FlyerBry

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I am considering scratch building my next plane from plans. The plane is designed with an unsheeted, open-bay wing structure and I am considering fiberglassing the entire plane to make it more resistant to hangar rash and to have the ability to paint on my desired scheme instead of using the more common heat shrink covering approach. My question is should I build the wing structure per the plans and simply sheet the entire wing before fiberglassing, or it it acceptable to leave out some of the secondary spars (not the main) in order to save some weight since the fiberglass skin should add considerable strength on its own. How do you experienced fiberglassers out there traditionally handle this? Also, when sheeting the wing, what thickness of sheeting do you normally use?

Thanks!

SoCal GliderGuider

Sheet it. Hard 1/32" would work. Or "regular" 1/16". You could also lay up fiberglass on waxed plate glass then use the resultant sheets to sheet the wing. Press it between two sheets of glass.

FlyerBry

My Feedback: (8)

Sheeting between two sheets of glass is a new one to me. You say lay up the layers between waxed plate... What kind of wax? Something like auto wax? How hard is it to transfer the sheets to the wing? Do you do the transfer before the epoxy resin has hardened completely so the sheet is able to bend to the curvature of the wing? This process sounds intriguing but I'd really like a little more detail before jumping in and trying it on a real wing. How about more detail!

the-plumber

Fiberglass sheeting is quite flexible presuming you use .6 oz. glass cloth; the thicker fabrics tend to get a bit stiff.

Let the glass cure completely and bond it to the wing the same way you'd bond skins to foam.

FlyerBry

My Feedback: (8)

Thanks Fred, I'll have to give that a try.

That leaves me with one more question... If I use this method to get the wing to the point that it is fully sheeted would the proper next step be to lay up another layer of fiberglass over the entire wing so the wood leading edge and any other exposed wood gets covered as well? Or is it possible to simply cover the leading edge during the previous step with the fiberglass that had been laid up on the plate glass?

Am I correct to assume an automotive type wax would work best to keep the fiberglass from sticking to the plate glass?

Thanks for all your help guys, these are some great tips!!!

Bryan

SoCal GliderGuider

Carnuba would work. You may find some release wax where you buy the fiberglass and epoxy. Use West Systems epoxy.

Yes you would have to glass the LE. Or use a carbon or glass fiber tube of the correct diameter as the LE.