Cool - let us know how it turns out. FYI - I was warned that the silkspan wouldn't be as strong as fiberglass on the fuse and while it probably isn't, it IS more than adequate in my opinion. The surface gets pretty hard with the combination of nitrate dope and silkspan. It certainly is more robust than Monokote. I used really light contest grade wood on my plane and I'm sure if I just Monokoted it, it would be full of "hangar rash" dents in a few weeks. The main difference between the Japanese tissue and the silkspan as far as I know is the silkpsan is a little stronger and it goes around compound curves better. If I remember correctly, you apply Japanese tissue dry, whereas you apply silkspan wet. This allows it to conform to the surface really well. Post some pic's of your covering job as you progress. It sounds really interesting.

John Pavlick
Team Black Magic