I have this kit which a bought new in 1990 and its been sitting around since then. I finally decided to put it on the building board. Thought it would be interesting to share. I haven't built with balsa in an aweful long time because foam took over my life some time ago . But I must admit, the feel of balsa and the sanding dust in the nose sure does bring back some great memories. I am enjoying the heck out of building this bird and working with balsa again.

I'll post up some more picks in the near future as she progresses.

- Noel

That's good news Noel.
That is also a classic,all time ,great flyer.
In my day I had to get the Olympic 650 with it's pine or spruce LE.Talk about dust in your nose.
It was all worth it one day when,after getting out of control behind the hill I slammed it into a cattle fence and left a red monokote stained kink in one of the #8 or #10 steel wires.All that happened to the Oly was a cracked LE.
My friends GL was noticably lighter though.
I'm wondering though,doesn't the wing center sheeting go on after the wing halves are joined?
Skies.
Jay.

Hey Jay,
Thanks for the reply. The bottom wing sheeting goes down first and you build on top of that. Once the four wing panels are assembled, the wing halves are joined at the root, and then the top sheeting is added last. This gives lots of stability to the wing root area during construction, keeping it all square and true.

- Noel

Always interested in a Balsa Build thread, subscribed. Thanks for sharing.

Hey ArneHu. Thanks for subscribing, my pleasure to share. I'll be sure to post more pictures as I go along. Wow, East Norway, that is so cool. Don't you just love the age of the Internet.

- Noel

How fun!I just bought one of these on craigslist recently, brand new never flown with a new conquest radio in it, for our clubs new R/E event. I removed the old 72 Rx and battery back, but left the big old new servos in as I figured I would need the weight. Put an AR500 RX in and am using a new 1600 bat with my trusty DX5. She came in at 22 ozs, with 4 ozs added weight. Had my first winch launch, tap lightly, on Sunday and speced out for my 6 min task. Came in second in the event. What a blast. Noel you will have fun!

Al

Right on Al! Good looking Gentle Lady. Nothing wrong with modernizing the electronics.
Congratulations on your second place in the event. That will certainly make you come back for more.

I've never done a winch launch either, but I'm looking forward to it. We have a great local club called the Orlando Buzzards and I'm planning on joining it soon. They have 3 electric winches. Thanks for the posting the picture.

- Noel

Made some progress on the wing. Got the polyhedral joints bonded and gusseted. I'm preparing to make some extra long wing spars for joining the wing halves to replace those that come with the kit. I've been told by the experts that if I plan on winch launching this bird to provide extra strength by doing this. I'll post some pics of this when I do.

- Noel

Beer, I am an experienced winch launcher and knowing this GL was built stock, with the stock balsa spar, I just kitted it up, not much pedal, let it go up like a kite! Beefing up the spar is a great idea, changing out the balsa spar for hardwood is a great idea and will give you some more pedal on the launch.Never liked the bungee deal as you are committed to a set launch power given how far backed you pulled it! I fly mostly full house moldie's, but had a ball with this little plane in a local contest. And it reminded me how much fun you can have for just a few bucks

Al

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/attac...mentid=3444962

these are some pics from the contest, I am the old tall guy with the grey gottee, and the really bad landing!

Originally Posted by BeerBatter

Hey ArneHu. Thanks for subscribing, my pleasure to share. I'll be sure to post more pictures as I go along. Wow, East Norway, that is so cool. Don't you just love the age of the Internet.

- Noel

Fun to meet fellow Builders from whole the world. It's something special with the classic wooden gliders. Right now I have a Sig Ninja on my board. I have ordered a Sig Riser 100 as a Winter Build. Perhaps there is room for a Gentle Lady too, when I have finished the Sig's.

Some more progress on the GL. Got the tail feathers assembled and sanded.
I'll finish the wing next and then I'm starting the fueselage.

I had forgotten how enjoyable working with balsa is . It sure is a nice change of pace from all the foam. And the CA glue makes assembly quick, unlike the days of Ambroid

- Noel

I see that you use the super-gold Ca. Good odor-less CA. But sometimes it cure to fast! If I had done a mistake, I have no time to take apart and re do my fault.
In my later buildings I often use ordinary PVA wood glue, like Elmer's. It's cheap, strong, non toxic. And give me time to correct my mistakes. It's also a good advise to pre-glue the joints, before putting them together. When I use CA, I find it handy to have a small bottle of Acetone, to de-bond my sticky fingers.
But of course, every glue has it's place.

I see that you use the super-gold Ca. Good odor-less ca. But sometimes it cure to fast! If I had done a mistake, I have no time to take apart and re do my fault

Greetings ArneHu,
I think you are missing the benefit of CA adhesive.
As different is the glue is the technique used.
Ca glue allows you to assemble the pieces together,make any corrections and re-assemble with very precise joints [U]before[U] you fasten your parts together.
After all is good apply CA and presto!
Skies.
Jay.

Originally Posted by AirBornOne

Greetings ArneHu,
...Ca glue allows you to assemble the pieces together,make any corrections and re-assemble with very precise joints [U]before[U] you fasten your parts together.
Jay.

That's how I do it. I cover the plans with wax paper and I pre-assemble my parts right on top of the plans, using pins to secure it together. My plans are taped on top of a panel of Celotex, which makes using pins a breeze. Once I'm happy with the assembly, I go around a apply a single drop of CA on each joint and BAM!, your done. Strong, light, and best of all, quick. After I remove the glued assembly from the building board, I'll go around and double check all my joints and add a drop or two here and there to make sure everything is secured.

I still use epoxy and regular wood glue for some applications, like joining spars and laminating wing joiners, but for the stick stuff, nothing beats CA.

- Noel

Yes. I use them both. Ca and PVA. I just had some not so good experiences with CA. Clumsy fingers I think. Enjoy your build.