Pancho
New member
I'm new to the RC hobby but have some funny learning lessons.
I decided to clean our HZ Super Cub brushed motor and gear box. I cleaned the motor with electric parts cleaner, then put some lube on the bushings. I'm looking at the gear box, and it has some gunk on it, so I spray it with the electric parts cleaner. As I'm holding the gear box, it breaks in half in the prop shaft area, where it is reinforced really well. I automatically assume that we must have broke it, and it is a good thing I decided to clean it. But, the gear box continues to break in my hand and obviously...something else is going on. The gear box became so brittle and fragile...it almost became a pile of dust in my hands!
Lesson learned? Not yet!!! So I watch a video on a cub mod putting a bigger tail wheel on it for a little more forgiveness in taxing and take-offs/landings on rougher ground or grass. I decide that the plastic piece glued to the fuselage that is the brace for the tail wheel needs to come off. It is glued on, so I spray some debonder on it...which works really great. The plastic on the tail seemed to be a different kind of plastic, and I was using a debonder that is safe for foam, so I thought it would be ok. Well, the plastic piece did the same thing...became brittle and fragile and broke into a zillion pieces just looking at it.
I'm guessing the cheap plasticizers that the Asian mfg's are using must be super susceptible to solvents and cause the plasiticizers to leave the plastic? I've never seen anything like this.
Luckily, I watched videos on spray painting foam so that is a lesson I can learn from others!
Don't you just love newbies?
I decided to clean our HZ Super Cub brushed motor and gear box. I cleaned the motor with electric parts cleaner, then put some lube on the bushings. I'm looking at the gear box, and it has some gunk on it, so I spray it with the electric parts cleaner. As I'm holding the gear box, it breaks in half in the prop shaft area, where it is reinforced really well. I automatically assume that we must have broke it, and it is a good thing I decided to clean it. But, the gear box continues to break in my hand and obviously...something else is going on. The gear box became so brittle and fragile...it almost became a pile of dust in my hands!
Lesson learned? Not yet!!! So I watch a video on a cub mod putting a bigger tail wheel on it for a little more forgiveness in taxing and take-offs/landings on rougher ground or grass. I decide that the plastic piece glued to the fuselage that is the brace for the tail wheel needs to come off. It is glued on, so I spray some debonder on it...which works really great. The plastic on the tail seemed to be a different kind of plastic, and I was using a debonder that is safe for foam, so I thought it would be ok. Well, the plastic piece did the same thing...became brittle and fragile and broke into a zillion pieces just looking at it.
I'm guessing the cheap plasticizers that the Asian mfg's are using must be super susceptible to solvents and cause the plasiticizers to leave the plastic? I've never seen anything like this.
Luckily, I watched videos on spray painting foam so that is a lesson I can learn from others!
Don't you just love newbies?
