Hi All,
After many months of sitting under the building table the Zulu finally got my attention last week after seeing Paul's Weasel flying and decided I needed a light wind model other than the Libelle. So I turned my hand to the laminate covering and got the Zulu covered in about 2 hours. The laminate is weird stuff and doesn't shrink when you heat it. I didn't get the best finish -- see these pics
But at least it was covered and surprisingly rigid after being done. I replaced that flimsy fin with one made from 5mm Correx and then put it all together with a tiny AR400 rx and a 300 mah NiMh battery from the Libelle.I then took it to Ditchling Beacon on Monday afternoon and flew it in the Southerly wind from the bowl behind the main hill. It flew very well, straight and true, but was being thrown around a lot, so I landed to wait for a less blustery day.
At least it's finished and I can move on....
Rob
Looks good Rob. Well done. I've found Correx to be a very reliable material for tail surfaces and it's easy to cut a hinge in it if required. I hope you get a chance to try out those drooperons properly soon.
ReplyDeleteLooks interesting, never seen a plane with moving leading edge. Hope to see it soon on the slopes.
ReplyDeleteI cover all my foamie wings in 72 micron lam film now in two layers. The 1st goes onto the bare foam, then I lay onto that a shrink film, Oracover type stuff, before adding the 2nd layer of laminate. It takes a bit of practice because as you said, it doesn't shrink, so you need to tack it down in all the corners, pulling it tight as you go. Once you've cracked the technique you can get an almost glass like finish. It's brilliant.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the excellent comments everyone
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