PVC and Canvas Glider

This is a step-up from your average paper airplane. This is a glider which can be thrown just like a paper airplane, but is 15x's the size, and is meant to sore farther. This easy to make glider is good for any sort of gliding related activities.

*WARNING: NOT MEANT FOR PEOPLE TO USE AS A HANG GLIDER, ONLY FOR THROWING LIKE A PAPER AIRPLANE*

The materials needed for this project are fairly easy to get. You will need 7 pieces of 1/2 inch diameter PVC pipes, one cross fitting, one 3 way fitting, two 45 degree elbows, canvas or any light fabric, paint (if you want to make it look cool), large roll of paper (for making test wings), lots of duct tape, a nail gun (optional, can be used to nail in the canvas to the pipes, but duct tape alone works well enough), scissors, a wooden block, and a marker. The PVC stuff we bought at Home Depot, the Canvas was from a store named Joann, and the rest you can find in a craft store or some where like it.

Assembly is pretty basic considering you would use PVC. We fit the PVC into the shape we wanted as the picture shows, later we added a bar at the back by adding a 3 way fitting and two rods to balance out the weight at the front. Then to balance that out, we added a wooden head we carved out of wood. We then used duct tape to add the paper wings which we cut out of a large roll of huge paper. At this stage, the glider is ready for testing, and you can try and see how to balance out your glider to make for a smooth flight.

To make the head, you can do it any way really. We took a simple block of wood, traced an airplane head like curve on it and cut it. To attach it to PVC, we drilled a hole into the back. We ran into problems because the hole in the wood was bigger than the Small PVC pipe that we cut to attach it. To fix that, we wrapped duct tape around the pipe until it was a snug fit. We then hammered it in to be secure, and attached it to the PVC fitting.

For the final assembly, remove any of the prototype wings, finish painting the PVC, and reassemble the skeleton. First, make an outline of the wings on canvas. We gave the canvas wings an extra 3/4s of an inch of leeway and then cut out the shape we traced around the skeleton. We then used a nail gun to secure the canvas on the PVC, and duct tape, to cover the nails and make a solid finish. Now you have your own glider!

For good flying, make sure your glider is a little bit heavier in the front than in the back. Find your ideal weight distribution in your prototype stages. Then hold the shaft of the glider in the middle, and throw slightly up. Be gentle to not break it. If you are throwing it from a higher location, throw it smoothly and gently.