phantom Posted February 10, 2014 Share Posted February 10, 2014 How much weight do I need to put in the nose? I did not see anything in the instructions. Thanks Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P Stoner Posted February 10, 2014 Share Posted February 10, 2014 A bunch!!! Can't tell you for sure how much. After I added the pylons and bombs on my first build I had to fill the area under the dash and behind the IP to get her to sit firmly on the nose gear! My second build I filled the area between the intakes and behind the pit with BBs! Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill_S Posted February 11, 2014 Share Posted February 11, 2014 I made a trapezoid from about 100 6mm diameter lead balls that fits nicely between the cockpit floor and the top of the nose gear bay. According to my CAD program, its about 150 grams - a bit over 5 ounces. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P Stoner Posted February 11, 2014 Share Posted February 11, 2014 That makes sense, I had a 4 oz lead wt replacing the radar and added a once or more! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSP_K2 Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 Am I the only modeler who has *never* actually weighed noise weights? You tape the main parts together, stick your thumb and index finger in the main gear mounts, then see how tail heavy it is. Put that much weight in the nose, plus some extra. I've never yet had a tail sitter... No, you're not. I use much the same methodology on my trike gear kits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scvrobeson Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 Am I the only modeler who has *never* actually weighed noise weights? You tape the main parts together, stick your thumb and index finger in the main gear mounts, then see how tail heavy it is. Put that much weight in the nose, plus some extra. I've never yet had a tail sitter... I always guess. I just have a selection of fishing weights sitting in a drawer, and I grab a handful that seem like the right size, and shove them in. Glue them down, then add some more as needed. Matt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petrov27 Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 Surprised no aftermarket weight yet - is it Terry Dean (?) that does those for many 1/48 and some 1/32 kits? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magic Mike Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 I remember the time I was building the Hase. TA-4J kit and had it closed up EXCEPT for the exhaust when I realized I had forgotten the nose weight. What I did then was to put a piece of plastic tube in through the tail hole all the way to the nose and poured a ton of white glue down the tube. I then started adding BBs down the tube until I figured I had enough in there. I sat the kit on it's legs to make sure it was balanced, and it was. Yay for me! Great idea there Mike. I went about cleaning my area of the stuff I had used to rectify the problem when I noticed a gooey mess in the pit. All of the glue and BBs had run into the pit around the openings and had made a horrible mess. I had to clean it and then start again. After fixing the problem I hung the plane nose down from a string to make sure the stuff stayed in place until dry. Now I make sure it's done BEFORE i close it up. MM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petrov27 Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 Ha - yeah - a long time back - I think doing a 1/48 intruder, I had closed the sides with the cockpit in place but still had access to the nose to put BBs in there - I dumped a ton in then followed up with a great globs of thick super glue and set it aside to dry..... The cockpit was white after drying from the CA fumes - looked like it had been outside on a frosty cold morning lol.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P Stoner Posted February 12, 2014 Share Posted February 12, 2014 Save the IP cover for last, you can get emergency weight under it! Any of you ever build the old B-29 kit? Didn't that kit have weights? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill_S Posted February 14, 2014 Share Posted February 14, 2014 I don't weigh either, but I do like to cast a single piece of lead instead of dealing with the mess of glue and BBs. It becomes an issue of both weight and shape. The CAD model was only to get a ballpark estimate of how many lead balls to melt. The weight just came along for the ride. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Colvin Posted February 14, 2014 Share Posted February 14, 2014 I am a fan of birdshot and epoxy.....Mix up equal parts 5 min epoxy pour in amout of birdshot required mix well paste in.........it dries hard as a rock and even ads some support.......Also the sweet spon on my kits is awesome, all of them will double as a club.......lol Saber and Out2gtcha 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Out2gtcha Posted February 14, 2014 Share Posted February 14, 2014 I am a fan of birdshot and epoxy.....Mix up equal parts 5 min epoxy pour in amout of birdshot required mix well paste in.........it dries hard as a rock and even ads some support.......Also the sweet spon on my kits is awesome, all of them will double as a club.......lol I too use a similar technique. I purchased a 50 Lb bag (smallest they came in) of some #9 buckshot (and smallest size of shot they make btw) and use a similar mix. I tend to use JB Weld for mixing up the paste of glue and shot before putting it in the model, so there is no chance of that odd loose BB knocking around in your model. The metal and all-around epoxy JB Weld is quite amazing stuff. Its bond is one of the strongest I have ever encountered..............to the point that you had better make sure whatever your gluing is 100% in the position you want..........or it ISN'T coming off..............EVER. Every time Ive tried to split up a joint I made with JB ive ended up breaking the part before the glue bond. Stuff works great for gluing lead in the nose of models regardless of the type. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thierry laurent Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 Hi, I read that some of you are glueing lead weights with CA glue. PLEASE DO NOT DO IT ANYMORE!!! CA fumes react with lead and accelerate oxidation. This generates so much oxid that the internal pressure may open the kit nose or fuselage as a banana!!! This will take months or one or two years but the result is terrible. I saw two kits with such a damage some years ago. Believe me, you're not willing to get this. Use epoxy to glue and isolate lead from the air. hth Thierry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LSP_Kevin Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 I no longer use any form of glue to attach lead weights. Instead, I now use Blu-tac. Yep, Blu-tac. It works very well; doesn't move, give way or give off heat. It isn't compromised by temperature, nor does it attack either plastic or lead. It also makes no mess, and you can position and reposition your weights until you're happy, and then close things up. And it hangs on the the lead weights (I use fishing sinkers) much better than you'd think. Give it a try; you'll be pleasantly surprised. Kev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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