I found a handy thing you can do with magnets with a center hole. We all have a bunch of small hex wrenches we need to keep under control. What I did was make a stack of the magnets and put a few wraps of tape to help keep them in a stack. Put the hex wrenches in the center and they stay in a nice compact container.

Originally Posted by sjd

Brett, which glue are you using on the mpf, and is it sandable?

I mostly use PU glue.
The yellow stuff because we can't get white over here.
It sands but is far harder than the MPF.
I use masking tape to prevent it foaming out where I don't want it to.
Then a blade to trim it, preferably while it as still a bit soft.
The trick with this stuff is to use it sparingly.
If your fingers turn black then it is a good indication that you are using too much.

Anyone having success slicing this down to 2 or 3mm (to use as skins)?

Originally Posted by brett.c

I mostly use PU glue.
The yellow stuff because we can't get white over here.
It sands but is far harder than the MPF.
I use masking tape to prevent it foaming out where I don't want it to.
Then a blade to trim it, preferably while it as still a bit soft.
The trick with this stuff is to use it sparingly.
If your fingers turn black then it is a good indication that you are using too much.

You can prevent your fingers from turning black by keeping a paper towel or washcloth with isopropyl alcohol soaked into it, and cleaning your fingers frequently with it. Takes the PU glue right off. Do it before the glue starts to set and you should be fine.

At our region's annual swap meet this past weekend, I sold a box of MPF a sheet at a time. The biggest concern anyone had was how to get the 'curl' out of a sheet -- perhaps more pronounced because the sheets were from the original batch.

Looking forward to placing an order for a fresh box (and maybe some carbon too )

Jeff,

That's the nice thing, after the initial batch, it has been very flat. I pull a sheet out and a curl never crosses my mind.

Ken

Ken is right; latest stock has so little curl that if laid flat on a table it's going to touch the table over the whole surface. Also, unless you are building single layer profiles, the amount of curl in MPF versus the thickness and formability is meaningless. I find that as I roll fuses and curve wings there is no detectible affect from the original sheet conditions. I.e. it takes the shape you give it either by cold forming or heat setting and holds it. (pretty cool, eh?) Also, the last two planes I've been working on involve a good amount of sanding and shaping of built-up areas of the foam, and I gotta say that this stuff sands excellent. Sanding dust is less fine than DTF or FFF (particularly the Owend Corning version) so it doesn't fill the air, but rather drops down to be swept up. it's still full of static, so clings as one would expect from styrene, of course. But it's very easy to shape compound curves with a flat sanding block. More options!

springer , Thanks for the extra effort on my order, I know it was late in the afternoon, but you still took care of my order.

Feb 11, 2013, 08:21 PM
"I already shipped the boxes for today (about 2pm) but I'll check again first thing tomorrow and probably take your box to breakfast with me - UPS store is across the street from the restaurant."

Received it shortly afternoon, and not a scratch, ding or dent in the box. Superb packing job. Really looking forward to working with this foam.

BTW--How do you stuff it in the box so tightly with out damageing it? A shoe horn for foam?
Mark

foamie magic!

I'd like to take credit for a lot of extra work, but Tuesday morning is always breakfast with the old guys at local BigBoy's. I'm the youngest by ten years (usually, if the one guy who's 76 shows up) We had 4 ww2 vets two of which were airborne at Normandy invasion but neither of them can come any more, so I have to sit with the Navy. Always an interesting morning. And I get to drop the boxes off right across the street!

Cooler check out mikes blog and you'll see his passion with cramming things in there . I'm wondering how much carbon he can cram in those boxes as well .

Originally Posted by springer

foamie magic!

I'd like to take credit for a lot of extra work, but Tuesday morning is always breakfast with the old guys at local BigBoy's. I'm the youngest by ten years (usually, if the one guy who's 76 shows up) We had 4 ww2 vets two of which were airborne at Normandy invasion but neither of them can come any more, so I have to sit with the Navy. Always an interesting morning. And I get to drop the boxes off right across the street!

Springer, I may only be half Norwegian, but I grew up in Norway and have visited a few EU countries. As a kid, I had to watch for remnants of "pigtraad" or as it is known in NA as "barbed wire" wherever we played as kids in the local forest. In NA, it's sort of a foreign idea, but for us kids in EU, it was very close to home, living in the aftermath of WWII. So... the next Tuesday morning, when you have breakfast with them old guys...... YOU GIVE"EM A TIP OF THE HAT from this old codger, aka Kaptain_Zero! I wasn't born then, so I could not join in the fight, but I sure as hell respect each and every one, who joined in and helped make the world a better place for everyone, and who made it possible for me to breath air today. Dad was a prisoner of war, Mom was part of the underground and kept my dad alive..... without the allied forces and what they did for us, I wouldn't be here today! Springer, you just make damn sure you tell'em thanks from ME!

Regards

Kaptain "Sorry... got a few tears in my eyes..... dunno why" Zero

wow,thanks kap. I've been known to have the occasional senior moment, but I think I can remember to pass your thanks on!

Hi Ken, Mike, and Don...it looks like the MPF venture going well.

I just wanted to pass along a possible lead for some sales, as well as some exposure to hobbyists who frequent YouTube.

Obviously, there are a lot of YouTube Channels devoted to RC Planes. One of the biggest and best channels is called FliteTest. It's a fairly new endeavor, and yet has 39,861 subscribers and over 7 million video views. The principle of the organization is a fellow named Chad Kapper who owns StoneKap Productions, a video production company in Canton Ohio. His bio on the website (www.flitetest.com) says that his first experience with RC flight was in the spring of 2010. He's obviously a very passionate and entrepreneurial spirit, who wants to do something to promote the hobby. To see what "FliteTest" has become since it's inception in August of 2010 is amazing. Needless to say, being in the business, the end product videos that he and his team create are extremely professional.

Judging by their most recent video (posted two days ago) it seems they may be venturing more and more over into the DIY "scratch-built" realm. They've acquired a laser cutter, and are now offering a basic kit for purchase through their website. But they are also stressing that the plans will always free for those who want to roll their own foamies. They especially want to reach out to the kids, to help them apply themselves by working with their hands and brains, by actually BUILDING SOMETHING.

Here's the latest video from FliteTest.

Flite Test - Speed Build Swappable Kits! (15 min 19 sec)

After viewing this, I left a comment describing your new foam offering.

In the video they stress that they want novices to build this kit as a first experience. But then, as your building skills progress, they want you to go out buy the materials locally for further building. The video already has 9000 plus views. Their first batch of 100 planes is sold out. They had to put things on hold while they got more foam. From the looks of it, it sounds like they are going to be using lots of foam...lol...

I like their concept of DIY building with local sourcing. However, as we all know, finding a local source of good quality foam at a reasonable price is always the Achilles' Heel of the foamy scratchbuilder. At FliteTest they are currently using Dollar Tree Foam as their building material. But at my local Dollar Tree Store, I've found that the foam is not always in the best condition...and is often out of stock. And for larger planes the small 20x30 inch sheet is constraining. The same Adams Redi-Board is carried at Art Supply Houses in larger sizes...but it is horribly expensive. The blue bundles of fan fold foam at builders supply stores are either unavailable, or in terrible shape, wavy and torn up.

The FliteTest guys may not know about your new product. I'm sure they want to disseminate information about sources of easily obtainable, economical, high quality, raw building materials. So it might not be a bad idea to make an initial contact, and offer to shoot them a carton of MPF, along with a note detailing your own "entrepreneurial vision" and product history.

My guess is that entrepreneurs share a great deal of simpatico with fellow entrepreneurs...lol...

Just a thought...

Their website is: www.flitetest.com.
There is no mailing address, but there is a contact email page.

RJ: thanks for the plug, but they already interviewed us while we were at the JR indoor fest last year! I'm sure the video is still in their archives. They bought two boxes of MPF, so I'd guess it'll show up on some builds. I'm sure their dollar store foam focus is as you say, for the folk just beginning in foamies and not sure how much they want to put into the hobby. Can't start for much less than a buck a plane!

OH. NO...MY BAD!!!

I never realized they were here in Columbus for the indoor...
I'll have to check back to view that particular video.
I obviously totally missed it.