Bending all the little fairings?
Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2021 10:17 pm
by 13brv3
Greetings,
I’m curious how everyone is bending all those little fairings. I’m assuming they’re pretty common for all the models, but mine is a Onex if that matters. I’m talking about the fairings for the rudder cable, tailwheel spring, ailerons, etc. They seem to be supplied as flat sheets, and mostly require pretty tight bends. If I try to bend them by hand, it’s going to get ugly 
Honestly, I’m thinking of 3D printing them.
Thanks,
Rusty
Re: Bending all the little fairings?
Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2021 10:51 pm
by WesRagle
Hi Rusty,
I cut out the pattern, bent the flanges, clamped a (skinny) broom stick down the center, and bent them around the broom stick. After that I beat on the tips a little with a dead blow to get a better fit. Then I bent them some by hand to get the width I wanted. I bought the rudder cable fairings.
Good Luck,
Wes
Re: Bending all the little fairings?
Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2021 11:32 pm
by Bryan Cotton
I annealed mine. Makes it a lot easier to work the metal.
viewtopic.php?f=39&t=578&start=1020
viewtopic.php?f=39&t=578&start=1030
Re: Bending all the little fairings?
Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2021 1:19 am
by Spaceman
The B-model versions of those little fairings are just pre-formed plastic pieces, so if you don’t want to make them you could probably just buy those from Sonex
Re: Bending all the little fairings?
Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2021 1:22 am
by 13brv3
Annealing is probably a good idea. I might just buy the aluminum that way to save having to heat it.
Wes, where did you buy the rudder cable fairings? I bought some plastic ones, but they’re not quite the right size. I drew them up in CAD and have them ready to 3D print, but haven’t had time to print them yet. 3D printing is slow, and really annoying to listen to
The empennage fairing is the only one I consider essential for first flight, so I may or may not get the rest done before it flies. it’s always good to leave yourself room for improvement
Rusty
Re: Bending all the little fairings?
Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2021 8:04 am
by Area 51%
I got my rudder cable fairings from Aircraft Spruce.
Re: Bending all the little fairings?
Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2021 8:52 am
by 13brv3
I got the plastic ones at Spruce, but they’re not quite the size I need. The others I saw weren’t close to being large enough. The original owner of my project cut the slot a bit longer than needed one one side, and a bit off center on the other side. I’m guessing the cable exits didn’t align with the factory marked location, but that’s just a guess.
Re: Bending all the little fairings?
Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2021 12:28 pm
by GordonTurner
Fairings installed from inside
EB73B379-6604-4075-B667-EC61A40EB791.jpeg (66.18 KiB) Viewed 2456 times
I installed the “B” model plastic fairings from the inside. Came out pretty good. I think will look fine once I cover in vinyl.
Re: Bending all the little fairings?
Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2021 1:17 pm
by WesRagle
Hi Rusty,
Spaceman wrote:Wes, where did you buy the rudder cable fairings? I bought some plastic ones, but they’re not quite the right size. I drew them up in CAD and have them ready to 3D print, but haven’t had time to print them yet. 3D printing is slow, and really annoying to listen to
https://www.sonexaircraft.com/eshop/cart.php?target=product&product_id=17554&category_id=431
https://www.sonexaircraft.com/eshop/cart.php?target=product&product_id=17558&category_id=431
Good Luck,
Wes
Re: Bending all the little fairings?
Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2021 2:43 pm
by 13brv3
Thanks for the replies, and links. I searched the Sonex store for fairings, but neglected to notice that there were 3 pages of them, so I never saw any of those. I’ll do some more searching.
Rusty
Re: Bending all the little fairings?
Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2021 8:21 pm
by sonex892.
If you are polishing, metal will look better. I’m a fan of annealing the aluminium for compound shapes. I made wooden male and female blocks then squeezed the rudder cable fairings in a vice.
Here’s an old thread from years ago where I made metal naca ducts with annealing, form blocks and mallet. viewtopic.php?f=3&t=275&hilit=naca+polished
Re: Bending all the little fairings?
Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2021 9:04 pm
by 13brv3
Very nice. Love the NACA duct! I’ve read about using a molding block, thick rubber, and a press. I definitely want to try that one day, and with that much force available, I don’t think you’d even have to anneal it.
I’m never going to polish a plane, so plastic works for me. In fact the 3D printer is whining it’s way through the first attempt now. The original builder made one side of the slot about 5" long, which keeps most of the pre-made fairings from fitting. The other side seems to have had a small slot pre-punched, but he had to cut the cable slot above it. That means the fairing needs to be wider than normal to cover both holes. I drew up a simple fairing that should fit both sides.
This is V1. The flange was solid, but I cut it with snips to be able to test fit it without removing the cable. I can already see some things I’d change. 3D printing is really still amazing to me. Can’t have enough cool tools
Rusty
Re: Bending all the little fairings?
Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2021 2:37 am
by NWade
Looking good, Rusty!
If you haven’t already considered it: You probably want to use PETG for the fairings, if you can. It’s going to be a bit less-brittle and handle heat & UV better than PLA.
ASA would be ideal, but speaking from personal experience ASA is as big of a PITA to 3d print as ABS.
Holler if you have questions regarding 3d printing -I’m not an “expert” but I’ve done a fair amount of learning, tinkering, and printing over the last 2 years (including a few small parts on my Sonex).
—Noel
Re: Bending all the little fairings?
Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2021 7:58 am
by 13brv3
I haven’t heard of ASA, but PETG is my favorite, and what this was made with. I’ve had a Makergear M2 for close to 10 years, and I’m no expert, but I get by.