Science Olympiad 2000-2001

There are several things you will need before you can start building your model. Some things you will have to buy at a hobby shop, and the other things you may have around your house.
Items marked with an asterisk may be difficult to get at your local hobby shop and may have to be purchased by mail. A good supplier to try is Indoor Model Supply, if you still have troubles then your best bet would be to get on the internet and search the modeling web sites.

Balsa wood you will need (see Selecting Your Balsa) :

Two (2) pieces of 1/8" x 1/16" x 36" long balsa (wing spars)
Two (2) pieces of 1/16" x 1/16" x 36" long balsa (stab spars)
One (1) piece of 1/8" x 3/8" or 3/16" x 3/8" x 36" long balsa (fuselage and boom)
One (1) sheet of 1/16" x 3" x 36" long balsa (for wing and stab ribs)
One (1) piece of 1/8" x 1/8" x 36" long balsa (for wing posts)

Hobby shop items:

Bottle of super glue (medium viscosity).
Bottle of super glue accelerator.
.025" music wire (36" long piece).
3/32" diameter aluminum tube (12" long)
Balsa wood stripper (if you do not want to buy stripwood)
Razor plane
*7" plastic prop with nose assembly.
*Pack of 3/32" rubber and 1/8" rubber, about 50 ft of each is good to start with.
*8:1 or 16:1 winder (16 to 1 will wind your rubberband faster).
*A sheet of lightweight tissue paper (it is called Esaki or Japanese tissue). If you have trouble finding it then go to a craft store and buy lightweight tissue paper like you would use for gift wrapping. The weight penalty is about .5 grams so some care must be used in wood selection and building to compensate for the extra weight.

Hardware store items (you may have some of this stuff):

Duco household cement.
Round needle nose pliers.
Needle nose pliers.
Diagonal wire cutters.
Pack of single edge razor blades.
Sanding block with 220 grit or finer.

Craft store items (you may have some of this stuff):

12" (minimum) x 24" wide 1/2" thick foam core board (for building on).
Packet of assorted glass beads (with 1/32" hole in the middle).
One sheet of poster cardboard (you really only need a piece about 6" long x 2" wide).
Packet of hemming pins or T-pins.
Can of 3M-77 spray adhesive or a glue stick.

Other items you will need:

Copy of the full-size plan
Paper towels
STP Son-of-a-Gun (rubber band lubricant)
Box to store your model in
Folding chair and table for your things when you fly (optional)
Toolbox to place your support equipment like pliers, glue and winders in. (optional)
Notebook and pencil to keep notes when flying and building
Iron with permanent press setting
Masking tape
30/60/90 degree triangle
Candle or a dry piece of bar soap
Several sheets of newspaper
Spray water bottle
One (1) U.S. penny
Four (4) U.S. quarters
Ruler

Some web sites to check out:

Tim Goldstein's Excellent site with LOTS of information an articles on indoor freeflight.
http://www.indoorduration.com

Glenn Davison’s excellent compilation of suppliers and vendors.
http://people.ne.mediaone.net/indoor/co_mat.htm

Indoor Model Supply (sells balsa, winders, tissue, torque meters, rubber)
http://www.indoormodelsupply.com

FAI Model Supply (supplier of Tan II rubber strip)
http://www.faimodelsupply.com

My (Don Slusarczyk’s) indoor web site with online plans.
http://www.indoorfreeflight.com

Subscribe to the indoor free flight mailing list (you can ask questions to other model builders)
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/indoor/join

Midwest Products (kits and supplies)
http://www.midwestproducts.com/eduhome.htm

Science Olympiad web ring
http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/Lab/3812/ring.html

Free flight web ring
http://nav.webring.yahoo.com/hub?ring=freeflightring&list

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* STP, Son of a Gun, Jet Set, Jet, 3M, Super 77 are all registered trademarks.