Minutes of the Cessna

[kittyfritters]

Yes, minutes! This one is going to be built a few minutes here and there whenever I can grab some time. After I finished the Presto I put the plans of a Guillow's #601, Cessna 180 on the portable building board. I covered them with non-stick (Opened up Costco office trashcan liner...C/A doesn't stick to it!) and that's as far as I got.

Today I had to get some minor work done preparatory to a Smog Check so I can get next years tags (Those who live in California know what I'm talking about.) It wouldn't take long, all that needed changing was the NOX sensor and the gas cap. I decided to wait in the mechanic's office while the work was being done and start building the model.

The die cutting was exceptionally clean and the sheet wood was very good quality. The strip stock was a little hard, but in a 600 series model this isn't really a problem. I set the board on my lap and started in using CA and kicker at about 11:30 AM.

The basic fuselage took shape quickly. While I worked customers and my mechanic and his son (also a mechanic) kept coming in to check the progress. I finished framing the wings and the tail. About a quarter to two I started in on the elevator when I noticed that everyone in the shop had been sitting in the office for a while just watching me build the model. I asked if my car was done and they said, "Yes, about an hour ago".

It was a bit of a Mark Twain moment...you know, "I find work fascinating. I can watch it for hours."

I packed up, paid my bill, and promised that I would bring the model back to show them when it was finished.

[Bill Gaylord]

Judging from the photo color, it does appear that you lucked out and got reasonably light and consistent sheets. Gotta love it when that happens. I've run across a number of Guillows kits with top quality die-cut parts, as you mentioned this kit having. The people that complain about Guillows die-cutting haven't seen some of the other vintage die-cut kits. Definitely part of the reason Guillows stayed in business. I just built two Comet die-cut kits, and they were rough. It would have been easier to scratch build, along with recutting parallel ran wing formers, since the "X" construction is horrible. The only attraction was the plastic parts.

[scigs30]

This series comes with ok wood, the problem I've had is the accuracy of cutting. My problem.......the quality of the new laser cut kits from Guillows.....I'm spoiled. These will be great kits if they are converted to 1/16 sheet and laser cut. My Cub 95 flies great but the die cutting accuracy was the only challenge.

[kittyfritters]

Judging from the photo color, it does appear that you lucked out and got reasonably light and consistent sheets. Gotta love it when that happens. I've run across a number of Guillows kits with top quality die-cut parts, as you mentioned this kit having. The people that complain about Guillows die-cutting haven't seen some of the other vintage die-cut kits. Definitely part of the reason Guillows stayed in business. I just built two Comet die-cut kits, and they were rough. It would have been easier to scratch build, along with recutting parallel ran wing formers, since the "X" construction is horrible. The only attraction was the plastic parts.

As it turned out, the two sheets that the fuselage side parts were cut from, in this kit, were almost exactly the same weight. The fuselage built true right in my hands. (By the way, when you build this kit it works better if you only glue the tail end together above the elevator slot when gluing in the alignment former and the nose former. Glue it together below the elevator slot after it is trued up.) Proper re-engineering of this kit for laser cutting would necessitate having both the fuselage sides cut from the same sheet of wood. This might be a little tricky with the size of the sheets they use in this kit series. Should be interesting to see how they do with it.

I was recently asked to redraw the parts sheet of a 1962 vintage Comet kit for laser cutting. This was for a club group build. I was given and original kit to work from. The die cutting was so bad that I could not see how anyone could have built the model with those parts. The size of the parts did not match the plans to any reasonable tolerance. I ended up redrawing the parts to match the plans and I have received several complements on the fit of the laser cut parts.

On the other hand, I have built some Comet Super Star kits that were cut when the dies were fresh and with suitable lightening, beginning with leaving that damn tube out, they were very satisfying fliers and with the X-wing construction, very durable.

[Bill Gaylord]

Judging from the photo color, it does appear that you lucked out and got reasonably light and consistent sheets. Gotta love it when that happens. I've run across a number of Guillows kits with top quality die-cut parts, as you mentioned this kit having. The people that complain about Guillows die-cutting haven't seen some of the other vintage die-cut kits. Definitely part of the reason Guillows stayed in business. I just built two Comet die-cut kits, and they were rough. It would have been easier to scratch build, along with recutting parallel ran wing formers, since the "X" construction is horrible. The only attraction was the plastic parts.

As it turned out, the two sheets that the fuselage side parts were cut from, in this kit, were almost exactly the same weight. The fuselage built true right in my hands. (By the way, when you build this kit it works better if you only glue the tail end together above the elevator slot when gluing in the alignment former and the nose former. Glue it together below the elevator slot after it is trued up.) Proper re-engineering of this kit for laser cutting would necessitate having both the fuselage sides cut from the same sheet of wood. This might be a little tricky with the size of the sheets they use in this kit series. Should be interesting to see how they do with it.

I was recently asked to redraw the parts sheet of a 1962 vintage Comet kit for laser cutting. This was for a club group build. I was given and original kit to work from. The die cutting was so bad that I could not see how anyone could have built the model with those parts. The size of the parts did not match the plans to any reasonable tolerance. I ended up redrawing the parts to match the plans and I have received several complements on the fit of the laser cut parts.

On the other hand, I have built some Comet Super Star kits that were cut when the dies were fresh and with suitable lightening, beginning with leaving that damn tube out, they were very satisfying fliers and with the X-wing construction, very durable.

Good points on the fuse construction. It's very difficult to get a 100% straight fuse, with this type of construction. 98% might not be too difficult, but that last bit of perfection is the killer.

LOL on "leaving that damn tube out". It works well for rc, but not for ff. Even in that case, I had to come up with a temporary sleeve construction method, so I could remove the front part of the tube after fuse assembly, providing area to fit the motor. My main issue with the x-wing is appearance. It doesn't work well for an Albatros DV. The parts in the kit definitely fit the definition of not being able to be built out-of-the-box, including the fit of the plastic parts. It's a beautiful model with a bit of added effort, but I can't imagine what it would look like, if built as-is.
Turned out to be a good looking and great flying model however, using the kit wing section, although recut for parallel formers. I imagine it could be a good ff, with a LOT of lightening.
http://www.wattflyer.com/forums/showthr ... 387&page=2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGqNdDv ... e=youtu.be

[kittyfritters]

LOL on "leaving that damn tube out". It works well for rc, but not for ff. Even in that case, I had to come up with a temporary sleeve construction method, so I could remove the front part of the tube after fuse assembly, providing area to fit the motor. My main issue with the x-wing is appearance. It doesn't work well for an Albatros DV. The parts in the kit definitely fit the definition of not being able to be built out-of-the-box, including the fit of the plastic parts. It's a beautiful model with a bit of added effort, but I can't imagine what it would look like, if built as-is.
Turned out to be a good looking and great flying model however, using the kit wing section, although recut for parallel formers. I imagine it could be a good ff, with a LOT of lightening.
http://www.wattflyer.com/forums/showthr ... 387&page=2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGqNdDv ... e=youtu.be

Bill,

The trick was to cut the formers, before assembly, to leave thin "spokes" holding the tube hole in the center of the formers. After assembly you can reach in with a small blade, cut the "spokes" and pull the tube out from the front. I also cut lightening holes in the ribs (The Zero, and Bf-109 had rather thick airfoils.) and completely re-designed the elevators. I would imagine that the X-wing construction would look bizarre on a Albatros DV.

Howard

[kittyfritters]

It seems that I am destined to work on this model while someone is working on a car. I went to get the smog check on my car, on Monday, and took the portable building box with me. I managed to finish the stabilizer and get the rest of the formers and stringers on the fuselage. Next, comes the sanding portion of the program which, just for politeness sake, I will perform at home. Since I don't have to find an solid hour to work on it, as things are going, I may finish this before the Arrow. Let's see, my daughter's car is in the shop...

[davidchoate]

I have'nt had the luxury of doing a laser cut kit lately, but havent had much trouble. Espescially with the 1/20" wood. just a sanding on the back, and the parts fall out; however I did an 300 Aeronca Chap, and the ticker wood did not come out as easy, but it was'nt a nightmare. I didnt have to cut any from plans. I am a Mecanic, and have never seen somoeone build a plane while waiting. I somoetimes display one in the office/waiting area, and usually a little kid gets to it.