Fiddlers Green

My ceiling is empty and needs lots of airplanes attached to it. I have lots of planes now. What is a good way to do it?
Push pins? I"d rather not make a hole.
Glue? what would be strong enough and not screw up the paint?
Fishing line? Near invisible, but hard to work with?

What works best?

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from

Jim Ed

I use clear push pins and fine white sewing thread...works for me

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Laterz
Possm_23
Never say anything you wouldnt think out loud!
Take your time leavin.....but hurry back!!!!
Every tub has to sit on its own bottom!!!!

Well, I'd probably replace the thread witn20-lb.-test monofilament fishing line, sirs. Left over from my plastic days, and still holds a 1/48 B-24 with a couple pounds of lead in the nose just fine.

When we had a big quake up here a few years back, a wing snapped off, but the line itself held and the model was repaired soon thereafter.

Also, not as visible as thread--I even use it as an anti-tamper indicator on things sometimes...

OBLIGATORY DISCLAIMER: This commentary is solely the opinion of user "nedry", and in no way solicited or compensated by the sporting-goods industry. *&%^, NEATVO, and I didn't stay at a Holiday Inn last night.

Clear push pins. I'll go shopping today.

Also, if it holds up in an earthquake it sounds like a good idea. Maybe I can find some monofliminent line.
Thanks

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from

Jim Ed

I've got about 100 hanging in my frount room and about 50 in my beedroom. I just hang heavy twine from corner to corner and from side to side of the rooms with swag lamp holders. I use plain old black sewing thread with a paper clip to hook over the twine. I look at them all the time and I don't even notice the thread. everyone who sees them say that that is neat how I have them hanging like their flying. The clear plastic prop discs help a lot and impress people. I always color the outer ring of the discs orange or red.

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cowboy

I use white sewing thread and plain old straight pins. The pins small size cause negliglible damage to the ceiling (if necessary, a drop of paint would hide the hole). I also push a pin into the model at its balance point to anchor the thread to the model. The thread is strong enough to hold the FG B-36, and is nearly invisible against the white ceiling.

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-Rob-

Currently working on: see avatar

I use 6 or 8 pound monofilament, usually what's left over from the last fishing season. I actually powerdrive a 3" screw into a ceiling stud, leaving about 1/2" showing, tying all filament to the ends of the screws.

On a safety note, I recommend NOT placing planes too close to ceiling fans....

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Edward Merica
AKA "The Sarge"

i use tape and thread
BArry

I generally go for the tape and thread method as well. If it's a heavier plane (Bombers, C-47, etc) I will use tape to find the angle I want it, and then glue the string in that spot. That way you don't have the surprise in the morning that your plane you just spent 10 hours working on has crashed to the floor and suffered great damage. Almost sounds like I know about that doesn't it?

When I was a kid (back in the 1940's) I would put a screw eye in one wall near the ceiling and another one in the opposite wall. Then another set, about a foot from the first ones. A length of soft wire was run thru each set and pulled tight. This give two parallel wires stretching across the room near the ceiling. Large models can sit with wingtips on opposite wires. [Go to a hardware store and ask for "stove pipe wire"]

For smaller models and for "posing" models in flying positions, three pieces of sewing thread run from wingtips and rudder and terminated in small wire hooks are hooked over the wires.

The little bitty ones (like a 2" GB racer) hung from the upper window frame by two threads (to prevent rotating).

And for what it's worth, it was my Dad's idea, and I continued it into my son's room a generation later.

Bob

(In our travel trailer, that won't work, so I now take a photo or two and give the model to a friend or one of his/her kids)

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I'm not an old fool, but I'm taking a correspondence course to become one.

I used thumbtacks and thread to hang mine from the my ceiling when I was a kid. But this thread (no pun intended) reminds me of the time my carefully painted and rigged 1/72 scale Sopwith Camel came down and landed on my chest while I slept. It probably could have still been fixed at that point, but when I woke up, I thought it was cockroach, and threw it and my blanket on my floor. Talk about mad when I turned the light on and realized what I did.

-James Hefner
Hebrews 10:20a

Surviving World Steam Project

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-James Hefner
Hebrews 10:20a

Surviving World Steam Project

As to falling: It's been my experience, that of all the typres of models I've built over the years, Solid wood, built up balsa, paper, metal and plastic--when a paper plane drops from ceiling to floor, it's less likely to sutain damage than any other type.

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-Rob-

Currently working on: see avatar

I have had good luck with really heavy models using wire and line left over from wood ship kits. I have an old plastic B 36 that has stayed up for years. Please note this is before I found Chip on line. I hear the wife telling me it's time to dust the models again lol. Got the 36 for 12 bucks when my hobby shop changed hands a few years ago. Just not the same place now, all RC car stuff. Then I was a balsa buster, I think the good old days of hobby shops are all but gone. I just noted Peck Polimer has changed hands. Think I am getting old.

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Regards gun )}i{( ILMJJC {\o/}

Remember growing old is sometimes mandatory growing up is optional.

I knew a couple guys who owned hobby shops--both tanked. The main reason was with competion from the wholesalers and suppliers, who also sell directly, and at a discount--to the public. folks wold come in, scrutinize a kit, then order it online. Prices, which used to be reasonable--have skyrocketed...even accountig for inflation, kits that used to cost well under a dollar in my youth, are now budget busters.
Another reason is that kid's don't build models much anymore. The average customer in both stores was around 60--retired folks, with time and money to spare. This leads to the next part--customer saturation. You can only build and display so many models, before the spouse starts getting tired of seeing them or the house fills up. And, there is only a small segment of the population who enjoys building kits--the trend is toward complete--right from the box--especially in rail models and the populatrity of the new, high quality die cast models.
The only hobbby shop in our town that has lasted (and it goes back nearly fifty years, that I remember) carries a little bit of everything, including lots (3/4 of the store) of art and craft supplies. They also offer classes, mainly for women, in all the different crafts, like oil painting, scrapboking, stained glass, etc. One corner is devoted to 'guy things'--but good stuff--they used to sell Unimats, for example, back when--and a good, although limited selection of planes, RC, ships, armor, you name it. If they had to depend on that quarter of the store, they'd have tanked long ago, too. I make it a point to stop in and buy books, glues, paints, brass--whatever I need-- often. It's a serious resource I'd hate to lose. Support your local hobby shop.

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-Rob-

Currently working on: see avatar

I agree with you Rob, we should support the hobby shops, but sad to say the last one close to us closed, the owner had a heart attack and desided to hang it up, Having had two myself I understood. The only one left now is for the RC car guys, not my cup of tea. So I drive the 40 miles round trip to the closest one, I think more to see old friends then anything. I am lucky in that my wife is into building things, she likes rockets she got hooked back when Centuri was still around. Sad about kids today. Our son John loved car kits, I still have the ones he made. Just missing better times I guess. Sorry if this took us off topic.

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Regards gun )}i{( ILMJJC {\o/}

Remember growing old is sometimes mandatory growing up is optional.