W
E use one of two different ways of splic-
ing wing skins. The CA method is a bit
quicker, but the aliphatic glue method gener-
ally needs less sanding later, so use the one
you prefer.
To use a thin CA glue, lay a piece of wax
paper on your workbench. Then lay 2 sheets
of wood down, hold the seam closed with
one hand, and apply the thin CA. Use the
minimum possible amount of glue, as it is dif-
ficult to sand off the excess later.
To use an aliphatic resin glue, lay the sheets
flat on the bench and apply a strip of mask-
ing tape along the length of the seam. Make
sure that there is no gap between the sheets.
When you have all of the sheets taped together, turn them
over and apply glue in the seams as shown. Lay the sheets flat
on the bench and wipe off the excess glue with a damp paper
towel. A few strips of masking tape will help hold the seam
closed while the glue dries. If you have a good gap-free fit
between the skins, try thinning the glue about 20% with water
and applying it with a small paint brush. This will make it eas-
ier to sand.
B
EGIN construction with the wing. We pre-
fer to build both wings at the same time,
however, you can build them individually if
you wish.
Locate the 10 pieces of
1
⁄
16
" x 3" x 24" balsa
for the wing skins. Trim the edges using a
straightedge and a sharp knife blade. Make
sure that you hold the knife so the cut edges
are vertical. We find it best to make several
light cuts. Also, be careful how you hold the
straightedge so you don’t trim your fingers!
The skin splicing layout is shown on the
plans. Note that you need to splice together
two sets of 5 sheets each. Check the sheets
to verify that they fit together with no gaps. If
there is a minor problem with the fit, clean it up with a sand-
ing block. The other option is to re-trim that edge.
Select the stiffest C-grain sheets for use on the trailing edges
of the wing. Use the more flexible A-grain wood for the leading
edges.
Trim edges of skins
Don't trim your fingers
Check that the sheets fit
Phoenix
Page 6
Wing Construction
Trim wing skins
Glue skins together
Don’t use too much glue
Glue wing skins
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