Tri County Sky Sharks - RC Flying Club

aileron wire tubes for small electric models - MacDonald's "thick shake" strawsair scoops - airline spoons airline spoons - silver-coloured plastic spoons make great air scoops for small models. Colin Stevens. aluminium beer cans (1) - a great source of thin aluminium for panels, etc., contact cemented to the model.aluminium beer cans (2). When you cut up the aluminium beverage cans for the sheet aluminium, keep the concave dome from the bottom of the can as well. The dome can be cut to any diameter making terrific little hub caps up to about 1 3/4" diameter (44.4 mm), or scale inspection covers for light planes. aluminium beer cans (3). Wrap the body of a beer can round an electric motor to make a precise hole cutting tool for accurately fitting an electric motor into a foam wing or nacelle. aluminium louvres - ventilator grillesbaby buggy wheels. These are lightweight, and are around 4 - 5 inches diameter, ideal for the larger models, and rough fields. Add a bush by inserting a piece of alkathene micro-irrigation hose, works great. Also, smear on a thin layer of Automotive silicon (black) to the tire, and then roll it in dust; it gives a great non-shiny black finish.battery flight packs - mobile phonesbicycle spokes. Small bicycle spokes from cycle shops can work out cheaper than the model shop threaded pushrods. Check the strength first, of course, and a proper fit for your clevis.blu-tack. I use glo-sticks with a replaceable battery; I bought a pack of NimH cells of 3300mAh in Aldis for a paltry couple of quid, and charge 'em up before each flying session. This means I have 3 little firestarters in my flightbox drawers: not so - a small blob of whitetack or the more pc blutack over each positive terminal of the loose cells makes them virtually inert. Plasticine would do the same as would any putty.cable ties. Use cheap cable ties to keep control snakes in control. canopy windows - OHP transparency plasticcockpit openings and canopy frames - yellow (manila) folder papercreme brulee pots. A family favourite in my house is Creme Brulee. This comes in small shallow glass containers, which, when washed out, make excellent mixing containers for epoxy. Also use 'Long Matches' from the supermarket to mix the glue, and used lolly sticks to apply it.cooking pots. The BALSA USA Eindecker kit comes with a rather odd looking two piece ABS plastic cowling and cheek cowls. I went to WAL-MART and went to their cooking section and found two very cheap (and thin walled) aluminium pots. Actually I bought one single handled pot and tried to make the cowling from it but it just wasn’t the right shape and diameter. It later became the cheek cowls. I went back to the store and found a two handle aluminium cooking pot that was about another 1-1/2” in diameter and much deeper. With a little creative tin snipping the two pots became pretty nice open bottom cowling and cheek cowls for about $12 total. Click the picture for enlargement.covering - Fabloncowls - cooking pots; plastic mixing bowldrumstick ice cream caps. The plastic caps on top of 'drumstick' ice creams make good hub caps (not applicable in the UK where this type of ice cream generally has flat cardboard disc lids!). Picture shows one with plane manufacturer's motif traced and painted on. dural rod - knitting needlesepoxy caddy - milk shake cartoneopxy mixing kit - creme brulee potsexhaust gaskets - shaving cream tubesFablon self adhesive film. Use Fablon instead of the usual self-adhesive Solartrim or similar. It comes in all manner of colours/patterns, sticks better, takes varnish and fuel-proofer, doesn’t bubble or wrinkle and it’s CHEAPER! Picture shows Geoff's Fablon-decorated Uno.Wot featured on June 2008 workshop.fly swatters make good working radiator grilles - they look good and really do let the air through.glow starter protector - glue bottle plug; print cartridge bungsglue bottle plug. The plug in the top of new bottles of epoxy resin makes a perfect cap to slip on the end of glow starters when stored in the flight box. It keeps the contacts clean and, in the case of self-contained battery- powered starters, prevents any danger of shorting across the contacts caused by other metal objects in the box.guns - toy soldiershole cutter - aluminium beer cans (3)holographic paper. After cutting it to shape, peel off the very thin film image from its cardboard carrier and apply for imitation landing lights on wing edges, or wherever. hub caps - aluminium beer cans (2); drumstick ice cream capskitchen sieve for radiator grilles. Source - a cheap kitchen sieve from Wilkinson's or similar budget store. Strong and stiff woven steel mesh of about 1.6mm pitch, ready- formed into a convex shape for those curved applications, but capable of being flattened if the size isn't too large.knitting needles are a good source of hard dural rod in SWG and metric sizes. They usually have a thin anodised skin which can be abraded-off if required. They can often be obtained very cheaply from charity shops, although one such shop has stated that they are no longer allowed to stock them because of Health and Safety concerns! landing lights - holographic paper MacDonald's "thick shake" straws make great aileron wire tubes for small electric models. milk shake carton. How do you ensure that your epoxy is always ready to use even when it's a bit colder in the hangar? You cut the top part from a Nestlé's Nesquick milk shake carton and store the bottles inverted. Don't forget to put on the caps! As long as you do the bottles won't leak. mobile phones are becoming a nuisance to dispose of when they die - I scratched around my store of them from friends and family, and was able to make up two excellent battery flight packs - a bit of soldering required, as the phone packs are 3 cell, 3.6 volt, and need another cell joined to make 4.8 volt. Mine are giving good service, hold a charge well, and although they don't specify capacity, seem on a par or better than my store bought ones.OHP (overhead projector) transparency plastic. I make up scale canopies from aluminium strip cut from thick sheet, then covered panel by panel with OHP transparency plastic, which is thin, light, and quite scuff resistant. I roughen the edges with sandpaper to ensure a good bond to the aluminium with epoxy.panels - aluminium beer cans (1)pipe joiners. My method of getting better purchase on the big, big spinners, like my Zero, is to go to the plumbing supply shop and purchase a small rubber section designed to join pipes. It slips on the outside of the starter cup, and I initially used two large hose clips to hold it on, but after losing a bit of knuckle skin to these, I removed them - the sleeve pushes onto the aluminium starter cup fine, and a rubber band underneath helps assure good grip.plastic mixing bowl (mould). I found a perfect shape for the FW 190 cowl in the local $2 shop - a plastic mixing bowl. I have had good (and economical) results with papier mache shapes rather than fibreglass. A lot more crash resistant, still light, and fuelproof if finished right: ie. two coats of automotive undercoat, and two of topcoat, from spraycans.plastic drink bottles. Polycarbonate drink bottles can be used to make wind sceens and canopies. Keep your eye out for suitably shaped polycarbonate bottles that have canopies and windscreens 'hidden' within. (click picture for enlargement.) print cartridge bungs. Anyone who refills printer cartridges with Jet Tec refill kits can make an anti short device for battery glow starters from the "bungs" in the kit. Photo, right, is self explanatory. The warning flag is held by a thread (in this case fishing line) pushed through in a needle, and knotted each end. Ray Powell.pushrods - bicycle spokesradiator grilles - fly swatters; kitchen sieveshaving cream tubes. The supplied exhaust gaskets for the ASP 52 are reputed to be short-lived, and certainly that has been the case for mine. Apparently there are better OS and Magnum alternatives, but I was in a hurry. I decided to go to very soft aluminium, but where to find that in a suitable thickness? Erasmic Shaving Cream tubes - that's where. But be quick! It's being discontinued and is disappearing from the shelves. (There are other products using these tubes - some adhesives and some medical creams like E45 are still produced in them.) Enough material for about half a dozen, and easily rolled flat. The holes for the exhaust bolts are best drilled first, and when trapped between a couple of pieces of hardwood, to prevent burrs. I do about four together, in a sandwich. After drilling the holes, I next cut the centre aperture with a pointed scalpel blade, then trim around the outside with tin-snips or ordinary scissors, leaving plenty spare along the narrow edges. A very thin coat of RTV-type silicone sealer on assembly then sees to it that there is no oil seepage. Colin Stevens. shoe laces - a piece of wire inserted into a bit of shoe lace and fed through the firewall and into the cabin, gives the appearance of the old, woven insulation found on the magneto cables of many vintage planes.spinner grips - pipe joinersstrip lining - vinyl sheet toy soldiers. Scale-looking guns can often be sourced very cheaply from those shops which sell cheap children's toys, like soldiers festooned with weaponry.undercarriage wheels - baby buggy wheels ventilator grilles. I found some great, scale- looking aluminium louvres for around the engine of the latest project,( a 86" FW 190A) in the ventilation section of the local hardware store. vinyl sheet. I go to a sign shop and they take a piece of vinyl, 22 inches wide x six feet in length, and cut it completely into strips of varying widths, like 3/32, 1/8, 5/32, 3/16, 7/32, and 1/4". It is real good stuff, and it does stick. You get a lot of strips doing it this way, and it costs much less than buying the same amount in rolls.wind sceens and canopies - plastic bottleswoven cabling - shoe lacesyellow (manila) folder paper. Use yellow (manila) file folder paper on small (up 55" wing spans so far) electric scale models in place of 1/64 ply to make the cockpit openings for open cockpit models, and canopy frames where there are no compound curves. It can also be used in place of balsa sheeting on cowls as well. MUCH cheaper then 1/64 ply, easier to form, and attaches easily with any type of white glue.modelflight recyclopedia is just a bit different from the usual 'Hints & Tips' often seen in mainstream magazines, in that it is exclusively for objects 'recycled' (sort of) for model-making use! Please email your suggestions for inclusion - an accompanying picture is also welcome.

step1 Supplies and Equipment You'll need: Paperclip(s) Needle Nose Pliers (normal pliers would work as well but it'd be harder to maneuver) Optional: Sharpies *You could use any permanent marker but t… step2 Find Yourself some PAPERCLIPS Okay, there isn't reaaaaly a limit on how thin/thick you can make these but the ones i used were standard office 5cm long and 1mm thick. The paperclips should be nice and r… step3 Unbend Paperclip Try and get it nice and straight. It makes the rest of the task easier. step4 Mark out and bend first semi-circle Erm. Preety simple, i marked 2cm and then made a small semi-circle. step5 Start the bending Okay it's pretty easy. All you need to do is hold the paperclip just before your to-be-bend and then push the long bit in the direction you want. After the first bend make … step6 Cut of remaining and SHARPINISE Just cut the paperclip a bit before the end of the straight bit. To Sharpinise, colour in with a sharpie. BUT. do it like you mean it. cuz it's sharpie rite? step7 Make more until you've got enough Umm. just make more? step8 Attach to car... or watever Clip them on. You can push them to the first ridge or all the way.

Current Issue » May 2009 Tuesday, June 02, 2009 A Note From the AMA Insider's Technical Editor A short time ago, a modeler wrote Ed McCollough (your humble technical editor) the following: “Noticed and noted on the foot of page 66 of March Model Aviation underneath the picture of the Spektrum/JR flight logger, it is recommended that six-volt battery packs be used on ALL 2.4GHz receivers. Called Horizon Hobby on the phone; they confirmed this statement. It was suggested the same six volt usage for other brands also. Would like to suggest the general membership be made aware of this when 2.4 GHz receivers are used in glow/gas airplanes/helis to preclude possible in- flight loss.” When I read this, I agreed with him and wrote him I would get on the problem. Please, read what he wrote and consider it very, very carefully. Unfortunately, the answer to his question hasn’t been that quick or easy, but for the time being, here it is: If you are flying a 2.4 GHz system, follow the manufacturers’ specifications for the voltage. If you are using a separate voltage pack for the receiver, be absolutely sure it has enough voltage to run the receiver. A common 5.0-volt receiver pack may not have sufficient voltage to run your particular receiver. Actually, if you used a six- volt pack and it was adequately charged, it should be sufficient, regardless of the manufacturer. There is one problem, when using a six-volt pack if it isn’t required by the manufacturer of your system. That problem will likely happen if you are using digital servos. If you drive some digital servos with six volts, there is a high probability you will damage the servos because of the higher voltage. Remember, if the servos fail, it won’t make much difference that your receiver is still working. You always need to be flying with a functional receiver pack, one that is as close to fully charged as possible. Remember, insufficient volts to the receiver and you crash. Lastly, as in all things, and in all cases, read the instructions. Q May 2009 Table of Contents Download Print Version (.pdf) Full Text Version (.rtf) President to President: AMA—MAAC Reciprocal Insurance Agreement On the Safe Side: 101 Ways to Stop a Spinning Propeller Tips for Clubs: Clubs from the Grass Roots Editor's Pick: A Note From the AMA Insider's Technical Editor Refuel Fill Valves History Program How to Convert a Gas Model to All Electric Covering Model Structures With Tissue Celebration of RC: September 22-26, 2009 Tips and Tricks AMA Mission and Vision Statement Home Archives About Contact AMA Publications Subscribe Unsubscribe © 2009 Academy of Model Aeronautics

Don’t Blow Your Nose at This Tip If you need to repair a hairline crack in any part of a plastic structure gently spread open the crack insert a single ply of fine tissue the length of the crack. Close the gap and trim tissue to one quarter of an inch above the crack. With CA thin glue, soak the tissue and let it dry thoroughly then trim tissue flush with the crack. It becomes a bonding agent to seal the damaged area. Philip Miceli

Instead of filling with the usual putties and waiting for them to dry, fill small gaps with medium CA. Then place a small amount of baking soda on it and watch it set before your eyes. It's instant and the strongest fill you will find.