R/C Airplane Storage Hangers to Organize Your Fleet and Clean Up Your Garage.

If you got into RC airplanes like I did, you have way too many planes sitting around. I was sick of stacking them in careful piles only to get hangar rash as they got moved around.

These hangers will get them off the floor and up out of the way on the ceiling.

This is not a new idea, but a simple solution that can be done in a few easy steps.
These hangers are designed for park flyer sized planes weighing under 4 pounds. Scale up for heavier models.

You will need for each hanger:

4' x 3/16" steel rod (mine was from home depot $3.64)
Hook big enough to reach a ceiling beam, strong enough to support your plane. ( I have used bike hooks for big ones and #8 hooks for the lighter planes.)
spray paint

Tools used:
Ruler
Vise
Sand blaster or Sandpaper
De-greaser
Drill
Stud finder
Pencil

Optional:
24" of 3/16" inside diameter tubing for padding the rod where the wings are supported.
Glass cleaner or hairspray

Step 1: Bend Steel Rods

Find and mark center point of the rods - 24" if you used the 48" rods recommended.

Use a vise to hold the rod while you bend a 90 degree angle into the rod.
Remove from vise and complete the bend so the rod is folded in half. I used the vise again to make the bend nice and tight.

Find the center of the new piece and bend that again to about 45 degrees and spread the legs out to a bit wider than your plane's fuselage.

You can experiment here with different bends according to your plane's unique shape.

Step 2: Clean Bent Hangers to Prep for Paint.

I had access to a sand blaster and bench grinder with a wire wheel so I used them to prep the hangers for paint.
You can use sandpaper if you like. The goal is to get the residual oils off the metal and give the surface a good tooth for the paint to adhere to. You may want to finish up with a de-greaser or TSP at this point as well.

Step 3: Paint Hangers

Paint the now clean hangers with a paint of your choice to prevent rust.

I had some hammered finish rust-oleum on hand.

I put them all in the paint booth and sprayed away!

Let dry completely.

Step 4: Optional Step - Add Tubing

When the paint is dry, you can add tubing to soften your hanger where it contacts the wing. Be sure the inside diameter of the tube matches the outside diameter of the rod. This is good for heavier planes and ones who's finish is delicate.

A good trick to getting the tubing on is to squirt a little glass cleaner into the tube as a lubricant. As it evaporates the tube will hold on more securely. Hairspray is another good choice since it will be more like a glue once dry.

Step 5: Hang Hook, Hanger and Plane From Ceiling

Use your studfinder to locate a beam in your ceiling.
Mark the location. Check it again.
Drill pilot hole for hook. Be sure the drill went into solid wood.
Be sure also that the drill bit is smaller than the diameter of the hook!
Screw hook into ceiling and be sure it goes deep into a beam - you don't want your plane to fall because the screw pulled out of the ceiling panels!
Hang the hanger on the hook.
Hang your plane on the hanger. If you have a lot of planes like I do, you may need to try different combinations of planes on different spots to make them all fit right. If you did your hangers right, you can sometimes put more than one plane on a hook depending on the type of plane.

You may need to adjust the angles in the bend for balance. You don't want the plane to slide off accidentally if a breeze blows through.

I made this project at the Tech Shop in Menlo Park California. Tech Shop is a great resource for using tools you might now have at home.
http://techshop.ws