Hi James,

do you mean to fully composite build your wings? If that's the case, that is going to be a lot of work! A couple of friends from our club did that (full-composite pattern plane, the [link=http://www.gal.ch/it/galleria/coppaeuropa2004/images/PICT0648.jpg]Swan 3[/link]), but it took them more than 3 years to complete it, and as of today only 1 plane is flying...
Too much work, too much money involved, if you ask me...
Surface quality is of course as good as it can be, the honeycomb structure does not come through and stiffness is great withouth the need of further structure (no formers, just a couple of half-ribs to support the wing tube). You can paint in the moulds for further weight saving. This firends model didn't come out as light as it could possibly be. I still think that with selected foam and balsa you can achieve very good weight and keep costs (!) and effort at an acceptable level.

Regards,
-Fabrizio