Airplane display

[chaosof99]

Not sure if this is the best forum to talk about this, but since the more technically inclined people dwell here it should be good enough.

I rather like Airplane models by TLC, and they've granted me a wish so to speak by releasing another Technic Airplane model after quite a while. Now I've got a decent number of Technic and Creator airplane models: 8425 Black Hawk, 6745 Propeller Power, 8222 VTOL, 8836 Sky Ranger, 5892 Sonic Boom, and of course the new 9394 Jet Plane. I also plan on obtaining an 8855 Prop Plane some time in the future.

As you can tell, I quite like my Airplane Models. The only problem is that due to wing span and such, these models take up a rather large amount of space somewhat inefficiently. I would like to store/display them more efficiently. One thought that came to mind was hanging them from the ceiling. Kind of a classic in air plane displays. I got a wood panel ceiling and I think I can display a couple of the planes by putting some hook screws in them and using fishing line to suspend the planes from them. However, I'm not quite sure how to go about that. Some tips would be appreciated.

I've also heard that dental floss could be used as a substitute for fishing line as it is also rather hard to tear, but I'm not quite sure whether or not there is some truth to that.

[DLuders]

I work at an Air Force base, and there are quite a few model aircraft hanging from the ceilings in certain work cubicles there. Heavy-duty fishing line (monofilament) works the best, since it is thin and relatively invisible. You'll have to find the center of gravity (CG) of each Lego aircraft model, then tie the fishing line to several points to balance the model's wings and fuselage properly.

You may want to tie several individual loops of monofilament around the wings and fuselage, and then "bunch them" at the top where a single fishing line can go upwards to the ceiling hook. The model's weight will be spread out so that the Lego bricks won't break apart.

I'm a freshwater fisherman too. Recommend that you learn how to tie some Fishing Knots, since mono is VERY SLIPPERY and will slide apart with common knots used with ropes.

P.S. You may want to seeBlakbird's Technicopedia for pictures of the various Lego Technic Airplanes:

Edited January 1, 2012 by DLuders

[chaosof99]

Thanks for the tips. And yes, I already knew about Blakbird's Technicopedia. Love that site.

Is there any good way to determine how to spread out the lines on the body of the model, or is this more a trial-and-error sort of thing for an amateur like me?

[DLuders]

@ chaosof99: You'll have to decide the distribution of fishing line over the wings and fuselage:

CLOSE TOGETHER: The airplane will respond to light touches and wind to "fly" and wiggle.

FAR APART: The airplane will stay in place when windows are open, and will not rotate.

Either way, test the setup when the planes are only a few centimeters off of the carpet (in case the unnatural stress releases some of the Technic Bricks/Liftarms and Technic Pins). Proper FISHING KNOTS are important to ensure that the monofilament does not slide apart over time.

[dhc6twinotter]

Wow...that's an awesome model display! Love the B-36s and the VC-10. That B-25 model is huge!

[Smrgol]

When I scrolled down the page I just saw the first few planes on that large pic and thought "they are pretty nice" then as I scrolled down my thoughts became "what the... nice!"