Originally Posted by
dasintex
VincentJ;
Thanks for the reply, you say it's not the lightest, I would assume that Monokote/Ultrakote is the lightest, I'm also assuming that if you didn't Primer Solatex, it would be lighter than Glassing? I'm interested in painting a Warbird to avoid using shiny Plastic Films, without going through all the work of Glassing; Solartex seems like a great alternative.
Another quick question, does Solartex wrinkle like Monokote/Ultrakote when the plane is left in the sun?
As far as strength; it seems that if ARFs are sold and already covered with Monokote/Ultrakote and perform well without falling apart, than Solartex would be sufficient and provides a method to be able to paint your bird the scheme you want without the work of glassing?
A friend does as you propose. He fills the weave with nitrate dope, to create a smooth surface. He then uses a laquer auto primer, and auto paint. He does this only on fully sheeted models. The finish is outstanding, but like Vincent states, there is a heavy penalty in weight gain.
Glassing isn't that difficult. Vincent has a nice tutorial in his current thread. Maybe he will provide a link to it.
Years ago, I taught myself how to glass, using Minwax Polycrilic. These days, I prefer epoxy finishing resin.
There should be vids on You Tube, ilustrating both methods.