Dan,

Live hinge surfaces are easy to work with or finish. The control surface and wing are together as one, you simply finish it as one single piece. Once you see how the live hinge works and how it is designed, you will never want to go back to regular pinned hinges.

During the lamination process as explained above by Bob, the Kevlar strip is added along what would normally be the hinge line. After the wing has cured, a small triangle file can be taken to score a straight hinge line where the control surface would normally be attached. This scoring removes the surface epoxy and allows the Kevlar to bend at that line and creates the hinged control surface while still being firmly attached to the main wing.

Unless you are set on being able to disassemble your control surfaces, dealing with live hinges will not be a problem in finishing.

JR Gautreaux