RC India

hi there
 can any one please tell me that how to make planes like ft versa wings with locally available thermocole (low density Styrofoam)
is there any techniques which can make it harder and more usable
i am from Nagpur and cant find any suitable material for making the versa wing   :headscratch:

Have a look .... You cannot make FT type plane with the normal thermacol.
but if yo u have high density foam 5mm then you can stick paper both sides with fevicol to get strong foam sheets to make FT wing.

Otherwise have a look!!

http://www.rcindia.org/for-sale/wing-core-made-of-high-density-thermacol/msg162023/#msg162023 (http://www.rcindia.org/for-sale/wing-core-made-of-high-density-thermacol/msg162023/#msg162023)

looks cool, but i could not find high density foam also....
but u have given me a great idea of paper and feviccol i think i should give it a try with low density thermocole :)

Just out of curiosity since I was looking to make a delta wing out of low density thermocole,...  did you succeed??

http://www.rcindia.org/self-designed-diy-and-college-projects/scratch-building-flying-wing-my-first-scratch-build/msg254824/#msg254824

See!!!
If this may help you.......!!!
(Couldn't get time to make any further progress in this project :( )

we are using a high density foam box use for packing fish, thats the best we can get, its very tough after covering with fevicol + paper

try the fruit sellers.
ask for foam fruit boxes.
Free

I was thinking of not going to even that extent. I got a huge sheet (1 x 3 feet) of 1cm thick low density foam for Rs.20 from the stationary shop. If I'm able to get anything done out of it, it'll be a huge success for me, rather a miracle. So I was happy that someone used thermocole in the first place!

i have tried that.
Failure even on a 36" plane with balsa spar.

Kn8alpha
 :giggle: :giggle: buddy the thermocol available in local shops are very brittle and without any special coatings are vulnerable.
High density thermocol would be better.
At high speeds low density thermocol will break.
You have to however think something else to use for flaps rudder or elevator because total weight is almost taken by them in terms of air pressure.
I tried looking for hard thermocol but hard to find

Hi kn8alpha, I have used low density thermocol for many builds successfully before I got Depron ,which is obviously better. The technique of using low density thermocol without breaking is like this. You have to cut it into desired size, cover it tightly using food wrap (which is very thin plastic sheet, available in local stores) ; then you can bend it to aero foil . Finally , strengthen the wing with CF rod or balsa stick. I got excellent results. If you make tip dihedral , even less chance of breakage on landing. Use Sellotape for keeping the plastic sheet to tight fit.

May work!
but for a >46" span?
KA-BOOM

I used low density thermocol to make a 1.5 metre flying wing. 550g auw with 3layer paper coating with fevi + H2O
flew excellently .
Crashed it 4 times and repaired and flew again.
But 5th crash broke it in 3 pieces . Beyond repair.
.
Good material if used properly .

well... have a look at my posts on scratch built Kaiser from normal foam..... I been flying that model and many more such models for last 2 years...

http://www.rcindia.org/electric-planes/me-and-my-kaiser-mk-i-and-mk-ii-from-sharma-models/

I used to make models which weigh less than 250 gms. So I strengthened wings by hot gluing a balsa stick on the under side and then cover it. To keep the sheet stuck to thermocol, first paste a double side tape (3M) , this is especially good at areas of curves. The idea of making a landing gear which won't break away on such foam is like this: make a small cylindrical cut on the underside of the fuselage. Bend a small piece of thick plastic sheet to fit this . Hot glue a refill with big inner diameter on to it. Then you can pass a small lollipop stick(white plastic tube) through it and hot glue wheels of desired size. In my models , these won't come off easily(never in my experience ).

This technique is used here.