Rigging...With Pictures

Rigging...With Pictures
This is intended to demonstrate how I rigged a biplane. The kit acting as todays model is the Airfix 1/72 Bristol Bulldog IIa. I suggest you read Rigging...basics first. One of the trickiest bits about rigging for me, is trying to work out where the cables go. There are usually 3 sorts of cable; Control Cables...operating flaps, rudders and ailerons. Rigging Cables...used to brace the airframe and usually stretching from strut to fuselage and strut to strut, in an 'X'. Aerial Cables...usually just one wire, travelling from around the cockpit to a fin tip. Occasionally, more complicated patterns. I always try and suss out what go where and this always takes some research, either from the net, or from my Big Boys Book of Aeroplanes! I've given the cables different colours in the following diagrams. (I didn't colour in my book, I scanned the image and used Photoshop).

From this, I often sketch a diagram or two, detailing where I'll need to drill holes for the cables and so on;

Here is the plan of the aerial wire;

Usually, I wouldn't go to such detail, but these pictures were used as part of a Bulldog Group Build, long, long ago! Having studied the pictures, I'm in a better position to work out the order of rigging. Some of this can be quite complex, so it helps to be methodical.

Materials recommended; Aeroclub Rigging Thread, available from http://www.aeroclub-models.com/p.html?n=1&c=ART003 Liquid Superglue Zipkicker Accelerator, (liquid, not aerosol).

Minidrill, or Pin Vice, with tiny drill bits Slant-edged tweezers, with a good grip Sharp scissors Cocktail sticks

I will refer to all cables, whether they be rigging, control, or aerial, as "threads", for sake of clarity. All threads need a starting point. I will refer to this as the "anchor point". Some threads will be emerging from the fuselage, so their anchor point is best made whilst the fuselage halves are still seperate. This is the stage where I find it best to do all of the necessary drilling. Drilling isn't essential and you can just glue the end of a thread, directly onto the surface of the models fuselage or wing. However, I find it looks tidier at this scale, to have threads 'disappearing' into the surface to which they are supposed to be attached. With scales larger than 1/72, there are all sorts of different methods of attachment. So...here we have some threads anchored inside the fuselage half and passing through to the outside;

Put the halves together and we have this;

By careful planning, you can be sure you don't miss less-significant threads, such as those emerging from the rear fuselage and attaching to the rudder;

Here, you can see I've anchored all of the threads for the lower wing. There's a lot of thread and the potential for tangle is high, so I use small blobs of Blu-Tak to keep them in check and to ensure my work resembles my earlier rigging 'map'.

Here, I've added the fuselage. Again, the threads you saw earlier, emerging from the fuselage, are 'tamed' by Blu-Tak;

Attaching Struts; You can go ahead and attach all of the struts and then start rigging, but I find it easier to attach some struts, rig those, and then proceed onto the next lot. So...here are the 'cabane struts', ready for attachment;

Obviously, it's easier to clean up the struts prior to attaching them! ;)

So...let's start rigging... The following sequence is best done fairly quickly, one step after the other. If you dawdle, the glue will dry out before you get the chance to put the thread onto it. Apply a tiny dab of liquid superglue to the tip of the strut you want to attach the thread to;

Dip your cocktail stick into the accelerator and, holding the thread with your tweezers, stroke it with the cocktail stick, roughly where you expect it to touch the strut. Because the thread is elastic, you don't have to be too precise;

Now pull the thread onto the strut. NOTE that as soon as the accelerator-soaked thread touches the glue on the strut, the glue will set hard and fast, so you need to be sure to put the thread where you want it. Again, the elsticity of the thread can help you here, but be careful... Too loose and your rigging will sag. Too tight and there's a chance your rigging will bend the strut too far. The last problem isn't that much of a problem, but could make attaching the upper wing a bit more difficult. NOTE also that when the accelerator touches the glue, it sets hard. This is why you don't want a large blob of glue, because if this sets, you get a large blob of set glue and you'll have to make a bigger hole in the upper wing for the strut to fit into.

Haven't got the hang of it, you systematically work your way around the other threads and struts;

So...GLUE;

ACCELERATOR;

THREAD;

Eventually;

Now...before you attach the upper wing, it's a good idea to paint and detail all those bits that you won't easily be able to reach, once it is in place;

This would include painting the upper surface of the lower wing and the lower surface of the upper wing. Painting the upper wing will undoubtedly clog up some of the holes you'd prepared earlier, so you might need to re-drill them;

The upper wing can now be attached.

Using your tweezers, a thread is pushed through the hole you prepared earlier;

...and pulled through the other side;

It can then be pulled taut...

(NOTE that there is a pair of threads, running in parallel. Care was taken to make sure that the holes were drilled in exactly the right place, or else the threads would not have run in parallel and would have looked a mess). ..And superglued into place;

The glue will also fill in those holes.

You can then slice off the excess thread and clean up as necessary. I hope that this demo is of some use. Regards, Bruce

I've got airfix fury, the rigging should be easy, but I dont have anything to drill the holes in the wings and fuselage. Let me know of other ways other than fouling up a good kit.

Before I got my micro drill, I used to put holes in stuff by using the point from my compasses. Make the holes from the inside to the outside and do it on a chopping board. That way, you can even vary the depth of your hole and, therefore, the diameter of it. To be honest thopugh, a decent micro drill is a must and it comes it for a whole host of modelling uses. Check out the Pin Vice and Microbox Precision Drills here; http://www.toolspot.co.uk/category/rotary-accessories Because the pin vice is hand-powered, YOU stay in control and you don't have to spend a lot of money. Regards, Bruce

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