Removing Fabric/Dope
 

I just received a great gift: A Pica 1/6 scale WACO that the original builder's son was just going to throw away. Even included a frozen K&B .61. It is covered in fabric and painted. It was a decent paint job, but there is some damage underneath that I am going to have to repair.

Here is my question: How do I remove fabric/dope from a plane? It appears to have been painted with a metallic automotive paint.

Thanks,
Scott

RE: Removing Fabric/Dope
 

I would first cut the covering away from some of the open bays between ribs & stringers to first determine how large an area that needs to be removed for repairs. On the sheeted areas, first try peeling a small amount of fabric off of the wood. If it doesn't peel easily, then plan B would be to aggressively sand the finish off of the area to be removed. Sand down until the fabric is fuzzy, but not through it. Then, with good ventilation, brush some lacquer thinner on to soften the dope. After a few moments, the fabric should peel right off.

Then, with such a classic aircraft, PLEASE refinish it in fabric again! :)

Gary

RE: Removing Fabric/Dope
 

Just hold a match to it Scott. It'll come off REALLY quick! :D

Are you looking to remove it all, or just a small area?

RE: Removing Fabric/Dope
 

Har, har, Mike! I'm probably going to be removing all of it. There's enough minor damage that I don't think I can just repair bits and pieces of the covering. I would have to repaint the entire plane anyway, as I can't match the original paint. If I decided to try fabric and paint for the renovation, I could possibly just paint over the wings, but I also need to modify them, as I'd like to go to a two-servo aileron system. Somehow, four ailerons on one servo just doesn't do it for me.

Now I need to decide what to cover it with. MK doesn't quite seem right, but I've never tried anything else.

-Scott

RE: Removing Fabric/Dope
 

Ok, if you're going to remove it all, I would try heat first.

If that doesn't work, try a solvent - start easy with something like paint thinner, or mineral spirits, and move up to acetone if needed (Do all of this outdoors! )

For re-covering, try Sig Coverall, or any of the "TEX" fabrics (Solartex, worldtex, etc)

RE: Removing Fabric/Dope
 

Any recommendations on the different types of "tex" fabrics for ease of application?

-Scott

RE: Removing Fabric/Dope
 

Have you tried the heat idea yet? I would bet it would work. Whatever finish is on top, I there is probably dope underneath. Dope is thermoplastic and can be softened with heat. I would make a cut, pull up a corner, train a heat gun where it attaches to the frame, and give a slow steady pull. This has worked for me on an old plane.

Jim

RE: Removing Fabric/Dope
 

After taking a few pics of the original covering scheme for posterity, I began removing covering last night. No need for heat, solvent, etc. It is so old it just peeled right off. What I found underneath was kind of interesting. While the builder was obviously very skilled (more so than me), some of the things I would have done were not done, such as filling gaps in the balsa and rounding edges of control surfaces. I'm assuming this may have been because the fabric and multiple coats of paint do quite a bit to cover imperfections.

I think I will use solartex for recovering, although I wish the color selection were a little greater.

-Scott