Wing attachment

[RScheetz]

I am new to the site and I have a question about model construction.  I am re-building a sparrow hawk biplane originally made from a kit, and I have 4 separate wings to attach to the fuselage (1/72 nd scale).  What is the best way to attach the wings to assure proper alignment?  I know this sounds like a stupid question, but I feel like I need 4-6 hands. If the bottom 2 wings were made as one piece it would have provided a solid base to build on. Has anyone made an adjustable jig of some sort to make certain everything is positioned correctly.   Thanks.

Ray S.

[lastvautour]

You might check out Balsbasher's board. He has made many biplanes.
http://smm.solidmodelmemories.net/SMF/index.php?board=51.0

Lou

[Model Maker]

Hi Ray

I posted the plans for a wing clamp under the path below. Not sure of the scale you are working with so the dimensions may not be appropriate. But it may provide you with an initial starting point from which to scale up or scale down the size. It works great for single wing models. It should work for double wing models, although you may have to install the wings in two steps - lower wing first followed by second wing once the glue has dried on the lower wing.

The picture shows blocks under the wings to ensure a consistent height from the bottom of the fuselage. If I was using the clamp for a two wing model, I would cut a set of spacers to install on top of the lower wing to ensure a uniform and parallel alignment of the top wing.

The full details are under the main menu Tools > Wing Clamp
http://smm.solidmodelmemories.net/SMF/index.php?topic=1359.0

-ken

[johnnytodd]

Ken,

Just had a look at your wing jig post.  Interesting that you leave the nose unfinished until the very end: the idea being to preserve perpendicular angles of the fuselage?  I like this technique!  may try it on my next build.

John

[Model Maker]

Hi John

I leave the "tang" on the fuselage to the end for a couple of reasons. As you indicated, it does provide a reference for lines etc. However, the main reason is to allow the fuselage to be clamped while it is being shaped / sanded. I've attached a link below to clamping vice which I use. Most of my models are scaled to to have a fuselage around 12"-14" in length. This allows me to use the clamping vice allowing both hands to be free while carving and shaping.

There are numerous variations of the clamping vice which can developed. The key is simply to provide a tang at the front of the fuselage which can be restrained horizontally and vertically to facilitate initial fuselage shaping and then final shaping / sanding of the complete plane. Once final sanding is performed the fuselage nose is shaped and the small remaining portion of the tang is cut away. I've found this approach invaluable in allowing me to use two hands to hold / control the chisels and files and keeping one hand away from the end of sharp chisels and knives by not having to hand hold while shaping.

If you have a look at the postings on my building board "Ken N's Project Board" you will see how I use  the clamping vice during the fuselage shaping and model build process. The use of a tang can certainly be applied to smaller fuselages as it is simply a way to provide a surface to clamp a fuselage for shaping and sanding.

http://smm.solidmodelmemories.net/SMF/index.php?topic=1346.0

[RScheetz]

Thanks for the tips, I will build the suggested jig.  Its' value far exceeds the time invested in building it. 
RScheetz