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Build Log
Windrider BeEvolution
Rather than start yet another BeEvo build thread in the main forum I thought I'd start documenting the build here instead.
I got two BeEvos, one for me and one for my son Liam. It took about two weeks from confirmation of payment to when they arrived. Reading other build logs, I wasn't sure what we were going to get coz there were different versions reported, particularly relating to the carbon rod at the rear of the centre join. Some had the rod but no holes in the foam ... others had the holes but no rod. We got both. Great, until I do a trial fit to find that the holes in the foam aren't centered equally ... on either model. See image 1. This put a step in the panels across the center join. Fortunately, others that missed out on the rod or the holes in the previous threads just left the rod out of the model with no apparent side effect. Sounded good to me. Then I read about the "A$$ Crack". Not ever owned a chevron wing, the a$$ crack phenomenon was new to me. Our solution was to insert a 200mm length of 2mm carbon rod towards the rear of the centre join on both top and bottom skins. Also, instead of butt joining the carbon spars at the center join, I cut a radiused groove so the spar can be kept in one piece. Next step, taping the wing. Happy to hear your experience here. The single page instruction sheet doesn't mention whether to fully tape the skins or just as shown around the perimeter. ImagesView all Images in thread
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Last edited by Larrikin; Feb 05, 2012 at 06:05 AM.
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Beevo
Dave,
good thing you've done this. I have Bernd coming round tomorrow with his Bee kit to start building it,and it's so long since I've made a foamie I'm a bit nervous! He has a standard Bee which we'll build first, and a Beevo to do a bit later. BTW you don't need foam safe CA on EPP. Any CA will do. If the spar holes aren't lined up the easiest fix is to rout them out both way oversize/ or oval, till you can get them both to sit in (loosely). Then get some PU glue, mix with a drop of water, quickly work it into the holes and smear over the spar ... tape it together and block it up so it's aligned, and leave it for a day. Rock solid and lasts forever. Yeah my foamies all have a 2.4mm f/g kite spar across the rear of the wing centre ... never called it the ass-crack before! It's best to run the spar wider than the inside corner of the elevon so it protects that area too, because that's another common place to split. Andrew |
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Having built one recently, here's a brain-dump of what went on:
Dunno what was going on with your rear wing joiner rod - perhaps a Friday arvo batch? Dumb question, but did you try interchanging the port and starboard wings of each kit? Mick (Swoopdown) helped me build my first Sloaper, which happened to be a BeEvo 2. The first thing we did after we joined the wings was shoe-goo the daylights out of the first roughly 1/3rd of the wing (about back to the battery bay). Thin the shoe-goo with Xylene so it's quite runny - then apply a coat over the front portion of the wing. Top and bottom. We used and ice-cream stick. You could use a stippling brush or whatever else tickles your fancy. If the goo is thin enough, you should notice that it soaks in between the polystyrene beads quite quickly. Set it aside for a day, and repeat the process. Again, set it aside for a day and do it again. From memory, after about the 3rd application, the foam wouldn't absorb any more goop. Depends on your foam and how thick the goo is to start with I guess. What the shoe-goo does is impregnate the foam so that the nose area doesn't snap off when you go cartwheeling across an LZ LoL. When taping the wing, use the glass tape pattern they show you in the instructions, and then some. Don't worry too much about additional weight that it might add - better to be too strong than a tad heavy. They're pretty light all-up anyways. Just make sure you use plenty of the 'glass tape' to brace the whole front end to wings nice and firm. When it comes time to put the final layer/s of the coloured packing tape, we overlapped mine by about 1/3rd per run. Light colours will show darker 'stripes' where it overlaps. I used blue on the top, black on the bottom. The black stayed fairly evenly black all over, the blue had the 'stripe' effect. But it still looked ok. We colour-matched the control surfaces - blue tape on top, black on the bottom - to match the airframe. At the end of the day, wing-tape is usually going to look a bit rougher than a spray job or Oracover etc - but once it's 10ft away, it really doesn't matter a rats. So long as the tape forms a nice smooth covering without any sticky-outtie-bits, it should fly fine. I also ended up using clear tape on the wing end-plates - that velcro stuff lasts about one prang (well, it did in my case). I learnt not to be too finicky about how it looks - so long as it's strong and smooth, it'll fly like a pearler... BJ |
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Subscribed
Might get my bee kit going? Cheers Jeff |
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Interesting about the Goop BJ ... I said to Dave that it was no use using Goop ... my recollection is that it didn't stick to the molded EPP skin. Different to cut EPP where it soaks in. But now I do remember that I cut criss-crosses all over the nose area, about 3mm deep and 3mm apart, and worked some Goop into the area. It really improves the rubber bounce effect dramatically.
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Hey Dave- another nice thread! I built a couple of bats a while ago, one with thin goop and one without. The thinned goop one came out much stronger/ bouncier, and the tape sticks a lot better. I think a good tip is to give the moulded foam a sand with some course sand paper as once you break off the skin it seems pretty much like cut EPP and the goop soaks right in.
Are you planning to use laminating film over the top? It seems to make foamies so much better, but heavier. I also think the faster bee guys move the servos out to the middle of the elevons because I think the stock elevons are pretty thin and flimsy. The original servo pockets can be filled with foam (or lead!) Keep it up mate! Josh |
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Great feedback from all. The intended purpose of the BeEvos has a DS bias. But we also want to use them at Shorncliffe (SC) so there is a conflict with a preferred weight. I guess first and foremost they're SC models so I wont be doing the laminating film.
I come from a time that is pre-Zagi or any other model that bounced. Along with other pilots from my era, we saw the influx of foam as tantamount to blasphemy so at the risk of offending some people (and because it's my blog ) I view my move to flying foam as a step backwards. Having said that, the local DS crew, to which I hold in high regard, have proved that foam, when used for "niceness instead of evil", can be a versatile and cheap way to fly. @ Josh, I'm planning on vac bagging some carbon sock onto the elevons coz they are indeed, quite flimsy. So where do I get Shoe-Goo and Xylene from? Are they Bunnings products or something more specialized? David |
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Dave I have plenty of Xylene. Half a drum from our driveway concrete lacquer. You're welcome to a jam jar full.
Shoe Goo from A-mart all sports, other sports shoe shops or various shoe repairers, Mister Minute, etc. I have some UV6800 Goop in cartridges (runnier than Shoe-Goo and cheaper) but it's hard to get so I'm not about to give it away too easily! Are the stock elevons balsa? When you neatly wrap them in fibre tape they get a lot more rigid. I wouldn't recommend carbon socking them - adds weight at the wrong end and not necessary for a non-mega DS foamie. |
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Hey dave, xylene is from bunnings but I heard they may be phasing it out so mabe get two tins! Sports shops have shoe goo (rebel etc). You can get 150micron lam film which I think is a good compromise in strength to weight or you can even get thinner. Another trick is to paint your covering in the vulnerable spots with thinned goop and go with out lam film.
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