Magnetic Building Board Jigs

During the Christmas break, I was able to design and print some magnetic jigs for building free flight models. I had wanted to do this for a long time and finally took the time to do it.

I have jigs that use 1/4" dia x 1/8" thick rare earth magnets (https://www.magcraft.com/magcraft-nsn0579) & some jigs that use 18mm dia x 5mm thick ceramic coated ferrite magnets (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072HV6NLB/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1). The rare earth magnets are quite strong and you need to be careful using them as not to break your model. The large angle blocks have magnets on both sides so you can use them as clamps. You will want at least (12) of each of the profiles, and (2) of each of the wing twisting jigs. I put end grain balsa into the tops of these so you can pin your wings and put in twist as you shrink the covering.

I used PLA for all of these as it is cheap and easy to print. My board is a piece of 18ga galvannealed steel. You can use any type of thin sheet metal for your board. I would suggest framing it and making sure it is nice and flat.

You may have to adjust your printer settings for proper fit of the magnets into the printed parts. Mine snap in and are retained by friction. A small drop of super glue will help. Be mindful of the polarity so you can stack your jigs when not in use.

Enjoy your building on a magnetic table!!