Tip that follows to cut the covering from the wing. Use care
to cut only into the covering and not into the wood.
❏
7. Glue the wing bolt plate in place with epoxy. Clamp the
plate in place so that it does not move while the epoxy
cures. Clean off any excess epoxy with a paper towel and
alcohol and let cure.
❏
8. Flip the wing over. Use a 1/4" [6.4mm] drill bit through
the pre-drilled wing bolt holes to drill through the wing bolt
plate as shown. Hint: If you clamp a 1/4" [6.4mm] piece of
wood (not included) to the bottom of the wing right under the
wing bolt plate the wood will not splinter. Use thin CA to
strengthen the hole.
❏
9. Install the wing on the fuselage using two 1/4-20 x 2"
[51mm] nylon bolts. Find the belly pan and feel through the
MonoKote for the two wing bolt holes. Cut away the
MonoKote and seal the edges with a sealing iron. Fit the
belly pan under the wing and mark its edges on the wing
with a Top Flite Panel Line Pen. Hint: If you tape the belly
pan to the fuselage for this step it will not move and it will be
easier to mark both sides of the belly pan on the wing.
❏
10. Remove the belly pan and use a hobby knife with a
sharp #11 blade or follow the previous
Expert Tip to cut the
covering 1/16" [1.6mm] inside the lines you just marked. Be
careful not to cut the wood under the covering. Make an
additional cut 1/2" [12mm] inside the cuts already made.
Peel the covering from the wing to expose the balsa wing
sheeting. If necessary, seal the edges with a sealing iron.
Use a soldering iron to cut the covering from the wing.
The tip of the soldering iron doesn’t have to be sharp, but
a fine tip does work best. Allow the iron to heat fully. Use
a straightedge to guide the soldering iron at a rate that
will just melt the covering and not burn into the wood. The
hotter the soldering iron, the faster it must travel to melt a
fine cut. Peel off the covering.
HOW TO CUT COVERING FROM BALSA
11