VincentJ

Man on a mission. Lookin' good!

redbiscuits

My Feedback: (6)

That looks really good Anthony, you may have mentioned it, but is there a particular reason your using the poly/c versus the poly-brush or the poly spray? I bought the Poly Fiber manual and didn't think I could use the poly/c to fill the weave.

WacoNut

Gary,
I am familiar with PolyC and I like it as there is no smell. I get enough of that from the dope attaching the fabric. Also the PolyC fills the weave better than dope. I buy my fabric from Aircraft Spruce, it is Ploy-Fiber Lite uncertified.
Later!!
Anthony

WacoNut

Gary,
Another thing to think about with the Poly-Fiber lite they use this stuff on home builts and ultralights. They are not going to say you can use anything that isn't FAA approved or that they do not sell. My plane is big but not that big
Later!!
Anthony

acerc

Fine you talked me into it. I will give the Poly-C a try on the Pitts.
Looking real good by the way.

redbiscuits

My Feedback: (6)

Makes sense, never thought about it that way.

WacoNut

Thanks Robert,
Fabric is definetly alot of work but the results are worth it. It will take me all week to finish it up and get it ready for tapes.
Later!!
Anthony

WacoNut

I managed to get the bottom of another wing panel covered. I ran out of gas, it has been a long day. Will get back on it after work tomorrow.
Later!!
Anthony

WacoNut

A word of caution when working with dope.
I have my work room sealed off to prevent the fumes from getting upstairs and I open the window while working with dope and run a electric space heater. This is usually sufficient to vent out the dope fumes from the room. However yesterday I sepnt a good 12 hrs in that room and I think the way the wind was blowing yesterday the fumes did not get vented out of the room very well. Last night I developed the motrher of all headaches soon after going to bed and wound up not getting to sleep past 3am and having to call off of work today.

You tend to not notice the smell of the dope after being exposed to it for a few minutes so make sure you have good ventilation. I don't have many brain cells to spare and I feel like I am down to 3 and they are waving bye bye to each other.

Going to stay away from dope for a day or two and will work on filling the weave with PolyC once I feel up to it.
Later!!
Anthony

abufletcher

Luckily, I don't drink so I can save those brain cells for the dope headaches. But when I do work with dope I try to keep the sessions short.

redbiscuits

My Feedback: (6)

I used to think I was invincible, I didn't need to protect myself from fumes and such. Besides, all that safety gear was uncomfortable to wear. That all changed after I did some priming in the garage one day without a respirator. Same thing as you, terrible headache, I felt sick to my stomach and lite headed. I felt the affects for a few days. I went out and bought me a respirator and now wear it religiously, even while mixing primer/paint.

Hope you start feeling better soon.

WacoNut

The headache is finally letting up,
I haven't had that happen since I was a kid working on a stick and tissue kit doping the tissue on in a closed up bedroom. Definetly will be more careful from now on. Guess I had better look into a respirator.

Later!!
Anthony

chuck l

My Feedback: (17)

Can you give us information on the respirator you use.

redbiscuits

My Feedback: (6)

Sure, It's a 3M 5000 series respirator. It won't break the bank either.

http://www.globalindustrial.com/p/sa...FWaoPAodjSwAug

skylarkmk1

Another good Respirator is the 3M 7500 series. I use the 7502 (the 02 might indicate the size). It has a silicone face piece that does not irritate the face and seals tightly. It uses the 6001 Organic vapor Cartridge and you can use the P95 Particulate filter as a pre filter when sanding. I found mine at the local Sherwin-Williams paint store and if I remember correctly it was about $35. I can't smell lacquer thinner, MEK, Acetone, Dope or paint thinner with it on.

WacoNut

Thanks for the tips guys, I will pick one up.
I will definetly need one before painting.
Anthony

acerc

And to think kids are out there suckin on those fumes for fun. Glad your pain is easing Anthony, now get to work.

WacoNut

Actually I just put the 1st coat of Polycrylic on one side of the tail feathers. Should be able to get the other side coated tonight. The whole process takes a while, coat wait to dry, coat wait to dry, sand, coat wait to dry, sand, coat wait to dry[&o] But I love it
Later!!
Anthony

WacoNut

As I said I applied the 1st coat of Polycrylic to the tail feathers. One thing I failed to mention is to make sure you have the fabric shrunk to the tension that you want before applying Polycrylic and it does not like heat. I went back over the parts with the iron to assure it was all evely tensioned. Once the fabric is finsihed you will never find the need to skrink it again. You must also be careful as this fabric really shrinks, too much heat and it can warp and break the structure even on a 1/3 scale plane. Gradually increase your iron temp until you find the right temp for your needs.
The Polycrylic will adhere the fabric to the structure beneath it as well. You will see in the pic how the wood shows thru where the fabric is touching. As you apply the 1st coat you want to assure you wet the fabric out enough that it becomes tanslucent and you can see the wood thru the fabric. Once the PolyC dries it will adhere like dope.
Later!!
Anthony

Bummer: Internal 500 server error strikes again. Will try to post a pic later.

VincentJ

That's the same respirator that I use as well. Works super.
Glad the head ache is easing up.Been there myself it's not fun

john josey

I think i'm down to three as well Anthony with that stuff and one of them has a slow puncture !

WacoNut

The tail feathers now have 2 coats on both sides. I will let then dry until tomorrow and sand them after work. If the polycrylic isn't fully dry it will ball up while sanding. I also gave the bottom right wing panel a coat to the bottom side. I will try to give the top side a coat before I go to work in the morning.
As you will see in the closeup pic below of the wing the fabric weave is very tight on this fabric.
Later!!
Anthony

WacoNut

On the way home from work I had to stop and pick up some latex paint for the wife and while I was there I bought a 3M paint respirator. I am now good to go on finishing the covering.

I decided to work on filling the weave on the parts already covered 1st. The tail feathers were sanded and wiped down to remove the dust. I mixed up a fresh container of Polycrylic, this time I carefully measured 1 cup of PolyC and 1/2 Cup of water. The consistancy looks right and I applied a coat to one side of the tail feathers and a coat to the top side of one wing panel and the bottom side of another. I will get another coat on each of these parts and the tail feathers should be ready for sanding, rib stitching and tapes.

Not going to be much exciting to post for the next few days as it is just a repetitive process filling the weave. Once the rib stitching and tapes start going on I will post some pics.
Later!!
Anthony

WacoNut

I did get another coat of PolyC on the tail feathers and they should be ready for a sanding tomorrow then stitching and tapes.

I decided to try out the respirator and it worked great. Took a little while to get used to it but it blocked out all the dope fumes. I was able to get the 3rd wing panel covered. The wife gave me a platic container with a tight fitting lid to store the respirator in. Looks like it was a wise investment.

BTW: The PolyC mixed 1cup to 1/2 cup of water is a good ratio. The polyc goes on thin with no streaking and minimal air bubbles. I am going to experiment with spraying a couple coats thru the HVLP gun after the tapes are applied. I will try this on one of the tail feathers as if it turns out bad it is a minor fix.
Later!!
Anthony

WacoNut

OK a major milestone, All the fabric is now on the Waco

The tail feathers are ready for stitching, the bottom wings have their 3rd coat of PolyC drying. The top wings will get their 1st coat tonight. I am on track for having everything ready for stitches this weekend but my stitches will not arrive until next week. I ordered scale 2" rib stitching for the Waco, I believe the Waco had 3" spacing outside the propwash? Can anyone verify this? I have 3" scale stitching on hand. I only have one strip of 2".

I can always apply the tapes to the fuse and get the remaining coats of Polycrylic applied. Tapes will be here Friday.
Later!!
Anthony