Rib cutting

[Shorts,David]

Hi, I've used Ed at Lazer Works in the past, but had to mail him my plans.

Does anyone have a favorite vendor or person who can take a pdf plan and cut the ribs out for me. I tried the sandwich method but the wing taper is too extreme. I'd prefer not to print plans and mail them if possible.

Thanks

[john e. holliday]

Time to get your own laser cutter.

[Brent Williams]

You might contact John Miller.  He could loft the ribs properly and produce a dxf file that you could send to Brodak, RSM, or some of the balsa suppliers to laser.  John is a vendor on here. CADClassics.

[Dave Harmon]

Hi, I've used Ed at Lazer Works in the past, but had to mail him my plans.

Does anyone have a favorite vendor or person who can take a pdf plan and cut the ribs out for me. I tried the sandwich method but the wing taper is too extreme. I'd prefer not to print plans and mail them if possible.

Thanks

You could check around in your area for a laser cutting 'club'.
There is a club here that instructs use of the cutters and how to process your original plans for use with the machines....and....unlimited use of the cutters for $200 per year.
There are several guys in the model clubs here that are members of that laser club....bring your own wood.

[Shorts,David]

You could check around in your area for a laser cutting 'club'.
There is a club here that instructs use of the cutters and how to process your original plans for use with the machines....and....unlimited use of the cutters for $200 per year.
There are several guys in the model clubs here that are members of that laser club....bring your own wood.

That's a pretty clever idea. I might bring that up next time we get together.

[Randy Powell]

Pat Johnston at patsplans@yahoo.com. Pat can laser cut about anything.

[Dennis Leonhardi]

Aren't we living at a GREAT time!?!  Now, back about 70 years ago ... No Thanks!

Dennis

[Dave Harmon]

Aren't we living at a GREAT time!?!  Now, back about 70 years ago ... No Thanks!

Dennis

I bought a couple of Oriental profile kits that instantly transported me back to 56' with the horrible die cutting. I had to make a lot of new parts....the wood was good though....still got that wood in the scrap box.
I understand now those same kits are laser cut.

[Brent Williams]

Let's include Pat King, also. 

[john e. holliday]

Hey, we of the older generation learned how to cut, sand and build those kits when die cutting was the latest thing.   Try a printed balsa sheet some time?    Also remember double gluing on some parts.  Wonder how we didn't have stress lines before Epoxy came to be.  My brothers showed me some of the glue they had to mix themselves that came in a little packet.  No I will not go back to that way again.

[Shorts,David]

How about contacting Mr. X-acto.



Motorman

Yeah, my first attempt was pretty bad, but that's always a possibility. I was hoping someone would say they had a magic wand that turned pdfs into lazer cut wood.

[George Truett]

Rob at The Balsa Workbench cut some parts for me from digital files I supplied.  http://www.balsaworkbench.com/

[Howard Rush]

Try a printed balsa sheet some time?

I've done that, and cut the stringer notches with a #16 X-Acto blade.  I prefer the smoke-and-mirrors solution.

[944_Jim]

And I used a guy up in Canada to custom-cut a FROG 36" DH Mossie a few months back. He used the Outerzone copy to do the work. We tossed a few emails back and forth as I asked for certain parts to be reduced in thickness. The short kit appears to be well done, but cnc router-cut. I'll know more after I start the build...Mark Winstanley of Kanata Aircraft Models. PM if you want his email address.
Also Dave Cowell of DPCModels in New Mexico may help. I know he does older Sterling, Scientific, OOP Guillow's for FF and CL. I worked with him to reproduce a few Scientific kits (I bought the original kits, he reverse-engineered them for short-run laser-cut productions).

[Shorts,David]

Great, thanks guys. I think I may have it worked out now, in fact, maybe too much. I may have a couple sets of ribs coming if I'm not careful.

[Dennis Leonhardi]

And I used a guy up in Canada to custom-cut a FROG 36" DH Mossie a few months back. He used the Outerzone copy to do the work. We tossed a few emails back and forth as I asked for certain parts to be reduced in thickness. The short kit appears to be well done, but cnc router-cut. I'll know more after I start the build...Mark Winstanley of Kanata Aircraft Models. PM if you want his email address.
Also Dave Cowell of DPCModels in New Mexico may help. I know he does older Sterling, Scientific, OOP Guillow's for FF and CL. I worked with him to reproduce a few Scientific kits (I bought the original kits, he reverse-engineered them for short-run laser-cut productions).

Dave Cowell does beautiful work but will be out of action for awhile.  I wish him the Very Best!  He bends over backwards to be helpful.

http://dpcmodels.homestead.com/index.html

[Paul Wescott]

Great, thanks guys. I think I may have it worked out now, in fact, maybe too much. I may have a couple sets of ribs coming if I'm not careful.

And the solution is...?

[Shorts,David]

Yes, so, I mentioned it to Rob at Balsa Workbench and he said he'd cut them from pdf for me, but didn't give me a quote, so I'm not sure where that's at. I got an email from another guy saying he'd do the job but I asked him to wait until Rob gets back to me. If neither of those, then, I'll ask Pat. If not pat, I could have taken out the exacto blade by then and just done it old school. So, that would be my next step.

[George Truett]

Rob's prices have always been so good, if he tells me he can cut something from my files, I'm comfortable telling him to cut it and send me an amount.  The only problem I can think of is grade of wood, if you want something very light it is unlikely he will have 6 lb or less wood.  Most of his business is RC and they're not so picky.