Hot wire airfoils and bow

[@jeffbeck6501]

I love the plastic film that strengthens not only the surface, but the entire structure, for reasonable weight costs.

[@AndrewNewton]

That's right, they are quite rigid without spars.

[@Jacey2001]

One of my dads old buddies did this about 30 years ago in his shop. Made one airfoil large, on small. Made huge delta wing gliders.

[@chrisboyce6542]

Hi Andrew, for inserting the spar, I use the hot wire, cut a tapered U shape where you want the spar remove the cut out deposit into that your spar, trim from the tapered U sufficient material to allow it to fall into the hole and cover the spar and adhesive, later sand any over sized foam flush with the underside or top side which ever suits. The same can be done for servo wire laying a tube to through which your wire are feed . Great video thanks Chris

[@AndrewNewton]

Thanks Chris, nice tips. I'm using edge on CF trips in slots these days

[@jakegarrett8109]

For those that want to know V=AMPS*(Res), (you sounded surprised that with 3.5 ohms, 12V, it pulled 3.5 amps). For power it is V^2/resistance = power (watts). That's all you need to know. Also nichrome is super cheap, and besides that it takes no material to make a quick rig (I start up my dirt bike for power source, tie one end to the metal poles on my porch, and tie the other end of the nichrome to a brick, then shorten the wire if you want more power and heat, only thing you need is nichrome and a power source. I use that setup for general cutting of basic shapes in Styrofoam, not airfoils though). That plane flew nicely in the end, nice peaceful background music in the end too. Keep up the good work!

[@AndrewNewton]

+Jake Garrett Thanks Jake, good input

[@jeffbeck6501]

absolute art. all of it. the video, the project, everything

[@AndrewNewton]

Thanks Jeff, it does feel like magic

[@abdurrahmanak7269]

Andrew Newton hello... Can I use this type of material(foam) for some type of bigger plains... please reply fast..

[@damienbernier9378]

All of the two bit RC pop up manufacturers are going to be really upset that you gave their secret away for cutting Styrofoam. This was a great video. Ever since I learned how to work with Styrofoam I don't throw ancoy of it out. When you can make clean cuts...the possibilities become endless when you start learning the variation of heat to get the foam to mold in certain ways. Its very precise. For wheels or circles of any kind I use old tin cans. Clean them up real well and place the open end on the stove (electric works best) for 30 seconds, spin gently and quickly or it can stick. If its hot enough it will pass right through, but the edges of the foam can get hard. Thanks for the video!

[@AndrewNewton]

Tin cans, brilliant Damien

[@3000gtwelder]

Great video. I was going to build one of those a few years back before I got into the foam board. I bought a transformer from Radio shack and a dimmer switch to use to regulate the power and a E string for the wire. I like the battery way a lot better I think. Great idea.

[@meljones7066]

Great video Andrew, I have been thinking about using a hot wire for a while but never have because I thought I needed a special power supply, never thought about using a lipo. Many thanks for pointing the way.

[@AndrewNewton]

+Mel Jones Good to hear Mel. I have just worked out that a 4S LIPO is much better for my rig that cuts 750mm wings. 6S (2 x 3S) is too much and breaks the wire but 4S is perfect.

[@Justwantahover]

I never saw that sort of cut before. Well done. I used to do it with cross-section air-foil cutters, I made out of piano wire mounted on a special board. It' was a lot of mucking around making the air-foil cutter. You don't have to do that, you just make the air-foil guide ends. That's a lot easier.

[@dorianmccarthy7602]

My Digitor multimeters probes have about 1.8 Ohms in the leads, so you'll have to test yours and subtract that from the reading you got across the wire to get the resistance of the wire itself.

[@jeffbright7728]

I use .025 aircraft safety wire. Works great! Then I use a soldering iron with a metal yardstick to melt a channel on the bottom . Install a 1/8”-3mm carbon fiber rod. Then fill the channel with epoxy. Then cover with colored shipping tape. Made 6 planes like this…gliders to 3D foamies…13 years ago. All still flying perfect!

[@AndrewNewton]

I'm using edge-on carbon strips glued into a slot now. 13 years is very impressive!

[@jamesjacocks6221]

Great video. I use an auto battery and rheostat and stainless wire. There are many ways of sandwiching the foam, some obviate the use of spars, at least full span spars. Andrew, I just hot wire a box section for the spar(s) which may be made tight against the spar or filled with sparkle or glue. Made strong, the foam wing could be a bench seat. You can make virtually any airfoil as you intimated. You sure have the slope sites!

[@AndrewNewton]

Thanks James. Yes we do have a selection of slopes.

[@rcflightseeker3488]

like the video, I have done the same thing with the same type of foam. have the same issue with putting a spar ended up just cutting a groove on the underside of the wing and laying the spar in it. I think the next time I plan to build a wing using hot wire cutter and insulation foam, I I will use two halves to make the wing two layers of foam one on top one on bottom that way when I go to cut a groove for the spar I can take one half off. using that technique I think the wing will be more stable, because when you glue the two halves of the wing together it will be almost like a spar itself.

[@AndrewNewton]

+RC flight Seeker Interesting, don't think I can cut accurately enough to make the wing from upper and lower thin haves but it would solve the spar issue.

[@barrosnpor]

nice one! Here in Brazil people are used to do that first than the depron wing. Both work very nice... keep with the good work man! Bye

[@zooknut]

Nice work mate, good to see people joining the sport and putting video's out there. I have been cutting wing cores since high school nearly 25 years ago. The process is pretty much the same. Although it is best to cut the top and bottom separately with different template's that ramp you in and ramp you out. It eliminates wire drag that can make the middle of the wing chord shorter, the same as going to fast around the L/E. Having two people and reference lines on the templates helps also. As for spar's sometimes the simplest spar is a shear web of 3mm balsa just cut down vertically and glue it back together. If you want a 2 piece wing then carbon arrow shaft and brass tube works well. Cut out the foam as a big chunk, line it with light ply or balsa (depending on flight loads) glue the tube in and fill the gaps with a light epoxy and micro balloon mix. Keep up the good work buddy! Catch you at Bunnings ;-)

[@AndrewNewton]

zooknut Sweet, thanks for your tips, lots of technique to learn for a perfect cut but foam is cheap.

[@Drezed01]

Consider using 2 separate pieces of foam to make the wing. Cut a channel out of both pieces of foam, and insert your intended spar (you can cut channels for electronics, as well). Laminate the 2 foam pieces, and apply your templates to the ends, aligned with the chord line and your preferred position of the spar. Jeff

[@AndrewNewton]

+Drezed01 Thanks for the tips Jeff

[@SammSheperd]

There's no easy way I know of to bore a good hole for a spar. I usually just melt a trench on the bottom of the wing halves with a soldering iron and glue the spar in, Just cover the slot with some film or tape.

[@AndrewNewton]

+Samm Sheperd (SNRS) As long as the core is thick enough I can now drill a long hole but for swept and thin wings I'm cutting a slot and gluing in a 6 x 1mm CF spar.

[@devilidol]

I just used a square wooden dowel cut the wing out in such a way that the wooden dowel sits flush with the wing and glued it in with some 5min epoxy glue.

[@shadewar]

Shouldnt have looked into the comment section. Now im sad...

[@saleplains]

@@shadewar same

[@deltasierra4206]

I have done it by standing the wing perfectly upright and dropping a heated ball bearing on the spot where you want your spar tube run through. It wil melt thrue like butter

[@livinggood5545]

Very nice smooth cuts. Your machine does a awesome job of cutting.

[@AndrewNewton]

It takes some practice and they are never perfect, but they are good enough

[@wordreet]

I had a go at this a couple of years ago using a discarded guitar string from a friend. It works ok, but then I discovered Experimental Airlines and went the easy way. I shall come back to hot wire cutting, but I have one or two ideas brewing to improve (more complex) the folded style method.

[@AndrewNewton]

wordreet Excellent, photos and video please.

[@wordreet]

Heh, don't hold you breath, they are just ideas at the moment. ;¬)

[@grahamrdyer6322]

Yep another good video, After watching the plane fly a spar looks to be on the list of things to do (there is always something), what are you going to do, cut one in or melt a hole in the wing with a hot metal rod, I dare say you will sort it Andrew.

[@AndrewNewton]

Graham R Dyer I think I'll use a dremel to mill out a channel and glue it in.

[@Red20RC]

Awesome work! So glad I saw the bunnings foam before I practised on much more EPP ($50 a sheet!). Now got a stack of the knauff eps to play with first. If you want to try different wires, Jaycar do 0.13mm nichrome wire for a few dollars. Good stuff and heats up nicely on about 40W power.

[@AndrewNewton]

Red20RC Glad to hear it and thanks for the tip.

[@lklmmedia4715]

About 6-7 years ago I was fortunate enough to have a Dead Radiant/blower heater which of course when you look at them have a good 10m+ of coiled up Nichrome wire in them. I scavenged and built a 1.3m wide Wire cutter. From there I worked on a Massive Foam core Fibreglass wing project. The Foam was EPS - Also from Bunnings - haha - but was the Standard White Underfloor insulation. OH BOY THAT STUFF WAS MESSY! The XPS was never around at the time...I was in bunnings the other day and saw two whole racks of th Knauf...I bought a sheet and look forward to cutting the single sheet of 1200 x 600 into a single Flying wing design - just for kicks. I now have probably 15 sheets of EPS still in the garage I am giving to some guys at work because I have a feeling the XPS will be my New material of choice!

[@AndrewNewton]

Good tip about the radiator wire.

[@rickmullins4730]

Excellent job on the wings, looks like you've created a great way to cut them, you mentioned about spar improvement, how about a 3/8 aluminum tube spar forward of the CG and a 1/4 aluminum spar to the rear of the CG, should be a much stiffer configuration, great enjoyable videos.

[@AndrewNewton]

That would be solid, like Volantex model wings

[@colofoniusregenschein7514]

Thank you for this video! i started with my own hot wire now but i had great problems with the curve. So i used thick carton for the templates and took the outer part for cutting the airfoil and the inner part just for the notches.

[@AndrewNewton]

+Colofonius Regenschein Thin aluminium is my favourite template material now. Cut out with scissors.

[@ednaldocampos]

Thanks for the video. It is very important to show with details the material and you did very clear. Nice project.

[@AndrewNewton]

+Ednaldo Campos Thanks for noticing Ednaldo.

[@MilanKarakas]

Really good idea to use LiPo batteries. I use sliding autotransformer for this, bacause sometimes want faster cutting, and setting to about 20 volts or so. If you want to make hole for the spar, you may use aluminum or steel tube, make teeth at ne end, and carefuly align so that it drill hole along the wing. Rotating gently in both dirrections and it slowly cut nice hole for spar. Ocassionaly you may pull it out and clear foam by inserting metal rod on opposite end of the tube, so that it pushes out jamed foam. EDIT: Spar in many cases doesn't need to be long as the wingspan, but maybe 2/3 of that length. Find it by experiment - bending wings or gently rocking to see how it behave.

[@AndrewNewton]

***** You have just described exactly the technique I have settled on but I'm using the spar tube itself in a drill, works really well.

[@MilanKarakas]

Andrew Newton Oh, yes. This works too. I am just saying, because don't remember whether you done this thing already. It is better to said twice, than... Best wishes.

[@FPV420.]

Judging from my experience with foam cores the biggest challenge is what to use for covering the core afterwards. I've tried packing tape, wood varnish and iron laminate 80mil. The laminate will stick great to the foam however, after time it will start peeling. The material is also relatively heavy compared to EPP, EPO or Styrofoam. The wire cutting technique is very entertaining though. I still have my bow and few wings already cut.

[@joewoodchuck3824]

Some people have used the poor mans monokote which is the clear heat shrinkable sheet used for making up gift baskets. Dollar Tree has it.

[@eddiel1538]

Hi mate I am using craft paper with wood glue. Improves polystyrene strength many times and can be painted over easily. Give it a go you be surprised how much will improve strength and look of your aircraft. Cheers Eddie

[@jejurij]

That's awesome, already thinkin' about making one.

[@recommit]

Nice work, I have been using a Dremel with a router base guided by an alloy strip for straight u shaped grooves to insert wing reinforcing to the underside of the wing, glue the spar in, then cover the wing. The Bixler 2 "kit" comes with a similar installation, but you glue a foam strip over the spar to cover it. I use aircraft single strand lock wire for my foam cutter. We probably end up with the same result.

[@AndrewNewton]

Fixed Wing Rc Thanks, goos info. What thickness lock wire do you use?

[@recommit]

I mostly use .032" lockwire. If you are anywhere near Moorabbin airport you can pick up a roll from Aviall or Aviaquip, or if you are in the country, I'm sure someone in a small regional aircraft maintenance facility wouldn't mind giving you a few feet. I have the occasional break and have been looking out for an old fan heater. The wire coils they use as heating elements are the correct material for Hotwire cutters. If you are anywhere near the Mornington Peninsula I can give you some lockwire anytime.

[@AndrewNewton]

Fixed Wing Rc Thanks for the offer. I'm in Geelong. Pretty sure I can get some locally, marine chandlers carry it too. I'm happy with the fishing wire at the moment but I'll try all options.

[@LWJCarroll]

Kiwi's FYI Bunning's carry this brand xps foam, in New Zealand...there is also a company making XPS foam in Christchurch Gold Foam I think its called....Rgds...Laurie

[@sammas2077]

Thank you for sharing your project. An excellent and very clear no nonsense hot wire cutter.

[@AndrewNewton]

My pleasure Sam

[@kevinsraydatme]

Ditto. As per everyone, this is a great video. Off to Bunnings tomorrow morning.

[@AndrewNewton]

Kevin Ray I don't know how long Bunnings have carried this foam, only discovered it a few weeks ago.

[@kevinsraydatme]

Sorted. Went to bunnings today and ordered 2 x 30mm and 2 x 50mm. They are both 1200 x 600. Should have them next week. Gives me a week to build the cutter like yours and design a wing.

[@andydodson5718]

Hi Andrew, I don't know if you have a lathe, but before you dremel out a channel for a spar maybe drill out a hole if you have access to a lathe. I used a lathe that's only 660 B/C but I've had success drilling holes 600mm long (with the lathe tailstock removed) using a carbon arrow shaft in the chuck as the drill bit and then you can use the arrow shaft as a spar. I've found arrow shafts (about 8mm diam fm memory) to be cheaper at $8ea than buying carbon tubes from a LHS. You'd think that it would be difficult to eyeball 2 axes 'square' while drilling the hole, but I found it surprisingly easy.

[@AndrewNewton]

Andy Dodson I don't have a lathe, but I thought about securing the drill to the table, using a sharpened arrow shaft for the drill bit and sliding the wing towards the drill.

[@stephengloor8451]

A while ago I built a foam cutting rig. I use a 30V AC transformer that I scavenged from something or other. On the 240V AC side I wired in a standard 240V light dimmer to control the temperature. The hot wire cutter is connected to the 30V AC side and it works a treat. You can turn it up to the best temperature that just cuts the foam with the light dimmer. My favourite airfoil is the S7037 which is in the database. I use a program called WinFoil to print out co-ords as you can design the wing allowing for skin thickness if you need to. Compufoil is also another good one. The S7037 is a really good all-round glider airfoil that is much lower in drag than the ClarkY. The S3021 is also another good choice. For faster models the classic RG15 works really well. For my flying wings I am using the MH45 at the tip and MH46 11% at the root. It flew pretty well once I got the CG right. I got this wing cut by someone else out of EPP foam.

[@AndrewNewton]

Stephen Gloor Thanks for the airfoils tips Stephen. I tested an RG15a111 on my ultralight sloper today and it was very nice.

[@stephengloor8451]

Yep the RG15 was a favourite for F3B for many years. They tend to use the newer airfoils now that blend from root to tip such as the A series from Andrew Drelar or the HQ series. However the RG15 still is good.

[@gonzalosanchez9087]

Excellent! Beautiful video! Thanks Andrew

[@leswheeler2023]

A good source of template material are used litho printing plates (offset machining not digital!!) from a commercial printer. Can come in various thicknesses, but all are thin enough to cut with scissors easily. One plate will give you enough material for heaps of profiles. You only have to ask and they will give you one or to. They are normally scrapped.

[@samievans9632]

Thank you for the information and a simple video.

[@otasty7991]

Thanks for the video, it was very helpful and I am looking forward to cutting my own foam wings soon. I think the best way of cutting grooves for spars is to use a soldering iron and a locking collar attached to it as a depth stop. The collars are commonly found at hobby shops for making landing gear wheels not fall off. You may also find them at import chinese tool stores as drill bit depth stops.

[@AndrewNewton]

Great tip, thanks.

[@Mikinct]

These videos are an inspiration for anyone into rc planes. Easy question- Looking at basic airfoil shapes, when one makes a Armin wing the top is a curve surface that extends that curve that form your control ailerons or flaps past the bottom of the wing. Meaning the control surfaces curve beyond the flat bottom section. When one cuts out ailerons they can be moved slightly uo to keep to match flat profile of bottom but the parts of curved area right next to ailerons keep that curve downward A) does the wing fly OK if control surface area keeps that downward curve in the wing? B) or should one completely remove control surface area & re attach ones that keep & match flat bottom looking from the side view of wings?

[@AndrewNewton]

Good question. I tended to set them up flat with the bottom, not following the top curve. Both ways would work, maybe more lift and slower flight if they followed the top curve. More speed less drag if. they are flat with the bottom.

[@Mikinct]

@@AndrewNewton . You've been in the hobby longer than I. Which methods work better for Gliders? A- armin wing depron approach or different foam using Hot Wire cutouts? Ever fly 3D printed winds, I've watched J5 glider competitions & some ideas have 8ft upto 14ft wing spans with 11 pound Gliders.

[@AndrewNewton]

3d printing is no good for wings IMO. Depron armin wing is much easier as long as you keep it thin, like 10%.

[@ShahriarFarkhan]

This is fantastic, maybe use the wire cutter to open a channel in the wing root to add the spar. What length did you choose for the wood for the cutter?

[@AndrewNewton]

Thanks, long enough to hold 800mm span of wire

[@gvet47]

I was really surprised at your setup. I would have thought your wire choice would have had too much resistance to heat up evenly with you power source. I would have thought the wire would cool too fast when cutting that length.Looks like really nice results.

[@AndrewNewton]

I didn't't know any better, but it works OK

[@JOeSJNrForReal]

Thank you very much for sharing this technique. Just like I mentioned before, i'm gathering all the knowledge about this wing building as much as I can. Thanks again!

[@AndrewNewton]

Excellent, good luck, it's very satisfying.

[@ericnielsen9574]

Use a square or rectangle spar. Cut the square or rectangle into the template and use your hot wire to notch the wing. That works pretty good.

[@ericnielsen9574]

+eric nielsen Forgot, you make a second template with the notch. After you cut the airfoil as you show, you switch to the template with the notch. Then use the bow to notch the top or bottom of the wing. The square spar slips into the notch and you just tape or cover it.

[@EricLaermans]

Looking forward to the ultra-light slope soarer.

[@SnapPunchRobert]

Sweet, Nothing you can't do mate. Kudos.

[@Sqwince23]

I just made a wing like this and decided to use a router table with a fence to cut a slot down the length for two carbon arrow shafts as spars. I cut a #8 bold head off and used that to join the two arrow shafts together tip to tip to make it long enough for the entire wing span.. cheers.

[@AndrewNewton]

Sounds excellent. I just experimented with a small U shaped hot wire to cut a slot for an aluminium tube. Worked nicely

[@richhandler2621]

Great video! I built a cnc hot wire cutter that does all the cutting for me, but operates on the exact same principle you're using here. I have some airfoil comparison/generation software (it's called profili) that allows you to view the data on different airfoils as well as generates the cut path. The software creates a "spar" path, which basically cuts a circle in the middle of the wing (from the top or bottom). You could just drill/cut a spar hole and wire path from the top (or bottom) in your wood jigs. I think that would solve your spar issue. I use NACA 4412 for my FPV planes, NACA 0012- NACA 0014 for aerobatics, NACA 3413, NACA 2413 for casual aerobatics. Welcome to the new world of airfoils! I think I have more fun experimenting with new airfoils and designs then flying the damn things.

[@AndrewNewton]

***** Thanks Chris, great tips. I did wonder whether it was possible to use the hot wire for the spar channel, must try that.

[@JonElofson]

Nice work, Andrew. Now I am inspired to build one. Looks pretty simple. I might try using my router to route a groove down the CG line of the wing to glue a spar into, rather than trying to drill. Thanks again.

[@AndrewNewton]

Jon Elofson I agree Jon, that's the obvious solution. Need to protect the foam from the router base with tape maybe, it's pretty easy to mark.

[@lexxdysia]

Andrew Newton An alternative which may be easier could be to make a cut say 5mm deep along the top and bottom of the wing and force a carbon strip into the slice - narrow side visible. Something like www.carbonfiber.com.au/prod74.htm. Having a separate strip on the top & bottom surfaces of the wing would make the system act like an I-beam and probably be stiffer than a single arrow tube.

[@AndrewNewton]

Lex Dysia I did exactly that for the Ultralight sloper wing and it worked very well. Just one 1m x 6mm x 1mm spar epoxied in to the bottom.

[@28th_St_Air]

great to see you evolving on to hot wire cutting. within the last few weeks I've been toying with the idea too and have seen where PC power supplies can be used as the source. I just so happen to have a pc power supply kicking around and some guitar strings too. I'm even more inspired to give it a go now. I've always been curious about how the outer and inner airfoil templates are lined up with each other prior to cutting???

[@AndrewNewton]

28th St. Air Land & Sea I started with a PC power supply but it tripped the house safety switch when I turned it on so that went in the bin. So far I have just eyeballed the template placement but I'm working on a better system.

[@kevinsraydatme]

28th St. Air Land & Sea Yep, I was thinking the same.. I thought about it and maybe a process like below would get them straight. 1.Draw line at 90 degrees on top of foam 2.Align template on inner template. 3.Mark spot on template which is directly under the line on foam 4.Copy mark location to outer template 5. Allign templates and cut. Probably lots of videos on KZbin about this. I am also thinking same, but using offsets and different size templates.. for Flying WIngs.

[@christheother9088]

Very pretty section. Could you dial in a bit of twist?

[@AndrewNewton]

***** Yes very easily.

[@valvegramp]

you can always use single strand fishing wire used for salt traces or stainless welding mig wire .. but guitar wire is thinner

[@albertomaligne8933]

Cual cuerda usas de las 6 ?

[@AndrewNewton]

+dan garcia Cant reply directly to your comment due to your Google+ privacy settings. You need to use a new and clean knife blade to avoid pulling and tearing the foam, then this foam cuts like butter.

[@jeffbright7728]

Next project is the “DLG F3K style RC electric glider”. Marko Roolaid on YT. Body is 3D printed with CF filament. Wing is hot wire cut with carbon fiber glued to the top. He uses a food saver vacuum bagger to suck the wing down while curing. 3D printed parts are on Tverse. I’ve already 3D printed all the parts on my Bambu Labs A1. They look good!

[@AndrewNewton]

That will be interesting. Doubt I could cut a decent thin wing

[@jeffbright7728]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/b4XZkKxqbKprsMUsi=A37jQwbj63thp-NZ

[@ss9767]

Nicely done, thanks for sharing...

[@robaust3049]

Great work Andrew, well laid out, informative and useful.

[@AndrewNewton]

Rob Aust Thanks Rob

[@wardope]

i have only been flying quradcopters and tricopters Mostly FPV. after watching your video i ordred some foam. to build a flying wing fpv setup, as i have all the electroninc needed. along with Sonar GPS and what not. i can experiment with on a wing. looking foward to try it out

[@AndrewNewton]

Excellent, good luck

[@RCFlightAdventures]

using a negative of the airfoils works great for cutting the top half first and then the bottom half

[@AndrewNewton]

RCFlightAdventures I tried positive top and negative bottom and it worked well. Yet to try all negative.

[@RCFlightAdventures]

started building a 3m fiberglass pilatus b4 like that a year or so ago. working on it from time to time, it's turned into a club build now xD

[@rckeith]

Hi Andrew. Nice video. I started making foam wings like this for my Vicker SuperVC10 and then got fed up making all the templates so I built a hot wire CNC machine which I use for wings and fuselages now. For spars I use a Dremel with a tile cutting attachment and a straight edge as a guide, Saw this on SD ParkFlyers (tallguysd is his youtube channel) Works really well and I still use this method on my CNC wings.

[@AndrewNewton]

+keith howlette Thanks Keith, I do follow tallguys videos. I OK using templates at the moment but a CNC cutter would be vey nice.

[@JetJockey87]

For the spar I'm thinking of using a laser cutter diode, won't need to be very powerful. Then I can put it on a CNC track, line it up and fire the laser along the longitudinal axis. But since I don't want the laser cutting through completely, what I figure I'll do is make a tiny slit at where I want the spar to end inside the wing and place some a tiny bit of stainless steel. The laser should hit it and not cut through or heat up too much. I'll use a square spar as well, which will make the CNC along the X and Y axes pretty easy. I'll document my progress and come back

[@AndrewNewton]

Radical idea. Let me know how it goes

[@flat-earther]

did you succeed?

[@mgraemem]

Great notion. One sharp cookie you are. Yes, it does look like a spare would be a good idea.

[@iforce2d]

Do you have any tips for getting the two templates to line up with each other correctly on each side of the foam block? ie. 3:42

[@AndrewNewton]

Marks on each leading edge and marks measured up from the bottom of the foam, but mostly just eyeballed

[@iforce2d]

aha, ye olde eyeballe. I have a couple of those. Tried to cut some very thin wings last night, didn't go too well. Two of the four might be usable, but I think next I'll try the one-sided method where you fix one end of the wire and just use a template on one side. Placing the fixed end far away will reduce the amount of taper, but I would like to have a bit of taper anyway so that's fine. I like that idea because I don't need to line up two templates, I don't need to match speed of movement between the two sides, and I can pull the wire really tight (my biggest problem so far) while still having a good view of what I'm doing. I'm also thinking to switch from using plywood templates to fr4, and use an interior template instead of cutting around the outside. I find that plywood edges keep catching somehow, even though sanded smooth. So basically, I'll just copy that video of David Windestal that you have probably seen already.

[@MatthewHeiskell]

Awesome! Do you have a video that talks about the all moving elevator?

[@AndrewNewton]

Hi Matthew. Build videos for the 1.2m Acrobat and Le Fish cover the flying elevator construction.

[@MatthewHeiskell]

Hi Andrew, thank you for the quick reply! I watched both of those videos. They were very informative like all you others. I am going to incorporate an all moving elevator on my next scratch build. Are there general rules about were to place the rod in the elevator? Between a quarter of the way back and a third of the way back from the leading edge of the elevator?

[@AndrewNewton]

Sounds right, certainly no further back. Linkages and bearing must be as slop free as possible too

[@Isaac-workshop]

for the spar if you take a metal rod just smaller than your spar, heat it, and make a guide so you can push it in square then heat the rod and push it in to the wing,the rod has to be smaller than the spar because the heat will melt a hole just larger than the rod

[@AndrewNewton]

izee FPV Thanks for the idea.

[@EnglishTurbines]

Hi Andrew, I have wire cut a set for my CP50 Drone in the same orange foam...it has to be said that the accuracy of the airfoil is worth having as you get more lift and less drag than the folded Depron wing. Thats not to say the Depron wing is of no use, because they are lighter but it depends on the foam density...I use a Mains transformer and light dimmer for control of wire temp. Not seen a Lipo used for doing it before, so well done...I think your wire diameter looks a bit on the big side, a thinner wire will get hotter and offer less drag though, it did look a bit on the cool side to me? I always cut in two halves, upper and lower and use a balsa LE and TE butt glued on, its much easier and allows a really sharp durable TE. It is more work though...:(

[@nigelkelseycouzens8266]

Can you do a video on how you make your bow and what you use for tension please...........

[@AndrewNewton]

My mate Allen Moore has done a better job than I can kzbin.info/www/bejne/Zpy4f6KQgtNlgZo

[@rva1945]

Metal A string is the one to be used? I keep the old metal strings after replacing by new ones.

[@Shiftheads]

I think he Said E string

[@w.j.bendellr.c.flying.1037]

Great Work,⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[@elxero2189]

Nice job enjoyed your video thanks for your hard work

[@AndrewNewton]

Thanks, glad you like it

[@thejoshmoss]

Looks to have worked very well, for the spar, why not cut a channel across the bottom half way into the wing the glue it in with foam glue?

[@AndrewNewton]

Josh Moss I'll be testing that today Josh. Thanks

[@denmoran5541]

Hi, Andrew - Den from Wales here. I have made the bow as per your instructive vids, and it does exactly what it says on the can - brilliant tool! So thanks for your dedication and hours of testing so that we could all get it together without fuss. For my first project using the bow, I want to cut a Stearman Bipe PT 17 wing. As a scale point, the covering shows 'dips' where the ribs/aerofoils are - any ideas how to replicate them, please? Nadolig Llawen (Happy Xmas!), Den

[@AndrewNewton]

Nadolig Llawen to you Den. I guess you would have to sand the depressions between "ribs" gently using fine sandpaper. Good luck, you're jumping in the deep end

[@denmoran5541]

Thanks , Andrew, I'll keep you posted!

[@jinchey]

Hey, great video! Very informative. I can't seem to be able to find the Knauf insulation board on the Bunnings website... It was there a day or two ago but it's disappeared now.

[@AndrewNewton]

Had me panicking so I went out and bought a stack. Plenty in stock here but you're right, it's not listed any more.

[@jinchey]

Andrew Newton Same, they had a lot in stock when I went in today... I hope they're not pulling it after they run out!

[@mattivirta]

bunning any translator not know thats. but thailand no have insulation foam, blue or pink colour XPS foam. i test today styrofoam and NO eworking, too soft foam have at wing. were hell i can orden good insulation foam because thailand builds no need and hardware shop no have anywere. only roof insulation joke, bubbleplastic whit aluminium folio ,big joke insulation on roof, haha no working and insulate anytink. but thais believe have good insulation hahaha. idiot country have but need live here :(

[@rustyact01]

Hi Andrew, another great, informative video... I have just completed building your hot wire frame and am about to cut my first Clark Y Airfoil. Can you please give me the chord measurement on your wings so I can adjust the template size to suit.

[@AndrewNewton]

+rustyact01 Excellent. My wing ended up with a 180mm chord. But if you're after accuracy the template will need to be slightly oversized, and its good to extend the trailing edge by about 2cm to give a lead in to the cut.. I'll measure my template tomorrow for you.

[@AndrewNewton]

+rustyact01 For a wing that ended up 170mm chord and 21mm thick I used a 180mm Clark Y template with the trailing edge extended straight out 1.5 cm further and 4mm thick. That gives the wire something to rest on before you start cutting into the foam.

[@rustyact01]

+Andrew Newton Thanks very much for the info Andrew... I'll cut the templates and see how I go with the first core... Keep up the great work on the videos mate... Would be lost without them... Cheers, Dave

[@seaman8296]

i think that you should use an airfoil that goes well with the low Reynolds number of an rc plane

[@AndrewNewton]

Which airfoils would you recommend?

[@Enginair]

Very nice. Do you have a method to ensure that the two airfoil templates are perpendicular to each other? I can see problems with wing twist if you're not careful with that.

[@AndrewNewton]

Enginair Now I cut separate top (positive) and bottom (negative) templates from a 30mm wide piece. The bottom of the template sits flat on the work surface. Any washout or sweep is designed into the template.

[@Enginair]

cool, it seems you get a nice finish on those wings

[@cesilieliljebakk2644]

Very nice hot wire. Is it possible to use car batteri insteed of that you use

[@AndrewNewton]

+Cesilie Liljebakk Yes it would work

[@arunjangra4960]

Wow great video Andrew

[@quadflyingmedic7988]

Nice video! Been wanting to do this to make wings. Great tutorial. Like tne way you explain thins very simple and to the point. Keep them coming

[@AndrewNewton]

Quadflyingmedic Simple...that's me. Thanks.

[@slodays1158]

Looks great! I used a very similar technique to cut my wing. I experimented with the thin metal sheet as well as cutting the template from balsa. Both worked great but the metal sheet was easier just make sure the edges are smooth. You can see the end result on my page. I also like your spar jig from the other video.

[@AndrewNewton]

+JDs Slo Days Thanks JD. I have switched to thin aluminium and just cut with scissors. Easiest template by far.

[@RavenRaven-se6lr]

Piece of cake nice job great idea.

[@gregkienle3378]

Or, make a notch in the underside (flat side) of the guide ribs then lay your spar in...done.

[@kiransadventures]

Making a hand launch glider out of foam will be fun. Plz make a try

[@AndrewNewton]

DLG wings are an art form. Need fibreglass and carbon fibre

[@davemason8656]

So the foam wing out performs the Depron wing of the same size. That's interesting. Cleaner airfoil shape or is it the lighter weight that make that so? I know with Adams foam board you tend to get flat bottom foil shapes that work but aren't as efficient. Great video as always Andrew.

[@AndrewNewton]

Dave Mason Thanks Dave. Weight, cleaner and deeper airfoil would all contribute. But to be honest the difference in performance is not as big as I expected.

[@marcozuccati]

Hi Andrew, I start now to learn the cutting of wings with hot wire, my problem is that the wire is cooked after a few seconds, I use a nickel guitar string of 0.36, and I connect to a lipo 3s 2200mah, maybe it's better change the diameter of the wire with a 0.6mm? for the template instead I used an old tin of oil, because here in Italy I can not find the roll of aluminum that you used to cut out the template. Thank you, I hope I will not get rid of you with these beginner questions Greetings from Italy Marco

[@AndrewNewton]

Ask any question you have Marko. Stainless steel fishing wire 90lb works best for me. I have not used guitar strings but it's worth trying.

[@marcozuccati]

@@AndrewNewton Thanks Andrew,i founded Now..👍🖐

[@alexd721]

vidio cool . I use for cutting the same frame , only the heating wire of the d-0.8 Ni-chōme alloy wire . Clean cut turns out to 400 to 500 mm in length. :))

[@mattivirta]

i have vape kanthal A1 wire, and cut fine but big wing no have smooth, what need do ? need wire tighten wery tight ??

[@blakeguyan2662]

If you're still looking for a way to do spar channels then simply get a metal rod of a slightly smaller thickness than your intended spar heat it and push it into the foam. just like your wirecutter but linear.

[@AndrewNewton]

+Blake guyan Thanks Blake. Have not tried that method yet,

[@nonsequitor]

+Andrew Newton It's the way to go I think personally: I use a simple plywood jig to keep it aligned and it works well on the thin 5mm foamboard I use. Also though, for bigger holes have you seen the hot ball drop method? Get a steel ball the right diameter, heat it up and then drop it vertically through the wing and hey presto.....

[@waynefelkey9821]

Stainless steel safety wire works well.

[@TDH8988]

This video is brilliant. youre info share is gold worth for me. UiUC airfoil data site, i wish i knew that one before :) . Nice Build btw! i like the idea. Greets from holland.

[@AndrewNewton]

My pleasure!

[@davidschmid867]

Instead of two lipo batteries you can also use a speed controller for a toy train to controll the wires heat.

[@AndrewNewton]

Good tip thanks

[@trinitymirror]

Do the ply templates have to be aligned at each end with each other? if one is tilted up and other tilted down will that effect the shape?

[@AndrewNewton]

I carefully measure up from the base of the foam to align the templates. Some wings have the tip angled down slightly to give "wash out" which reduces tip stalls.

[@UMUT1001]

Hi.Great video! I like it very much.I want to build a glider.How to make a tapered wing glider wings? And how can i find a 3meters wingspan tapered wing glider?Thank you in advance.

[@joewoodchuck3824]

I have no sound so I probably miss details. What types of foam are being used for hot wire cut wings? What advantages/disadvantages for each. Also, what kind is foam board made from? Thanks in advance. Best, Joe

[@AndrewNewton]

XPS foam or Polystyrene is what I use for Hotwire and depron for foam board. Links to look at - newtonairlines.blogspot.com.au/2015/03/materials-and-links.html - kzbin.info/aero/PLC8MdCMvxwBhQByf_3Emcb0bSah1tv5dE - www.flitetest.com/articles/foamboard-in-australia

[@davidmuthukaden287]

Nice video. What is the board you are using. Is it usual craft foam or styrofoam.

[@AndrewNewton]

Thanks

[@tzachus]

channel and your work !!!! what is the length of the wing ? and what is what is the length of the Ailerons?

[@AndrewNewton]

1.2m wing (600mm halves) Full ailerons

[@mhmoudshkawa758]

thank you for this great video but i want to ask you if you can guide how can i chose the best for mine?

[@AndrewNewton]

Give me more details and I might be able to help

[@mhmoudshkawa758]

I am working on making homemade plane and i want you help me to make it's wing if you can The page that you viewed in your video contains many shapes and I do not understand the differences

[@dominickdelcarlo2262]

Anything special you do to make sure the patterns line up perfect on both sides, or is it as "perfect" as you can get it?

[@AndrewNewton]

I can get it quite accurate by measuring up from the flat bottom of the XPS foam block, then aligning marks on the leading and trailing edges of the templates. But you can also easily add twist or washout if desired.

[@dominickdelcarlo2262]

Andrew Newton Thanks for the reply. I'll have to give it a go. I'm new to the hobby, so the quick response is appreciated.

[@janrozema7650]

just an idea for a spar. I saw this in another youtube video (dont remember wich one). Use a square spar and then use 2 halfs of foamboard. cut out half of the spars. (diamond shape, not flat) ). glue them together and cut wing. then slide in the spar in (both wings)

[@AndrewNewton]

Thanks for the tip. Interesting idea

[@kikoway1]

@Andrew Newton as always, great job. Simple to build, and very helpful. What material uses for lamination?

[@AndrewNewton]

enrico p Thanks enrico. Materials are listed in the video notes.

[@kikoway1]

Andrew Newton How many microns lamination? I speak very little English and if you said in the video, I do not understand ;)

[@AndrewNewton]

enrico p 75 micron document laminating film

[@yellowbluerc5047]

To put in the spar what I do is heat a tube (6mm like my spar) that can heat up like metal en then just push it in

[@AndrewNewton]

YellowBlue RC I can see that would work perfectly. How do you heat the rod?

[@yellowbluerc5047]

Andrew Newton well I just have an aluminium rod and heat it up on a kitchen stove, however I heard that this is highly toxic so I would not recommend it. but thats how I did it. btw I absolutely love your designs, they are amazing. im in the progress of building a soarer/glider with the 1.2m wing design.

[@arongatt]

you can use wire used for e-cigs , thanks for the vid

[@sabahmahmoud4310]

Thank you for the video, I just want to ask you about the power supply & wire, if I want to make the length of the rig 120cm, what are the specifications of the wire? The voltage & current? And if there are any details you could provide me with.

[@AndrewNewton]

Voltage = current multiplied by resistance. The wire I use has resistance of 5 Ohms per metre. It needs 4 Amps to heat it up enough cut foam. Resistance of 1.2m of wire = 5 x 1.2 = 6 Ohms. So voltage required to give 4 Amps current = 6 x 4 = 24V