Don't Re-Invent the Wheel!

HELPFUL HINTS DON'T RE-INVENT THE WHEEL! PART 2

by Murray Burman

If you have ever had a plane fly away on you, (it has happened to more times than some of us who care to remember) put your name, address and phone number on it. Even a piece of an envelope from your mail glued on will do. (Ed note: I cut the name and address from one of my personalized cheques, glue it to a wing mount or other innocuous place, and cover it with clear covering film.)

Ever need a label to stick on things like drawers, tools, servo leads, etc.? Go to your friendly pharmacist at your local drug store. They have stick-on labels for you for free. You can cut them to size and they do not come off easily. Ask him to give you or save for you a day or two of prescription labels. They produce hundreds a day that they throw out. Their computers are fed with a set of labels for each prescription, which in many cases they do not utilize. Tell them I said so!! (Murray was/is a Pharmacist! Class of 5T7)

Ever wonder how you can paint a wing on both sides at one time, and how to paint a fuselage top and bottom at one time? Well go to your neighbourhood drugstore again, or any store that has spinner display racks, the kinds that merchandise cards, sunglasses, novelties, etc. They have a center pole and a base.

Ever wonder why you are buying a plastic fuel tank when you have access to all kinds of plastic bottles with which you could make a tank? Get yourself a properly-proportioned bottle (at the drug store again. They throw out 20-30 per day in all shapes and sizes), use some silicone to hold and seal the cap, and you are in business! If you do not trust it, make one, fill it with some fuel, and leave it for a month or so. The saying is "A buck here and a buck there and soon you are a millionaire!"

Ever buy a razor saw and not have a handle? Cut a piece of broomstick, drill a hole in one end, epoxy the saw handle stub into the hole, round it off and add some paint.

Ever need a short itty-bitty saw with fine teeth that you can work into tight spots inside your fuselage or other places where a keyhole saw or hacksaw won't fit? Get a piece of broken hacksaw blade or scroll saw blade and use a similar piece of broomstick or doweling for a handle. Works great!

Ever wonder how to drill out a hole to a larger diameter and are afraid to use a larger drill bit for fear it will gouge the hole or rip the plies of a firewall etc. Put a round file in your drill and drill out the hole going in reverse, using a little pressure.

Every now and then when I am building, I need to sand a straight piece of wood flat. When you try to use a sanding block in one hand and the wood in the other, you always tend to round off the corners or edges. Glue a piece of sandpaper in a convenient place on your bench, so when you need to take off a little bit and keep the piece flat and straight, just reach over and rub away!

Those two-litre pop bottles that you throw out are very useful. Cut the bottom 2 inches off and you have a super segmented tray to store parts or whatever. The top portion will make a great canopy for some planes. Cut off the neck, cut off the bottom, then cut the sides to make it fit. If it did not come out looking great then try another bottle. Clear ones are good. Acetone will remove the glue and the lettering.

Ever want to remove old epoxy from your firewall or wing, or crashed plane, etc.? Heat it with a gun then grab it with a pair of pliers. If it is warm enough it will be soft and pull away. This is much easier than trying to chip it off. Use a heat gun as well to remove Monokote or other covering films from a damaged plane. Heat rough edges that will not come off and they should melt and shrivel up, then pull them off with a pair of pliers.