Radio Control Scale Models techniques

One of the joys of the Radio Control Aircraft hobby, is to build oneself or get to see a scale model aircraft. This is referred to as scratch building. Some people use the term including the use of plans, whilst others prefer it to mean starting with a blank sheet of paper. The building techniques vary. Some still use balsa wood which is a very light wood although it comes in different grades. Some are very soft and light others hard and heavier. Choice depends on what part of the aircraft it is being used for.

With the plans ready to go, one of the problems that one comes across is curves in the fuselage.
However, whilst some can be sanded to shape from soft balsa wood, how about where this won't work? This is where planking comes in, just as has been used for ages in boat building.Thin strips of balsa are curved around and glued- some use ammonia and water to bend stubborn shapes. Another material used is fiberglass - molds are made, male and female thus it is easy to make other models from these. There are other "spaceage" materials that can be used e.g. carbon fibre and kevlar.

Another great material is foam. It comes in a light beaded soft form, a heavier blue and pink and a special foam that has 'memory' which is harder to cut but is strong and holds it's shape. These materials can either form a part of the radio controlled model or most of it. The common way to cut these foams is with a hotwire stretched across a "bow"supplied with a power source.