Cutting Plans Out

datnt2509

New member
Im a bit confused. Am I supposed to cut the outside of the black lines or the inside (leaving no black outline on the template)?
For internal cutouts do I cut the outside of the cutout (leaving no black outline on the template ) or just the inside of the cutout? As an example the horizontal stabilizer of the mini scout has a rectanglular cutout for the tail.
Thanks
 

rockyboy

Skill Collector
Mentor
Like Merv says, the tiny difference in dimensions won't impact how well the plane flys or how it will fit together with a bead of hot glue.

That said, I always try to cut down the center of the line :D
 

Corbarrad

Active member
When you get a speed build kit the laser will have removed the whole area of the line.
The cut will aso taper out towards the bottom because the focus point is on the top surface.
The thickness of your foam board will vary minimally from sheet to sheet and sometimes even within one sheet.
Heck I've built planes from 5mm foam without any changes to the planes when flite test foam is only 3.8mm and it made no difference

All of this doesn't really matter as long as you make sure you build your model square and straight.
If you have a little excess foam when folding it will crush in on itself, if the gap is a little too large the glue will fill it.

I catch myself trying to be too precise all the time and it slows my progress to where it cost me a days worth of flying during Flite Fest, not only this year but every year so far.
Just do the thing! Do it to the best of your abilities and if that's not enough fix it later on, Your abilities will only improve with use and only through use.

I realize at this point that I'm writing a motivational letter to myself and how I need to take my own advice to heart.
And that's why I will use this weekend to DO a thing. hopefully. possibly.

Anyway, thank you for this moment of self-reflection...
 

buzzbomb

I know nothing!
I just try to split the lines. As stated above, it really doesn't matter, it just keeps my cuts consistent. I'm one of those people who spends WAY too much time trying to get that perfect. That's just me, and it definitely slows down my builds. It makes me happy, though. :)
 

Headbang

Master member
The lines are designed to be cut on the center, the thicker lines are just for visibility. When cutting with a laser or needle cutter it always cuts the center of the line. That said the plans are not perfect, even when done perfectly you will have some tight and some loose folds in every build.
 

Ketchup

4s mini mustang
Also, when I cut out the plans themselves I leave about a quarter inch of space outside of the line, but when I cut the foam I try to cut right on the line.
 

Ketchup

4s mini mustang
Thanks. I’m sorry if I sounded like a jerk, I just wasn’t sure if I was correct or not.
 

The Hangar

Fly harder!
Mentor
You could even do a rough cut around the whole piece on leaving all the lines and tape it to the foam board that way and then just cut the black line with the knife.
 

The Hangar

Fly harder!
Mentor
When you get a speed build kit the laser will have removed the whole area of the line.
The cut will aso taper out towards the bottom because the focus point is on the top surface.
The thickness of your foam board will vary minimally from sheet to sheet and sometimes even within one sheet.
Heck I've built planes from 5mm foam without any changes to the planes when flite test foam is only 3.8mm and it made no difference

All of this doesn't really matter as long as you make sure you build your model square and straight.
If you have a little excess foam when folding it will crush in on itself, if the gap is a little too large the glue will fill it.

I catch myself trying to be too precise all the time and it slows my progress to where it cost me a days worth of flying during Flite Fest, not only this year but every year so far.
Just do the thing! Do it to the best of your abilities and if that's not enough fix it later on, Your abilities will only improve with use and only through use.

I realize at this point that I'm writing a motivational letter to myself and how I need to take my own advice to heart.
And that's why I will use this weekend to DO a thing. hopefully. possibly.

Anyway, thank you for this moment of self-reflection...
What did you build at Flitefest?
 

Corbarrad

Active member
What did you build at Flitefest?
I built an FT Alpha, nice enough plane, it kinda begs for bigger control surfaces, though.
There were plans for designing and building a DC-3 in the week before FliteFest but that didn't happen. (loong story...)
The DC-3 is now postponed until after the Electra I'm designing for FTFC2020. (Carl Goldberg, not Lockheed)
If it works out the DC-3 will be an easy semi-scale build with a (semi-) rounded fuselage no posterboard needed at around 40" of span.
 

Headbang

Master member
I built an FT Alpha, nice enough plane, it kinda begs for bigger control surfaces, though.
There were plans for designing and building a DC-3 in the week before FliteFest but that didn't happen. (loong story...)
The DC-3 is now postponed until after the Electra I'm designing for FTFC2020. (Carl Goldberg, not Lockheed)
If it works out the DC-3 will be an easy semi-scale build with a (semi-) rounded fuselage no posterboard needed at around 40" of span.
Would love to see the electra! That was the first plane I had success with almost 30yrs ago. I still have the wing in my garage!
 

Corbarrad

Active member
Would love to see the electra! That was the first plane I had success with almost 30yrs ago. I still have the wing in my garage!
It was my first motorized plane as well. It was a little too large to be practical in my area and the "speed controller" setup was more than sketchy. I swapped in an "electronic soft start switch" at some point which promptly caught on fire. What finally did her in, though was when the high start line got tangled up and it did a near vertical dive into a (soft-ish) meadow because the guy holding the line wouldn't let go...
I too still have the wings stored in the attic.

There's not much there yet but if you're interested check out the build thread that I set up.
 

alan0043

Well-known member
Hi Everyone,

I have a question about plans. There might be a thread about my question but right now I have not done a search yet. But here is my question. Does anyone glue their plans to poster board then cut the plans out ? My thinking is that you could make the plane several times from the same set of plans. If there is a link, can you please post. I am interested in building a simple scout.

Thanks for any info,
Al
 

Headbang

Master member
Hi Everyone,

I have a question about plans. There might be a thread about my question but right now I have not done a search yet. But here is my question. Does anyone glue their plans to poster board then cut the plans out ? My thinking is that you could make the plane several times from the same set of plans. If there is a link, can you please post. I am interested in building a simple scout.

Thanks for any info,
Al
Short answer, yes, many do that. Super 77 works great, so do school glue sticks.
 

KSP_CPA

Well-known member
Hi Everyone,

I have a question about plans. There might be a thread about my question but right now I have not done a search yet. But here is my question. Does anyone glue their plans to poster board then cut the plans out ? My thinking is that you could make the plane several times from the same set of plans. If there is a link, can you please post. I am interested in building a simple scout.

Thanks for any info,
Al

I did that just this weekend for a new FT Goblin I'm building with a light kit. It is quite a pain as you'll be cutting the plans out once to mount to the poster board, once to "fat cut" them out of the poster board, and once to fine cut all the edges. I use 3M Super 45 but really any spray glue works just fine.

And yes on reusing the plans, I've used my TT plans about three times, and a buddy of mine wants to borrow it to get into the hobby. Quite useful!

The guys did release a video a while back about this process. Link is as follows: