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COVERING TIPS
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• MODEL AIRCRAFT COMPOSITES
  MODEL AIRCRAFT MATERIALS
• MODEL AIRCRAFT PAINT and TIPS

• Alternate Plane Covering   My son (8 at the time) and I, took some contact paper (the kind you would use to cover a wooden desk or shelve) that one of his teachers gave him, and tried to  cover a Stick .40 wing with it. It is a little tricky to get laid out, because of the adhesive on the back. Just cover the area as neatly as possible. Once you have your plane covered - use a heat gun, starting a distance away from the covering, and slowly move closer to your covering. This stuff melts as though it is going to go through the wing. As it cools - it shrinks up drum tight. You may have to retouch some areas a little. It is a little heavier than Monokote and such, but it is a LOT stronger,  and cheaper.
  Thought you might like to know
   Jim Miller & Son

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• Cheap Filler
  If you want to fill a gap and you're wondering what to use, go over to the clothes dryer, get some lint, and mix it with epoxy. It works great, and you can’t beat the price.
  Alan Cox
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• COVERING TIPS

Covering Schemes
When thinking about covering your plane, make the top of the wing and the bottom of the wing two completely different colors or schemes. This will reduce confusion in the air as to the configuration (right-side up, or upside down) of your plane. Also bright colors show up better the further away you get.
Joseph A. Maggs

CREASES AND LUMPS
Prior to applying the fiberglass cloth to the center section of the wing, take the time to iron it flat with your clothes iron.  Place the glass cloth or the center of the wing and tack it down to the surface with one drop of CyA (each corner, top and bottom). This may require that you may have to pull the cloth taught, but don't overdo it! Now you should have the cloth resting smoothly on the top of the wing. Now apply the resigns (or CyA) over the cloth. You may find that after 3/4 of the cloth is attached that you now have puckers along one edge or the other, but this is easy to fix.
Lift the material where you tacked it to the wing, pull taught and tack it down again.

 MonoKote Ideas
A roll of clear MonoKote is remarkably useful for several purposes. A strip of it will cover a hinge gap without interfering with the color design. Also, have you ever wanted to put a dry transfer or any other kind of non-fuel proof decal, etc. on a plane? Go ahead and put it on, and simply iron a piece of clear MonoKote over the top.
Chuck Kunce
NYLON STOCKINGS
Women's nylon stockings are a cheap substitute for 1/2 ounce fiberglass and are especially handy in covering a wing. Simply slide the nylon over the wing, pull out the wrinkles and apply the resin.
RESIN PRIMER
  Resin casting primer
UNRAVELING FIX
To keep fiberglass cloth or tape from unraveling and making all those nasty, loose threads, try spraying the part to be cut with spray hair set. It dries in seconds, does not get too stiff to work with and makes a nice clean edge. Hair Spray seems to be compatible with all adhesives and coatings.

Stick and Tissue Covering Tips
 
• EPOXY TIPS
  EPOXY REMOVAL
  To remove epoxy from yourself safely, use white vinegar. It's safe, cheap, and, of course, smelly.
  HINGE HINT
  A very non-messy way to keep epoxy out of hinges, is to cut small rectangles of discarded backing from those iron-on coverings. Cut a small slit in the plastic so it will slip over the hinge, pushing it right up against the hinge knuckle. Apply the epoxy to the hinge with a toothpick, then slip the hinge in place. After the epoxy has set, tear the plastic strip out, then cut a new piece to be used when attaching the control surface.
  LAMINATING
  It is common practice to seal our balsa covered models with laminating epoxy only (without any cloth) before painting. A lot of elbow grease is needed, however, to smooth down the resultant surface, and most of the time a second coat would also be necessary. For flat surfaces or straight curves (not compound curves) Place a smooth piece of plastic large enough to cover the whole area and without any creases over the surface, and smooth it out so that no creases appear. This may be a bit tedious, but you will get used to do it quickly. Remove any surplus epoxy that oozes out from the ends and leave overnight. When cured, remove the plastic sheet and you have a very smooth surface which needs a minimum of sanding. Needless to say, you can only do, for example, one surface of a wing at a time. While acknowledging the fact that there are other more sophisticated ways of achieving a smooth finish without too much sweat,  this method is cheap and easy. What is actually happening is that the surface tension of the epoxy keeps it on the surface of the wood and as a result does not seep into the grain, leaving a glassy cover over the wood.
  MIXING
  A good surface to use for mixing epoxy is a notepad. After each use, the top sheet can be torn off, and the surface is ready for the next use. These notepads usually can be obtained for free as advertising from local businesses.
  SAFETY
  Epoxy Safety - Tips for working safely with epoxy, including discussion of latex gloves.
  TAPE
  Next time you need to epoxy something without creating a "epoxy mountain" (two slabs of wood, broken fuselage sides, lead weights in helicopter blades, etc) try this. After applying the epoxy and joining the pieces, apply tape (masking or electrical work fine) over the fresh epoxy. After the epoxy sets, peel the tape off and presto...a relatively flat joint. Sometimes you will have to do some minor sanding to get the tape remnants off, but the result is much better than dealing with a huge ridge of epoxy.
  
  Epoxy ( Epoxy ) -- I still use the 6 MIN and 30 MIN type, but for coating firewalls and fuel tank area's I get it at the local craft store. It comes in 8 oz. bot les of resin and hardener, and lasts for many planes.
  
  4 Tips about Epoxy
  1. Wax Paper: Take a sheet of wax paper, and mix your epoxy on half of the sheet. Then when done, fold the wax paper in half, trapping the epoxy residue inside. This way you can fold in up with no mess and throw it away, and it won't stick to the inside of the trash can.
  2. Foam: When epoxying to styrofoam, such as attaching leading or trailing edges to a foam-core wing, once the parts are coated well with epoxy and put together, wiggle them around some to work the epoxy into the pores of the foam. Then let it dry normally. This results in a stronger bond.
  3. Bed-Buddy: Ever been caught with cold epoxy? It's much more workable and mixes better when its just above room temperature (about 80-85 F). I use a "Bed-Buddy" to warm it and keep it warm. A Bed-Buddy is like a long sock with some kind of granular chemical in it that stays warm for hours after you microwave it for two minutes. They're designed to keep your feet warm at night, and you can wrap it around your epoxy bottles too between each use. You can also put the epoxy bottles directly in the microwave oven for a short time, but be careful doing it.
  4. Inverter: When your epoxy bottles start getting low, it can take a while to get it out, especially when cold. Build a simple wooden "inverter" to hold both bottles upside down, and keep them in it between each use. This way your epoxy will always be ready for use.
  Fiberglass Hint
  How do you get the creases or lumps out of the fiberglass cloth we use to reinforce the center section of the wing? This method will probably eliminate them. Prior to applying the fiberglass cloth to the center section of the wing, take the time to iron it flat with your clothes iron. This will make it soooooo much easier to achieve a FLAT surface. Next, place the glass cloth on the center of the wing and tack it down to the surface with one drop of CyA (each corner, top and bottom).

  This may require that you have to pull the cloth taught, but don't overdo it! Now you should have the cloth resting smoothly on the top of the wing. Now apply the resins (or CyA) over the cloth. You may find that after 3/4 of the cloth is attached that you now have puckers along one edge or the other, but this is easy to fix. Lift the material where you tacked it to the wing (remember I said to tack it down, not permanently attach it), pull taught, and tack it down again. there you have it!
  
  Fiberglass Wing Centers  Whenever I fiberglass a wing center section, I've found it's difficult to get the fiberglass cloth to lay flat after it's been folded in a bag. Here's two ways to make this easier: (1) Use thin CA to tack it down. You may saturate the whole cloth with thin CA, or apply epoxy. On foam wings, make sure you use CA safe for foam. (2) Give the cloth a light spraying of 3M Spray Adhesive, then apply it to the wing. I've found this method to work extremely well, and it's safe for foam. Then apply the epoxy as usual.MATERIALS
  Flat Carbon Rod Spars
  Carbon Fiber Hints and Tips
  Carbon Fiber Pushrods - HOW TO
  Early MB1 Carbon Fiber Wings  http://uplanes.litke.info/
  How to work with carbon fiber rods


 
• MODEL AIRCRAFT PAINT TIPS

When you are about to spray your latest creation, do you suddenly live in fear of getting the dreaded "creeps".  Well, here is a tip worth noting.  It`s not my idea, but I learned of it many many years ago, and it cures the problem.  Part of the secret is applying you masking tape correctly, by that I mean honing the edge down thoroughly either with some smooth firm object, or even your finger.  Next, before applying your secondary colour,  apply a very light coat of your base colour over the edge of your masking tape. This will seal the edge, and even if some paint creep does occur, it won`t show. Let that dry, then apply your second colour in light coats, and allow to dry.  Then gently peel off your masking tape and you can guarantee a clean paint line.  It works for me every time  and I`m sure it will for you.  Don`t give yourself the creeps.
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• LINK REFERENCES:
  Lightweight covering with mylar and tissue for FF and small rc
  Stick and Tissue Covering Tips
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