Tail sitter

[signals]

I was making a hasegawa F-2 which is all done and decked out and I find out that its a tail sitter

I was hoping on drilling a small hole and putting in some lead shot or pellets inside the nose, but not sure where to start looking for tiny pellets.

Anyone got an idea; google wasn't very helpful

Or perhaps some other novel way of adding weight to the front?

[Fly-n-hi]

I had this exact same problem with m 1/48 Hasegawa F-2A. What I did was I mixed up a slurry of steel birdshot and Elmer's white glue. Then I dropped the birdshot in the nose through the opening behind the rudder pedals. I had to do it one ball at a time and it took about 30 minutes to do it but it worked. I had to let the plane sit in a dose down position for 4 days to let the glue dry since there is no air circulation to help it out.

If you need birdshot you can buy some 12 gauge shotgun rounds at Walmart and cut them open.

[signals]

Is there any place online where I could buy birdshot?

[dnl42]

Bags of shot should be available from any gun shop; if there are none in your area try Cabela's. I got a 25lb bag over a decade ago, and I don't think my usage, including balancing RC boats and aircraft, is discernible. The benefit of shot is the small size.

Another alternative is solder. This is thinner still, and you can push it in a tiny hole. My only after-the-fact application was for an R3C-2; I drilled a small hole in the float, pushed in the solder, drizzled in some glue to prevent movement, and then repaired the hole.

There's THREE GREEN Flexible Nose Weight from Uschi van der Rosten. I've been thinking about trying this since adding glue isn't necessarily required.

Finally, you could use tungsten weights. While more useful than lead because of its higher weight density, it is more expensive. But, this may only be best before you close up as I've only seen it in larger form-factors. You can find this in the Pinewood Derby section of your LHS. This may be the best stuff for a Kinetic E-2C or C-2A :P

HTH

[MoFo]

Another alternative is solder. This is thinner still, and you can push it in a tiny hole. My only after-the-fact application was for an R3C-2; I drilled a small hole in the float, pushed in the solder, drizzled in some glue to prevent movement, and then repaired the hole.

Another other option is a low-melting solder like Wood's Metal. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wood%27s_metal Wood's metal melts at 70`C, so you can melt it in hot water then safely pour it into your model.

[duck]

I bought this stuff called liquid gravity at Hobby Town. Small particles of a metal like substance. Not all are uniform in size. I used it to weight down the nose of the Airfix 1/72 Mig-15 I forgot to add nose weight to. I drilled a small hole just in front of the nose landing gear and applied small amounts of the stuff until the weight was enough to get it to sit up right. Sealed the hole with super glue and almost good to go.

https://www.google.com/shopping/product/16322833446058266488?q=liquid+gravity&client=opera&hs=JKr&bav=on.2,or.r_qf.&bvm=bv.81456516,d.cWc&biw=1215&bih=934&tch=1&ech=1ψ=jsSIVNbGBe7CsASekYHwAw.1418249567638.3&prds=paur:ClkAsKraX8shWIFf5DUCu1glSXPSVDDDCUngtkLla6GLbvmxZ8QdTRjvd4I3gY6fLqEZeZR7XTgqTSWzdCOUQ35e9t1f7u5GSDHjb7KoX8lEzwT6_bKDfiJgphIZAFPVH72yZA-r9qPhOAsvW0MbwINIeOyyvQ&ei=Y8WIVOqXHMO2oQSYmYKwBw&ved=0CJIBEKYrMAI

[JackMan]

You could also glue the nose landing gear to a diorama base. A lot easier than prying open the nose, stuffing it with lead, re-gluing it back & having to paint the camo again.

Another trick that might work is (if you haven't made the wing tanks yet) is to put weight on the front part of the tank halves and than glue both halves together.

For weight, you could also use those small screws that you find at the back of old computer CPUs. I use modeling clay to secure the screw. Here's what I did with a 1/72 Fujimi F-4EJ Phantom:

The modeling clay has a 2-3 small screws inside. Plus the clay itself adds some weight.

HTH

[habu2]

Did you try transferring all your fuel into the forward tanks???

[Unglued]

Any store that sells fishing tackle has small, lead, split-shot sinkers. Those are a better solution than shotgun shells. Lead solder would be good. It's still used for electrical soldering, I think.

[Netz]

Depending on how you are going to display your model, you could always put weight inside of the intake and use a intake cover, I know the F-2 kit has a full run intake and it would be a shame to cover it , but it is a option.

Curt

If you want some "shot" you can PM me.

[Stan in YUL]

BB's are another good option (depending where you are they might be easier to get) - they are supposed to be a nominal 0.177 inch dia. so you need a 3/16 drill bit.

Experiment a bit to figure out the right amount to add, pick suitible spot on the model (usually underside), drill, squeeze in your favorite glue, add the BBs, glue a short length of sprue(or equivalent)into the hole, cut the excess off when set, sand, paint, Bobs your uncle!

hth

stan in yul

Edited December 12, 2014 by Stan in YUL

[signals]

I ended up getting a bottle of liquid gravity. The ballast is small enough not to be an issue.

Thanks for all the suggestrions