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Guillows Series 500 - P-40 Warhawk by Barnstormer. Viewed 1092 times. Build Thread Next Prev Click image to return. Image Comments Barnstormer 17-Nov-07 13:41 Used 1/16 balsa sheet and cut out bottom skin. sweetwillie 11-Jan-08 15:38 Along with the model kit, I ordered a bundle of 1/16" x3" sheets and a Master Airscrew Splitter, so I can make my own stringers, but I've never done it before. Any tips? Like I've heard that they have a tendency to curl when cut. How do you prevent that and anything else that anyone out there can send my way. I also plan to try my first balsa skin like you're doing, I'm a daredevil. SteveM 11-Jan-08 16:17 I cut my own stringers from 1/16" x 3" sheet using the Master Airscrew device. At first I made a huge mess of things but the last batch I did turned out very well. The balsa you choose for stringers should have a straight grain and be stiff/strong. Good wood selection will result in less curl and a stringer that you are less likely to put a finger through. If you have access to a LHS it is far better to hand select your wood than be at the mercy of an internet supply house (it is cheaper in the end and you'll be happier with the results). When setting up your cutter first set the blade close to the desired width then take a slice off of a scrap of balsa (it only needs to be an inch or two long). Adjust the blade as needed to get the desired width. For 1/16" square stringers I just eyeball for squareness. When you cut you want to make sure to hold the balsa sheet firmly in place and apply pressure to the balsa stripper to keep in down flat on the table and flat against the edge of the balsa sheet. The razor blade will want to follow the grain so you must keep firm pressure while cutting to keep a consistent width. I tend to put my left hand flat on the sheet next to where the balsa stripper is, make a slice of about 6" then readjust to get my left hand back next to the stripper. Every so often I check the width of the strips to make sure they are within specifications. Even if you waste a sheet or two of balsa before you get good at it, the loss is well worth the savings of cutting your own strip stock. I figure it costs me about $0.025 per 36" length of 1/16" square stringer. sweetwillie 11-Jan-08 16:33 Thanks for the info, Steve, I've heard something about pre-shrinking the wood first, is there any truth to that? sweetwillie 11-Jan-08 16:53 I have several plastic model kits that are all new kits, with one exception, a Hasegawa 1/32 Spitfire Mk.vb that I've started building but stopped, because my old eyes just weren't good enough. that I'd like to trade for balsa models, anyone interested. Please sign in to comment on this image.