40% Carden Extra 300, My first Build ever !

[crash-n-burn]

Also I made wing bolt supports like Walt does. I made the ply blocks and lined them up on the plans. I then marked where they were so I could remove them and put them back in the same place. I used a digital caliper to mark the exact center and then I pre-drilled the bolt site. I lined it back up on the plans, checked to make sure the mark on the plans was dead in the center of the hole I drilled. When I was satisfied iI epoxied them into place.

After getting the mounts glued in I checked alignment between the two trusses by " mocking them up " with the wing tube in place and both trusses at 90 degrees. I had the pins holes within .009 mm of each other. so they are dead straight. Hopefully this will make doing the incidence easier.

[crash-n-burn]

I also decided to modify the stab root to be tabbed rather than using the stock Carden mounts. I also jacked this idea out of one of Walts threads. Basically during truss construction you need to put an additional hard point just under where the stab tube goes. Later i will make a custom root for each stab half out of ply with tabs that will line up with this hard point and the stock hard point that Cardens normally use. Thanks to Walt for sending me his template for the stab root modification, big help. Here are some pics of the hard point going in.

[crash-n-burn]

Next thing I got working on was the fuse sheeting. The stock wood was very good quality so none of the edges needed to be trued before joining the pieces. Basically I just followed the directions on this one but some how managed to screw it up. Basically I was being way to anal about glue lines showing and after I joined the pieces I wiped the seam with water... WAY TO MUCH WATER. After I set the parts aside to dry I noticed the edges separating. Oh well I pulled them apart and let them dry good for a day then I put them under heavy books for 2 days to get the warp out that the water caused. Luckily there is excess wood at the edges in this step of the build so I just used the other edge and this time didn't use any water just scraped off excess glue with a razor. I put them under weight for set up to ensure the edges would stay in position.

Sorry no pics of my screw up !

> The water made the balsa swell causing the problem

[crash-n-burn]

Finally getting the motor box glued up. I used way slow epoxy to ensure that I would have time to adjust the box to make sure that everything was at 90 degrees. I got the firewall as close as I could it 90 degrees. Its perfect all the way by my right angle tool, but the digital angle finder says 89.6 - 90 depending on where you are at on the firewall. Likely not a big deal I kind of trust my right angle more than that stupid digital angle meter. --- Oh yeah I got a DA-170 : should haul the crap out of this bird !!

[crash-n-burn]

Oh yeah picked up some new tools @ black friday ! I have Monday off and I plan to spend most of the day working on the plane. Thanks for your patience as I said before @ times progress will be slow because of work.

[olddog1956]

looks realy nice keep it up gary

[a10hog]

Looking good crash...

[StPeteFlyer]

Looks good so far Crash!

Thanks for the detailed info, I will be building my first Carden after the first of the year. Im sure it will be usefull as will the other build threads here on FG.

[RICH M]

Great Job Dan. Looks Great also. Off Monday... Great can I pick up saw and drill press tools soon as posible Dan. I'm a little behind on some mods I need to make plates for here at the house Dan.

[RICH M]

Crash, Really enjoyed you stopping in and checking out the shop.
Was also nice shooting the breeze and looking over the project I'm working on.
Also your Motor box is very quality built.

[crash-n-burn]

Rich yeah it was great to see you shop its an awesome set up. You could probably build 3 40%ers at a time. That one your rebuilding is comming along nicely. I want to come over when you paint and cover it so I can pick up on your techniques. Also I realized that I still have your center-finding ruler, and your long 4 foot straight edge. Thanks for taking a look at my motor box. The next thing I am going to do this week is put the servo mounts for the rudder in the fuse and then skin the fuse sides. Again I appriciate everyone who is following this thread sorry for the slow progres, I am averaging 80 hours a week @ work right now so its hard to find time to build. i am just trying to make steady progress.

[RICH M]

Dan, I have another center ruler & straight edge Buddy.
You'll still need them. Thanks Dan the project is moving along.

[crash-n-burn]

Thanks guys I got the fuse skins joined up today, I am gonna let them dry overnight and hporfully sheet the fuse tomorrow but we will see.

If you are considering doing your first Carden build I recommend starting the fuse first as opposed to sheeting the wings first. All in all the fuse is relatively easy but it allows you to build confidence in you skills as you go. Also the fuse sheeting is straight forward without to many angles or crazy cuts. It gives you a chance to get your technique down for joining sheets of balsa, cutting angle and cleaning up glue lines. The best part is if you screw up the fuse sheeting its much easier to fix than the wing sheeting. Here are some pics, I spent quite a long time sanding and cleaning up glue joints. Lost a half ounce in sawdust alone ! I really want this plane to come out top notch so its all in the details.

You'll notice in the pics I am butting the fuse side glue joint along the 45 degree brace that will be just below and behind the canopy.

[crash-n-burn]

Okay got the fuse sheeting on, I used Titebond II to glue it up. After its dry just sand down the excess balsa sheet around the edges to match up with the fuse longerons. Go slow, make sure you sand the sheeting down at 90 degrees. Its best to use a bar sander. Also I got the motor box mostly done. Tomorrow I will put the screws in the box and plan the motor box floor instillation. I want to do something clean and trick at the same time. So far I am happy with the way things are going. If you are going to do a " first build" I think it is very important to do mock ups of each step as you go. Lay out parts as they would be glued. Use tape or whatever you have. It really helps avoid needless mistakes.

Also tomorrow I will put in the rudder servo mounts, they are cut I just need to glue them in.

[RICH M]

Alright Dan, Looks good and clean...