Tony Nijhuis Hawk - Build Log

That fan looks nice - hope you find a way to fit it in.

I use a permagrit sanding block (seen in the pictures below). Put the sheet on your flat work surface, raised up 5mm or so, and a couple of passes trues everything up to 90 degees.

More later...

More done today.

I used Mark's method of locating the retract cut-outs.

More later...

I’ve been waiting for some bits to arrive so I can finish mounting the front retract and steering setup, so I made a start on the wing.

Once again I found Marks blog useful, particularly around the work needed to make the wing spa (B1 from memory) fit in properly as the CNC part does not angle in towards the top flat edge. It’s the same on the plan to be fair...

This is my first time using a magnetic building board, and so far I like it!

You are catching me up Dan.

I got the leading edge cut and glued on yesterday.

More later...

1 step forwards, 3 steps back... So my earlier suspicions about the retracts not being right have been confirmed. When I got to test fitting the first wing retract I realised that the holes for the screws were literally half over UC1 / UC2 and half in thin air, and that the same issue I highlighted with the nose retract that the cylinder comes out the opposite side to the ones on Tony and your photos. This means that the holes in W3 and W3A would need to be about double the depth so that it would fit in. I then compared the retract to the plan, and found that the retract was smaller than it should be so I contacted Tony.

He was surprised and said that the retract was wrong, and that it doesn't look at all like the ones he supplies normally and he things it might have been an odd one in his batch.

He's agreed to swap those out, but given the state of postage at the moment that's likely to be a month before I get them .

I also started to build the second wing panel over the second wing diagram on the plan and I went to line up the first panel and realised that both wing diagram on the plan are actually for the same wing, just the second one has been rotated 180 degrees, so I need to unpick that, trace it, flip it and start again.

I'm really not sure what the point of having two of the same wing on the same plan is?

I cannot remember what I did about the second panel on mine which was scaled up to 54" from the original small version, bit by bit on a copier, but I do recall having to fudge the gear bearers a little to get something for the screws to bite into. My retracts came from HK. Should be on my build blog pics somewhere.

I thought that the other wing was superimposed over other parts of the plan the right way round but could be wrong.

As I had scanned the plan when I produced the CNC files, I just flipped the wing and tile printed it in adobe reader.

The build has slowed a bit lately due to having to do some 'house stuff', also been flying a couple of times.

I have got the flaps and ailerons done.

More later...

I have been squeezing in little bits of work on the Hawk between decorating the house.

Trimmed the nose cone using the dremel.

Finished cutting the servo hatch holes.

More later...

House renovations are still ongoing but I have managed to profile the leading edge of the wing and print off some pilots.

More later (as and when I can squeeze it in)...

P.S. How is yours coming along Dan?

I’ve had a bit of a pause myself. My replacement retracts from Tony arrived last week which helps. My other half picked up a climbing frame, swing set, slide locally in ‘good condition’ that needed assembly. A fair proportion of the wood was rotten so I’ve been distracted fixing that and assembling that, since playgrounds don’t look like opening here any time soon!

My wing dihedral isn’t quite right and I need to figure that out. Once I get a bit of time I’ll figure that out and redo the nose wheel retract and I’ll be off again...