Main contents
Dear Modeler,
I don’t know what you’ve tried for holding your foam wing cutting templates in the foam while cutting, but through Bob’s trials and errors he’s found one thing that works better than anything else.
Galvanized nails.
They’re available at every hardware store, and they’re super-affordable. The benefit to galvanized nails over regular, smooth nails is that the galvanization ’sticks’ to the foam, so the nail won’t slip out while you’re cutting. This means less errors, and more perfect cuts for you.
If you’d like to watch Bob demonstrate his entire method for cutting foam wings, go to http://www.FoamWingCutting.com. You can get his 2-hour video by clicking the “Buy Now” button on the
right.
And as always…
Good flying!
Roy Furr
Editor
http://www.FoamWingCutting.com
P.S. — If you find this lesson helpful, feel free to forward it on to friends and fellow flyers! Encourage them to sign up at our website at http://www.FoamWingCutting.com to get all our free lessons for themselves, too!
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Dear Modeler,
Do you know the #1 rule for cutting foam? It’s…
“Don’t rush anything!”
Bob was telling me about a wing he was trying to cut in a hurry. He tried to force his way through a cut, and guess what happened…
The wire went through the foam unevenly, cutting the foam so poorly he couldn’t salvage it.
He had to cut the wing all over again… Oops!
So much for being in a hurry.
If you have patience and let the wire do the cutting when you’re cutting foam wings, you’re going to get top-notch results. No matter how slowly you cut, it’s still going to take less time to build a plane with a foam wing than a built-up wing.
So when you’re cutting foam wings, be sure you follow the #1 rule, and “don’t rush anything.”
For more tips, and for a complete demonstration of Bob Furr’s easy and affordable one-person method for cutting foam wings check out his video at http://www.FoamWingCutting.com. (I guess when it comes to foam wing cutting, the one thing you CAN rush on is heading over to the website and getting this video now!)
Oh, and one more thing…
Good flying!
Roy Furr
Editor
http://www.FoamWingCutting.com
P.S. — If you find this tip helpful, feel free to forward it on to friends and fellow flyers! Encourage them to sign up at our website at http://www.FoamWingCutting.com to get all our free lessons for themselves, too!
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Dear Modeler,
Here’s a quick tip to make your foam wings last through more flights, bumpy landings, and even head-to-head duels with the dirt.
Put clear plastic packing tape over the leading edge of your wing. Run it along the entire length of the wing, from fuselage to wing tip.
This will protect your wings from damage, plus reinforce them structurally (minimizing warping and bowing).
It’s easy to do and it’ll mean you spend more time on the flying field, and less time repairing and rebuilding.
This tip is pulled straight from Bob’s video at http://www.FoamWingCutting.com.
Good flying!
Roy Furr
Editor
http://www.FoamWingCutting.com
P.S. — If you find this lesson helpful, feel free to forward it on to friends and fellow flyers! Encourage them to sign up at our website at http://www.FoamWingCutting.com to get all our free lessons for themselves, too!
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Dear Modeler,
I was watching Bob’s foam wing cutting video again — available at http://www.FoamWingCutting.com — and something he said popped out at me.
When you’re looking for polystyrene foam for cutting your foam wings, there are plenty of expensive options.
But there’s also a very affordable option, if you know where to look.
Take a trip to your local home improvement store, and head straight for the insulation aisle.
First, look for the polystyrene foam insulation sheets. It’ll be more than long enough, but make sure you have the width you need for your wingspan, and the depth for the thickest part of your airfoil.
Once you’ve found the right size foam, look for the sheets with the smallest amount of regrind (that’s the little dark specks you see in the white foam). Regrind doesn’t matter in insulation but a big enough piece can cause the wire to stick and create an uneven cut when you’re cutting foam wings.
Once you’ve found a mostly-clean piece of foam, you’re good. In fact, a single sheet of foam insulation can give you wings for two or three planes.
This is yet another of Bob’s thrifty modeler tips you get when you buy his 2-hour how to cut foam wings video from http://www.FoamWingCutting.com.
Hope this has been helpful, and as always…
Good flying!
Roy Furr
Editor
http://www.FoamWingCutting.com
P.S. — If you find this lesson helpful, feel free to forward it on to friends and fellow flyers! Encourage them to sign up at our website at http://www.FoamWingCutting.com to get all our free lessons for themselves, too!
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Dear Modeler,
There’s a pretty common question when it comes to foam wing cutting — with two competing answers.
Some modelers swear it’s one way. Others swear it’s the other.
(Don’t you wonder sometimes if people like to disagree for the sake of disagreeing?!)
It’s about the wire you use to cut the foam.
Most older books on foam wing cutting insist you must use nichrome wire. Nichrome is a highly-resistive blend of nickel and chromium, commonly used as a bridge element in homemade rocket motor igniters. (It heats up fast as it resists the flow of electricity through it.)
Other books say you can use steel wire. It’s fairly resistive, and works just as well — with one caveat.
So who’s right?
Well, both are, but Bob prefers steel, and here’s why:
First, steel wire is cheaper than nichrome — much cheaper. One hallmark of Bob’s approach to modeling is with a fixed budget you can do more of it if you find thrifty ways to accomplish your goals. (If you’re thrifty too, then the more you learn about Bob’s foam cutting methods the more you’ll like them.)
Second, steel wire can do pretty much the same foam cutting job nichrome can… if you use it right.
So how do you use steel right? Simple…
Add a little more current. Since steel isn’t as resistive as nichrome, it takes more current to heat it up. So with a little more current, steel can do the same job as nichrome, and you’ll still keep a few more of your hard-earned bucks in your pocket.
Bob’s 2-hour video on how to cut foam wings is full of money-saving tips when cutting your own foam wings. In fact, even though you spend $29 up front to get the video, you’re going to come out ahead in the next flying season alone for the money you save by using Bob’s easy and affordable methods for cutting your own foam wings.
Learn more at http://www.FoamWingCutting.com.
And as always…
Good flying!
Roy Furr
Editor
http://www.FoamWingCutting.com
P.S. — If you find this lesson helpful, feel free to forward it on to friends and fellow flyers! Encourage them to sign up at our website at http://www.FoamWingCutting.com to get all our free lessons for themselves, too!
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Dear Modeler,
Hope all is well.
I was talking to Bob the other day and he told me how he makes perfect foam wing cutting templates every time. And the great thing about it is how simple it is.
When I heard it I thought you’d want to know, too.
Next time you’re making a template for cutting foam wings, try his 3-step process:
- First, trace the airfoil in pencil on your template material.
- Second, use a jigsaw or band saw with a small blade to cut on the outside edge of the line you’ve drawn.
- Third, use a sanding block to sand down the edges of your template just to the center of the line — so the line still runs right around the edge of your template.
Bob was telling me that we’re blessed with eyes that can be accurate down to the thousandth of an inch — and this technique takes advantage of that to give you perfect templates every time!
If you’d like more of Bob’s tips, including a demonstration of his entire 1-person method for cutting foam wings, then check out his 2-hour video at http://www.FoamWingCutting.com.
Good flying!
Roy Furr
Editor
http://www.FoamWingCutting.com
P.S. — If you find this lesson helpful, feel free to forward it on to friends and fellow flyers! Encourage them to sign up at our website at http://www.FoamWingCutting.com to get all our free lessons for themselves, too!
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
I have another quick lesson for you below.
Bob got a question recently about how to cover foam wings with paper, and what the benefits are. I’ve included Bob’s response below that explains how it’s an easy way to add a lot of strength to your wings without adding much weight.
*** How to strengthen foam wings with lightweight paper covering
by Bob Furr
I have been doing paper covered foam wings for CL combat for years.
Anymore only the leading edge back to the high point is covered with paper to save weight on the “disposable” combat models being built.
The paper I use is white “banner paper” from an office supply store (it comes in different weights so look for the thinner paper as it can get quite heavy). You can usually get 24″ wide rolls that are about 100 feet long — these are perfect for your modeling work.
First, I cut the paper to size (maybe an inch more all the way around that I trim off later).
Spray it with water to keep it from absorbing too much glue.
Use thinned white glue (to a brushing consistency) to put the paper on. I overlap only at the middle of the wing, maybe 6″.
Be careful to do both sides at once as the paper shrinks a lot as it dries and can warp a wing (kind of like covering with tissue and dope).
Get as many wrinkles out as you can while it is wet.
It will feel like it is far too heavy till the glue dries… remember the water-weight of the glue is heavy so until it is dry you have more than the weight of the paper.
Finish with an low temp iron-on film to fuel proof things.
If anything, this technique makes the wing too strong as I break 1/2″ by 3/4″ maple motor mounts glued to a pine center rib when I crash a combat plane with this construction!
Also, as a quick side note, you CANNOT get a warp out once the glue is dry using this method, so if you accidentally build one in you’ll need to use a trim tab to correct it.
Good flying!
Roy Furr
Editor
http://www.FoamWingCutting.com
P.S. — If you find this lesson helpful, feel free to forward it on to friends and fellow flyers! Encourage them to sign up at our website at http://www.FoamWingCutting.com to get all our free lessons for themselves, too!
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Hand cutting foam wings is not difficult but requires some tools that are expensive if purchased commercially. Fortunately, most of those tools are not difficult to make yourself.
The key to cutting foam wings is a bow that allows the cutting wire to stay tight as the wire heats up. For years I have used a very simple, lightweight bow that allows accurate cuts to be made with only one person. The cutting wire is simply .012 7 strand stainless steel control line flying wire. Similar wire can be found in large sporting goods stores that stock supplies for making your own fishing tackle and is sold as beading wire at craft stores but is plastic covered and will not work for cutting foam wings.
Single strand steel wire will work but you will need to go to a larger diameter and forming the ends is more difficult. The correct .012 wire is available from several companies including Sig Manufacturing, Brodak, and Sullivan. If your local hobby shop does not carry this item it can be ordered directly from the Brodak or Sig web sites. Stainless steel is made from steel and nickel. Hobby shops sometimes carry nichrome wire which is steel wire with nickel and chrome in the mix. Nichrome works well but is much more expensive and breaks more easily.
My bow is made from a 36″ long 1/4″ diameter dowel and XX inches of .012 wire with loops formed on each end. The dowel is notched at the ends to hold the wire and bent to make a bow shape. Because the wood dowel wants to straighten itself out it provides the tension needed to keep the wire tight as it heats. The only real issue is that the dowel quality needs to be high enough that it bends without breaking. If you have it available, you can use 1/4″ square stock found at some hardware stores for a bit more strength without gaining too much weight.
This is a very lightweight bow that is the key to easily cutting a wing without a helper. I have used heavier bows and they quickly become clumsy and accurate cuts are harder to make without help.
Forming the ends on the wire uses techniques that are common to control line modelers. The AMA website shows how to make strong loops in their rulebook. There are a number of options on how to make up wire ends shown. For a bow, the simplest technique is to use crimped tubing to make your loops. If you are a control line modeler who has ever made up a set of flying lines it is okay to use the technique that you are familiar with. Although it may be possible to simply tie the wire it will not be as secure and will probably fail while you are trying to cut the foam. Instead of using the brass thimbles shown below leave the loops large enough to go around the dowel and into the notch you cut at the ends of the dowel.
For .012 wire you will need two 3/4” long pieces of 1/16” diameter copper or brass tubing. Using too large a diameter of tubing makes it impossible to get a good crimp. Copper tubing is easier to work with as brass is a harder metal. Hobby shops used to carry line crimping kits and you can still order them from Sig and Brodak. Large sporting goods stores also carry tubing that you can use to make crimped lines in the fishing tackle section. Fishermen make up steel leaders for fishing for trout and salmon.
If your local shop does not have them you can also cut the short pieces of tubing yourself from a longer piece of 1/16 tubing. The easy way to do that is to run a piece of 1/16 wire through the tubing to keep it from collapsing. Next roll the wire under a hobby knife at the 3/4” mark to score the tubing. You will not be able to cut the copper tubing with a hobby knife. Once it is scored pull the wire partially out of the tube so that slightly less than 3/4” of wire is left in the tubing. Holding the wire in one hand and the tubing in the other flex the tubing. If you have the wire ending at the score mark the tubing will break easily at the score.
Once you’ve created loops at both ends of your wire, put one loop into the notch you’ve cut at one end of the dowel rod. Bend the dowel rod gently, until you are able to hook the other loop into the notch at the other end of the dowel. That’s all it takes, and you have a low-cost, lightweight foam cutting bow for cutting your own foam wings.
Posted in Lessons | 12 Comments »
