Wing walk ply question.

My plans don't give a lot of detail about my wing walk but it's for a truss
rib mostly wood wing. The walk is supposed to go from the front spar to the
trailing edge and should be 1/4 ply. my question is will a piece of 1/4 ply
bend around the curvature of the wing (Clark Y) or should I laminate, say,
two pieces of 1/8 ply? If I were to laminate, what would the best way of
ensuring i got decent contact between the top and bottom surfaces?

"Mustardbuilder" wrote in message
.130...
My plans don't give a lot of detail about my wing walk but it's for a
truss
rib mostly wood wing. The walk is supposed to go from the front spar to
the
trailing edge and should be 1/4 ply. my question is will a piece of 1/4
ply
bend around the curvature of the wing (Clark Y) or should I laminate, say,
two pieces of 1/8 ply? If I were to laminate, what would the best way of
ensuring i got decent contact between the top and bottom surfaces?

The designer should know, if it has been built before. I would think that
you would trust him, if you are trusting him for your life on the rest of
the design.

That small bend should not be a problem. If you do laminate, use a 1/8th
inch notched trowel to spread adhesive, place the two together firmly on a
flat surface using another thicker flat surface on top to apply some
pressure, then wiggle the two pieces back and forth a little. Apply the two
pieces at one time without taking apart again.
--
Jim in NC

"Morgans" wrote in
:


"Mustardbuilder" wrote in message
.130...
My plans don't give a lot of detail about my wing walk but it's for a
truss
rib mostly wood wing. The walk is supposed to go from the front spar
to the
trailing edge and should be 1/4 ply. my question is will a piece of
1/4 ply
bend around the curvature of the wing (Clark Y) or should I laminate,
say, two pieces of 1/8 ply? If I were to laminate, what would the
best way of ensuring i got decent contact between the top and bottom
surfaces?

The designer should know, if it has been built before. I would think
that you would trust him, if you are trusting him for your life on the
rest of the design.


I do trust him, but I didn't get to ask him before he died! It's one of
the details he kind of left yto your imagination...

That small bend should not be a problem. If you do laminate, use a
1/8th inch notched trowel to spread adhesive, place the two together
firmly on a flat surface using another thicker flat surface on top to
apply some pressure, then wiggle the two pieces back and forth a
little. Apply the two pieces at one time without taking apart again.


Well, what I was actually asking is if I could laminate the two pieces
to take the curve in the wing. I realise this is basic stuff for a lot
of you guyus, but I've never bent realatively thick ply before and I
don't want to make a mess out of the rest of the wing trying..

"Mustardbuilder" wrote

Well, what I was actually asking is if I could laminate the two pieces
to take the curve in the wing. I realise this is basic stuff for a lot
of you guyus, but I've never bent realatively thick ply before and I
don't want to make a mess out of the rest of the wing trying..

Reread what I said. That is how to laminate two, without a mold. One
should work, though, no problem

Mine also calls for 1/4" but only from the front spar to
the back spar, since I have flaps. Laminating 2 peices should
be ok but I wouldn't us an 1/8" trowel. I would spred the glue
around with a popsicle stick or scrap wood, quite a few clamps,
and straps of wood to put on top. Clamp one end, then start
clamping every couple of inches until you reach the other end.
Lou

1/4" ply will bend more easily if you orient the grain across
the bend instead of along it. The grain should be parallel to the
spars.
If it's 1/4" birch ply, that would seem a lot of overkill
for a wingwalk. If it's 1/4" pine or fir, it should bend without any
problem. My son and I finished a small boat last year, using 1/4"
Chilean Pine plywood, and we put some impressive curves in it. See this
picture of an identical boat:

http://www.glen-l.com/designs/outboard/dsn-sqtd.html

Dan

"Morgans" wrote in news:cZIrh.1221$cZ1.187
@newsfe04.lga:


"Mustardbuilder" wrote

Well, what I was actually asking is if I could laminate the two
pieces
to take the curve in the wing. I realise this is basic stuff for a
lot
of you guyus, but I've never bent realatively thick ply before and I
don't want to make a mess out of the rest of the wing trying..

Reread what I said. That is how to laminate two, without a mold. One
should work, though, no problem


Dunno, that's what I was asking. I've laminated two pieces of ply
together before, just was wondering if it was practical or advisable to
do it curved.

"Lou" wrote in news:1169120606.808676.277590
@l53g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:


Mine also calls for 1/4" but only from the front spar to
the back spar, since I have flaps. Laminating 2 peices should
be ok but I wouldn't us an 1/8" trowel. I would spred the glue
around with a popsicle stick or scrap wood, quite a few clamps,
and straps of wood to put on top. Clamp one end, then start
clamping every couple of inches until you reach the other end.

OK. Here's what I'm thinking now. I use a couple of 3/4 ply ribs as a
mold with holes drilled near the upper edge as a place to locate the
clamps. A few pieces of wood across the underside of the ply to keep it
from sagging and a few pieces clamped right on top of those to ensure a
good contact between the two glued surfaces. the width is only 12 inches
so I'm supposing the two pieces would have adequate surface contact
(i.e, no gaps) and I should end up with a molded walkway..

wrote in news:1169135944.927468.166880
@m58g2000cwm.googlegroups.com:



1/4" ply will bend more easily if you orient the grain
across
the bend instead of along it. The grain should be parallel to the
spars.
If it's 1/4" birch ply, that would seem a lot of overkill
for a wingwalk. If it's 1/4" pine or fir, it should bend without any
problem.


Well, I was planning to use birch in fact. hadn't thought about using
anything else but now you have me thinking. My real concern about
bending the stuff in the first place was, in fact, the stiffness of the
Birch ply. I imagined it never reall settling down. The 1/4 birch I have
is 12 ply and is like iron!

My son and I finished a small boat last year, using 1/4"
Chilean Pine plywood, and we put some impressive curves in it. See
this
picture of an identical boat:

http://www.glen-l.com/designs/outboard/dsn-sqtd.html


Thanks!

Cool little boat,