Posted by Zach Lovering on April 20, 2009 at 12:00pm
In this modification, magnets are installed into the wing root. This modification was inspired by the tendency for the wings to vibrate themselves apart during flight. Since simply pinning the wings in place (either mechanically or with adhesive) would not allow the wings to be compliant during a hard landing, magnets seemed like a good substitution. The process for installing the magnets in the wing root is very similar to the process for installing magnets in the canopy (see my previous post, "EasyStar Mods - Magnetic Canopy"). (Note that these pictures were taken after I had already done this modification)Materials:1. EasyStar RC plane2. Hobby knife3. Epoxy or CA4. Four neodymium magnets (I used 0.25" diameter, 0.125" thick; in retrospect, going one size up to 0.375" might be better)Process:1. In one wing, cut two small holes using the hobby knife for the magnets to fit into. The holes should be located near the forward and aft part of the root. The hole depth should be sufficiently deep to allow the magnets to be flush to the surface.2. Install the magnets by bonding them in place with either CA or epoxy. I used CA and have had no problem with them coming out.
3. After the adhesive has dried, cover the magnets with a piece of wax paper and snap 2 new magnets on top of them. Insert the spar into the wing (breaking through the wax paper). Slide the other wing over the spar and push down so that the magnets leave an impression in the wing. This will ensure proper placement of the magnets in the second wing.
4. Cut small holes in the second wing where the impressions were made and put adhesive in the holes.5. Replace the wing so that the magnets fit into the holes. I feel that this method is better than dropping the magnets into the holes since it guarantees that the magnets have the correct orientation.6. Once the adhesive has dried, separate the wings and peel off the wax paper.
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