![\"DSC_0598\"](\"http:\/\/www.balsaworkbench.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/DSC_0598.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nThe axle will be made by bending the end of the longer strut. \u00a0Don’t worry about that now. \u00a0You can see the black mark where the axle will be bent. \u00a0Use this mark as a guide for bracing strut placement.<\/p>\n
The last half inch of the bracing strut will be bent to match the angle of the axle strut. \u00a0First, observe\u00a0which way you need to bend the brace.<\/p>\n
Then, while keeping the wire in approximately the same position, bend the end of it to the correct angle.<\/p>\n My favorite tool for bending landing gear wire (other than the K&S bender clamped in a vise) is a pair of crescent wrenches. \u00a0It takes some practice, but it works. \u00a0For this project I am bending 1\/8″ wire, which takes a bit of effort but is actually pretty easy. \u00a03\/32″ wire is a piece of cake. \u00a05\/32″ wire is challenging, but I can still do it with big wrenches. \u00a0Anything bigger than that, and I suggest putting it in the K&S bender. \u00a0You can still do this with the wire attached to the plane, because as the wire gets bigger, the struts also get longer, so you should have adequate clearance. \u00a0If you don’t have enough clearance, place a mark on the wire on the side in the direction that the end will be bent. \u00a0Then you can take it off the plane and be fairly certain that you will bend it the right direction.<\/p>\n Now that the end of the brace is bent to the correct angle, the wires are cleaned with acetone, the mark is replaced with a Sharpie marker, and the joint is wrapped with copper wire.<\/p>\n If you move on to the second joint without soldering the first, the first one will get all out of whack, so it’s a good idea to solder the first joint before doing anything else.<\/p>\n Next the other side is bent, cleaned, and wrapped.<\/p>\n After soldering, this is what the landing gear looks like when the model is upright.<\/p>\n Is that lens parallax? This wire is straight!<\/p><\/div>\n The axle needs to be bent into place. \u00a0The reason why I save this step for last is because it’s kind of hard to get the axle in exactly the right orientation before you see where the landing gear is going to end up. \u00a0Now that everything is in place on the plane, it’s a lot easier to just stick a wrench on it and bend it into place. \u00a0It needs to have a bit of toe-in, and a bit of camber.<\/p>\n Now the wheels are added.<\/p>\n To my eye, the camber looks like a bit much, so I’ll probably be adjusting the axles a bit. \u00a0The more you bend them and re-bend them, the more they bend by themselves when you land, so try to get it right on the first few tries.<\/p>\n As you can see, this is a cheap, quick, easy project. \u00a0I didn’t go out of my way to make it perfect. \u00a0It’s just for demonstration purposes\u00a0(actually I’ll be using it on this plane even though it’s not perfect). \u00a0If you are a perfectionist, you can bend your struts a lot prettier than the ones in my photos. \u00a0I did a landing gear for a Big John biplane that were really beautiful. \u00a0The struts were straight, the bends were crisp, and it even included bungee cords (rubber bands) for suspension. \u00a0I think it’s a lot more fun than just slapping a factory made aluminum landing gear on the plane.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" For general info on building wire struts, check out the Building Wire Cabane Struts article first. I think it’s a good idea to make the solder joints in your landing gear while the struts are attached to the fuselage, because … Continue reading <\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n