Mountain Models C-180, Builder Manual, Page: 15 / 17

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Once the parts are dry, carefully remove them from the wax paper then sand them. Round all the edges
EXCEPT the bottom of the vertical stabilizer where it will be glued to the fuselage. Also, the rear of the
stabilizers, the front of the elevator, and the front of the rudder need to have a 40 degree bevel sanded in
to them.
Fuselage Final Assembly
! Cover the wing, fuselage, and tail surfaces with a lightweight colored covering such as Solarfilm
Lite. Follow the manufacturer’s directions to apply them.
! Apply the hinges to the control surfaces. I have had excellent results using clear tape as a hinge.
Position the two surfaces being hinged side by side, bevels facing away from each other. Apply a
piece of tape along the joint. Flatten out the two sides and place another strip of tape along the
opposite side of the joint. Ensure the control surfaces move freely.
! Cut covering from the slots for the control horns and glue the control horn in place with thin CA.
Note: the side the control horn goes on depends on where the pushrod exit slots are on the
fuselage.
The low slot is for the elevator and the high slot is for the rudder. The elevator control
horn goes down.
! Carefully remove a strip of covering from the top of the fuselage 1/8” wide and from the tail to
4.25” in front of the tail. Glue the vertical stabilizer in place where you removed the covering.
! Slide the horizontal stabilizer in place and glue.
! Bend the main landing gear wire as shown on the plans. Carefully push the wire through the
covering and into the slots in F5. The wire should just poke through the top of F5. Align the wire
so that the wheel will run straight and glue the wire to F5.
! Slip the 3/32” aluminum tubing over the ¾” bend of the landing gear and glue. Place the wheels
over the tubing and retain with the retainer clip.
!
Bend the tail landing gear wire as shown on the plans. Carefully push the wire through the
covering and into the 1/8” triangular brace in the tail of the fuselage.
! Place a 1/8” long piece of heat shrink tubing over the wire, up to the first bend and shrink it. Place
the tail wheel over the wire and ensure it spins easily. Retain the wheel with another short piece of
heat shrink followed by a drop of CA.