Elder 60 Restoration

rockyboy

Skill Collector
Mentor
Thanks guys!

I've got to say - if you even think you have the room to store a big bird like this, find a local one on craigslist or ebay or rcgroups that needs to some work and do the restoration. It's a whole lot of fun and at least in this case, bigger really does fly better! :D
 

rockyboy

Skill Collector
Mentor
So our club is having a Giant Scale fly in on June 23rd - and when I went up to look at where my big bird is stored I found she had hangar rash! About a 6 inch tear in the wing covering! :cry: Doesn't look like any balsa damage though.

So I'm thinking about taking this opportunity to recover the wing entirely. I do have a roll of the new Oratex iron on fabric covering that should hold up better to handling than the decade old monocote http://shop.balsausa.com/product_p/tx-000.htm

Now for the hardest part... what coloring scheme? :unsure: I'm sort of leaning towards another WW1 Italian ace Baracca like I've done before since they are so easy to keep orientation with...
 

PsyBorg

Wake up! Time to fly!
Wouldnt that require snoopy be removed for a mord traditional old guy pilot?

What about sopwith colors n markings that way snoopy can live to fight the baron again 😁
 

L Edge

Master member
Swap meets are your friend when it comes to big birds. Everything from airframes to engines to electronics at bargain prices. My favorite swap meet score so far is a Balsa USA 1/4 scale Cub, that came complete with a Zenoah 23cc gas engine, all servos, completely covered and needing only minor work (new landing gear wires, new gas tank and lines, new battery, and new receiver). I paid $100 and put maybe $50 additional into it to get it in the air.

There is a swap meet near Green Bay this weekend and I'm hoping to find a couple glow engines. I've got another 1/4 scale Cub that needs an engine, so something around .90 to 1.0 should work well. I'm also looking for a .75-ish size for a Great Planes F-4 Phantom that I got after it was about 60% built. Glow engines are getting very common as well since electric and gas are so popular.

Have you thought about a 4 stroker (90) for the cub?
 

rockyboy

Skill Collector
Mentor
Wouldnt that require snoopy be removed for a mord traditional old guy pilot?

What about sopwith colors n markings that way snoopy can live to fight the baron again 😁

Good point. Not switching out Snoopy... time to look around the US and British schemes some more....
 

PsyBorg

Wake up! Time to fly!
Oh Jon, dont change plans because if me mate I was pokin fun at ya as usual.

Your stuff is always on point.
 

rockyboy

Skill Collector
Mentor
Oh Jon, dont change plans because if me mate I was pokin fun at ya as usual.

Your stuff is always on point.

I don't mind the pokin fun at all - and this gives me an excuse to research more cool planes so it's all good! :D

And if I don't find a scheme I like as much as the Italian one, Snoopy is getting a little pencil mustache and red scarf! :p
 

rockyboy

Skill Collector
Mentor
So when I got the wing peeled last night, I got an eye full of some rough work. Definitely a scratch build and not a kit. But this certainly proves they don't need to be pretty inside to fly well.

20190603_192249-1024x576.jpg


Going to rework these servo mounts so there is a good surface to attach the covering.
20190603_192256-1024x576.jpg


And I just can't put covering over this without some spackle and sanding first. I know it's possible because it was covered before but I just can't. People, this isn't how fiberglassing is supposed to look when you're done. Yes, it's still strong and functional - but it's a whole lot of extra epoxy that is just adding weight, not strength, and is a mess for finishing left all thick and bumpy like this.
20190603_192305-1024x576.jpg


I am pretty sure the builder didn't harm any sandpaper on this build either. Again, this just goes to prove that it doesn't need to look pretty or neat to fly. Not my style of building, but as long as whomever built it had fun doing so and flying, it was a success.
 
Last edited:

rockyboy

Skill Collector
Mentor
First thing was to put some 3M lightweight spackle over the rough spots at the wing join. Some of this will sand off.

20190604_155522-1024x576.jpg


And starting to frame up new aileron servo mounts.
20190604_175455-1024x576.jpg


Time to let the epoxy dry here and move to the other side.
 

Tench745

Master member
And I just can't put covering over this without some spackle and sanding first. I know it's possible because it was covered before but I just can't. People, this isn't how fiberglassing is supposed to look when you're done. Yes, it's still strong and functional - but it's a whole lot of extra epoxy that is just adding weight, not strength, and is a mess for finishing left all thick and bumpy like this.

I am pretty sure the builder didn't harm any sandpaper on this build either. Again, this just goes to prove that it doesn't need to look pretty or neat to fly. Not my style of building, but as long as whomever built it had fun doing so and flying, it was a success.

Based on the thickness and color it looks like it was some 5-minute epoxy too, not nice stuff for glassing... Can't wait to see the end result.
 

rockyboy

Skill Collector
Mentor
Based on the thickness and color it looks like it was some 5-minute epoxy too, not nice stuff for glassing... Can't wait to see the end result.

So that's what 5 minute looks like! I always use 20 or 30 minute since it penetrates and holds better - now I see why the 5 minute stuff is best left on the shelf!

On the wing I added a little piece of balsa framing to butt up to the leading and trailing edge sides of the servo hatch so the covering has a place to firmly attach all the way around the hatch.

20190605_193343-1024x576.jpg


And when I cut the slot and put the servo horn on, it's way too short and the clevis is stuck inside the slot. So now I've got longer Hitec servo horns on order...

I also started on repairing the ailerons where the hinges were cut off. There is no way I'm putting myself through the mess of digging out the plastic hinges, so I sliced them off evenly and glued in a new piece of scrap balsa to fill in the leading edge where the hinges were recessed.

20190605_193202-1024x576.jpg


With a little lightweight spackle drying overnight, the ailerons will be ready for sanding and hinge slotting next. I also stuck a couple screws in the hatch just to hold it in place for now - planning on 6 screws for the final mounting to make sure it's secure.

20190605_233700-1024x576.jpg
 
Last edited:

Bricks

Master member
The pic of the 2 wing halves epoxied together that is not fiberglass it is dry wall tape. Best part is seeing the yellow glue more then likely Ambroid , small shop a guy could just about get high on that stuff. Remember using a lot of that years ago very good glue but was always yellow when applying and once dried.

Cannot wait to see the finished product, one nice thing about bigger it is much easier to work on, actually have room to get things done. The bad is the one piece wing I have a couple of old scratch builds that I picked up cheap at a swap meet both are 80 inch one piece wings, just a pain.
 

rockyboy

Skill Collector
Mentor
The pic of the 2 wing halves epoxied together that is not fiberglass it is dry wall tape.

:ROFLMAO: You're absolutely right! Don't know why I didn't figure that out before - I've got a roll under the bench right behind me! :ROFLMAO: It's fitting that I'm using lightweight drywall spackle to smooth it out now.

Best part is seeing the yellow glue more then likely Ambroid , small shop a guy could just about get high on that stuff. Remember using a lot of that years ago very good glue but was always yellow when applying and once dried.

This stuff is hard as nails now too - I can't sand it, can't cut it with an xacto, can barely break it with plies. I'm resorting to a steel file to round off any blobs that annoy me too much. It's as bad as epoxy blobs...

Cannot wait to see the finished product, one nice thing about bigger it is much easier to work on, actually have room to get things done. The bad is the one piece wing I have a couple of old scratch builds that I picked up cheap at a swap meet both are 80 inch one piece wings, just a pain.

Thanks! Big wings are fun to work on, and fun to fly, but a real pain in the butt to store.

@rockyboy - just picked up this thread - makes me want to do a restoration real bad! nice work so far, very nice!

Thanks! I highly recommend restorations - there is a lot to learn by opening up an old plane and seeing how it was put together.

Pretty slick, nice work

Thanks! I've seen a couple techniques that keep the entire servo arm hidden inside the wing that I want to try soon. On this build the ailerons are too thin to hide the components, and I don't want to take the time to build new ailerons right now - I really want her back in the air for my club's June 23rd Giant Scale Fly-in.
 
Last edited:

Joker 53150

Mmmmmmm, balsa.
Mentor
I highly recommend restorations - there is a lot to learn by opening up an old plane and seeing how it was put together.

A big thumbs-up to this recommendation. There is also a lot of satisfaction in knowing you helped keep a plane out of the dumpster. A couple of my restorations were probably too-far gone before I started them, but have still been great learning experiences.
 

rockyboy

Skill Collector
Mentor
More news later, but I love this Oratex Iron On covering so far!

20190610_184629-1024x576.jpg


Goes on very nicely with the iron, and stretched around the wingtip smoothly.

I haven't tightened it up yet (need to trim the trailing edge and cover the top side first) but right now this is my favorite covering to apply! No fussing and curling around like Monokote, and before the iron it stays put where you lay it down. Very nice indeed!
 
Last edited: