ORIGINAL: FLAPSDOWN
Mike,
Thanks for the PM reply with how to contact Dan for plans, cores, and the canopy. I've exchanged emails and will be getting an order as soon as his tornado damage is behind him. What a shame.
I also wanted to thank you for the inspirational build. I never really thought about building a Blue Angel until I read your thread. I do however remember the Model Airplane News with Tsugutaka Yoshioka on the cover. I was 12 flying novice pattern competition in the midwest. I would lay in bed at night after spending the evening in the basement building. I remember that cover very well thinking what a beautiful airplane. Your build is just as beautiful.
I cringed though as I read the thread thinking ''Oh no, not monokote''. It turned out beautifully though. I always used K&B epoxy and a Binks airbrush. I even put Coverite and paint on an Ugly Stik. What's the secret? I assume a cover over the monokote iron to prevent scratches. Did you use Balsarite to prep. I always end up with seeing the wood grain when I cover. And that shine. Why doesn't the monokote I buy shine like yours? Any tips would be great. Also, are the Blue Angel decals still available?
Thanks a lot. I'm looking forward to your next build. Do you something in mind.
Best Regards.
Bill
Thanks for the kind comments.
From my experience MonoKote gives the best looking film finish that I prefer over the others. Nothing really special is required to use it. I find that I get the best results by making tight glue joints and then the normal sanding that you would do to prepare for glassing balsa. Sloppy glue joints or joints that don’t fit well tend to show through the MonoKote but I’ve never had problems with grain showing. I prefer the way that you can stretch Monokote around compound curves like wing tips and the way it bonds so tightly to its self. The seams are almost invisible and I plan the covering so they are in places that are hard to see.
Some people complain about wrinkles but after you expose it to the sun a few times and then reheat out the winkles it is a non issue. I don’t use a cover on the iron. If your iron is scratching clean it or buy a new quality one. Monokote can be polished with wax like you do paint and it adds to the gloss.
There are a number of advantages of using MonoKote on the wing and stab. First it is lighter than glass and paint, if you get a ding you can easily fix it by ejecting water into the balsa under the dig and it will pop out with heat, did I say it was lighter!