Tips ... anything handy I can share.

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Zwei Antik Segler

This is a copy of a forum topic that became highly informative on wood techniques, thanks to the expertise of Johannes Weinzierl, who was building the antique 'HAST' glider. (I joined with the 'Strolch', but did not finish it.)


Bending wood

Bending wood the old-fashioned way using water, heat, and a hot iron.


Joints

Extending the length of balsa sticks by joining them, can be done perfect and easy.


Precision sanding

A simple idea, yet something you might not have thought of.


Fabricating trailing edges

In the spirit of precision sanding, here's a way to easily fabricate trailing edges with a perfect cross section, by placing balsa strips on a plate and use the table edge as a guide.


Whiping epoxy

While curing, epoxy is best whiped clean with rubbing alcohol from the pharmacy. (Epoxy can also be thinned with alcohol, but this has an impact on the bond and strength of the epoxy.)

Removing epoxy from skin is best done with warm water and a mixture of soap and cleaning vinegar. The vinegar breaks the epoxy down. (When using alcohol or other solvents for this, the chemicals enter the skin.)

Hardened epoxy can be taken apart by heating it with a soldering iron. It's not a clean method, as it may scorch the wood, but it can be useful sometimes.


Fogged windows

If your canopy or cabin windows have fogged up due to CA or Canopy Glue, you can remove the fog by wiping them with machine oil. The fog may return after a few days, so you might need to repeat this treatment a couple of times, but eventually it will be gone for good.


On board glow set up

This setup switches off when the throttle is fully closed, turns on between fully closed and idle, and then switches off again at about one-third throttle.


Cheap and simple brakes

Do you fly from a concrete runway? These brakes keep your aircraft from rolling at idle throttle.


Transmitter tray

A wooden transmitter tray, inspired by modern acrylic designs.


Color determination from black and white photographs

You can't directly interpret the shades of grey in old black and white photographs as colors, but it is possible to draw some conclusions with careful analysis.