Hyperlite Slick 540 airframe featuring handmade wood cowl & pants,3W-110 Competition engine/J-tec mufflers, White Rose 4 1/2" wheels,J & J Tailwheel ,almost ready to start covering

Carden 126" Extra 260 featuring handmade wood cowl covered completely in Monokote.Colors include Cub Yellow,Metallic Green,& Chrome (handcut 3/32" wide pinstripping )
3W-150 /Proflo cans,White Rose wheels & tailwheel assembly, & carbon gear & pants.

Here is a new Carden 124" Extra 300 w/DA-200 & Proflo cans.Features handmade wood cowl & pants.Liteply baffle is removable.Almost ready to start covering.

John Bradley's 30% Hostetler Piper Cherokee model covered completely in Monokote colors :
White,True Red,Met. Platinum,& Met. Charcoal.Model features handmade wood cowl & handcut graphics.Saito FG-57 gas four stroke engine,Sierra Giant Scale landing gear system.Completely finished model will feature painted glass wheelpants,full lighting system & interior hatch detail.

Build featuring Saito FG-57T twin gas four stroke & Sierra Giant Scale landing gear system.Handmade wood cowl,& grooved surfaces on rudder/fin/ailerons/flaps to simulate full scale. Model for John Bradley will be Monokoted in colors to match his full scale.Will also feature full lighting system when finished

Some pic's of a recent build & finish for a 124" Carden Extra 300 Pro. This build features a hand-made wood cowl & pants, & is completely covered in Monokote. Plane has had a successful maiden & flew well. DA150 on KS-95 cans,& seems to have plently of power for this airframe.
Modified color scheme from a full-scale Extra 330 SC, using Monokote White, Cub Yellow, Metallic Teal,Metallic Platinum, & Metallic Red ( pinstipping).

Here are a few photo's of a recent repair to a 43% Edge 540 that had a deadstick & took out the landing gear & bottom deck areas. This included splicing in a new lower motor box sides & landing gear plate & formers,bottom front deck & part of the motorbox floor. Also,some damage occured from the landing gear going up into the wing & stabs,as well as some turtledeck areas.

Have just completed a customer project Carden Extra 260 which features a handmade wood cowl & pants,a Extra 330 style landing gear,& is completely covered with Super Monokote following a full-scale Extra 330 SC scheme. Colors used include White, Metallic Gold,Red & Blue. DA150 w/slant-style compact mufflers,& J&J titanium tailwheel,DuBro 4 1/2" wheels, & Carden instrument panel

I have just completed a Carden Extra 300 Midwing customer project done with a modified "Oracle" scheme,in different colors ,including White,Orange & Met. Blue. This build features a handmade wood cowl & wheelpants. Modifications included adding a tunnel for Pro-Flow cans,& putting "helpers" on the elevators. DA 150/headers ,White Rose main wheels,& J&J tailwheel,along with a Red Aero pilot.

I recently completed a Carden 330 Midwing build & documented the process in a previous post https://www.flyinggiants.com/forums/...ad.php?t=67123
I have now completed covering this model & will show some of the techniques involved.My covering material of choice has been Top Flite Monokote,because of its durability,finish & repairability.

Before the actual covering begins,preparation is very important & the resulting finish will only be as good as how much time was taken to get the model ready.After the plane has been framed up,a final sanding with 220-400 grit paper is necessary,any small voids should be filled & sanded,small dents can usually be removed by dampening with water.When satisfied with the surface,a good wipedown is needed to clean all the dust residue.I have been using mineral spirits on either clean rags or paper towels to clean the entire plane.Several passes will be necessary,until no dust is present .I will usually clean the structure the day before covering begins,to allow any solvents to evaporate.

The process begins by pre-covering all inside control surfaces,including ailerons/wings,stabs/elevators,& rudder/fin.All control surfaces will have the bottom edge covered,& wrapped about an 1/8th inch on other side of hingeline in the appropriate color. Also,all edge caps are done.

I recently finished framing up a customer project for Chris Campos, & have documented the build here.This project was started on Monday,August 8th (opening boxes) & build completed Friday, August 26,at approx. 8-12 hrs per/day.A unique feature of this build is making the cowl & pants from wood.This enables me to cover the entire model with Monokote for a consistant finish.
This thread includes some of the techniques acquired over the past few years from various builds & experienced modelers like Joe Stek, who's help has been invaluable in refining & making improvements,& proven out in many successful flights & builds.It also goes without saying that Dennis & Caroline produce an outstanding series of Carden kits & the quality & design are consistantly top notch.

Construction is started by making up & transfering measurements from plans to fuse sides.All sheeting joints are made with a 45 degree scarf joint to improve stength & gluing area.This applies to the 1/8" fuse sides,stringers & wing sheeting to make the required length.The long top/bottom stringers are glued to the 1/8" sides first, vertical pieces are added to each end,then additional vertical pieces are glued in.To complete sides,diagional pieces are fitted & glued.