Model Forum / Radio Controlled / Air Models / February 2004

On top of that table add a couple of pieces of drop-ceiling tiles which can be
purchased at a home building supply place. Put your plans down, then cover them
with a piece of plastic food wrap or wax paper to protect them from glue
droppings. The tiles accept pins and hold down your parts while the glue is
drying.
Joe L.

And the experienced R/Cers are right.  

First, whatever board you use needs to be FLAT.  Second, it needs to be
pinable.  I use 3/4" plywood or particle board strongly braced underneath with
STRAIGHT 2 x 4s on edge.  2' x 8' is a good size.  I cover this with 2 x 4
acoustic ceiling tile with the back facing up.  I then cover this with 3/32"
cork sheet.  All this can be done with 3M-77 spray contact cement.  When the
cork surface eventually becomes cut up and scarred, it can be easily replaced.
I tape the plans down and cover them with waxed paper.  Now, why do I do all
this?

First, barring atmospheric changes, the plans will be accurate.  Second, I can
see exactly where the parts will go, and place then in their proper places
without measuring over and over again.  BTW, I am a mechanical engineer with
extensive AucoCAD experience, so I also "am reasonably handy with" tools and
measuring instruments.  Your method of "measure-mark-glue, measure-mark-glue"
might work, IF YOU ARE VERY CAREFUL.  You will need squares and other aligning
devices you wouldn't need when building directly on the plans.  I appreciate
your experience with plastic models.  In my younger days I built them and
entered local contests. (That was back before all the neat aftermarket parts.
We made spark plug wire out of sewing thread pulled through wax.  A fan belt
was a strip of masking tape.)  However, a 1/24 plastic model is far removed
from being a 72" (or greater) span wooden R/C glider.  The building board I
describe is not very expensive, nor is it hard to construct.  Building over
plans is a tried and proven method of easily and quickly constructing a strong,
straight R/C model.  My advice - stick with it.

Oh, I always make a copy of the plans to use as reference and have in case of a
mishap (read: crash) with the plane.  Kinkos or any good office or graphics
store can do it.

Welcome to R/C and good luck!
Dr.1 Driver
"There's a Hun in the sun!"

If all you're going to do is build two models and then call it quits, then
you're right.  You don't need a dedicated board.  But if like many you
continue on in this hobby, a dedicated guaranteed flat board is the best way
to go.

To start with, consider the down side of your "reasonably flat" surface.  To
me reasonably flat means not perfectly flat.  And that means that humps,
bumps twists and warps will be built into your model.  Maybe you can't see
them but, they will be there.  And as a beginner, you're going to add enough
of these on your own without the help of a dumb board.  But all this results
in flying surfaces that want to do one thing (turn, climb, roll etc) when
you expect them to do something else (straight and level).  You then end up
with flying surfaces and control surfaces fighting each other.  This makes
for a model that doesn't trim well and won't fly to its full potential.

Second, what are you going to use as a building board?  Most popular item
seems to be the dining table.  So do you plan on cleaning the whole thing up
and putting it all away when the nights building session is done?  Good time
for delicate, half finished frames to get smacked by a door or something.
Or what about those times when you use a glue other than CA?  Glider wings
really should be built with white glue for the flexibility.  Or do you
intend to monopolize the table until the model is finished?  Not good for
maintaining the favors of the wife (or mother).

With a dedicated board you can work on it and walk away.  No need to
constantly put things away so the table can be used for its intended
purpose.  Gives parts the proper time to dry and the potential for
accidental damage is greatly reduced.  Plus you can set it up in a low
traffic area of the house.  Where the chances of it being disturbed and
mangled are minimized.

But if you insist on using your "reasonable flat" surface.  Do yourself a
favor and pick up a 2'x4' ceiling panel.  You can get them with no texture.
They hold pins well and will help protect the table you set it on.  Plus you
can use it to slide the project under the bed or something when it's time to
clean up.  Not the best but it beats most other options.  Except a dedicated
table of course.

BTW, under the bed is a bad place if you have ANY kind of pets with free run
of the house.  Yes, cats will chew balsa wood!

Chuck

Raven,

If you are sure your surface is FLAT, then stick a couple of plastic covered
ceiling tiles down on it and go.  The trick, as a number of posters have
already opined, is a flat surface.  Any curvature of the surface will be
duplicated on your wing or fuselage, and might manifest itself in the way
your plane flies.  I use an old luan door which can be had for cheap at
local lumber yards or hardware stores.  If they have a "scratch and dent"
sale, you can probably pick one up for very little.

Morris

My bench is made from 3/4" plywood covered with sheet cork.  Works great
for me.

Jim - AMA 501383 (remove NOSPAM to reply)

As long as it's flat in all directions and you can get a pin in it it'll
work. You can get some ceiling tiles from Home Depot or whatever and
screw it down every foot or so to your table and it will be fine. I use
a solid core door with the same stuff screwed to it. I've been building
all types and sizes of RC planes since 1971 and that's about as fancy as
I get.

I have a 4x2 sheet of blue foam, laid over an old office desk. After
each plane it gets turned around or eversed, so teh it I scar up gets to
teh back or underneath.

After 4 planes I scrap it.

Its rigid, flat, takes pins so easily it isn;t treu, and does not damage
thngs dropped on it.

I protect the plans with the backing that comes off heatshrink coverings.

The great thing about the foam is its cheap and easily repalceable, and
if glue or dope drops on it, so what? It melts a hole and that's  that.

These tips were passed to me by E-zone modellers, who have helped me
build better and better planes. Internet is darned useful sometimes.

I have used the following for the past 40 years!

A Hollow Core Door on top of a table or on saw horses. Celotex on top of
door. (celotex is the same material as ceiling tiles but comes in 4x8
sheets. The celotex is very easy to pin to, the door keeps everything
straight. The whole setup will set you back maybe $50!

Yes, you really need it.

Flat, that is.

Plastic models don't fly well, so it's of no concern that the building
surface wasn't flat.

Flying models need to be flat and straight where applicable, and that
requires a _flat_ building surface.

Any flat surface at least as large as the largest sub-assembly (wings,
most likely) will do nicely, and you certainly don't need a
purpose-built work table for your first few models.

Maybe wait until you've decided whether this lunatic hobby is for you
before you spring for purpose-built table.

Find something to put on top of the work surface you can stick T-pins
in.  Foam building insulation works for me; pink or blue in 1/2" or
3/4" thickness.  Buy a 4'x8' sheet and cut a chunk to fit your
building surface.  Save the remnants for later uses.

Ceiling tiles are also popular as a pinning surface.

One source of inexpensive flat building surfaces is your local BORG or
home improvement store.  Most will sell you a plastic laminate counter
top with cosmetic damage, or an odd sized counter top ordered by
mistake, for a pittance.

Should you discover that you actually like this four-cycle hobby (Buy,
Build, Fly, Crash) you might one day need a drop-dead serious building
table.  

See the photo album "Torsion Box Building Table" on my meager web
site.
Cheers,
Fred McClellan
The House Of Balsa Dust
http://home.mindspring.com/~the-plumber

For the long wings of a glider, I'd want to be sure I had a nice, flat
building surface.  You don't have to spend much...  I use a
scratch-and-dent-priced interior door (get one made with solid, not jointed,
sides/top/bottom.  Mine's birch.) with a couple of pieces of acoustic
ceiling tile layed on top.  I think the total cost was about $20.

Happy building,
Bob Scott

a building board is one of the tools needed for proper alignment of
parts, no questions asked...  a base that is stable ( non warping) of
sufficient length and width ( I have 2  3/4" sheets of 9 layer ply
laminated together at 24"X 48") (( yea  I know  1.5" thick but its a
lifetime tool))   with a 1/4" thick sheet of luan panel ( mahaogny was
too expensive) held in place with counter sunk screws ( flat top) that
way when the luan gets too messed up from the cuts, dings, occasional
glue leak, its replaceable.

I fold the drawings to size and cover with saran-wrap ( sp.?) all held
in place with masking tape ( seems to work best as far as removing the
tape)...

it saves time, makes life easy, and the important parts like the wing
are 99% of the time built true...

invest the 20$ or so and avoid the trimming problems later when you try
to figure out why your plane is wanting to veer to one side or the other....

Scot D

aka BunnyKiller

I am going to offer another opinion, that is different from all those
presented so far!

It works for me....

I have a no longer in service dining table that is definitely not flat.
At each end of it I have a piece of laminated board that is flat.  1 end is
12" x 36" and at the other end of the table the board is 18" x 48"

I build on these 2 boards.

this leaves a convenient bit in the middle of the table for tools etc.

I do not build over the plans and pin things down as most have suggested.

The way I chose to build is to carefully cut, fit and align on the plan, Put
down 2-3 sheets of newspaper on my building board, glue and pin/clamp parts
together, and to ensure flat, place another piece of newspaper on top of the
bit I have built and put a telephone book or 2 on it to hold it down flat.
Once the glue is dry, simple remove the weight, and discard the newspaper.

Sometimes a bit of newspaper gets stuck to the model, and a little bit of
400 grit wet and dry paper takes care of that.

So far, I have not had anything not come out flat and true using this
method.

If you only have a part time building table, such as a dining table ,you may
want to adopt some of these methods.

Yep, it is radically different approach to what has been offered already,
but in the end, you need to have a convenient and comfortable workspace.

Bob in AUS

Pick up a ceiling tile at Home Depot.  I forget the size, but I think they
are 2' x 4'.  $3.00?  The one I bought had some depressions on the surface,
kinda like termite tracks in wood.  I fill all the holes with some heavy
drywall spackling and sand it smooth.  It takes a couple of applications.
Then brush on some white "Kilz" and you'll have the PURRFECT building
surface.  After every airplane, I refill the lil holes and the surface is
good to go again.

Cheap and effective . . . (Right up my alley!!!)

Gee, I didn't expect so many replies! Thankyou everyone for the advice, even
if I didn't personally respond. It would seem the consensus is to use a
building board if only as an insurance measure.

I'll look into converting my laminate table to a building board.  Too bad my
big modeling bench is trestle style (bows slightly) as it would be otherwise
ideal...............if I could clear all the junk off it!!!!!!!

Regards

Just starting out you may get by with building on your flat hard
laminated surface, but live a little...
The dropped ceiling tile is a great surface for building models, but
it tends to be flexible.
If you want to move it, the DIY stores have 2ft x 4ft laminated wood
which is cheap and you can fix the ceiling tile to it so its
removeable/replacable.
I use some small dabs of silicon sealer to hold the tile, and when the
tile is too beat up, just slide a knife around the edges (assuming you
only seal the edges) and it comes right off.
For just a small investment you have a building surface to pin on and
can build fairly large models or several small models at the same
time.

Moving up the scale, making a building board out of a hollow core door
and some 2 x 4 lumber is cheap too, and the doors aren't real pricy at
one end of the isle. I have mine set quite high, enough to stand and
work without bending over, and I am also able to sit on a kitchen or
drafting type stool at the table as well.

My too scents...
Mike P

My permanent building board which is 2' x 8' is made by laminating two
layers of 7/8" MDF together. This is anchored to an angle iron stand
which is on castors so I can move it about my workshop. I have two
pieces of 2 x 4 ceiling tile on top of the board to pin my project to.

I also have a 2 x 4 portable building board that you may consider
building. It consists of a 2' x 4' piece of 3/4" MDF which I have framed
with 1" x 2" hardwood. I trimmed the MDF so that a 2 x 4  piece of
ceiling tile fits snugly inside the hardwood frame prior to gluing the
hardwood in place. The construction method keeps the board nice and
straight and allows me to use it almost anywhere. I currently have it
set up on a couple saw horses. I can even set it up on a not so level
surface just by  placing a couple shims between the saw horse and board
as necessary. If one wanted to they could add a couple eye screws to the
side or end of the  building board and hang it on a basement/garage wall
when not in use. Total cost of the portable board is under $20 and can
be put together in a couple hours.

Hope this is of some help, Sherman