Making up lines.

[kevin king]

In this diagram the lines appear to be twisted in the first picture. Do you guys wrap the copper serving wire around the lines like this or do you lay them beside each other with no twists? Thanks.

[Tim Wescott]

I think that's just the picture.  I just lay them side to side.

[John Park]

I think that's just the picture.  I just lay them side to side.

Same here.  Twisting them round one another would be fiddly and would have no benefit that I can see.

[Randy Powell]

I wrap from the thimble out about an inch or so, bend the line back and wrap from there back to the thimble. Seems pretty straight forward.

[Dan McEntee]

  Just lay the lines side by side. You don't want to twist them! take a section of flying line and do that and see what happens! Jim Lee has a neat little tool that dispenses the wire that makes line wrapping easier.
    Type at you later,
  Dan McEntee

[Joe Ed Pederson]

Since none of has three hands, Fred's invention for holding the lines while you wrap them has been very helpful to me.



Thanks, Fred.

Joe Ed Pederson

[john e. holliday]

Too complicated.  While he is making one end on a line I can do a set and be ready to fly.  I made my own swaging tool before I got one from the late Carl Shooup.  His broke on me after several sets of lines.

[kevin king]

Ok. So if there is no benefit to twisting the lines before wrapping them with copper, I won't do it. Don't know why the artist would go to that length in his drawing. I just wanted to make sure I have been doing this correctly.

[Dan McEntee]

    The way the illustration comes up on my computer, it's blurred at that point and just looks like it's twisted. It may also be a matter of the illustrator not knowing anything about what they are illustration! That has happened quite a lot over the years especially with plans presented in magazines, such as the Nobler and Van Loo Chipmunk.
    Type at you later,
    Dan McEntee

[Fred Cronenwett]

When I wrap the ends of my lines the wire ends laying along side the other wire, I pull tested a sample one time to over 100 lbs and the wrapped end never broke. The actual line snapped the wrapped end never broke

[Brent Williams]

Make some down lines as well....

[Tim Wescott]

Now that we've got this question settled, I just want to mention that I'm very glad I'm married.

Because I could never make up a good line; it took me ever so long to pick up a girl...

[John Park]

Just to show that people did sometimes get things right in the old days, here's a diagram from Ron Warring's 1948 book, "Control Line Flying".  Control line had only been going for about two years in Britain, and Warring was one of the pioneers.

[Fred Cronenwett]

I also wrap the wire around the thimble two times

[FLOYD CARTER]

It looks like Ron Warring got it right way back in 1948.  That line wrap is the same one that AMA recommends today.  It is exactly how I make my lines and leadouts.  I do not see a need for two loops around the eyelet.  There is no movement of the wire at the eyelet, so there can be no wear point.

[John Park]

It looks like Ron Warring got it right way back in 1948.  That line wrap is the same one that AMA recommends today.  It is exactly how I make my lines and leadouts.  I do not see a need for two loops around the eyelet.  There is no movement of the wire at the eyelet, so there can be no wear point.

Only one loop around the eyelet was what Ron was recommending.  Two loops without an eyelet would, I suppose, have been better than one loop without an eyelet, but I don't like the idea.  These were solid music-wire lines, by the way.  Incidentally, that 1948 book makes fascinating reading - especially the parts that deal with bellcrank position and CG!