Building the (Old) FLYLINE Great Lakes 2T-1A Kit (5)

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The next step in building the upper wing is the shaping and sanding. I have heard guys who want to be model builders complaining that they “don’t like sanding”. I don’t get it…while putting all the pieces together in the right relationship is great, I especially enjoy the process of trimming and carving and sanding all those rough edges and squared-off ends into a smoothly flowing piece of aerodynamic sculpture.
Not all shaping depends on the old sanding block. Here I am using an ordinary hobby shop block plane to cut material from the leading edge.

Using a tool like a block plane means you have to be sure of what you're doing...it's really easy to take off more wood than you want, if you don't know how. Always move the plane so that the natural direction of the wood grain tends to pull the blade OUT of the cut, not deeper into it. Here I have taken off a chunk of extra leading edge material and left just enough for the sanding block to do the final shaping.

The standard issue No.11 knife blade is a good tool to use here. I am shaping the center section trailing edge, which begins life as a couple of clunky balsa blocks. As with the block plane, make your cuts away from the grain, not into it, and always plan EXACTLY what you want to remove before you make the cut. Used properly, the knife is the best way to remove large amounts of excess wood quickly and leave only what you want to sand.

The long, straight sanding block is your best friend for jobs like this. Here I am using 320 grit (fine) paper to finish the tops of all the ribs exactly in line with each other.

This is the upper face of the right wingtip with the leading edge, tip lamination, and trailing edge all sanded to shape. Thge trick here is to use the plans, photos, and whatever else you might have for reference to be sure you know exactly what the finished job is supposed to look like, then keep trimming and sanding and checking and sanding some more until the model matches the pictures. .

This is how the the leading edge is supposed to look when all the shaping is done. This is the same piece of structure I began working on using the block plane.

This may be the toughest part of the Great Lakes wing to get right. You MUST know what the full scale structure you are trying to replicate looks like, then cut and sand and check until it's right. Places like this are where sloppy or impatient builders will always get caught.