J D 8 Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 Was it the same in WW2 when Mosquito production used up much balsa ? An old modeller who had served on carriers said that when a Swordfish was wrecked on the deck all useful parts would removed before the remains were dumped overboard. As this was going on any crew who were modelers would be chopping out UC fairings that were large chunks of balsa. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Gorham_ Posted September 21, 2020 Author Share Posted September 21, 2020 Posted by McG 6969 on 20/09/2020 21:00:50: Alan, It's really not about being 'relaxed about this news' or not. The point simply is 'YOU CAN'T HAVE AN INFLUENCE' on this matter. So, no point of having 'sad' or 'worried' feelings/concerns about it right now. SLEC, the boss, their staff and Tina know a lot better what are their possible actions than you even after 40 years of buying wood and building toy models... please... wait for their actions/decisions to be communicated... Cheers Chris Sorry Chris: you must not have read the release from SLEC and Balsa Cabin. They currently have NO future supplier of balsa. I currently want to buy balsa from them. Please don't tell me how I should feel.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GONZO Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 So how long before the Chinese(and maybe Tesla) restrict the supply of lithium(used to make our batteries) and Neodymium(used for the magnets in our electric motors) by commercial means? After all, the drive(pun) to do away with hydrocarbon fuel and go electric for transport will create a bottomless pit of demand. I'm minded to recall an old saying; "Be careful what you wish for!" (meant for all those environmentalist/extinction rebellion supporters) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbo565 Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 Aye Mr Mainwairing we're doomed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GONZO Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 Jim, "many a true word spoken in jest" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Miller Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 I have only one thing to add to all this STOP THE WORLD. I WANT TO GET OFF RIGHT NOW!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Davies 3 Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 Some interesting comments and thoughts on here. Whilst I agree that this is a very big issue, we have to be realistic here and keep some perspective. If anyone thinks that we can influence the worldwide supply of a resource that is predominately industrial, they are very, very much mistaken. We are, and always will be, a very small part of the demand, and as such, largely irrelevant. If we retain any supply in the future, be grateful for what you get, at whatever price you have to pay. The only alternative is to sit in a throne and yell at the waves... Our options are to either make do with however the supply chain ends up, or be resourceful and find other ways to enjoy our hobby. Or moan about it. Or perm two from three. I can guarantee that the moaning won't make much difference to the outcome though. Things have a habit of moving on, and we really ought to find ways to adapt. One day, things will look very different as our natural resources dwindle, and model fuel is scarce or banned, and Lithium Ion is no longer tolerated or available. Should we stop enjoying our hobby? Sure, some will, but a new generation will show us the way by using new methods and materials. Let's keep supporting SLEC and Balsa Cabin so they stand a chance of still being there to support whatever future we end up with, and lets remember that for most of us on here, it is a hobby and not life and death! Graham Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel R Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 Covid-19 won't stop the world forever, one assumes... and at some stage Ecuador (which, if MattyB's link is true, supplies 95% of the world's balsa) will be back to normal commercial operation again. In the meantime it seems we will likely have raised prices and supply shortages to suck up. Perhaps worth remembering balsa is not the whole of a model. If my records tell me anything useful here, it is that a £100 - covered, finished, kitted out with hardware, etc - airframe probably has £35 of wood in it. Maybe for a couple of years, that will be a £120 airframe with £55 of balsa. Or perhaps I can figure a way to use harder or less preferable wood. Maybe I build more with open trusses instead of cutting out big sheet sides. Use more liteply and foamboard in a built up structure, or as suggested veneered foam wings, tail, fin, decks. Where there's a will... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham Davies 3 Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 Right idea Barrie. I earn my living dealing with Chinese supply, and have done for nearly 2 decades. I have watched their economy grow, and watched the Chinese nation learn how to make things in a more western manner. I have also watched the world become utterly reliant on Chinese supply, or more accurately, Chinese costs. I cannot blame anyone for this. We can moan about every product disappointment we get, but for many people the low costs have ALLOWED them into a hobby that would otherwise be cost-prohibitive. But to think we have much option is a little optimistic, to say the least. For example, if you are fed up with buying Chinese computers, good luck trying to find much alternative. And spending your way out by taking the higher cost option won't help you. Most are, and have been for some time, made in China. To take a stand and buy european only, at industrial level, is commercial suicide. Whilst one chap takes a stand, the rest of the world will continue to buy cheaper product, undercut the price, and slowly win the business with the inevitable consequence. To stand up and say "but my European product is better quality, so you'll be sorry" is also mis-informed. There are a great many very, very good Chinese companies. I buy European where I can, but not exclusively. If I did, I would probably not be in the hobby, because I could not afford otherwise. I have to be realistic. But again, whilst we can and should be passionate about our hobby, I think we will waste our energy trying to change the industrial picture. Graham Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesus Cardin Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 Preference of Chinese wind turbine blade manufacturers for balsa is a good indication of their quality value! It is decades that experienced and quality composite manufacturers worldwide rather prefer synthetic core materials against balsa due to the differences of density of the natural wood. Furthermore regarding blades that if different in weight need static and dynamic balance! The composite manufacturers I know though of using balsa as core for their parts ONLY when oil prices highly rose taking up related products like plastics and, we have to reckon that oil had not been cheap lately. I think things now may greatly change as these days worldwide consumption of oil has fallen and it is clear that nowadays trend for electric powered cars will add to that reduction, thus favouring lower prices of synthetic materials and making even more attractive it´s professional use even for Chinese manufacturers! So, perhaps, balsa availability is not so endangered as we might think at this moment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Flyer Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 Interesting to hear ... I’m sure it will all be resolved...I just checked the web and saw the biggest producers are in Ecuador and it sounds like there is also increasing demand there... just as well the trees are fast growing! **LINK** Edited By Tim Flyer on 21/09/2020 13:01:17 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robin Colbourne Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 The Schleicher ASW15 was once of the last production gliders to use balsa as a core material, and even that was changed for the last 25% of the production run, due to wood variability and rotting. There is a also an issue with balsa soaking up a lot of expensive epoxy resin. Rigid acrylic foams such as Conticell and Rohacell were the alternatives used. If the Chinese really are ramping up structural plastic foam production and Ecuador opens its doors again after Coronavirus is brought under control, maybe we will see a corresponding dip in the price of balsa in a few years time? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Gray Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 Posted by Barrie Lever on 21/09/2020 11:36:48: Well I have just put a £200.00 order into SLEC for wood that should see me through the winter. When that runs out I will figure out alternative materials. Oh dear, is this the start of another toilet paper 'hoarding' action? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Gray Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 @Barrie - my comment was in jest, £200 of balsa doesn't go that far but my order for £3K's worth does! Joking Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denis Watkins Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 Balsamart At Blackburn Models UK Has loads of wood Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel R Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 Posted by Graham Davies 3 on 21/09/2020 11:52:34: I earn my living dealing with Chinese supply, and have done for nearly 2 decades. I have watched their economy grow, and watched the Chinese nation learn how to make things in a more western manner. I have also watched the world become utterly reliant on Chinese supply, or more accurately, Chinese costs. At the end of the day, China has 1.5 billion inhabitants. The UK, has 66 million. We are, if you like, a rounding error in their population estimates. Our economy, whilst significant, is small by comparison wtih China, and I believe large amounts (75% IIRC) of the UK economy are financial services, so if you talk about goods production we are a midget by comparison. Brexit will further hit the UK economy for the next god knows how long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted September 21, 2020 Share Posted September 21, 2020 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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