Holes in Brodak ribs?

[Paul Taylor]

Anyone know what size the holes are in the ribs of Brodak ribs for the rods?

[Colin McRae]

Anyone know what size the holes are in the ribs of Brodak ribs for the rods?

Paul, I have and use the Brodak wing jig and the supplied alum rods are 5/16" dia. The holes in the ribs are a very tight fit so also 5/16". I have reamed the holes 'a bit' so the rods slide in a bit easier. I also have some longer 8mm CF tubes that also work well with the Brodak wing jig.

[GERALD WIMMER]

Hello Note the holes in my Vector kit did not match the positions you would expect for a jig, they were well out of line.
 No jig was mentioned in the instructions so I presume they had some other purpose.
 My son used a jig with 5/16 rods to good effect on his Gypsy wing so I thought I would try with the Vector and found out it would not work.

Regards Gerald

[Perry Rose]

I don't like building a wing in two pieces. I use the Adjusto-Jig on everything. I tape the knock outs in place as necessary.

[Paul Smith]

I assembled the Brodak B-25 with the Brodak jig.  It's the only accurate way to assemble that wing.
Yes, it needs to be done with two sides.
The holes are a bit tight and maybe loosening-up is a good idea, so you can get them out when it's done.
ALL rod jigs operate on the assumption the holes are precise.

I enhanced mine with wheel collars and a tip-up function allow me to access the bottom of the wing.

[Ty Marcucci]

The reason they, the rods or arrow shafts don't fit, is they are metric, the holes are SAE.  Guess how I learned this.

[Colin McRae]

8mm CF tubes also work well with the Brodak jig.

[jerry v]

Fiberglass driveway markers are manageable  substitute too. Wing is Brodak Ringmaster S-1.

Jerry

[Paul Taylor]

I don’t like building in two sections and 5ft rods.
Now to clear a bench. 🤣

[Motorman]

How do you get the ends of the jig parallel?

[Leonard Duke]

Sitting a level on the two rods allows you to check that the jig is not building a twisted wing.

[Paul Smith]

How do you get the ends of the jig parallel?

I just use a carpenter's level on each end and square them up with a T-square (the tool, not the airplane).
On the smaller Brodak models, the P-40 in my case, the holes were too big for the ribs, which was a problem.

[Brett Buck]

Paul, I have and use the Brodak wing jig and the supplied alum rods are 5/16" dia. The holes in the ribs are a very tight fit so also 5/16".

   I assume everyone knows the trick about hooking an electric drill to the rod and spinning it slowly as you pull it out so you don't have to force it.

       Brett

[Dan McEntee]

   I assume everyone knows the trick about hooking an electric drill to the rod and spinning it slowly as you pull it out so you don't have to force it.

       Brett

   Or even just twiddling it between your fingers. If the holes are indeed5/16", (.312" )  8mm rods may be a bit tighter because they are .003" bigger, at .315".  It helps to measure anything that you use, but if it fit's, it fits !! Music wire will be accurate, cold rolled rod may vary. I haven't used or measured much in carbon roods or tubes so not sure what kind of product specs and tolerances they may have, and it may vary from manufacturer to manufacturer.
   Type at you later,
   Dan McEntee

[Paul Smith]

I would bet that the tolerance on ANY manufactured rod or tube of any material is more precise than the holes in wood ribs. 
And of, course the ribs are easier to adjust.
If I had trouble extracting a fixture rod, I would hesitate to try to extract it with a power drill, for fear of doing some real damage.

[Colin McRae]

I have a 7/8/10/12 mm prop reamer.

I use 8mm CF tubes for the Brodak jig and 'gently' ream the rib holes at 8 mm. Tubes slide in nice and easy, and also easy to extract the tubes from the completed wing when the time comes.

[GERALD WIMMER]

Hello

Before assembling his Gypsy wing my son spayed the alloy rods with silicon before putting the ribs on.
 Seemed to work well when he pulled them out, even though they were tight fit in the ribs.

Regards Gerald

[doug coursey]

WAX ON THE RODS WORKS GOOD TOO....

[Ken Culbertson]

I use Teflon spray on the rods. Also use it on controls.  Doesn't clog up like oil.

Ken