ALTERNATIVE MATERIALS
revised 12 DECEMBER 2002
I would like to start out by sharing something my Pappy use to tell me " Son - when your cheap you have to be resourceful ! ". A good thing to remember. Always be on the lookout for a material that you may be able to use in Modeling.
( Alternative Covering ) Mike Marsh wanted let you know about another alternative building material that may be worth trying. his favorite planes have always been 36" to 44" wingspan Warbirds and always hated how they looked when they had that "built-up" look (ribs showing through the covering, etc.) Sheeting them with balsa, though, would add a lot of weight and would be difficult to bend around the tight curves. So he decided to try to cover his 40" span P-51 B with thin aluminum. He thought of using soda cans. They cut with regular scissors (a table type paper cutter is better) and when cut into squares make great scale looking panels. To attach them to the plane (and each other) He suggest gluing them with slow CA, Elmers glue, or good contact cement. He has used all three and have never had a problem. I hope you can find some use for my tip!!
( Lite-Ply ) My favorite material is " doorskins " to use in place of Lite Ply. You can purchase these at your local Home Depot building supply for about 5 bucks. The sheets are 36 in. wide by 80 in. high and about 1/8 in. thick. I have used this in place of Lite Ply in fuselage sides, hatches, landing gear mounts, servo mounts, etc. and have never had a failure.
( Plywood ) Also along those lines, cabinate makers have birch and oak faced ply pieces in different sizes 1/4 in. thick, that they will sell you reasonable. I use these for firewalls, Gear mounts in bigger planes, and you can double them up to make firewalls for gas engines.
( Hardwood ) For spars, I use 1X4 by 8 ft. Poplar or maple. One board can be carefully cut in a table saw with a fine blade ( be safe when you use power tools ). You can cut these in 1/4 X 3/8, 1/4 X 1/2, etc. and make enough sticks to last for years!
( Music Wire ) Next thing is music wire for landing gear, tail wheels, control surfaces, etc. You can get this from the inside of an old interspring mattress.
( Nuts & Bolts ) Buy "T" nuts, small screws and such at hardware stores by the gross, If they don't stock them they can order them for you.
( Glue ) Now to save a lot, use an alternative to CA. You still need CA but you won't use so much of it, Elmers Carpenter's Glue AKA Tightbond which is used on furnature. I use it on wing ribs, sheeting, fuselage skin, etc. Many places where you normally use CA. A bottle of Tightbond cost a buck something at Wal-mart and will last for several models, and with the CA going up in price, it's something to consider! It's not instant but you can lay up all your ribs at once and let them set, like before you quit for the day. An item that helps dispense the glue is a all plastic syringe that you can get at your local hobby shop.
( Epoxy ) -- I still use the 6 MIN and 30 MIN type, but for coating firewalls and fuel tank area's I get it at the local craft store. It comes in 8 oz. bottles of resen and hardener, and lasts for many planes.
( Filler ) Don't buy filler from the catalogs, go to Wal-mart and get " lightweight spackling paste " it's cheap and comes in a large container. When it starts to dry up, add a little water and stir with a popcycle stick. It looks like the same thing to me!
( popcycle Sticks ) Next time you are in the craft shop, pick up some popcycle sticks. They come in boxes of 100, 500, 1000, and they are cheap. You will use these for all kind of things like, servo rails, reinforcing splices, skids, fuel tank stops, mixing epoxy, any place where you are going to put in screws. You will find all kind of uses for them.
( Wind shields ) and Canopies can be made from 2 and 3 liter Pop containers, you can get a nice piece of flat by cutting away the top and bottom. You can also use some of the top for a formed canopy.
( Wing Bolts ) You can purchase nylon wing bolts (1/4-20) for about 9 cents a each at the Fastenall company or any other fastener company. Sure beats paying $1.25 for five. Tip sent in by Jeff Lange
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