GrahamC Posted October 26, 2013 Share Posted October 26, 2013 After a frustrating wait for a plan, I made a start on my Pushy Cat today. I'm planning to provide a fairly detailed account of the build in the hope that I might encourage some new builders to have a go... First you will need a plan. The cheapest way to get it is to ring Q&EFI and ask for the January 2005 back issue... Then you will need... 2 Sheets of 1/8th / 3mm balsa. [1 for Fuse sides, Tail and F1. 1 for sheeting underside] 1 Sheet 3/16 / 4.5mm balsa [Tail boom parts] 2 Sheets 1/4 / 6mm [Wings] Offcut of 3mm ply or lightply [F2, F3 & F4] Offcut of 1mm ply for doublers 3/16 Square or 3/16by1/8 spruce strip for underside of booms. [I used the remainder as a spar] piece of 3/8 balsa for rear fuselage.... ...and block for canopy and nose. [Could use laminated remainder of 3/8th ] You will also need 1 horn, 6 hinges, and 1 torque rod set. So... Here's what I did... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrahamC Posted October 26, 2013 Author Share Posted October 26, 2013 First... a note. Here's the motor I'm planning to use. I'm intending on making one change to the plan. I'll shortening my fuselage and having my motor in the fresh air... I'm using a 2826 2200kv with a 6x4 prop. I'll use a 2200 3 cll battery and a 30A ESC. First Job, was to cut out all the parts. I copy the relevant section of the plan on my printer scanner, cut out the relevant template and sellotape it to the balsa. I then cut through the tape, paper template and balsa. I use a Scalpel with an 11 or 10a blade. Not a great deal of parts to cut with the pushy cat! Next job is cutting the wood for the wings. I marked up the individual pieces over the plan. You don't want to cut these too short! They are the most expensive pieces in the build! Adding some light pencil lines to the plan helps. One piece of balsa [4 inch x 36 inch] is sufficient for each wing... Keep the off cuts for the wing tips. When you have cut both wings... try and make sure that they will both weigh the same.., I managed to do it by swapping some pieces around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrahamC Posted October 26, 2013 Author Share Posted October 26, 2013 Now to glue the wing pieces together. I might use aliphatic for this, but today I used thin cyan. Either way, I would proceed as follows. I used a flat piece of kitchen worktop and some grease proof paper. [I didn't want to glue my wings to the worktop!] I use masking tape to join the pieces together... Then flip the wing over... run cyano into the joint, and weight the wing down so that its flat while the glue dries. This works with aliphatic, but you need to leave it a lot longer to dry properly. Next job when the glue has dried, is to make sure that the two wing panels are the same shape, and that they have a nice straight join line. I do this by holding them together and sanding around the edge. Then I mark the wings with a sharpie along the profile lines... Then mark a centreline on the leading and trailing edge. If you don't have a centreline marker, you will find that you can do a reasonable job by running a pen along the edge like this... Next job... Shaping the wings... I've video'd that, and I'll post when its finished uploading... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrahamC Posted October 28, 2013 Author Share Posted October 28, 2013 This might be boring to some, and I'm not trying to teach anyone to suck eggs but.... If you are interested, here is how I shaped the wings... It really is that quick and easy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrahamC Posted October 28, 2013 Author Share Posted October 28, 2013 I've sunk the remainder of the spruce into the wing to act as a spar... Next job.. assemble the fuselage. I use a makeshift fuselage jig to make sure everything stays as straight as possible. A 2200KV 3 cell will fit in there nicely. Boom pieces glued together, and reinforced with strips cut from ice lolly sticks. WIngs glued together, and marked up for ailerons and torque rods. The wing is not really deep enough for me to bury the torque rod, so I've epoxied the hinge points in the wing where they will be supported by the fuselage side and booms. Canopy is made up of leftovers from other projects... I changed my mind about the canopy and formed a clear canopy by shrinking a pop bottle over a a balsa plug... Here's where I have got to so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WolstonFlyer Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 She is looking very nice Graham , the video on making the wings is very interesting, now I know what I did wrong making my Tucano wings.... trying to plane the wing with the tips attached and digging in the corners of a Permagrit tool... and doing the sanding and planing inside the house! I am still waiting for my back copy of the magazine with plan to arrive but I have got a pile of wood ready for this and the Tinker build (yes I am going to try and build both - I will see how I get on for time) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrahamC Posted October 28, 2013 Author Share Posted October 28, 2013 Posted by WolstonFlyer on 28/10/2013 18:35:25: She is looking very nice Graham , the video on making the wings is very interesting, now I know what I did wrong making my Tucano wings.... trying to plane the wing with the tips attached and digging in the corners of a Permagrit tool... and doing the sanding and planing inside the house! I am still waiting for my back copy of the magazine with plan to arrive but I have got a pile of wood ready for this and the Tinker build (yes I am going to try and build both - I will see how I get on for time) I'm glad it helped... yes I discovered that about the Permagrit block the hard way.... great tool but not for this! Can't believe you shaped a wing indoors... did you get into trouble? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WolstonFlyer Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 Trouble... oh yes! Balsa dust everywhere.It looks like you were using a cork sanding block? I think I have seen them in B&Q so will go and get one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrahamC Posted October 28, 2013 Author Share Posted October 28, 2013 As it happens yes... We just happened to have one lying around. I think a block of wood would probably work as well. Its just that the ends of the Permagrit block are hard and sharp, and as you found, one careless stroke and you have a nasty gouge. I do use the PermaGrit a lot, but find it useful to have sandpaper lying around in the shed. I keep pound shop contact adhesive, and quite often make little sanding tools for fiddly jobs by glueing sandpaper to scraps of balsa and ply. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Leighfield Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 Nice video Graham, you're somewhat better organised than me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Depron Daz Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 Mmmmmm, A large one made of depron, me thinks! Nice build log Graham, and all in 2 days, very impressive. Daz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brfc7 Posted October 29, 2013 Share Posted October 29, 2013 Really should have a go at building one of these, I bought Ken Andersons MK2 off him at the start of the year but unfortunately the canopy came off in flight hitting the prop and wrecking the model I bought the plan and magazine after the accident but I've never built anything before so been putting off. I stillI have all the servos the motor and esc just sat doing nothing. baz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrahamC Posted October 29, 2013 Author Share Posted October 29, 2013 Posted by brfc7 on 29/10/2013 09:06:32: Really should have a go at building one of these, I bought Ken Andersons MK2 off him at the start of the year but unfortunately the canopy came off in flight hitting the prop and wrecking the model I bought the plan and magazine after the accident but I've never built anything before so been putting off. I stillI have all the servos the motor and esc just sat doing nothing. baz Go for it Baz. The mass build is a great opportunity to have a go at building for the first time, and the Pushy Cat may not be suitable for a novice pilot, but its certainly ideal for the novice builder! You will find lots of support on the forum if you get stuck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brfc7 Posted October 31, 2013 Share Posted October 31, 2013 Graham, When joining the wing pieces together does the cyano not absorb into the wood too quick and dry before joining the pieces together? and then also stick the masking tape to wing? Sorry it's a bit of a basic question but I've never done any building before except throwing together ARTF's and repairs, shame you didn't do a few more vids. as I feel well clued up on how to plane the wings after watching your above video. I think you should start again doing a full video baz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrahamC Posted October 31, 2013 Author Share Posted October 31, 2013 Baz... No it worked fine, and my masking tape came off easily. The masking tape trick is used by some people to butt join pieces of balsa for skinning wings. You could always run thin PVA down the join from the other side once you have removed the masking tape. Also, If you are unsure, aliphatic glue will work just as well, and give you more time to fiddle about. If you use aliphatic, wipe the excess glue off of the top of the wing before weighting it down to dry. The masking tape should keep the Jon nice and neat on the underside. I'll have a look later and see if I have some pieces of 6mm scrap I can butt join to make a little video to give you an idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IanR Posted October 31, 2013 Share Posted October 31, 2013 Since Colin and Baz have mentioned it I'll add my 2 pen'orth. Thanks for the video Graham. I've searched for, and looked at, many various build videos on Youtube but they invariably explain what they're going to do then cut and come back to show what they've done - Blue Peter style, "here's one I made earlier" Yours actually shows you going through the motions from beginning to end. And you didn't even stop at one wing and tell us to do the second wing same as the first. You changed camera angles and did the second wing from start to finish, again. Brilliant. You probably won't realise what confidence and inspiration you've inspired. Many thanks, again. I'm off to get my SLEC order in (also based on your earlier post!) Ian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrahamC Posted October 31, 2013 Author Share Posted October 31, 2013 Baz... In my previous post PVA should read Cyano as in "You could always run thin cyano down the join from the other side once you have removed the masking tape." Sorry! I must be getting old! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brfc7 Posted October 31, 2013 Share Posted October 31, 2013 Ha, was wondering why pva. What is aliphatic glue that you've mentioned? Is that a makers name or type of glue? I prefer to use cyano but if doing something I've not done before I'd like the chance to have some time for adjustment. Baz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrahamC Posted October 31, 2013 Author Share Posted October 31, 2013 Aliphatic is similar to PVA but much easier to sand. I use Titebond original. A quick vid as promised.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrahamC Posted October 31, 2013 Author Share Posted October 31, 2013 I managed to grab a few more photos earlier. Here is where I have got to.... The fuselage is glued to the wings. My plan is to cover the fuselage, tail and the booms first, then glue the booms in place, and cover the wings. Just a little work to do here. I plan to make the lid [or some of it] removable so that the torque rods can be accessed. I planning to fit a raised ply floor slightly higher than the wing to stiffen up this area, and provide a hollow underneath in which the ESC will sit. ESC overheating ws possibly the cause of my first Pushy Cat's demise, and I don't want it to happen again! The power and control leads will pass between the torque rod ends. The hatch has scraps glued in place to locate it. I've yet to make a way of securely holding the hatch in place. I've read of two Pushy Cats which have been destroyed by the hatch coming off in flight and passing through the prop and damaging the booms. I'n not keen on magnets and some kind of mechanical latch will be the order of the day! 1/8th Balsa has been fitted to the underside and sanded to match the rest of the fuselage. A Servo support from scrap 3mm ply has been sunk into the tail....Anyone think this servo might be a fake? I was a bit nervous to discover that the servos I purchased at the NATS are labelled "Serve" rather than "Servo" Apart from that they look well made... but I'm not sure! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Depron Daz Posted October 31, 2013 Share Posted October 31, 2013 Oh undoubtedly fake Graham. Send them to me and I'll make sure that they'll go in the bin for you, honest Guv! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brfc7 Posted October 31, 2013 Share Posted October 31, 2013 Another very informative video thanks graham It is obviously a very easy task to do but sometimes things are a little hard to grasp just reading how to do it. I now look forward to doing my 4 wing joins The reason my canopy came off was unfortunately pilot error I used a different lipo to my normal ones and the wires come out of it in a slightly different way so when I locked on the canopy the lipos wires were pushing it back off baz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrahamC Posted November 2, 2013 Author Share Posted November 2, 2013 I've got a bit further, so here are a few photos... I decided to use a bolt and captive nut to secure the canopy. The tongue is epoxied to the canopy, and there is a ply block and captive nut set into the underneath of the nose block. Another picture... I've also stiffened up the motor mount area with a plate forming a recess for the the ESC. Here from above. And from below... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrahamC Posted November 2, 2013 Author Share Posted November 2, 2013 And I've made a start on covering... A stage of building I don't like! And I don't like Solarfilm! The Chinese stuff from Giant Shark and Hobbyking is so much better... but I have some Solarfilm to use and so I have been battling with that... I'm getting there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WolstonFlyer Posted November 2, 2013 Share Posted November 2, 2013 It is looking very good What sort of hinges do you use? I saw a YouTube video the other day warning that Mylar CA hinges are no good because they eventually split. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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