Aileron Counterbalance Weights - The Penny Pincher Way (Nov. 23th, 2002)

This was a quiet November. Have filled/sanded the tailtips a thousand times and they're still not perfect (but almost, will paint them soon).

For a change I casted the aileron counterweights today. The neighbour had a strage look when I ligthed the barbecue grill at freezing outside temperatures ;)))

I 'cooked about 6 Kg of used tyre balancing weights. There's more heat required as for your usual grill steak. A hot-air gun works well to get the temp up to melting point. The steel clips and sticking tapes will drift ontop on the melted lead, so this dirt can easily be caraped off with an old spoon.

The particle-board moulds worked very well. I made them about 5mm larger in all dimensions. The top will sag a bit when the block cools down.

Work complete. As you can see I left the tip at the sharp edge on. This will get me some more torque, just in case I need it.

All in all the counterweights cost me noting (except some charcoal). Next I will take them to the mechanic shop and grind down all sides to exact dimensions on a lathe.