The pre-sheeted Alcyone has tow strips about a quarter inch wide that
run out behind the spar -- they're perfectly placed to cut into them
when you cut pockets for servos (rather than relying on the original
cable and torque rod setup). The wing should be strong enough for any
conceivable launch with minimal reinforcement, the weak point for me
isn't the wing (or wing rod) but the attachments to the fuse (i.e the
wing will come off the fuse before the wings fold).
You do need a very lightweight vacuum so the foodsaver may well work. I
redid the sheeting on the fuse ends of my Alcyone and found it was
difficult to get the vacuum low enough -- the white foam used for the
wing cores isn't at all strong and I've got a proper vacuum pump. This
pump's equipped with a bleed to regulate pressure and it was pretty much
undone all the way. The results came out really well despite my
"bagging" material being nothing more than polyethylene drop cloth
sheeting held together with tape rather than the proper mylar setup.
>Has anyone tried vacuum bagging small parts, like stabs, in a Foodsaver?
The vacuum is used to press the poly sheeting against the wing cores so
I'm not sure what you mean by "in the Foodsaver". The amount of vacuum
determines how tightly the sheet is pressed against the cores, if you
overdo it you'll squash the core and get a very disappointing wing. The
Foodsaver itself has got only a small pump, I think its a diaphragm,
like a fish tank aereator running in reverse, so it won't draw a big
vacuum but the size of the pump isn't important provided it can extract
air faster than it leaks in.
If you've not done this before its worth practicing on some scrap first
so you know what to expect. Getting the glue spread, the skins in place
and the whole lot into the bag and the vacuum on is a process that has
to go smoothly. Once you start having to go back and repeat steps things
can go to pieces very quickly (think classic slapstick comedy except its
not funny......) -- so you don't want to go back.
Martin Usher
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