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Last Updated: January 10, 2008 - 09:28:40 PM |
01- The HET-RC Sniper double boxed as it arrives from Warbirds-RC
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02 - Front label shows a picture and specification.
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03 - The package, in good shape with no shipping problems.
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04 - Inside the box reveals a well packed kit, typical of HET-RC.
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05 - The components include a fiberglass fuselage, two wing halves, a horizontal stab, canopy, hardware bag and decals.
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06 - Wing sections and stab come pre-covered in plastic covering, note though that the control surfaces are not yet glued.
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07 - Hardwood plates support the wing mountings holes.
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08 - The leading edge of this semi-symmetrical wing is shaped well.
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09 - The intake duct work is made from glass, it's not super smooth, but has been finished well.
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10 - Tow hook location is beefed up inside. I noticed all the mounting points for the wing, tow hook and tail feathers have hardwood supports epoxied in place inside... a nice touch.
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11 - Hardware package should include the following:
3 Horns
6 Horn mounting screws
3 Clevis'
4 Wing / Tail mounting bolts & washers
3 Control rods
1 Tow hook
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12 - Another nice feature is the aileron servo wire exit holes, which have been pre-made.
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13 - The build begins with the elevator hinges removed in order to mark the center lines.
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14 - Hinges are inserted up to the line inside the horizontal stab. They are placed with their left side 3/8" and 3" away from the end joint.
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15 - Thin CA glue is used to mount the hinges... it will "wick" into the joint.
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16 - Horizontal stab with hinges installed.
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17 - The elevator is installed on the stab. Make sure it is evenly spaced from the tip on both sides before gluing.
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18 - Elevator is moved downward before gluing, allowing it to pull away a bit from the stab so it won't bind during use.
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19 - Elevator installed on stab and glued in place. Once again, make sure the ends are evenly spaced, then use thin CA to attach the elevator.
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20 - Marking center lines for the aileron hinges .
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21 - Hinges are installed 1/2" from each side.
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22 - Hinge is glued in place and aileron is shown being installed.
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23 - Aileron installed.
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24 - Aileron flexed downward to have it space itself slightly away from the trailing edge of the wing for freedom of movement .
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25 - Next, the aileron is glued in place with thin CA.
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26 - The second wing half showing hinges installed.
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27 - Using a Q-Tip makes a nice cleanup tool for excess thin CA.
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28 - Aileron fitted to second wing half.
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29 - Once again, the aileron is flexed to space it from the trailing edge.
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30 - Second aileron glued in place.
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31 - Preparing the power plant.
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32 - 3.5mm plugs are installed on the motor.
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33 - A piece of hardwood makes a good plug holder.
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34 - Filling the cup with solder.
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35 - Motor lead and plug are heated, then the lead is pushed down in place.
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36 - All three leads connected.
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37 - Adding heat shrink to the plugs.
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38 - Motor assembly completed.
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39 - Preparing to assemble the MiniFan480, the shaft adapter is slotted at the tip so a screwdriver can be used later to help tighten the nut.
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40 - Shaft adapter slotted.
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41 - Heat the shaft adapter with a torch... a hair dryer or heat gun can be used as an alternative.
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42 - Heating the shaft is necessary as it is slightly undersized on purpose to insure a tight fit to the motor shaft.
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43 - Loktite is used on the setscrew.
WARNING - Not not allow any Loktite to come in contact with any part of the fan.
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44 - Set screws are installed in the shaft adapter and tightened.
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45 - Use a Q-Tip to clean off all excess Loktite.
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46 - Install the motor in the fan shroud.
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47 - The screws that come with the Mini480 fan are 2.5mm, so you will need some 3mm bolts to mount the motor to the shroud.
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48 - 3mm bolts used to secure the motor.
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49 - A sanding wheel opens up the plastic spacer ring so it will fit over the motor.
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50 - Ring checked for fit.
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51 - Ring slipped over the rear of the motor.
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52 - The ring is seated flush with the rear of the shroud.
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53 - Important: Check to make sure the shaft base protrudes at least 1/64" from the fan shroud face, as shown by the pencil. If not spaced correctly, the rear of the fan unit will rub the shroud once it is installed. If you need clearance, remove the motor, loosen the shaft set screws, heat up the shaft and pull it out a bit. Then reinstall and check again.
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54 - Fan is installed on the shaft
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55 - Followed by a washer included in the fan kit.
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56 - Next, the aluminum nut is installed.
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57 - Here is where the slot you made earlier comes in to play. Using a screwdriver in the slot to hold the shaft, tighten the fan unit.
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58 - Hub and retaining bolt installation is optional. You can run the fan without the hub with almost very low loss in power
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59 - Fan assembly completed.
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60 - VERY IMPORTANT: Please make sure there is no rubbing or binding between the fan rotor and the fan shroud. Now would be a good time to check, if the rotor does not spin freely without making contact with the fan shroud, please go back to step #52 and check that you provided adequate spacing between the adapter and the motor.
Also, if you use a lock tight type chemical to hold the aluminum nut in place, make sure it does not come in contact with any of the ABS plastic parts as it will soften and later destroy your fan over a period of time. If you opt to use such a chemical make sure it only comes in contact with ONLY the metal parts and wipe any excess away right away.
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61 - Socket rear is pre-tinned and filled with solder.
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62 - Wire is soldered to the 3.5mm socket.
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63 - Both wires soldered.
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64 - Heat shrink tubing is added for insulation.
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65 - The three sockets are connected to the motor wires on the ESC, while the two 3.5mm plugs are installed on the battery wire.
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66 - Heat shrink tubing is added to finish the sockets.
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67 - A good quality ESC is recommended
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68 - The battery harness is cut to 12" in length. The fuselage is shown in the rear to show how the run would fit, from the fan/motor location on the right to the center of the battery compartment on the left.
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69 - A Deans "Ultra-Plug" is soldered to the other end of the harness.
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70 - The entire assembly is connected and the fan is checked for balance.
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71 - Heat shrink is applied to the motor connector to insure they will not come loose.
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72 - Fan would not fit inside of the fuselage as the opening was not large enough.
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73 - The fan was positioned over the opening and a pencil was used to mark the rear wing saddle area.
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74 - You can see where it was hitting... DO NOT FORCE IT IN as you can crack the ductwork..
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75 - Mark made from previous setup is shown.
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76 - A Dremel with a cutting wheel is used to rough cut the area.
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77 - Then a Dremel with a drum sander is used to shape the opening.
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78 - The fan fits inside now and very little saddle was removed.
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79 - Fan shown completely inside of the fuselage.
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80 - Note the ends were also rounded, which "relieves" them and helps prevent cracking.
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81 - A Dremel with a sanding drum was used to even up the ducting.
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82 - NOTE: If you are not painting your model, skip the next six steps.
320 Grit wet/dry sandpaper was used to flatten the surface of the fuselage for good paint adhesion.
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83 - Once sanded, wash down the area to remove any excess paint.
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84 - The surface should still appear white, but "flattened" in color.
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85 - 320 grit sandpaper was used to "dry sand" the horizontal stab.
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86 - The wings were also sanded to allow for good paint adhesion.
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87 - All surfaces washed and shown now with that "flat white" look.
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88 - The tail assembly is temporarily connected to the fuselage using two of the bolts and small washer provided.
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89 - The tail shown installed and flush with the fuse at the top.
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90 - The elevator horn was placed on the elevator with its center 1/4" away from the fuselage side to allow for clevis clearance.
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91 - The elevator was drilled using a pin vise.
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92 - The bolts supplied in the kit are used to attach the horn to the elevator.
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93 - Excess bolt length is cut flush to the horn retainer.
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94 - A drop of medium CA is applied to the top of each bolt end.
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95 - Hinge shown installed.
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96 - Rod supplied in the kit was tried but it was too loose in the horn.
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97 - Preliminary check of tail alignment. It appears that mounting the tail and pushing it forward flush to the fuselage makes for a worry free install with no check needed.
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98 - Stab being marked for permanent installation.
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99 - Stab marks shown.
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100 - Plastic covering from the inside area was removed so that stab could be epoxied to the fuselage.
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101 - Plastic covering shown being removed.
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102 - Stab prepped for final install. Make sure you remove the top area and not the bottom.
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103 - Epoxy applied to stab area. The stab needs to be epoxied as the bolts cannot be tightened without crushing the balsa. You may try cutting the bolt area out and replacing with a plywood plank. This would allow for a "bolt on" stab.
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104 - The fuselage area was roughed up with 60 grit sandpaper and then both surfaces had epoxy applied.
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105 - The stab was bolted permanently in place with the leading edge pushed flush against the fuselage.
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106 - Horizontal stab installation completed.
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107 - Stab installed, rear view showing horn location.
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108 - Main wing spar, ready to install. I drew a center line on it for reference.
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109 - Wing components ready to go.
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110 - Root spar drilled with a 3/32 bit to add more strength once glued.
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111 - Epoxy added to main spar and root, then spar is installed.
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112 - Spar inserted up to center line.
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113 - 15 Minute Epoxy added to other wing root and exposed spar.
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114 - Wing halves joined and excess epoxy cleaned up with denatured alcohol.
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115 - Wing assembly laid flush on table to keep it aligned. Both halves were pressed down on the table to make their joint even, so incidence would be aligned.
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116 - Wing tip propped up at proper dihedral while epoxy sets.
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117 - Final fan assembly... cleaning up the wiring with ties.
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118 - Rear view of wiring tied down.
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119 - Final installation of the fan assembly.
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120 - The power wire was pulled across the top of the duct (inverted, so it's seen on the bottom.) This routed it right into the cockpit bay.
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121 - Heavy duty packing tape used to attach fan to duct.
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122 - Tape applied on one half from the opening.
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123 - Tape pushed down to inside area.
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124 - Tape trimmed and other end worked around.
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125 - End is tucked under the bottom.
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126 - A ruler taped to a stick was used to push the remaining tape around the top of the duct.
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127 - Fan assembly installed, showing ESC that will reside in the duct.
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128 - Top view showing fan connected to ductwork.
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129 - Battery wires that were routed into the cockpit compartment.
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130 - Battery harness shown with enough length to reach anywhere in the compartment.
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131 - A piece of poster board purchased at a craft store will be sued for the final ductwork. NOTE: Poster board cardboard is supplied with the kit.
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132 - Wiring removed from battery leads and routed inside fan so the exhaust duct can be fitted.
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133 - Initial piece of 10" x 15" cut from sheet.
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134 - Shape was rough cut...
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135 - ... then fit to rear of fan. This will take a while to fit and was a bit challenging due to the taper in the duct, so just take your time.
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136 - Final sheet ready for assembly. I used the first sheet to mark up and abuse, then cut a final pattern from the first sheet, that way there were no wrinkles in the duct.
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137 - The same heavy duty clear packing tape that was used to mount the fan was used to roll the tube.
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138 - A piece of aluminum tube was used to cut exit holes fro the ESC wires.
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139 - Holes cut, tube ready to install.
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140 - Duct tube folded in half for installation, then inserted from the rear.
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141 - ESC wires routed through the punched holes.
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142 - Packing tape used to hold the exhaust duct in place.
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143 - Exhaust duct installed | | |
