FIBERGLASS CLOTH SUBSTITUTE
 

Hi guys,
Has anyone ever heard of using a polyster fabric/cloth in place of fiberglass cloth when covering
sheeted areas like wings and fuselages. I read this on a website as a cheap alternative to using conventional fiberglass cloth. I realize it wouldn't work when laying up parts or for anything that would require strength but for just covering a balsa sheeted surface and priming/painting onto this.
What do you think?
Tom

RE: FIBERGLASS CLOTH SUBSTITUTE
 

I don't know how that will work. But I do know a guy who uses womens nylons to cover the wing on his Sureflite P-40. Doesn't look half bad from a distance.


That"s thinking outside the box.

Steve

RE: FIBERGLASS CLOTH SUBSTITUTE
 

The glass cloth that is usually used to cover balsa structures is 3/4 oz. cloth. It is light and does not hold a lot of resin. Any fabric will be heavier and hold a lot of resin.

It is a weight issue.

Ed S

RE: FIBERGLASS CLOTH SUBSTITUTE
 

I thought it sounded too easy!!!
Thanks for the info. I figured there would be something negative about it.
Tom

RE: FIBERGLASS CLOTH SUBSTITUTE
 

I have covered a few planes with polyester dress lineing fabric over solid and open areas of wings and fuselage. It is applied just like silkspan or silk and works very well and is strong!

RE: FIBERGLASS CLOTH SUBSTITUTE
 

What did you use for adhesive? Fiberglass resin? Z-poxy?

RE: FIBERGLASS CLOTH SUBSTITUTE
 

Nitrite dope. Like it was done on full size in WW I

RE: FIBERGLASS CLOTH SUBSTITUTE
 

I fly a lot of combat and we use ripstop nylon to cover our foam planes. The ripstop fabric is much tougher than fiberglass in tensile strength and impact energy is distributed along the nylon. I have yet to see a plane explode like a 'glass one on impact. Every 1/4" or so there is a larger thread of nylon so if a rip develops it is stopped by it. We generally put it on with waterbased polyurathane which is understand is becoming popular in the fiberglassing community as well.

If you guys need I'll do a photo tutorial showing how easy it is to do.
Here's a link I found on georgiacombat.com [link=http://www.georgiacombat.com/RSNApplication.html]How to apply Ripstop Nylon[/link]

Hopefully a new door has opened for some.

NAES

RE: FIBERGLASS CLOTH SUBSTITUTE
 

Tom have you ever handled Sig Koverall? It is sheer and very strong. After the edges are doped or glued you can heat shrink the rest of it for a nice tight surface and then apply what you like to cover the surface. Gene

RE: FIBERGLASS CLOTH SUBSTITUTE
 

Better test your material and adhesive first. DACRON polyester is used as peel ply when laying up glass. That is, you use the DACRON on or partially in the lamination and then after the epoxy cures you peel or rip off the DACRON ply. Dacron doesn't stick to epoxy. It leaves a perfectly shaped but rough surface to which you can continue to bond without any further preparation.

For instance if you want to lap a glass ply along the leading edge of a wing and you're having a problem with the edge of the fabric not laying flat. You lay up a ply of dacron over the joint/lap. when the resin has cured, you peel off the dacron ply. It leaves the glass fabric perfectly flat on the underlying ply, the epoxy feathers perfectly evenly over the upper to lower ply leaving the joint invisible, and the surface is smooth enough to not require any shaping but rough enough to allow bonding without further preparation.