Wonwings Diary-a blog with a difference.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Building from plans-Part 9-Blue Foam construction.

We can now deal with thinning out the fuselage shell, to save even more precious weight and preparing it for finishing and fitting out.The Blue foam laminations would have been lightly glued together at the centre datum point,in between this would be a coloured piece of paper that constantly confirms the centreline no matter how much sanding or cutting is done,the next job is to take a blade and split open the two halves,ease a wide pastry knife between the blocks and gently rock the two foam cores apart,the paper will have done its job and is no longer required but even now it will aid separation of the cores.Once this has been done you can clean up the flat surfaces with a large Permagrit block,next take a marker pen and draw a line right along the edge of the fuselage sides,within this area is where we will be scooping out any surplus foam,start by taking a knife blade and running this around the marker pen line,this will enable a clean line as the inner debris is parred away that butts up to this cut,the best tool to use is your trusty clean wire brush,gently pull and stroke the foam from nose to tail,soon you will get the idea as the beads come away,we are not aiming for precision because you will not get it with any foam,the aim is to remove dead weight that has no purpose,the more you remove the better the model will fly,gently finish off with coarse glasspaper glued around an half round piece of wood,once again a simple dragging action will prove the best.

Once you are satisfied that the two halves are as good as you can get them now is the time to make up some inner formers,you will almost certainly need one for the nose of the aircraft,one just aft of the wing trailing edge,and one forward of this,to arrive at the shape obtain a carpet fitters shape tool,this looks like dozens of wire pieces that when pressed into the concave produce an exact pattern of the shape.Simply draw around the patterns straight onto some wood,cut out the formers and check fit into position,once you are happy then fix them into place with a glue gun,this is adequate for everything except the front former which should be fixed with epoxy,we use the glue gun for two reasons,one it is convenient and sticks well and quickly,two it is lighter than epoxy adhesive which is heavy and should be used with care and for consideration of the weight penalty it carries.

Regarding the formers you can use either laminated balsa sheet,or liteply both are ideal.

Control runs can be positioned into the formers using snakes,these can be locked into place with the glue gun,make sure that they exit cleanly with the minimum of bends,best to install things such as this now while you have good acces,even doing the job whilst the halves are unglued together.

Other considerations are the positions of the tailplane and fin,mark and cut the slots now at this stage checking the angles very carefully,the nose bulkhead needs careful treatment,make balsa fillets at the back of this crucial former and glue well,if necessary add any blind mounting nuts for the engine bearers,PSS soarers simply need an hard balsa block cut to shape and sanded to blend into the shape of the fuselge.

If the model has a cockpit,cut away at that point and fair in the sides with medium sheet balsa,for this job use PVA or Aliphaetic adhesive holding in place and tacking with the glue gun,servo rails can also be made up from quarter square hard balsa with basswood cross pieces to take the servo mounting screws.Once everything is installed do a dry run on the two sides,then apply PVA or Aliphaetic and bind firmly together with masking tape,leave for at least 48 hours to throughly dry out.

[Guest]

Hi all, I’d like to say how much I’m enjoying these blogs and all the responses and what a personal touch they give to an already friendly forum.

But Barry, if I can cobble together my beautiful Bebe, (beauty being in the eye of the beholder of course!), from a couple of bits of paper and an instruction set which comprises ‘the fuselage is best built as two box units’, then you CAN play the guitar, and here’s how:

1)Select a favourite song/tune that you and those around you can stand to hear about a million times. (no Hendrix just yet!).

2)Obtain, or in your case build from scrap balsa, a suitable guitar for the tune selected.

3)Contact me and I’ll have you playing and your fingers bleeding in no time.

Steve.

[wonwinglo]

***Steve,thank you for your kind comments,yes Scale-models goes from strength to strength and make no mistake that is thanks to people like yourself here,it is hard to believe that my first tentative posts were made to assist a friend who introduced me to this forum a few years ago,the rest is history,Scale-models has become a family of friends over that short time,a community in its own right,we have John to thank for the foresight in establishing and providing the tools for what you see here today,it runs like silk because everyone involved enjoys the company of fellow enthusiasts,and how diverse those interests are,and thank you for your offer which is much appreciated,one day I may just take you up on it.

Hi all, I’d like to say how much I’m enjoying these blogs and all the responses and what a personal touch they give to an already friendly forum.But Barry, if I can cobble together my beautiful Bebe, (beauty being in the eye of the beholder of course!), from a couple of bits of paper and an instruction set which comprises ‘the fuselage is best built as two box units’, then you CAN play the guitar, and here’s how:

1)Select a favourite song/tune that you and those around you can stand to hear about a million times. (no Hendrix just yet!).

2)Obtain, or in your case build from scrap balsa, a suitable guitar for the tune selected.

3)Contact me and I’ll have you playing and your fingers bleeding in no time.

Steve.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Anniversary of one the most beautiful aircraft ever designed.

The design of the Spitfire is now 75 Years old.On 5th March 2006 which is the 75th Anniversary of the design of the Spitfire,there will be a display of Spitfire aircraft held at Eastleigh ( now called Southampton ) airfield,to commemorate this important event at 16.30 hours a Spitfire will take off exactly to the day and time when she made her very first flight from this historic place.



K5054 the original Spitfire 1 Prototype seen at Eastleigh in 1936,the aircraft was finished in a turquoise green shade but was soon to be finished in a shadow shade finish of dark earth and green,even then this did not disguise its beautiful lines.



Whilst the prototype has long since gone,a replica was built of this machine using wood,although this aircraft is no longer airworthy it travels around the country on show,it is hoped to have this particular aircraft on display at Eastleigh at the anniversary event in March 2006.

Reginald J.Mitchell developed a racing seaplane, the Supermarine S6B, which won the Schneider Trophy on 13th September, 1931. During the contest the aircraft reached 340 mph (547 km/h).

In 1934 the Air Ministry announced that it was looking for a new fighter aircraft. Mitchell, whose company was now part of Vickers Aviation, decided to adapt his Supermarine seaplane, in an attempt to meet the requirements of the R.A.F.

The new all-metal single-seater fighter plane, the Supermarine Spitfire Mk. I, had several technical features of the earlier racing seaplane. It had the same structure and aerodynamic lines. However, it had a new engine, the 1,030 hp Rolls Royce Merlin II and carried 8 machine-guns.

The first Spitfire prototype appeared on 5th March, 1936 and flew at 350 mph (563 km/h) and could ascend at approximately 2,500 ft (762 m) per minute. With its slender aerodynmamic lines and elliptical-plan wings, it was claimed at the time, to be the smallest and cleanest aircraft that could be constructed around a man and an engine.

The R.A.F was impressed with its performance and in June, 1936, it ordered 310 aircraft. The Supermarine Spitfire Mk. I went into production in 1937 and was operational in June, 1938. Vickers Aviation could not keep up with demand and most of Britain's manufacturers began building Spitfires. By October, 1939, the Air Ministry had ordered over 4,000 of these aeroplanes.

The Supermarine Spitfire Mk. II went into service in late 1940. These had a 1,150 hp Rolls Royce Merlin XII engine. Other versions appeared throughout the Second World War .This included Spitfire Mk. IV that was a photographic reconnaissance aircraft. The Spitfire Mk. VC was the first model to be used as a fighter-bomber and carried 500 pounds (226 kg) of bombs.

At the beginning of the Battle of Britain the R.A.F had 32 squadrons of Hawker Hurricanes and 19 squadrons equipped with Spitfire. It was decided to use the Hurricanes against the massive bomber formations of the Luftwaffe whereas the Spitfires were employed against German fighters.

This Luftwaffe outnumbered the R.A.F by four to one. However, the British had the advantage of being closer to their airfields. German fighters could only stay over England for about half an hour before flying back to their home bases. The RAF also had the benefits of an effective early warning radar system and the intelligence information provided by Ultra.

The Focke Wulf 190, which appeared in July 1941, was superior to the Spitfire being used by the R.A.F at the time but this changed with the production of the Supermarine Spitfire Mk. XIV . Powered by a Rolls-Royce Griffon 65, 12-cylinder, 2,050 hp engine, it could reach a speed of 448 mph (721 km/h) and could reach a ceiling of 44,500 ft (13,560 m) and had a range of 460 miles (740 km). It had two 20 mm cannons; four machine-guns; 1,000 lb (454 kg) of bombs.

The Spitfire was constantly improved during the Second World War.The Supermarine Spitfire F.22 that was used in 1945 could fly at more than 450 mph (724 km/h) and could ascend at twice the speed of the Supermarine Spitfire Mk. I.

Spitfires continued to be produced after the war and by October 1947, 20,334 had been manufactured. The last operational flight of a Spitfire, the Spitfire PR-19, took place on 1st April, 1954.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Anniversary of one of the most beautiful aircraft ever designed-Part 2

One of the best appraisals of how the Spitfire flew can be attributed to Douglas Bader,this is what he wrote about this beautiful but functional aircraft-

The Spitfire looked good and was good. But my first reaction was that it was bad for handling on the ground; its long straight nose, uptilted when the tail wheel was on the ground; its long straight nose, uptilted when the tail wheel was on the ground, made taxing difficult since it was not easy to see ahead. It was necessary to to swing from side to side to look in front. The view at take-off was restricted in the same way until you were travelling fast enough to lift the tail; only then could you see over the nose.

Once accustomed to these minor inconveniences, they were no longer apparent, and once in the air, you felt in the first few minutes that here was the aeroplane par excellence. The controls were light, positive and synchronized; in fact, the aeroplane of one's dreams. It was stable; it flew hands and feet off; yet you could move it quickly and effortlessly into any attitude. You brought it in to land at 75 mph and touched down at 60-65 mph. Its maximum speed was 367 mph. You thus had a wide speed range which has not been equalled before or since.

It had eight machine guns of .303 calibre each, mounted four in each wing. The guns were spaced one close to the fuselage, two mid-wing, one further out. The eight guns were normally synchronized to 250 yards. In other words the four in each wing were sighted so that the bullets from all eight converged at that distance, in front of the Spitfire. Experienced fighter pilots used to close the pattern to 200 yards. The successful pilots succeeded because they did not open fire until they were close to the target.

By the 19th August 1939 the following units had received their Spitfire Mk I's and were also operational:-

19 Sqn Duxford

66 Sqn Duxford

41 Sqn Catterick

74 Sqn Hornchurch

54 Sqn Hornchurch

65 Sqn Hornchurch

72 Sqn Churchfenton

602 Sqn Abbotsinch

611 Sqn Speke

609 Sqn Yeadon

K5054 Prototype Spitfire 1

ENGINE

Merlin II (gave 990 hp at 12,000 ft)

WING SPAN

37' 8"

LENGTH

29' 11"

HEIGHT

8' 2 1/2"

WEIGHT

AUW 5,200 lb TARE 5,034 lb

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Anniversary of one of the most beautiful aircraft ever designed-Part 3

Development History: Type 224 One aircraft to F.7/30 with Goshawk II engine (K2890). First Supermarine fighter to fly. Spitfire prototype Supermarine Type 300. One aircraft (K5054) with Merlin C engine, flush exhausts and 2 bladed propeller. Later fitted with Merlin F engine and fishtail ejector exhausts and new propeller. Eight machine guns fitted during development. Spitfire Mk IA Supermarine Type 300. Initial production version - designated Mk I at first. Strengthened wings. First few aircraft with only 4 machine guns installed due to supply shortage. Fixed tailwheel in place of tailskid. Triple ejector exhausts. Merlin II engine driving 2-blade fixed-pitch Watts wooden propeller initially, then (78th aircraft onwards) de Havilland 3-blade variable pitch metal propeller. Merlin III driving 3-blade constant speed propeller from 175th aircraft onwards. Additions during production run: self-sealing fuel tanks, improved radio and IFF with thicker radio mast, bulged cockpit canopy, armoured external windscreen and steel plate armour behind and in front of pilot. Spitfire Mk IB Supermarine Type 300. Version of Mk I with two 20 mm Hispano cannon with 60 rpg. First batch (June 1940) with 2 cannon only. Second batch (November 1940) with 4 0.303 in (7.7 mm) Browning machine guns as well as 2 cannon in wings. Projecting gun barrels and blisters in top wing surface. Speed Spitfire Supermarine Type 323. One conversion of Mk I for attempt on World Speed Record (K9834). New wing, 4 bladed propeller, streamlined cockpit, modified Merlin II engine using special fuel. Spitfire Mk I floatplane Supermarine Type 342. One conversion of Mk I (R6722), fitted with Blackburn Roc floats. Not flown and soon converted back to standard. Spitfire Mk IIA Supermarine Type 329. Version of Mk I for mass production at Castle Bromwich. Merlin XII engine with Coffman cartridge starter. Rotol contant-speed 3-blade propeller. Spitfire Mk IIA(LR) Supermarine Type 343. Version of Mk IIA with prominent 40 gallon (182 l) fuel tank located asymmetrically under port wing. 60 conversions. Used as long range escort fighter. Spitfire Mk IIB Supermarine Type 329. Cannon armed version of Mk II. 2 x 20 mm Hispano cannon + 4 x 0.303 in (7.7 mm) Browning machine guns in wings. Projecting gun barrels and blisters in top wing surface. Spitfire Mk IIC Conversion of Mk IIB with 1,460 hp (1,089 kW) Merlin XX engine for Air Sea Rescue duties. Rescue pack dropped from 2 flare chutes in fuselage underside. Rack under port wing for smoke marker bombs. 52 conversions. Later redesignated ASR Mk II. Spitfire Mk II One Mk II converted with flush fitting auxiliary fuel tank under each wing outboard of wheel wells, plus enlarged oil tank in deeper nose. Spitfire Mk III Supermarine Type 330 & 348. Planned production version with Merlin XX engine, enlarged radiator and stronger wing spar, strengthened landing gear, retractable tailwheel, additional armour, new bullet proof windscreen. One new-build (N3297) and one Mk V converted (W3237). Further production cancelled. Plastic Spitfire One Type 300 fuselage was constructed using Aerolite plastic material in August 1940, as an insurance against aluminium shortages. Not flown. Spitfire PR Mk IA (Also known as PR Type A). Conversion of Mk I for photo reconnaissance role. Short range version. Armament removed. 1 x F.24 camera in each wing. 2 conversions (N3069 & N3071). Spitfire PR Mk IB (Also known as PR Type B). Conversion of Mk I for photo recce. Medium range version. Armament removed. 1 x F.24 camera in each wing, 29 gallon (132 l) fuel tank behind pilot. 8+ conversions. Spitfire PR Mk IC (Also known as PR Type C). Conversion of Mk I for photo recce. Long range version. Armament removed. 30 gallon (137 l) fixed blister tank under port wing, balanced by blister under starboard wing housing 2 x F.24 cameras. 29 gallon (132 l) fuel tank behind pilot. 15 conversions. Later designated PR Mk III. Spitfire PR Mk ID (Also known as PR Type D). Conversion of Mk I for photo recce. Very long range version. Armament removed. 57 gallon (259 l) integral fuel tanks in wing leading edges, 2 x F.24 or F.8 camera in fuselage behind pilot, 29 gallon (132 l) fuel tank behind pilot. 14 gallons (64 l) extra oil in port wing former gun-bay. Rounded windscreen plus canopy with bulged canopy sides. 2 Mk I conversions (P9551 & P9552) plus 'production' version based on Mk V airframes as PR Mk IV. Spitfire PR Mk IE (Also known as PR Type E). Conversion of Mk I for photo recce. Medium range version. Armament removed. 1 x F.24 camera under each wing in bulged mounting - sighted obliquely not vertically, 29 gallon fuel tank behind pilot. 1 conversion (N3317). Later designated PR Mk V. Spitfire PR Mk IF (Also known as PR Type F). Conversion of Mk I for photo recce. Super long range version. Armament removed. 30 gallon (137 l) blister tank under each wing, 29 gallon (132 l) fuel tank behind pilot, total extra fuel 89 gals (269 l). Enlarged oil tank in deeper nose. 2 x F.24 cameras behind cockpit, later other camera installations. Nearly all existing Bs and Cs modified to F standard. Later designated PR Mk VI. Spitfire PR Mk IG (Also known as PR Type G). Conversion of Mk I for photo recce. Armed recce version. 8 machine guns armament retained with bullet proof windscreen. 1 x F.24 camera mounted obliquely behind cockpit + 2 x F.24 looking vertically down, 29 gallon (132 l) fuel tank behind pilot. 5+ conversions. Later designated PR Mk VII. Type 300 Supermarine designation for F.37/34 Spitfire prototype and Mk I production version. Type 311 Supermarine designation for Spitfire F.37/34 with Merlin E engine. Project only Type 312 Supermarine designation for Spitfire variant to meet F.37/35 with Merlin E engine and 4 x 20 mm cannon. Project only. Requirement met by Westland Whirlwind. Type 323 Supermarine designation for Speed Spitfire Type 329 Supermarine designation for Spitfire Mk II Type 330 Supermarine designation for Spitfire Mk III Type 332 Supermarine designation for Spitfire Mk I export for Estonia. FN guns. Type 335 Supermarine designation for Spitfire Mk I export for Greece. Merlin XII. Type 336 Supermarine designation for Spitfire Mk I export for Portugal. Merlin XII. Type 337 Supermarine designation for Spitfire Mk IV Type 338 Supermarine designation for Spitfire Mk I for Fleet Air Arm. Merlin XII. Type 341 Supermarine designation for Spitfire Mk I export for Turkey. Merlin XII Type 342 Supermarine designation for Spitfire Mk I with Roc floats. Type 343 Supermarine designation for Spitfire Mk I long range version. Merlin XII. Project only Type 344 Supermarine designation for Spitfire Mk III on Supermarine floats. Project only Type 345 Supermarine designation for Spitfire Mk I with 13.2 mm guns. Project only Type 346 Supermarine designation for Spitfire Mk IC universal wing. Type 348 Supermarine designation for Spitfire Mk III 2nd prototype (W3237). Merlin XX.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Small is beautiful,building & collecting in a limited space.

SMALL IS BEAUTIFUL.

Have you ever wondered what would happen if you lived in a small house but wanted to still enjoy your hobby ? with the trends these days towards large scale models and kits you would need a barn to accomodate them ! as scales get larger to accomodate all of that lovely detail there is another solution towards building up a collection,still impressive enough to enjoy but well within the constraints of a small area,with a little care and thought it can be done,the home of small scale modelling and collecting is in China where space really is at a premium,many people live in small flats with little space to build and display their models,it is this country that started the tiny small scale model revolution which has its followers worldwide.Now you may be led into thinking that these small models lack any detail,well think again,here are examples of vending machine replicas sold in China,the detail is exquisite even down to tiny undercarriage legs and better canopies than in some of the larger kits,they are in themselves miniature works of art well worthy of seeking out-



These pictures are larger than the models themselves,the minute undercarriage assemblies are fully detailed,the decals would put some of the larger kits to shame,this is real lilliput modelling.



Upper view of these tiny jets,all three would happily fit into a cigar box with room to spare.



The word toys is a mis-nomer as the detail is first class.

So there is something to look out for in the vending industry,for anyone who travels abroad something to keep your eyes open for.But we dont even need to look that far for tiny scale models,a perusal of any kit dealers list reveals some gems amongst them,here are three that I found and built up,a Bede Microjet,a Bede BD-5 Prop,and the delightful little Pitts Special-



Then we have the collectors market which caters for different tastes and sizes of model,just to show you how impressive such a collection looks take a look here,these models are not only fun to seek out but make into a miniature collection in themselves,yes small really is beautiful-

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-The way we will travel in the future.

THE MOLLER SKYCAR

Imagine instead of driving to work you hop into your very own personal flying machine and literally hover over the traffic jams ? pure speculation or a figment of the imagination ? no the very concept of the flying car is being actively pursued by a company in America called 'Moller' this company has been actively developing the flying car of the future which will literally change the way we go about our everyday travel,unlike an helicopter which has rotor blades this is an high tech sophisticated machine which has adjustable engine pods which turn to give either forward or vertical flight,the aircraft will fly safely on one engine,the fan units are contained in a shroud with fan units that drive the aircraft,at the moment the aircraft is being actively tested in a tethered state but soon an exciting project will take place where it will be test flown across a large lake called Milk Farm,here over a 60 acre area the Skycar will be test flown with flotation gear attached at an altitude of 50 feet above the 10 feet deep specially built lake which has silt in the bottom and no rocks,this unique method of testing will ensure through test flying and development,full certification is aimed at not later than the year 2008.

This machine is the only feasible and personally affordable vertical take off and landing ( VTOL ) vehicle in the world today.



Moller are totally dedicated to the continued design and development of this remarkable step forward in creating a unique personal transport system,this is what they have to say about the Moller M400 Skycar-

You've always known it was just a matter of time before the world demanded some kind of flying machine which would replace the automobile. Of course, this machine would have to be capable of VTOL, be easy to maintain, cost effective and reliable. Well, we at Moller International believe we have come up with the solution. That solution is the Volantor named M400 Skycar.

Let's compare the M400 Skycar with what's available now, the automobile. Take the most technologically advanced automobile, the Ferrari, Porsche, Maserati, Lamborgini, or the more affordable Acura, Accord, or the like. It seems like all of the manufacturers of these cars are touting the new and greatly improved "aerodynamics" of their cars. Those in the aerospace industry have been dealing with aerodynamics from the start. In the auto industry they boast of aerodynamics, performance tuned wide track suspensions, electronic ignition and fuel injection systems, computer controllers, and the list goes on. What good does all this "advanced engineering" do for you when the speed limit is around 60 MPH and you are stuck on crowded freeways anyway?

Can any automobile give you this scenario? From your garage to your destination, the M400 Skycar can cruise comfortably at 275 MPH (maximum speed of 375 MPH) and achieve up to 20 miles per gallon on clean burning, ethanol fuel. No traffic, no red lights, no speeding tickets. Just quiet direct transportation from point A to point B in a fraction of the time. Three dimensional mobility in place of two dimensional immobility.

No matter how you look at it the automobile is only an interim step on our evolutionary path to independence from gravity. That's all it will ever be.

Moller International's M400 Skycar volantor is the next step.

We plan to begin untethered flights when we have at least one additional M400 nearing completion. All flights will occur over a specially constructed lake. This lake is part of the Milk Farm development , a commercial 60-acre development underway near the city of Dixon in California on Interstate 80. The lake will have an area of 5 to 6 acres and will be approximately 10 feet deep with a silt, rock free bottom. Most flights will occur at less than 50 feet altitude and will incorporate flotation gear attached to the Skycar.

Passengers 4

Maximum speed 375 MPH

Cruise speed (20,000 ft.) 275 MPH

Range 750 Miles

Size Large automobile

Best mileage approx. 20 MPG

Useful payload 750 lbs

Can hover with one engine failed

Uses non-fossil fuel (ethanol)

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Building from plans-Finishing blue foam Part 10.

We have completed the two halves,installed any control rods and glued and taped everything together,next job is to finish off the fuselage properly,whatever finish that is used it should be applied sparingly as we do not want to build up too much excess weight.The next job is to seal the pores of the blue foam,for this we need some micro balloons,go to your model shop and buy a big bag of them,the bag will weigh nothing,while you are there see if they have any tubs of 'Red Devil' filler this is ready prepared mico balloons and very convenient to use,failing that mix up a jam jar full of these tiny micro chippings with ordinary water,next add a spoonful of PVA adhesive to act as a binder and stir the lot up to make a smooth paste,apply this all over the fuselage and hang up out of the way to dry properly in a warm place.Next day put your face mask on and goggles and go outside to do the fine sanding,by progressively using finer grades of glasspaper you will get a nice smooth finish,do this part of the sanding dry using the mask to protect your valuable lungs,otherwise you will end up in a right mess as the filler pulls away,once satisfied the next job is to apply a very thin application of PVA adhesive,just enough to seal and knit together the tiny sanded balloons.

Get hold of some lightweight model aeroplane tissue ( SAMS sell it ) and cut some one inch wide strips,these will run lengthwise from nose to tail down the fuselage and really stiffen up the relatively soft surface finish of the blue foam,lay the tissue onto a towel in lengths and with a diffuser spray bottle ( obtainable from art shops ) spray the tissue with ordinary water ( if you do not have a spray then grab a domestic brush,dip this into water and spatter using a domestic food knife ) carefully pick up the tissue and lay it onto the surface of the fuselage blowing it into place carefully,smooth out and wrinkles carefully with your fingers,next take a brushful of very thin PVA again,and simply apply this straight onto the surface,dont worry it will soak into the tissue and bond itself to the previously applied thin coat of adhesive,keep on going until you have reached the other side,set aside to dry out.A simple jig can make life easier when handling things like this,place a piece of wire either side ie one in the nose and the other at the tail,with two blocks of balsa glued to another strip of wood place the ends of the wire into these,you can then rotate the assembly just like a spit ! it certainly makes life easier when handling a sticky assembly such as this.

Once everything is dry apply a second ( very thin ) coat of PVA and by now you should have a nice smooth taught surface finish all ready for painting,for this you will find automobile spray cans ideal,they give an excellent finish and are durable as well.

Next time I will tell you how to use the blue foam to make tough components for your models.

[Guest]

Hi,

Can you give the exact address for the Sandvik Abrasive block File which you mentioned above. I would like to get one but the only source I heard about was the Woodworking Exhibition now over. Thanks

[wonwinglo]

Rickdev65,you should be able to get them here-

http://www.hobby.uk.com/ they were agents for Sandvik,drop them a line.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-How preserving history can have its problems-Radium threat.

This is a tale of the big bully versus the little guy. It's a true tale. And the little guy is losing really badly. What's more, the big bully may come after your aiplane or your museum next.

One of the nice things about the Pilot's Lounge at the virtual airport is that I get to stay in touch with some very interesting pilots. One of my favorite people on the planet is a guy I've flown with off and on for over 20 years. Among other things, he is considered to be one of the gurus for those seeking knowledge regarding one of the classier of aviation's classic airplanes, the Cessna 195. His name is Jeff Pearson, and he flies out of the Chino, Calif., Airport, where I go as often as I can afford it to get my big-time, historic-airplane fix. Watching those machines snort and bellow does wonders for one's perspective on the world.

Unfortunately, Jeff is trapped in a situation that is so hideous and Kafkaesque that I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. (Actually, I would, because it's truly, truly nasty.) What is frightening beyond his personal tragedy is the potential ramification for the entire historic-aviation community. If some very powerful bureaucrats who have had their way in the actions they are taking against a legitimate seller of U.S. military-surplus aircraft instruments continue to expand their horizons, it can lead to the condemnation and destruction of every airplane and museum in the U.S. that has or ever had any radium-dial instruments in it.

A little background is in order. Jeff Pearson moved to southern California about 25 years ago to continue his career in the aircraft parts business. While working for a company that sold and overhauled instruments, he often dealt with owners of antique and classic aircraft who needed original instruments to make their pride and joy as accurate as possible. Jeff came to know a pretty unique guy, Alec Fulks, who had a very large warehouse stuffed full of instruments in North Hollywood, not far from Burbank Airport. Mr. Fulks had purchased most of these instruments from our U. S. government as it sold them off in the massive public surplus sales following the end of World War II. Thos instruments had originally been manufactured for the Army a! nd Navy to specifications set out by the U.S. government. That's an important fact to remember. In fact it's vital to this entire sordid tale of persecution of a guy who happened to engage in the heinous practice of buying, selling and preserving original instruments and related equipment for historically significant airplanes.

Back in late 1910s -- a.k.a., the dim, dark past (no pun intended) -- aircraft electrical and related lighting systems were far less-than perfect or just plain non-existent. In order to help pilots see their instruments while flying at night, a very small amount of radium was added to phosphorescent paint on the faces of instruments. The radioactive decay of radium caused the phosphorescent paint to glow in the dark. Charles Lindbergh sat behind military-type, radium-illuminated instruments when he flew solo from New York to Paris. They are still installed in the Spirit of St. Louis in the National Air and Space Museum.

Radium is an unstable element, so it is in a constant state of radioactive decay. Eventually radium decays into lead, among other things. As it decays, radium emits Gamma energy (radiation) and also radon gas. Radon gives off what your neighborhood nuclear physicist refers to as Alpha and Beta "daughter" particles. With a sufficiently sensitive Geiger counter, Gamma radiation is detectable even through a metal or plastic instrument case and glass bezel. Alpha and Beta radiation is another thing. It requires ultra sensitive, highly specialized detectors that virtually no one outside of the immediate Nuclear Physics industry has even heard of.

Radiation has long been linked to cancer in humans; after all, Madame Marie Curie, for whom a measurement of radioactivity was named, died of cancer believed to be a result of her experiments with large quantities of radium. It has to be kept in mind that the amount of radium used in radium dial instruments is miniscule. The U.S. government has been sued by technicians who alleged they contracted cancers due to exposure to radium while working on U.S. military-origin radium-dial instrumentation. The United States has successfully defended itself in those cases by showing that the cancers suffered by the plaintiffs could not have been caused by radium dial instrumentation because there was ins! ufficient exposure to radium.

Double Standard.

Despite our government's approach to defending claims of those who worked very closely with radium dial instrumentation, bureaucrats in other agencies have now decided that this instrumentation is a heinous risk to people with far less intimate contact. There is no doubt that an instrument with a radium-dial face may emit radon gas if the case is not hermetically sealed; that is, if the glass is cracked or the ports on the back are not sealed.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Preserving history-The plot thickens-Part 2

In 1999 Jeff called me to say that the California Department of Health Services, Radiologic Health Branch, came to the warehouse expressing concern about radium-dial instruments on the premises. This set a process in motion that seems to have no end -- even almost eight years later -- and thus far has resulted in the destruction of over one million (yes, one million) irreplaceable historic aircraft instruments and related parts, only a tiny fraction of which had any radium. It has also resulted in the razing of one of two warehouses that housed the items since the 1950s. So far, the cost of the "cleanup" has exceeded $7 million and the bill is being presented to Jeff, personally, even though it was a lawfully incorporated company that owned the instruments. Under the law, he cannot even protect his house and family by declaring bankruptcy, so our government has inventoried his house and ! its contents for possible seizure and sale.

The indications are that the folks who did this have used Jeff Pearson as a warm-up to come after anyone who has a radium-dial instrument, including museums, because Jeff didn't have and couldn't obtain the political clout to stop them. They have already started the same despicable process against an 85-year old surplus dealer in Salisbury, Md., over surplus involving radium that he purchased from the very entity that caused the material to be created and then sold to the public.

When the California Department of Health Services first came to speak to Jeff in 1999, the individual assigned to the task seemed reasonable. Jeff was told that all non-intact radium devices had to be containerized and disposed of as hazardous waste. The DHS bureaucrat (his term for himself) also kindly advised Jeff that "programs" existed through which the Department of Defense (DoD) would take care of disposing the offending items.

That made sense. Of course, the bureaucrat's word turned out to be no good. In a subsequent visit, Jeff was informed that all radium instruments had to be disposed of, not just non-intact items. First Jeff would have to complete a special training course and he would be allowed to remove the non-radium inventory. Jeff took and passed the course.

Jeff also contacted DoD officials, who had no knowledge of any "programs" by which they would assume any responsibility for the materials. This revelation was duly passed along to the DHS agent. Jeff even suggested that DHS assist in having the DoD step up to its responsibility for the instruments it created.

Unfortunately, that approach to the matter of potential radioactive instruments must have made way too much sense, because that state inspector was immediately sent to some other assignment, to be replaced by a fellow whose behavior almost defied description.

This was occurring at a facility where only 5% of the inventory contained radium-dial instruments and only 5% of those instruments were non-intact. The radon level was below the guideline for an industrial setting; however, because that was a guideline, the new bureaucrat's interpretation was effectively law. There was no independent third-party to make rulings on the bureaucrat's interpretations; the bureaucrat was prosecutor, judge and jury and his interpretation of the guidelines changed constantly.

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back

Once Jeff had jumped through the training course that was the prerequisite to him separating out the non-radium instruments, the bureaucrat announced he could not do so: Jeff could not take out any of the inventory.

Next the bureaucrat told Jeff he was going to have to get a license to handle radioactives. Jeff got an attorney and learned that no instrument shop, repair or seller or museum holding or working on radium-dial instruments in the State of California was required to get such a license. And no jeweler, who also handles radium, was ever required to get such a license. The bureaucrat who insisted on a license also said it was unlikely Jeff could get one, so Jeff, on advice of counsel, did not immediately apply.

The new DHS bureaucrat arranged for someone from the DoD to visit. The representative, from the Navy, took a look and said, "It's all ours." He also admitted that the DoD did dispatch technicians to retrieve hazardous material of military origin discovered in the public environment and that the Air Force was going around and quietly removing radium instruments from its on-loan display aircraft and the "gate guardians" outside military bases.

About then the DHS brought in the federal Environmental Protection Agency for a walk-through. The EPA reps said that if they got involved, things "would get ugly." It was one of the few truths uttered by a bureaucrat during the entire persecution.

Jeff continued to try to have the DHS work with him to have the DoD buy back the inventory, and he went to Congressman John Calvert asking for help. In a face-to-face meeting, Congressman Calvert told Jeff this was something for the DoD to handle and then wrote to the DoD. The Department of Defense responded to the Congressman by saying that since it didn't sell the instruments directly to Mr. Pearson, it wasn't responsible. Congressman Calvert then stepped away from the situation.

Bring In The Feds

The DHS response to Jeff's continued efforts to have the DoD step up to its responsibility was to inform Jeff he had to get a license or it would turn matters over to the EPA. At the same time the DHS hit him with a cease-and-desist order barring him access to the warehouse and its inventory, even non-radium-dial instruments and it raided his hangar at the Chino Airport. Jeff had to hire a health physicist to test the Chino inventory for contamination before it could be removed. The physicist told Jeff that in over 40 years he'd never seen the DHS go this far overboard.

Jeff decided to apply for the license. So the bureaucrat promptly told Jeff that he would have to obtain a multi-million-dollar bond for "cleanup" before getting the license. He then said he'd give Jeff time to get the license, but meantime the warehouse was completely sealed off and no one was allowed to enter, unless wearing hazmat suits -- for a radon exposure level less than is allowed in industry. (All previous entry had been in street clothes.)

Jeff made an appointment with the DHS head of licensure in Sacramento, who informed him that he certainly could get a license and that there was no bond requirement.

Before the scheduled appointment with the head of licensure, the DHS bureaucrat apparently realized that Jeff might be able to jump this last hurdle that the bureaucrat had erected and took action to keep Jeff from ever recovering any of his inventory: He brought in the EPA, which declared the warehouse completely contaminated. Then, without any testing of the instruments themselves, they hauled every single instrument to a hazardous waste site and destroyed them. No one, neither the EPA nor the State bureaucrat, ever tested the thousands of historic aircraft instruments that were destroyed. They simply said, "We believe they are contaminated," and destroyed unused antique artifacts. Despite being in a warehouse with a radon level below the guideline for an industrial area, the EPA -- without compensating Preservation Aviation -- trashed several million dollars worth of historic airplane instruments. Only 5! % had radium dials and only 5% of those were not "intact." (The EPA admitted the quantities in writing.)

The EPA then razed the warehouse. If you go to that block in North Hollywood, an historic aviation site, all you will see is flat ground. The EPA has said that the cost of their "cleanup" is over $7 million.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Preserving history-Overblown hazards-Part 3

Overblown Hazard

In one of the few press reports about the EPA actions at the North Hollywood facility, the Associated Press quoted the EPA's On Scene Coordinator as suggesting that the radium in the instruments could be used to make a so-called "dirty bomb" by terrorists. To professionals in the field, the suggestion was ludicrous. The notion terrorists might buy or steal thousands of instruments, scrape the tiny amounts of radium paint off, and put it in a bomb is idiotic. One professional suggests it would be far more convenient -- and scientifically just about as hazardous -- to just buy talcum powder and put that in a bomb instead. Another said -- tongue in cheek -- that a pallet of instruments (with radium or not) falling from a plane would be a much more dangerous event.

It's interesting that the original estimate to identify, carry off and bury the contaminated instruments, and clean up residue on site, was well under $100,000. Jeff tried and tried to have the EPA and the California State folks carry out that plan -- that they themselves originally proposed -- but the bureaucrats kept changing their stories, changing their interpretation of the guidelines and lying to Jeff. The word on the street -- and I don't know if it's true or not -- is that Jeff wouldn't contribute anything to the Poor Bureaucrats' Beer Fund, so any time he agreed to a cleanup procedure, the DHS increased the amount of Jeff's inventory that would be affected until every single one of the thousands of historic artifacts were hauled off and destroyed.

Our constitution says that the government may not take private property without compensation. Jeff had figured that Preservation Aviation would take about 20 years to sell off the North Hollywood inventory and that in that time, the total value of those instruments, sold one by one, retail would run about $10 million. I don't know if that is true or not, but even if that estimate is off by three standard deviations (and I saw the staggering magnitude of that inventory) it was still about $200,000 to $500,000 a year in sales.

Neither the EPA or DHS paid Preservation Aviation for the inventory that it had purchased in good faith from a man who had bought it in good faith from our government. Nope, the EPA gave Jeff, as a private individual -- not a stockholder of a corporation in good standing -- a bill for $7 million.

The Thick Plottens

Because Preservation Aviation had some of its inventory in a T-hangar at Chino Airport (mostly new in boxes or in military storage cans), and Jeff had zero political clout, the same folks who had persecuted him in North Hollywood came out to Chino. Except this time it was a raid by more than 30 federal employees, EPA bureaucrats and believe it or not -- FBI agents. As AVweb reported, they sealed off a row of 10 T-hangars. Jeff had instruments in his hangar in that group of 10. The EPA also dragged the County of San Bernadino in because it owns the airport. T! hat eventually proved to be valuable to the hangar tenants because the County had the resources to tell the EPA that it was being stupidly paranoid. Nevertheless, at first -- after testing showed a mere 20 pico-curies per liter of air of radon in the T-hangar containing the instruments -- the EPA declared that everything in all of those 10 T-hangars was "contaminated." They wanted the six airplanes in those hangars, as well as everything else in them -- motorhomes, cars, motorcycles, tools and the hangar buildings themselves destroyed and hauled off to a hazardous-waste disposal area. The EPA had the effrontery to try and use the residential 4 pico-curies per liter guideline for that one hangar and then extrapolate the "contamination" (that was only a product of its fevered imagination) to all 10 hangars.

The County had the clout to compel the EPA to back down and -- to try and keep this recital to a reasonable length -- after a lot of arm waving, the EPA backed down and finally agreed that someone actually determine whether there was actually any contamination in the hangars, rather than just go with the EPA's previously used "we believe" standard for contamination.

The County was required by the EPA to hire a company that could evaluate the radioactive hazard in those hangars and clean it up. The County hired a company approved by the EPA. It came in and found no significant contamination. The EPA went ballistic and had the company fired. A second cleanup company was hired. It went through the T-hangars instrument by instrument at a horrendous cost and it, too, confirmed that the EPA's assertion of "widespread contamination" was absolutely bogus. In Jeff Pearson's inventory it found fewer than 2% of the instruments to have radium dials. It found only seven instruments to be "non-intact." On the floor of Jeff's hangar it found 13 spots of "elevated" radioactivity (by the EPA's standard, not any law). Of those, one -- count 'em, one -- had an origin tied to radium. A piece of tape was applied to that spot and the contaminat! he stuck to the tape when it was pulled away from the floor, removing that tiny bit of contamination. Five spots were found to be Potassium 40, a by-product of deicing fluid. The testing equipment then broke, so no one knows what the other spots were. To the EPA's chagrin, no radium or excess Alpha or Beta particles were found in any of the hangars.

Several other areas of Potassium 40 contamination were detected in the other hangars. The EPA required no remediation.

Double Standards.

Three of the six impounded airplanes had radium-dial instruments installed. The EPA took no action beyond noting that they had such instruments. Several radium-dialed instruments were found in other hangars than Jeff's. The EPA's response to this was, "Unless the instruments in question belong to Mr. Pearson, they can be returned to their owners."

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Preserving history-Aviation fights back-Part 4

Museums are more like industrial sites than homes. So are warehouses. Industrial radon exposure guidelines should be used for collections of radium dial instruments because people do not spend nearly as much time around inventory in warehouses or museums as they do in their homes. Millions of homes in this country have radon levels that exceed EPA recommendations. The standard mitigation is ventilation. If ventilating an area that has some excess concentration level is acceptable for industry and homes, it should be for warehouses, hangars and museums. If a radium-dial instrument is removed from an antique airplane, there has to be an acceptable level of contamination established, rather than junking the airplane. After all, those airplanes fly very few hours in a year and people are simply not exposed to the small level of contamination that may exist, especially if the instrument had b! een intact.

The Department of Defense said, in Jeff Pearson's case, that it did not have the budget to deal with an appropriate cleanup. In other "cleanups" it apparently did. Jeff will never be able to pay the millions that were incurred by overzealous, self-righteous bureaucrats, arbitrarily enforcing nonexistent standards so the money will be paid by some branch of the government. Therefore, it's a book keeping transaction and bureaucrats at one agency trying to protect their budgets should not be allowed to get in the way of doing the right thing. Here, it seems to me, is that the right thing is for the DoD to buy back radium-dial instruments that are actually a hazard and pay for such cleanups that are actually necessary and not the result of some bureaucrat's opinion that he "believes" there is contamination.

Unfortunately, and all politics aside, our government doesn't exactly have a history of doing the right thing, so we can expect more of the disaster that Jeff Pearson went through, with the loss of irreplaceable historic aviation artifacts simply because they were near or in a building that had radium-dial instruments. It's already happening to the gentleman in Salisbury, Md. How would you like it if an EPA bureaucrat met you at your hangar and informed you that because the Stearman next door has radium-dial instruments, your airplane is going to be scrapped and hauled to a hazardous-waste disposal site and that you won't be paid for your property -- on the contrary, you'll have to pay for the disposal?

The bureaucrats have already come for some of us. Unless we stand up against them, they will keep picking us off