Topgun2mo

My Feedback: (45)

Yea,

I nedd ot make a tank for glow fuel also...anyone with any experience there on what would be the best resin???

Thanks

Mike

Props4ever

This great thread indeed for anyone who wants to make there own custom tanks. I will be doing the same for my Avro Arrow in distant future once i know how the ducting will be and where i can fit the tanks. Kewin_W really appreciated showing us how to make these tanks.

One question i have, what type of resin sis you used?, i see guys wanted to use West Systems and you are fine with it, now would Aeropoxy resin will work with kevlar or not?.

KC36330

back in post #16 was this pic:

Kevin_W

My Feedback: (1)

Props,

I have used both West Systems epoxy and Vinyl Ester resin for making tanks. I prefer West Systems by far.

Aeropoxy (as in BVM Aeropoxy, or Hysol 9462) is not a laminating resin, it is an epoxy glue. That is what I use for joining tank halves once they are molded and gluing in fittings, but it is not acceptable for laying up kevlar or fiberglass parts. You need a laminating resin for that.

Kevin_W

My Feedback: (1)

Thanks, I just went back and looked myself. I had forgotten what resin I was using at the time.
That EZ Lam is epoxy resin very similar to West Systems. It works just as well. It's probably just what I had in the shop at the time.

BTW, the tub in that picture is parting wax.

Props4ever

Thanks Kevin for coming on here and explaining us bit more in detail information i was actually looking for. So this pretty much sums up as long as resin is epoxy it will work and will not get affected with glow fuel.

Here is the Aeropoxy resin i use mostly for my fiber glassing jobs. I understand there is another epoxy glue brand out there also with the same name as the brand of resin i use.

Sam

Kevin_W

My Feedback: (1)

I kind of suspected that the Aeropoxy you were referring to wasn't the BVM stuff.
That should work fine for laminating tanks with.
I have never built a tank for glow fuel though, so I have no idea how well that (or any epoxy resin) will stand up to methanol and nitro.
I would suggest that you lay up a small sample piece and soak it for a few days in a sealed container of the fuel you plan to use.
If it's properties change at all (delamination, becomes rubbery...) you will need to start looking for something else.

I have a feeling you might have better luck with a vinyl ester resin for glow fuel though.
It's about half the price of epoxy too.

joeflyer

My Feedback: (48)

I doubt that it's worth the effort to try to make a glow fuel tank from fiberglass/kevlar and resin. Besides the unknown as to which type of resin is best it's a lot of work. Glow tanks are typically a lot smaller than kero/Jet-A tanks. There are numerous sizes and shapes available from several manufacturers. Just pick one that's closest to fitting and use a heat gun to deform it to fit. Just heat up the area you need to deform with a heat gun and re-shape it. I've pushed in a corner or flattened an area on a number of tanks and they all worked fine.

In addition to the commercially available tanks any nalgene bottle could easily be made into a glow tank. Also multiple tanks can be plumbed in series or parallel. My Yellow F-4 had the old 9 oz. saddle tanks in it when I bought it. That limited flights to about 4 minutes. I added two 8 oz. tanks for a 2S2P arrangement. With the hopper it had 5 tanks. As long as you use large or extra large tubing everywhere and pipe pressure you should have no trouble drawing fuel.

Props4ever

Hey Joe,

Well it's more sound that i should wait till i have ducting installed first before i could even look into this area realistically, i tried to see if i could use two 32oz tanks in the center of the duct tubes but couldn't, reason being both top sides will hinder in the tubes way!. I suppose maybe i could find some type on the sides or pick up flat type tanks to place them in the center when ducting is dry mounted in...

Captainbob

My Feedback: (4)

You know, i've tried several times to make my own fuel cells but found each time that for me it took much more time and energy than i am willing to put into it. Why not send your requirements to JET-TECH and have them make you what you need. Much better than trying to "make a silk purse out of a sow's ear".