Assemble The Wheel Pants - GREAT PLANES EXTRA 300S Instruction Manual

17. Cut a slot in the trailing edge of the fin at the marks
you made for the nylon tail gear bearing. Without using any
glue join the rudder to the fin with the tail gear wire.
Hint: Enlarge the slot with a small razor saw so the nylon
bearing will fit easier.

Assemble the Wheel Pants

1. Trim one matching set of wheel pant halves along
the molded cut lines. Notice that the top of the outer pant
goes over the lip of the inner pant and the bottom of the
inner pant goes over the lip of the outer pant. You can use a
hobby knife to carefully score along the cut lines and flex the
plastic until the excess breaks free, or use small scissors to
cut along the lines. Kyosho curved Lexan cutting scissors
(KYOR1010) work extremely well for this and make the job a
cinch. For now, don't worry about accurately cutting out the
opening in each wheel pant half – just cut an approximate
opening for the wheels.
2. Use your bar sander to carefully true the edges of
the overlapping pieces of the wheel pant halves so when
you glue them together the seam will be as small and
straight as possible. Notice that the front and rear of the
pant halves do not overlap. Use 150 or 220-grit sandpaper
to remove the flashing and thoroughly roughen all areas
that are to be glued including the indentation on the inside
of both inner pant halves.
3. Test fit the wheel pant halves and make adjustments
where necessary for the best possible fit.
4. Join two wheel pant halves and carefully spot glue
them together in just a few places with thin CA. Start by spot
gluing the top, then the front and rear where the two halves
just butt together. After the halves are joined, securely glue
them along all seams with thin CA.
Note: Do not use CA accelerator on the ABS plastic as it
may develop cracks and/or keep the paint from adhering.
5. Use your hobby knife or a MultiPro with a sanding
drum to cut out the wheel openings.
Hint: Make the wheel openings wide as this will make
installing the wheels and axles easier and cause less
interference with the wheels upon landing and takeoff. You can
see the size of the wheel openings in the following photo.
6. Use medium CA to glue the die-cut 1/8" plywood
wheel pant mounts to the inside of each wheel pant.
7. Use a metal file to chamfer the edges and corners
of the aluminum landing gear so it will neatly fit in the
recess of the wheel pant. Position the wheel pant on the
aluminum landing gear, then use a felt-tip pen to accurately
mark the location of the axle mounting hole.
8. Drill a 3/16" (11/64" or #18 for precision) hole in
the wheel pant at the mark. Back up the wheel pant mount
with a piece of plywood so you do not split it as the drill
goes through.
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