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When you purchase your radio controlled model airplane kit, there will be several additional items that you will need to get in order to complete the assembly.   Wheels, fuel tank, fuel line, propeller, spinner,and fuel fill valve are among some of the items that are not always included in the kit.  The hobby supplier, whether that is a local store or online, will usually have a list of what additional items each kit will require.

     Some of the things you will need are probably already available in your household.  Snap clothes pins, dressmakers T-pins, waxed paper and masking tqpe are some of the common things that will come in handy when you begin to assemble your model aircraft.  You will also need an assortment of glue.  Different parts of the model require different kinds of glue.  CA (cyanoacrylate) is what will be used for most of the assembly of the balsa parts, carpenters glue ( “TiteBond” is my favorite) is better for gluing parts that have a large surface and will need careful alignment.  The carpenters glue dries much slower and will allow a few minutes to make minor postion adjustments.  Epoxy is recommended for gluing any parts that are subject to extra stress or vibration, such as the wing center joint and motor mount rails.  You can select epoxy according to the drying time.  Some is 5-minute, 30-minute, and some have even longer set up and curing times.  Usually, the longer times will result in a stronger bond, but who wants to wait 24 hours to assemble the next pieces.  I use mostly 5-minute and 30-minute epoxy and have good results with both.

     Probably the most useful and important tool that you will need is the hobby knife fitted with a #11 tapered pointed blade.  You will probably want to buy a set of various hobby knives or at least an extra package of the #11 blades.  For making nice smooth cuts be sure to change to a new blade if it starts to tear or rip the balsa instead of cutting it.  Another handy cutting tool is the razor saw.  These come in a couple of different styles and number of teeth per inch.  It is handy to have a couple different ones.  Also, for cutting the plywood parts and any irregular shapes, a coping saw or a scroll saw is helpful.

     Another very helpful tool is a dremel moto tool.  There are many useful attachments available for these moto tools, but a word of caution is in order.  Be sure to follow all the safety instructions and be careful when sanding or grinding on balsa, as it is soft and it is easy to remove more material than you want and you could ruin some of the parts.

    Well, maybe you will have some time to order some of these items online or pick them up at your local hobby store.  It is always a good idea to know which radio controlled model airplane kit you are going to build so that you can learn exactly what extra items you will need to get.  More on that will be coming up in the next few blog entries.  See you next time.

The next several entries in this blog will be about building your model plane from a kit.  We will cover what  tools and supplies that are necessary and some things that make your work a little easier.  As we progress through the kit building process, I urge you to ask questions if you don’t understand some part of this discussion,  That is why we have a “comments” section at the end of each of the entries. 

     To successfully build your radio controlled model airplane kit, you will need to have an area to work in where you can leave what you have done so far and it won’t be disturbed.  Maybe a spot in the basement or in the garage will work for you.  Some hobby shops teach kit building and have a shop set up just for this purpose.  Where ever you choose to do the work, make sure it is well-lighted and has adequate room all the way around the work table if possible.   If you don’t have a good flat  table or bench to build on, you will need to build that first.  

    A satisfactory modeling bench can be made from an old interior door.  Sometimes you can find these at garage sales or maybe a salvage yard for house parts.  Or maybe you can find a house remodeling project where they are replacing the interior doors and will very likely just throw the old ones away.

     What you need to have is a perfectly flat, smooth work surface, so if you use an old door, make sure it doesn’t have panels in it.  If you don’ t have a door, you can use a sheet of 3/4″ thick MDF board from your local building supplies store.  Cut it to about 36″ by 80″ or whatever size fits the work area.  You will need a work surface big enough to build each half of the wing while it is lying flat on the table.  A 32 in. by 80 in.  door is about an ideal size.  All you really need to set the door on is a couple of sawhorses, but if you want to, you can build some legs for your bench. 

     First, lay 3 or 4 2 by 4s on the sawhorses on edge.   Lay the door or the MDF board flat on the 2 by 4s and either nail or screw it in place.  Then using a good accurate level to check with, shim an adjust until you are sure the surface is flat and level – very important!

    You can glue some fiber ceiling tile to the bench to provide a nice surface to stick T-pins into to hold the balsa parts in place while the glue dries.  More on that in another entry.  Usually leaving the unfinished side of the tile up gives a smoother surface.

     Okay, now that you have a nice bench to build your model on, let’s take a break and next time we’ll talk about some of the tools and supplies you will need to complete your project.  Please leave comments and let me know how I am doing.  Thanks.  See you next time.