Jackson T
Elite member
No, I've never heard of Uncle Bills. I buy my foam from the craft shop (for way too high a price), and my balsa from Bunnings. How big is a sheet of Adams, and how heavy is it?
4 Metre Glider Scratch Build
- Thread starter Jackson T
- Start date
bracesport
Legendary member
bunnings stock FB too - it is fine to use (not sure on price)
uncle bills
I think Adams is about 110g
uncle bills
I think Adams is about 110g
Jackson T
Elite member
How big is a sheet? I had a look, and there aren't any stores near me. I'll have to have another look on the bunnings site, I thought they only sell insulation foam.
bracesport
Legendary member
@Jackson T - the usual 20x30 (500x750) - they have a craft dept!
Jackson T
Elite member
Had a go at sheeting today. My balsa supplier only has 91cm lengths, which is why the whole leading edge isn't sheeted yet.
It's not pretty, but it's my first time sheeting, and with a new glue too. On a side note, the carbon fibre tow arrived today. Now I just have to wait for Hobbyking to get 30min epoxy back in stock! The weight before sheeting was roughly 175 grams, and it's now around 199 grams.
It's not pretty, but it's my first time sheeting, and with a new glue too. On a side note, the carbon fibre tow arrived today. Now I just have to wait for Hobbyking to get 30min epoxy back in stock! The weight before sheeting was roughly 175 grams, and it's now around 199 grams.
TooJung2Die
Master member
If there's anything wrong with the sheet you can't see it from here. My suggestion is to join the sheeting before putting it on. Getting the ends of the sheeting to match up while it is on the wing will be difficult because of the curved shape. Glue them end to end to make one sheet the length you want first. Then glue it to the wing as one piece.
Jackson T
Elite member
Good idea! I just asked a bit late...
TooJung2Die
Master member
It's coming along great. 211 grams = 7.4 ounces. Doesn't seem excessive to me but I don't fully understand the in's and out's of weight when it comes to gliders. I thought the Apollo glider I just finished would be sluggish with its AUW of 3.5 pounds and a 72.8" wingspan. Not true, it glides great. Sometimes you add extra ballast to gliders to increase weight. Especially for slope soaring.
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Jackson T
Elite member
Yeah, I saw that, nice one! How much wing area does it have? I guess even if this thing does comes out over weight, it should still be relatively slow.
TooJung2Die
Master member
The Apollo has about 4 square feet of wing. I calculated the wing loading to about 14 oz per square foot. The bigger the glider the higher the wing loading it can have and fly well. With bigger gliders like your 4m, you might want more weight so it penetrates and maintains airspeed. If it flies too slow the control will feel sluggish.
Tench745
Master member
This is why we will sometimes use "cubic wing loading" because it scales equally as size increases.
Jackson T
Elite member
So that's the point of cubic wing loading!
Jackson T
Elite member
Thanks! I'm using transparent covering film on this oneLooks good, once it is covered no one will know the difference.
TooJung2Die
Master member
I actually enjoyed cutting out the ribs on the printed balsa kits I built. What have you found to be the easiest way to transfer the pattern from the plan to the balsa?
