Torky speed contest

Howdy Ken!  I understand what you're saying and to a certain degree, I can agree but then there's the other side of the coin!  IF .... the rules or specs call for a certain thing, regardless of anything other than safety, any and all competitors must be bound by those specs .... no excuses.  Yes?  No??  It doesn't matter to me if there are options or variations allowed before the event kicks off but I don't believe I would want to participate in an event where one or two competitors were allowed to "pull a rabbit out of the hat", so to speak .  Does this make sense ?  It would be like signing up for a fun-filled donkey race and one competitor shows up with a mule and then another shows up with a thoroughbred and the judges agree that it's okay because they're all in the equine family, have four legs, two ears and two eyes and they poop!!

Based on what some of the guys have written, it appears there might be a difference in performance between the upright versus inverted fin and the configuration of the landing gear.  However, the plan as posted, shows a very specific configuration and whether good or bad, it is the Torky as designed.  I just wanted to know will modifications be allowed, what they are and are there any limitations (at the same time, I realize the whole thing is based upon the "honor" of the participants).  I hope this makes sense without causing any consternation or anger.  I was just askin' !!

Well, I won't compromise safety. I've seen enough accidents and certainly don't want to promote one. I have followed the contests on here and there interesting and they start off like a shot out of a cannon. Then they fizzle out. There just isn't enough flying action. My run what you brung statement just meant that if you have a Torky and it looks like a Torky then fly it. There shouldn't be any differences in regards to wheels or landing gear.

Ken Cook wrote:

The most challenging part was binding and soldering the gear

Ken, I'm making a new landing gear for my Skyray. I'd be very interested in learning your procedure for binding and soldering the wires. Do you make a jig to hold the wires while soldering? What size and type of wire do you use? What type of solder?

Thanks.

I use wooden clothes pins, I sand the jaws flat and I use a Zona saw to cut grooves in them. I have one at a 45 deg, 90 deg etc. This way the wood doesn't act as a heat sink. I buy K&S wire in bulk which is the gear wire .061". As far as the legs of the gear are concerned, I make certain the bends are spot on. This is a pain in the rear. Yes, you can solder and then bend it but the problem with doing so is that your pre stressing the gear legs which are already subject to shock. Make your bends as accurate as possible first, if any fine tuning is needed later, do so with two pairs of duck bill pliers so the joint isn't compromised. I use 28 gauge uncoated copper wire for the binding. I have seen soldering techniques and solders mentioned on many of the forums. My advice, don't use any solder which bears silver. Silver solders that Radio Shack carries or any solders that are less than $20 a lb are not suitable for our applications. Those types of  solder are  a low resistance high conductivity solder for pc boards. It will not hold up to the rigors of vibrations or shock.

           I use 60/40 rosin core solder of the largest diameter I can find due to the core thickness which holds more rosin internally. As far as flux is concerned, a simple paste flux which is water soluble such as Oatey used for home plumbing projects works fine in addition to the rosin already in the solder. It's far less aggressive than products such as Sta-Brite which I would ABSOLUTELY stay away from. That can oxidize metal and  ruin everything in a 3' diameter. Clean once, clean again, then clean again, best soldering advice I can offer. I like steel wool and wire wheels for this work. Dedicate a wire wheel specifically for doing so as to not introduce any additional contaminants onto the work.

         The wheel in my pic is retained by a #2 washer. Solder doesn't get along with zinc plating, it must be removed so sanding these little washer is a pain. I use My Dremel and a whizz wheel to cut a tiny groove into the gear to retain the washer. The washer is slipped on, it falls into the groove and I solder it there. I use 3x5 card material stacked on top of the wheel to provide some play for the wheel. After solder cools, I remove the paper

If you look at my gear wire, it looks a tad rusty and the solder has a oxidized appearance. Reason being is that generally I use lacquer thinner to clean everything once complete. This leaves a very resilient finish on all the parts. However, I was out of lacquer thinner and I used baking soda and a old toothbrush for this gear. When you use baking soda it has a tendency to leave the parts like you see. It does a great job though in neutralizing the flox to prevent further oxidation.

Great info! Thanks Ken.