I've bought some balsa wood....

[midlife]

Thanks

Shaun

 

[mybike]

I thought I might build a glider when I retired, I've got one all ready to go! Introduced my grandson to the simple ones too, the balsa press out ones are far better than the foamy plastic ones.

 

[Accy cyclist]

I remember making an elastic band engine'd plane,with my dad in the 1960's. The frame was made of balsa wood but if i remember rightly,he/we used cut into shape Izal toilet roll with a kind of resin coating, for the body panels.

 

[classic33]

I remember making an elastic band engine'd plane,with my dad in the 1960's. The frame was made of balsa wood but if i remember rightly,he/we used cut into shape Izal toilet roll with a kind of resin coating, for the body panels.

Saved on using dope I suppose

 

[vernon]

Yesterday, I arrived back in the UK with an assembled 14" span catapult launched balsa glider packed in the same box as my Woodrup Chimera. It survived three airports worth of baggage handlers and a TSA inspection and repackaging unscathed on its journey from Seattle to Manchester.

I also brought back with me

a Gollywock kit - 32" span 'stick and tissue' endurance model

Two Midwest Products 20" span Sorcerer indoor contest kits (in one box)

A 7" span indoor duration 'Mini Stick' kit that uses 1/32" square balsa for the wing construction and 1/64" sheet balsa for the propellor. It should weight about 1.2g without the rubber motor.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNhbAP3AgiY


That's the start of the autumn building season taken care of.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

there's always one...

It is a reference to a diecast model aircraft forum I used to be on. There was sort of a running joke that nothing was ever right, even the real aircraft themselves!

 

[vernon]

I'm sure (but haven't checked) that you can get balsa wood on ebay etc. Probably why the modelling shops have disappeared.

Not quite. Aeromodelling has undergone a revolution. In the past the three main disciplines; Freeflight Radio Control, and Control Line were served by kits and plans. Folk who bought the plans would then buy the balsa and fittings to build the planes from scratch. The kits were either sticks of balsa and printed balsa sheets which needed to have the components cut out or sticks and precut balsa. There still some of these kits available but increasingly modeller but RTF (ready to fly) or (almost ready to fly) kits are available where most of the assembling and covering has already been done and the kits cost very little more than the boxes of bits that require a large investment of time to get something that matches the ARTF/RTF kit qualities. Fewer folk build from plans so the demand for balsa sheet and sections has shrunken considerably.

 

[andytheflyer]

Very smart Just curious, what is it? An Aeronca?

Shaun

Hi, thx. It's the Airsail 1/4scale Auster AOP9 (as in Air Observation Platform) kit, in the air race colours from 1969. Still flying too (both full-size and the model!)

Well spotted @DaveReading! Mine's missing a couple of graphics, which I have just acquired and they are waiting to be fitted. And the wheel discs and undercart are now in the correct colours too. Must change the spinner to one nearer-scale as I hand start it, no electric starter needed.

 

[andytheflyer]

Not quite. Aeromodelling has undergone a revolution. In the past the three main disciplines; Freeflight Radio Control, and Control Line were served by kits and plans. Folk who bought the plans would then buy the balsa and fittings to build the planes from scratch. The kits were either sticks of balsa and printed balsa sheets which needed to have the components cut out or sticks and precut balsa. There still some of these kits available but increasingly modeller but RTF (ready to fly) or (almost ready to fly) kits are available where most of the assembling and covering has already been done and the kits cost very little more than the boxes of bits that require a large investment of time to get something that matches the ARTF/RTF kit qualities. Fewer folk build from plans so the demand for balsa sheet and sections has shrunken considerably.

Not necessarily true Vernon - my LMS reports increasing sales of the materials (balsa, plastics etc) to build over recent months - but you are right in that the ARTF/RTF market has reduced kit and plan building. Most of mine are from plan, so I get through a lot of balsa!

And welcome back! Glad to see you brought a couple of goodies back - even if they haven't got a petrol engine up front!

 

[andytheflyer]

I'm sure (but haven't checked) that you can get balsa wood on eBay etc. Probably why the modelling shops have disappeared.

You can get balsa on eBay - but when plan building you need to select the correct grade of balsa for the job to be done. Wing ribs need to be very light, strip wood for leading edges much harder, for example. The real aficionados take a digital scale to the shop with them!
The modelling shops have reduced because more people buy their 'planes ready to fly from Vietnamese sweat shops so there's less of the associated kit to sell - balsa, covering materials, hardware etc. Real modellers start with a 3-view drawing on a large sheet of paper, and they have lots of spare time when not out cycling But I have bought a few kits in the past!

 

[Dirk]

I've got more carbon fibre gliders than bikes!

 

[simon the viking]

Slight thread resurrection alert!

I happened to be near a hobby superstore in Derby the other day so nipped in with Little-un to see if they did sheets of balsa wood..... They did..................... I think the phrase is HHHOOOOOOOWWWWW MMMMUUUUCCCHHHHH!!!!

He said are 'are we getting any then?'

'errrr.... not today son' was my reply.....

I'll stick (no pun intended) with packs of assorted off cuts....... That way it might stay a cheap hobby/pastime....

I did manage to multi-use the balsa cement though... It stuck a tap top on the other as I hadn't got any super glue or Araldite (other 2 part epoxy resins are available) handy

 

[andytheflyer]

Go find a specialist model aircraft shop - balsa will be much cheaper there, I'll bet.

 

[andytheflyer]

Go find a specialist model aircraft shop - balsa will be much cheaper there, I'll bet.

 

[simon the viking]

Go find a specialist model aircraft shop - balsa will be much cheaper there, I'll bet.

I reckon you're right... I was talking to my Brother in law at the weekend and he said it used to be pocket money prices when he worked in a model shop (it closed a few years ago... within the last ten years though) I can't believe its gone up to the prices I saw Monday....

No local model shops to me now If I'm out and about I might have look in any model shops I see though