I tried building on a sheet of glass, Everything went well until tried to remove the part. the bond to the glass was so good I damaged my part during removal. I then tried 1 coat of wax on the glass first, Same result.
Any Ideas out there.

Thanks


Charles

I use a hollow core door, pin down plans with thumb tacks, then wax paper on top of plans with thumb tacks. Then I can pin wood to plans, & still read plans. Might have a little wax paper glued to wood when taken off board, but will sand right off when you get to that step.

I built my first airplane 50 years ago using a soft board covered with wax paper. I still use wax paper. Today I use a piece of gypsum board (sheet rock) as a building surface, then wax paper over the plans as I pin pieces into place and glue them. Just like Taildrager says, you may have a little paper stuck to the parts but it comes right off.

My planes used to be small rubber craft, now they are 1/4 scale, but the techniques are pretty much still the same. And if you are pinning to the plans, you do not need to use expensive cyanoacrylate instant glues. Any good carpenter's glue works great.

I have been building on glass for several years. I mostly build composite models (jets) but have built several balsa wings on it as well. (BVM Bobcat, and Balsa Bandit)

Can you give us a little more information as to what you are trying to do? Are you buidling wing structures (built up) or are you gluing together sheet parts, like a stab out of a couple of pieces of 1/4" sheeting, etc....???? I really like building on glass but it does take a few modifications to your technique, especially pushing the pins into it......LOL

DR

David:

I'm building a Morris Su-Doo-Kohi With built up control surfaces.
1/4X3/8 LE 1/4sq TE and 1/4X1/8 Ribs. Once everything was glued with thin CA, I couldn't get it to come off the glass without damaging it. Mostly the 1/8 ribs would split leaving part of them on the glass.
I tried one coat of Carnauba wax on the glass the second time around but had the same problem.

Thanks for your help


Charles

I tried glass once but it was a pain when trying to pin now I use 1/2" sheetrock and use the clear plastic rolls you get from walmart to cover my plans. I spray the back of my plans with duro or 3M77 and stick them to board then spray the top with 3m&& and stick my plastic to them and never had a problem with glue sticking. I also always goto kinkos and make a copy of my plans to build with so if something does happen wont ruin my originals or I use originals to build and keep copys for later which ever look better I keep.

Joe

There are a couple of ways to fix this. First is to just tack glue the parts down. You don't need to use a lot of glue at all. I just place a drop where I need to hold the part and hit it with kicker. When I am ready to take the parts off the table I either use a razor blade to get under the part, or squirt just a bit of acetone where the part is glued to the table.
If the only thing breaking off is the jig tab on the rib, don't worry about it. If you build the wing all the way till it is done on one side, you don't need the jig tab anyway.
Hope that helps.
Hans

I had the same problem when building on glass and did two things to minimize the problem you are having.
I put wax paper over the glass and, using my #11 knife, cut very
small holes where I tack the parts down. I also use a very small amount of thick ca to tack the parts to the glass and shoot it with accelerator to stop it from spreading before it sets.

This is exactly what I do. The last few built up wings I did all had tabs on them. I tack glue the tabs then use a single edge razor blade to remove the part when I am ready to move on.You can use wax paper or "saran wrap" under it if you have to place the trailing edge or such on the table. Another trick for removing the parts is to take an exacto razor saw and pull the back off it. You can then slide it under the part an saw the tab, etc... off.

ProfLooney
What kind of clear plastic was it you got at wal mart???

DavidR
The glue that is sticking is thin CA that I'm gluing the joints with. Maybe I'm using too much???

I did try contact paper over the glass, I got a good part off this time but it was still difficult to remove, and the fourth try, I spray glued wax paper on the glass this seemed to work the best so far. I think I'll try 3 coats of wax on the glass to see if there is any difference from a single coat of wax.

Any other Ideas


Thanks again for everyones help.


Charles

I use an old coffee tabletop that is 18" x 30" and 1/2" thick. I tape my plans down, then put wax paper over the plans and use lead weights & pieces of square steel stock to hold the parts in place. I don't have problems with parts sticking. By the way, CA sticks pretty good to Saran Wrap. I used to use that but was having problems....'til I switched to wax paper.

Gee, I never thought of tacking the parts down directly to the glass and then removing with a razor blade.....might have to try that one!

Charles it is the rolls you get i think they keep them now in the paint department they have clear and black its thick and a lot of people use them for dropclothes they come in like 10ft x 15 ftt sheets. I dont remember exactly what its called I just know where it is and get it.

Joe

I use 2 sheets of "dirty Board" or some call it black board. This is the stuff they used to put on the houses as sub siding. You will need to buy 2 sheet and just double them up one on top of the other. I now have a very nice building table that is 4x8. It is very cheap and beleive it or not, the local lumber companies still stock it. I cover it with a roll of white paper from the local paper mill. It was the end scrap peices. It was also free. The dirty board is very easy to get the pins in and the pins hold very tight.
Just my 2 cents!
Don

Dickeybird has the correct answer. Don't CA the parts to the glass---hold them down with lead weights. That is how Dave Platt does it in his video tapes. I made a mold from GE RTV silicone using a plug made from balsa of the shape I wanted. Then cast them from melted lead ingots. You can find those at plumbing supply houses or sometimes at your local hardware. Or, some have suggested visiting a local tire dealer and asking for their used tire balancing weights. Regards.

I use a self adhesive heavy weight plastic sheet - its called Carpet Protector. You can put this down on the work surface and/or the plans - won't come back off the paper, so its a one time deal.

There was/is a product called stormproof that would treat paper to make it waterproof. We used it for maps but I don't know if it would work with glues.

I lightly 3M77 tack celling tiles (back side up) to my glass. Easy to pin parts to and can be purchased at your local home center for cheap.

Bart

For a flat surface l have a old door that is truely flat. I lay my plans over that. Then l lay a sheet of glass over the plans. I then spray a light coat of 3m77 onto the glass. The 3m77 will stay tacky for up to a couple of weeks. It will actually hold the parts in place. Ribs, LE, TE ect. You can get a perfect fit with the part being held in place so you can glue it. I find with the 3m77 that CA does not stick as badly to the glass. As usual you have to be carefull when lifting the parts. But a razor helps out if you have a stuck spot. I even tried wax paper on top of the glass with the 3m77 on that, but sometimes the wax paper shifts if you are not carefull. It worked as well. That is couple of methods l have tried and l like the results.