the clearer picture of the whole thing and highlight areas for improvement.
No no that is too advanced for me right now. This is the glider that will evolve into powered plane. This will be something like Bleriot XI at the end.
I see weeds growing on my project, darn work. However, I did a little experiment with the materials and it seems that I am on the right track, this time with the sludge made out of melted Styrofoam in acetone. I will try to glue it once it is solid and if that works, this project will end pretty soon. And it will be more interesting.Much much more interesting.
Foam is melted and the sludge is in the mold. In couple of days we will see what will come out of it. So far it looks like a monster from "the Blob" movie. Literary it looks like that.
Well in the past few months, work has been very hectic so I didn't had the time to tackle this project (in a presentable form anyway). However I did a lots of experiments with materials and that was very interesting, cause at the end, I was able to conjure some sort of primitive composite, made out of wood glue, paper, acrylic shine and wood dust that is both light and strong. Big plus is that it can be painted. The last tool that I need is a hot knife for the foam and that will be completed next month.
I will keep updating when something significant happens.
Well in the past few months, work has been very hectic so I didn't had the time to tackle this project (in a presentable form anyway). However I did a lots of experiments with materials and that was very interesting, cause at the end, I was able to conjure some sort of primitive composite, made out of wood glue, paper, acrylic shine and wood dust that is both light and strong. Big plus is that it can be painted. The last tool that I need is a hot knife for the foam and that will be completed next month.
I will keep updating when something significant happens.
Why not use blue Styrofoam (compressed foam) instead? You can even use white Styrofoam ( disposable Ice Chest) if the supplies are scares.
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