benny2k

hey guys i have had a few foamies and a few balsa engine planes (ARTF) and i am looking to start building from plans but it all looks very complicated and the guys at my club seem very elitist when i ask about how to start. have u guys got any good websites i can look at of any information which can get me started i got a free plan with RCM&E of a slow trainer topwing.

cheers guys, any advice is appreciated!

Dr1Driver

I don't know what you're planning to scratch, but you should pick something simple for your first project. A trainer or sport plane with lots of sheets rather than sticks. Sheets are easier to build than sticks.

Building from plans is just like building a kit, but without the kit. So, first thing is to cut a kit. Make a Bill of Materials for what you'll need. Go over the plans thoroughly and write down each size called out. Condense this into a list of wood types and sizes. Get your wood from your LHS or, if the order is large enough, from a place like Balsa USA. Cut out and label all shaped pieces. Use the plans as templates. (I assume you've made at least one copy of the plans for just this purpose.) You will remember the sequence of building from kits you've built in the past. Use this same sequence to begin your scratch. You might even want to write yourself a construction manual. Work slowly and carefully. Think out each step BEFORE you do it.

I've scratch built for many years and it's very satisfying.

Good luck!

Dr.1

Jim Thomerson

What Dr.1 said, plus make up a flow sheet of what to do when. I usually do this, but skipped it on the airplane I'm building now. I had to cut out some ribs to put in a center wing brace which I shold have put in beforehand. One should follow one's own advice![]

JRFisher

If you've never built before, its probably best to build a kit first. This will give you a good idea of the order of assembly etc. If you have built kits before, what DR1DRIVER said. I personally like Lone Star Balsa for my supplier.

benny2k

This is all gold info guys thanks, any websites?

MinnFlyer

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www.towerhobbies.com

digital_trucker

Here's a gold mine of information...

http://www.airfieldmodels.com/

WILDCRASHWILLY

I would suggest a HOT HOTS. It's a very good plane for a first time builder. It is NOT however a trainer and should not be flown as 1st plane. However it would make a good 2nd or 3rd plane to fly.

Bart[man]

I would say an easy sport 40 kit is the way to go. It builds up realy easy with a well writen instruction manual. It also is'nt a trainer persay, but with basic flying skill's it would be a great 2nd plane.

Dr1Driver

I would say an easy sport 40 kit is the way to go.

But he wants to scratch build...

Dr.1

Bart[man]

I understand that, but what some of us are sugesting is one should learn to walk before running or you might fall flat on your face, and in this case hurt your self or worst someone else with an improperly constructed progectial I mean air craft. Thats all.

foodstick

Benny I think a high wing trainer is probably a good bet for a first plans build... get a copy of your plans, maybe two so you can make your parts templates without ruining the originals.. The most important thing to learn is what the plans designer is saying with pictures..study them close so you see which part overlaps what..which way the grain should run on parts, is it ply? light ply? balsa? most of the plans tell this by the way they draw the grain on the plans. The real key is study them VERY close, build it in your head or so that atleast it seems to clearly fit together. Often times parts drawn on the plans are slightly wrong and need fitting or even replaced with an altered part. The real key is to see the problems before you have them..thats the skill you will learn along the way. I won't lie..without good plans and instructions from the magazine you would be better of with a kit first ...but HEY its about fun, and thats will be for you to find out for yourself...

BWooster

Benny: good for you for trying plan building.

All of these guys have great advice. The only thing I would add is keep trying. If your first project does not work out so great, try another, and use your experience to build something better. You'd be surprised how soon you learn a lot of tricks and techniques. Nothing will teach you more than experience.

So pick a simple, cheap project to start -- something that you won't become too attached to. And work up from there. For instance, I have done this long enough that my plans are no more than basic ribs, formers and outlines, and the rest I make up as I go. But I made a lot of mistakes to get here.

OzMo

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good for you to want to scratch build it is a LOT of fun and very satisfying. kit building is a logical first step especially if the type of kit is close towhat you want to scratch build. there are many types of construction a good first build could be a spad the plans are free and materials are cheap if not free so booboos are not at all devastating. redoes are just learning experiences and the cheaper the materials the less grief you'll get from the spousal unit......look in the kit building forums for ideas. and check out the TRAINERS on SPADs, the methods used there are helpful with any build. i love the SIG kits. leftover wood from kits are nice to have for scratch building too. PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO DECALAGE! with what ever you build as this allways determines flyability. i have scratch built many trainers for newbies using the basics off a kit's plan. but most of all HAVE FUN

buzzard bait

Benny, sorry to hear about your experiences in your club, but don't give up...I bet there's somebody you haven't met yet who would be delighted to help you and make a friend.

By the way, I built my very first model airplanes when living near Oxford 1958 to '59, when I was 9 years old. I saw a friend's brother's towline glider and had to have one, so I went to a hobby shop in Headington and bought wood, dope and tissue and built myself a glider from the memory of the one I saw--and being a glider, it flew! I went back and forth between kit building and scratch building after that. I would say there is nothing like starting on something simple and just digging right in. A simple two-channel glider might be the best starting point. Not to be totally old-fashioned about it, but besides the websites there are also books on model building. Check your local library--that's how I learned early on.

I'm a little familiar with RCM&E--which design do you have?

Enjoy, find a like-minded club-mate, and keep us posted!

Jim

Ed Smith

Every "Elitist" type I have ever met Have little knowledge, cannot build, cannot fly and never contribute to club activity.

IGNORE THEM!

Ed S

FlyingGreg

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Benny--If you look at the last several pages of any issue of Model Airplane News they list hundreds of projects you can choose from all rated by degree of difficulty and type of plane. You might want to choose one that has a constant cord wing and uses sheet balsa for tail servos. My first "scratch built" project was a converted to RC Ringmaster (a vintage control line plane) with plans drawn by Nick Zirolli (if I am remembering this correctly). It was an article in MAN and included a list of material and a good description of the build. I not only got exposed to cutting my own parts, but I also learned to fly inverted with this plane and with a Saito .56, put hundreds of flights on it. I eventually gave it to a club member and I think it's still flying.

BankYank

My Feedback: (63)

My first plane was a Skyskooter(yeah i taught my self to fly with it) After about a month i was pretty bored with it and the whole reason for this hobby is warbirds right So i set about getting a mustang. No one told me NOT to get a p-51 as i did not know anyone else into RC and was going it alone. Got the plans from Mark Rittinger for his 42in WS P-51,Ordered wing core's and the balsa i got from Ben Franklins. Read up on sheeting foam wings and set to work. After about 2 month's i had a plans built P-51 and it flew great and really got me hooked on rc ,and the second plane i built was a GP 60 size Cub. Anyway you can built it. Just take enough time to make sure it's coming out right and matches the plans you'll do fine.
Here is the build thread for my very first plans built plane. Might help might not.
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=68943

Pat

loser

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Check out:

RCscalebuilder.com

dmcmike

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Once you decide on your subject, get the plans in hand, and take them to a blueprint shop. Have them make several copies, as many as you can comfortably afford. Then you'll have patterns to make your parts from. Get the lumber, then using an X-acto, scroll saw, band saw, sandpaper, etc. cut out your parts, labeling them as you go. Once you have the complete 'kit' of parts done, you'll find its really no different than building a regular production kit. Sure, there may be some 'details' that have to be worked out, but just use good common sense and you'll be more than rewarded once you finish and get that bird in the air!

Good Luck!