Willy Nillies Hummer 250 Balsa Build Along

[Willy Nillies]

Hi There,

Rib 2a goes to the inboard side of rib 2. The upper left arrow points to the trailing edge center pieces. The right arrow points to canopy pieces - there should be 2 more each of those - they get sandwiched together to form a canopy.

There will be plywood dihedral braces. You can choose to build it completely flat, a mild amount of dihedral or a large amount of dihedral. The Hummer is very well suited to no or very mild amount of dihedral.

Sincerely,
Doug and Becky
WillyNillies.com

 

[chris398mx]

Hi There,

Rib 2a goes to the inboard side of rib 2. The upper left arrow points to the trailing edge center pieces. The right arrow points to canopy pieces - there should be 2 more each of those - they get sandwiched together to form a canopy.

There will be plywood dihedral braces. You can choose to build it completely flat, a mild amount of dihedral or a large amount of dihedral. The Hummer is very well suited to no or very mild amount of dihedral.

Sincerely,
Doug and Becky
WillyNillies.com

Thank you and glad I asked about the canopy pieces. I thought those were some sort of wing tip parts. LOL

 

[Willy Nillies]

No problem. Glad we can help. The Hummer doesn't get any extra wing tip, it just uses the outboard rib and that's it.

Sincerely,
Doug and Becky
WillyNillies.com

 

[chris398mx]

Here are some more wing assembly pics for those that who may need them next.
From center 1, 2A, 2, 3, then all the common ribs to the end. My leading and trailing edge pieces were too thick for the slots in the ribs, so I just sanded the whole LE and TE pieces until they were a nice slip fit. Make sure the 2A rib slot for the square spars line up before you glue them in.

Center of both wings sitting beside each other.

 

[chris398mx]

Here is a breakdown of the canopy.
Ready for some assembly and glue.

Here is what it looks like together.

 

[chris398mx]

Question.....Does the leading edge need sanded to round it off? If so, do I do it before I glue the wing halfs together or after. I thought it might be easier in smaller pieces.

 

[chris398mx]

@Willy Nillies or anyone else who can help.
Questions:
1. Are the top shear webs?
2. The bottom sheet has the servo covers, but what are the rest of the pieces?
2A. I am assuming the wider pieces are the center wing sheeting?
3. The wing joiner plates are wider than the gap between the wings....Am I supposed to cut them shorter?
4. I still don't understand how the trailing edge center pieces go on.
5. Bottom pic....... Do the shear webs go on both the front and back of the spars the way I have it held with my thumb?
Thanks again for all the help.......I would be lost without it.

 

[Willy Nillies]

@Willy Nillies or anyone else who can help.
Questions:
1. Are the top shear webs? Yes

2. The bottom sheet has the servo covers, but what are the rest of the pieces? The rest of the center sheeting. The larger pieces go aft the spar, shorter pieces fwd of spar. Top and bottom.

2A. I am assuming the wider pieces are the center wing sheeting? Correct

3. The wing joiner plates are wider than the gap between the wings....Am I supposed to cut them shorter?
Those pieces go on the inside of the wing tip rib to reinforce it, otherwise tip rib will bow in when shrinking covering.
The center wing braces are made from plywood and will be a nice fit with no trimming required.

4. I still don't understand how the trailing edge center pieces go on. one rectangle per wing half. I will find a pic and post later.

5. Bottom pic....... Do the shear webs go on both the front and back of the spars the way I have it held with my thumb?
Thanks again for all the help.......I would be lost without it. No, just one on front side of spar only. The first 4 bays from center are all that is required.

View attachment 161868

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Questions answered within your post above in bold italic. We are always glad to help!

Sincerely,
Doug and Becky
WillyNillies.com

 

[Willy Nillies]

Some Hummer wing detail pics....

 

[Willy Nillies]

Question.....Does the leading edge need sanded to round it off? If so, do I do it before I glue the wing halfs together or after. I thought it might be easier in smaller pieces.

View attachment 161866

View attachment 161867

Yes! Please round the leading edges! 😁

Sincerely,
Doug and Becky
Willy Millie's.com

 

[chris398mx]

Yes! Please round the leading edges! 😁

Sincerely,
Doug and Becky
Willy Millie's.com

Thanks, those pictures are worth a 1000 words....I think I have it now........Tonight I finish the wing.

 

[chris398mx]

Update and more questions:
I 3D printed some clamps based on some information I got form @rockyboy .....thanks they work great.

I also printed a balsa stripper that worked well for the 1st time I used it. Don't ask why I had to use it. (hint below)

Wing outer rib support.

Other wing outer rib support (see above balsa stripper ) Man I didn't know balsa would sand so quickly. The supports were just a little long so I went to sanding to correct. A few very light strokes is all it takes. I went overboard on the first one and had to make a new one. Hopefully missing the holes wont be too big of a deal for balance.

I cant believe how many mistakes I am making on this plane. I started putting the center sheeting on the wrong way. I hope it still has enough strength the way I finished it.
Questions:
1. It looks like only 1 of the rear center aft wing pieces will fit. If I try to use both the aileron will end up way past the end of the wing and the control horn will not come close to lining up with the servo. What is it supposed to look like? @Willy Nillies My overall wing width is just over 28".
2. Are the servo control horns supposed to go through the top or bottom of the wing?

 

[chris398mx]

Does the elevator control horn go on top or bottom? It looks like the slot under the horizontal stab is where it should come out......but I always thought the elevator should be a pull up configuration to avoid flex on the control rod.
If it goes on top how are the controls rods supposed to be routed? Same goes for the rudder control rod.... routing?

OK>>>>>> biggest question yet. can someone tell me how to go about making a covering type hinge? Or is there a better easier way to make the hinges? Thanks,

 

[rockyboy]

Looking good! I did the aileron servos on the bottom of the wing. The elevator control horn is designed to go on the bottom and "push up" - a hole through a former in the fuselage acts as a guide to keep the pushrod from flexing too much.

To do a covering hinge, first sand an angle on the leading edge of the control surface on the same side the control horn will go on. Then cover all the parts. Last cut a 3/4" or 1" wide strip of covering and use it like tape to stick the control surface to the stabilizer. You can also get great results using 3M clear medical tape for the hinge - those stay flexible forever and stick really good.

 

[chris398mx]

Looking good! I did the aileron servos on the bottom of the wing. The elevator control horn is designed to go on the bottom and "push up" - a hole through a former in the fuselage acts as a guide to keep the pushrod from flexing too much.

To do a covering hinge, first sand an angle on the leading edge of the control surface on the same side the control horn will go on. Then cover all the parts. Last cut a 3/4" or 1" wide strip of covering and use it like tape to stick the control surface to the stabilizer. You can also get great results using 3M clear medical tape for the hinge - those stay flexible forever and stick really good.

Thanks for the tip.

 

[Willy Nillies]

Hi Chris,

The wing center, trailing edge pieces..... only use one of them. I'll have to look at my cut files. One of them is supposed to be cut in half by the laser, so if the builder does use some dihedral, the pieces are already made for that scenario.

The wingtip braces look good, I wouldn't worry about the holes in the one. Their only purpose is to stop the tip rib from bowing in when the covering is shrunk.

RockyBoy is correct, elevator horn on bottom, push up.

We've been using mono-filament fishing line for hinges on our last several completions and love it. We've been using heavier gauge than most and haven't had any problems at all. 25 lb test seems to be the sweet spot to us. Very very easy to install.

Keep up the great work! As someone mentioned in another thread, not making any mistakes, instead they are happy little accidents.

Sincerely,
Doug and Becky
WillyNillies.com

 

[Willy Nillies]

As for servo horns out the top or bottom of wing. If you are using a landing gear, we prefer out the bottom. If you are not using landing gear we prefer out the top so that grass or whatever doesn't snag a horn and strip a servo.

Sincerely,
Doug and Becky
WillyNillies.com

 

[TooJung2Die]

My favorite material for hinges is Tyvek. Ever try to tear open one of those Tyvek mailing envelopes? It's thin, tough, very flexible and wicks up CA like magic. There's an unlimited free supply at the post office. I recently got a piece of the thicker Tyvek used to wrap houses under siding so that's what I used on the Willy Nillies.


Jon

 

[chris398mx]

Hi Chris,

The wing center, trailing edge pieces..... only use one of them. I'll have to look at my cut files. One of them is supposed to be cut in half by the laser, so if the builder does use some dihedral, the pieces are already made for that scenario.

The wingtip braces look good, I wouldn't worry about the holes in the one. Their only purpose is to stop the tip rib from bowing in when the covering is shrunk.

RockyBoy is correct, elevator horn on bottom, push up.

We've been using mono-filament fishing line for hinges on our last several completions and love it. We've been using heavier gauge than most and haven't had any problems at all. 25 lb test seems to be the sweet spot to us. Very very easy to install.

Keep up the great work! As someone mentioned in another thread, not making any mistakes, instead they are happy little accidents.

Sincerely,
Doug and Becky
WillyNillies.com

Thanks for the advice. I will Forge ahead.

 

[chris398mx]

My favorite material for hinges is Tyvek. Ever try to tear open one of those Tyvek mailing envelopes? It's thin, tough, very flexible and wicks up CA like magic. There's an unlimited free supply at the post office. I recently got a piece of the Tyvek used to wrap houses under siding so that's what I used on the Willy Nillies.
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View attachment 162399
Jon

Thanks for this tip. Looks like a good method. I will check it out.