Light Covering Weights
 

I'm building a few aircraft that require light covering, they (combined) call for either Nelson Film, SoLite, Ultracote Light, or Mylar, I'd like to know what these covering materials weight in at maybe the sq/yard or sq/foot..

also, I saw Econocote from TopFlite, it says its light weight and low temp, anyone know much about Econocote or any other light weight covering films?

Light Covering Weights
 

Greetings

Check out the thread "Light Coverings" . There is a bunch of useful weights and links to weight information there.

Light Covering Weights
 

I have a chart with dozens of materials listed. Pm me with your email address if interested and I'll send it to you. (It's a Word Doc.)

Here's a couple examples:

Solite 20.44 grams/meter .603 oz/sq. yard
RA Microlite 11.9 " " .351
Litespan 28.8 .850
" dark colors 30.0 .885
Ultracote 36.67 1.08
Monokote 75.3 2.22
" trnsparent 57.07 1.68

Dennis-

Light Covering Weights
 

There is a chart on my web page that has weights of a lot of coverings. I don't know how accurate they are but I went to many different sources, primarily the manufacturers web pages, to try to get good information.

Howard

Light Covering Weights
 

I wouldn't use Econocote if it were free.

RE: Light Covering Weights
 

Hmmmmmmmm I guess what I said got lost in the shuffle? Well that is the way the WEB goes lol still sticky :)

RE: Light Covering Weights
 

Hrm... Is "1/2 oz. glass cloth" 1/2 oz/ per square yard? I've been considering a foamie type slope soarer, but I think I might want to glass it rather than use ultracote, if it's not too heavy. At 1/2oz per square yard, I'd still have quite a bit of elbow-room for polycrylic and maybe even a bit of paint before it gets heavier than ultracote's 2.3oz per square yard.

RE: Light <span class=
 

Yes, I am pretty sure it is 1/2 ounce / Sq yard. Most foamie slope soarers I know of are covered with packing tape and filament tape underneath. The filament tape is required for rigidity in the wing and fuse. I am not sure you would get the same kind of strength from 1/2 ounce FG. I have used it on a blue foam project and it is very wispy stuff. But, blue foam is very rigid to begin with, and I think the FG was more for abrasion and preventing cracking the foam than for rigidity. I could be wrong, but I think a heavier FG would be required. Also, if you've never used FG before, it requires probably more resin than you think, thereby negating your weight savings. I suppose if you want to know for sure, find a very accurate scale, and mock up a square foot of material, and weigh it before and after the covering. The difference is the weight of your covering. It would be interesting to see the difference in weight for different resins as well. Be sure to include any coats of paint you will need as well.

Also, if you use epoxy for your resin, be sure to use the finishing resin as it is much thinner and easier to use. Sometimes it can even be too thick for very light FG. Use a squeegee to get the excess resin out of the cloth. Read a book called "Canoe Craft", it has a great treatise on applying glass and epoxy resin to canoes, and the info applies directly to the use of it over wings.

I'm not sure, but I think you can dye epoxy resin and possibly eliminate coats of paint on your model. West Systems would probably have this info.

Having said all that, most slopers have fairly high wing loadings and unless you just want to build it for the lightest wind conditions possible I think the covering would make a negligible difference. Use what is easiest, most cost efficient, and most importantly, most appropriate for the application. ie if your plane is EPP foam and you fiberglass it , the FG will crack when you crash it because the foam will compress then rebound yet the rigid FG won't. Whereas, packing tape and filament tape will give with the foam. In any case, good luck.