Material Dimensions for Control Horns

[Tim Wescott]

Just for kicks I'm fabricating my own control horns, i.e. bending the wire and brazing on the horn to exactly fit the plane I'm building.

What thickness steel would you use for the arms on a flap horn for a .20-.25 sized plane? 

I'm using some 20 gauge (37 mil) material because that's what I had lying around; it's a bit thin but I think it'll do for just about anything except for surviving through a crash.  If I had my choice I would have gone with 18 gauge (50 mil) or 16 gauge (63 mil?).

[john e. holliday]

Just bush it good for wear.   

[Bob Reeves]

.037 steel will be fine for a 20, I have a 35 with a .037 brass control horn on the elevator (what I had at the time) and it's doing fine. On a 60 I normally use scrap steel from a couple trailer fenders I cut down, never really measured it but would say it's probably 16 gauge.