Building airplanes from balsa wood is a time-honored tradition among many experienced aero-modelers. For people only just getting started with balsa building, however, there are quite a few hurdles to get over. It's not as straightforward as working with foam board (as we do quite often here at Flite Test). For this reason, I thought I'd let you in on a few helpful tips that I've found useful in from my recent forays into the world of balsa planes. Let's go!
Before we jump right in, if you haven't already, be sure to check out ourBeginner's Guide to Balsa Wood here if you're completely new to the medium. It will help you to pick out the right tools, glues and all that good stuff.
1. Avoid sticking pins directly into the wood
It's not the best idea to make holes in your wooden spars, even though it's quite a convenient way of 'pinning' them down to the board. Sometimes, thin components can end up splitting. For this reason, where possible, jab the pins either side of each spar, beam or former. You can still keep the pieces in place this way, it just takes a little more effort.
2. Use a large, flat building board
One of the main construction aids you're going to need to build a balsa model is a dedicated building bench/board. This can be made from a sheet of softwood (soft enough to stick pins into), cork or foam. You could even use a sheet of foam board if you're really stuck trying to find something appropriate. I once had a dedicated board attached to a table. It might be a good idea to make your portable, however, as then you can move it around and store it easily. You could even have several sizes for different parts of your plane such as the stabilizers, wings, and fuselage.
3. Cover your plan
To avoid gluing your wooden components to the plan you're building on top of, try covering the paper with wax paper or a similar product. This will ensure that you can peel your finished airframe sections from the board without a problem.
4. Only poke out pieces of your kit when you need them
To avoid mixing up your kit and getting yourself in a pickle, make sure to keep your pieces on the sheets until you need to use them. Usually, you'll have an instruction book included with your model. This will let you know which parts to pop out at the right time. Occasionally, you might want to stack components in order to build faster. If the book is instructing you to place all the wing ribs on the board, you might want to lay them out first so they're easier to grab.
5. Sand your airframe
Sanding is an essential part of building a balsa model. It's important for the finishing process where you cover your airplane. If you have raised sections, the covering part of the build will, quite simply, be a right pain to get right. Start off with a lower grit and then work your way up to finer sandpaper. You might also want to use sanding blocks to ensure that you're sanding evenly.
6. Use glue sparingly
A lighter model flies better. Although many types of model glue partially evaporate anyway after application, using a pipet or a fine applicator nosel is a good way to ensure that you're being conservative with how much you lay down.
7. Make sure to build a laser cut kit
Although many kits are made on a laser cutter these days, some are still produced the traditional way with printing. Back in the day, shapes of each part of the kit were printed onto the balsa wood sheets included in the box. These aren't the best for beginners as you have to cut out each piece yourself. For this reason, check the box before you buy to get pre-cut components.
8. Choose simple model
Instead of jumping right into the deep end, head first, try assembling a smaller model to start with. Keep it manageable by picking something that won't take you an age to complete. You could even just build a simple free flight glider kit if trying your hand at the balsa method of building for the first time. As soon as you've made one, you can go onto a slightly more challenging project.
9. Take your time when covering
Covering is often a rather tricky process for builders who are new to balsa, especially if you're working on a curvy model. You can use traditional tissue or the more modern monocote material used on many planes today. We will do a full article on this another time, but for now - just know you can take your time with the process. Follow the instructions, watch a few video tutorials and practice on a couple of balsa scraps.
10. Practice
Like everything in the R/C hobby, you'll need to practice to get better. You will see a marked difference between your first attempts and later builds. This doesn't mean that you can't be proud of your first attempts - they may well turn out looking just fine! Once you're finished with one model, pick up another kit and keep going. Before you know it, you'll be a balsa master.
If you have an ongoing balsa project, write about it here on flitetest.com!
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Article by James Whomsley
