I have a problem keeping the cloth down flat when I am glassing. I brush the cloth with a brush and it lays down fine. As i ork the resin in I get little waves.I have tried a sqeege and brush. I still get little waves in the cloth. As a result I get a very wavy finish which requies a lot of sanding What am I doing wrong?

I can't read what you posted. Could you make it a little bigger?

Seriously though you might want to put the resin down first then lay the fiberglass down on top of it then sqeege it out. When I first started fiberglassing I did it the opposite way and I had a hard time with it. Then I decided to try it Resin then fiberglass and it worked out easier

Definitely put the resin down first. Try to make sure that you have pretty even coverage with the resin before laying the cloth on. Once the cloth is down work the resin in to the weave making sure you have full penetration into the glass - then start with your squeegie working the excess resin out. Waves could come from too much or too little resin so a little experimentation on your part is natural. Until you get the hang of it take it slow, one panel at a time. You didn't mention, is this epoxy or polyester resin?

Best of luck,
Dan

This is how I do it:

If you have a Home Depot nearby, check the paint aisle next to the paint brushes for a paint roller blister pack made by "Shur-Line"; they are in a black package with a green stripe. You will find two white 1/8" knap roller inserts and a plastic red handle in the package. The blister pack doubles as your epoxy tray.

Mix your epoxy in a cup following the manufacturer's directions. Pour it into the roller tray that is actually the blister pack. Load the roller, apply it to the wing like paint; it will soak into the balsa. If you need to, mix more right away, you should be working with resin with a long cure time so if you mix two batches within 5 minutes of each other it should not be a big deal.

Carefully stretch out the glass cloth over the wing and lay it on top. It is not necessary to lay the cloth evenly over both sides to keep it from sliding off, as the wing is already sticky with resin. You can now use the Shur-Line roller to apply resin to the cloth as needed. Work out bubbles and wrinkles with the Shur-Line roller.


When you finish, rotate the wing catching the reflection of the sun or lights in the wet resin. Inspect the entire tune in this manner. You should see the weave of the cloth. If you see shiny spots, roll the roller of a few layers of paper towels, then use it to mop up any excess resin.

When the glass has cured, sand it with 120 grit and wipe it down with acetone or lacquer thinner and a clean rag. Follow appropriate safety precautions when sanding cured fiberglass and using solvents.

To fill the weave pattern of the cloth so that it is smooth, "Kilz" is a high-solids primer in a spray can that will fill the weave and sands easily. Home Deopt carries Kilz in the paint department.

Very interesting. I will have to try the kilz method for filling in the weave. How many applications of kilz do you have to apply for it to fill the weave?

Yes the Kilz is interesting,what primer did you use after ? Any things to avoid using when using this product? Is the Kilz oil or water based?
We need a little more info from you to make sure we do it right if we go that rought .
Thanks

Joe

I apologize for highjack this thread... Dan, interesting you brought up epoxy / poly in your reply, what’s the difference between the two during the application process?

Just a curiosity on my part. Wasn't sure from the initial post if he was using a resin with a long enough working time. Z-Poxy always worked well for me. Extremely long working time, lays out well and sands like butter. If he's using a polyester and isn't mixing it exactly right, he could be running out of time as it begins to kick helping to cause the waves. I would bet it's a combination of not enough saturation into the wood and glass combined with getting towards the end of the workability window. Ask me how I learned that lesson.

Dan

If you want to see how the pro's do it, I suggest you get the Dave Platt 3rd video in the Building & Fiberglassing series. He uses K&B polyester resin but I've always liked the ZAP finishing resin. Either one works but the important thing is the technique used.

I was having the same problem with wrinkles..
I found it easiest for me to lay the fiberglass down first and smooth it out.
Next i pore some Z-Poxy on it
Then i use a squeegee and lightly pull the resen over the cloth from the CENTER out
After i have it almost all covered then i go back and start really pulling the resen out to the edges.
Always work from the center out. Dont try squeegeeing it from the edge inward or wrinkles always form.
That was the easiest way i found anyway. YMMV.
Now that i have actually glassed my first plane(TFGS P-47) Im going back to moneykote. MUCH easier,quicker and less work for me.
Pat

kilz is the primer. There are both water and oil (original) based varieites, I have only used the oil based. You can't spray this in doors as the odor is horrible. It also comes in Gal. cans and 5 Gal Pails, I have not used it any other way but from the spray can. I have used this with normal automotive primers, DuPont, Napa, and multiple types of spray paints. It may take a few coats to fill depending on the weave of the glass. Use a few light coats, it dries quickly above 70 deg. One warning is that it is not cheap in the spray can but can get more reasonible in the gal. cans, and pails. Use it just like normal primer, spray it on sand it, fill and then paint as usual.

i've been using .5 and 1.5 oz cloth to cover wings and stabs. been using z-poxy brand resin. first i lay down the glass and than pour some resin in the center of the glass sheet, than ALWAYS work from the center out or you will get wrinkels.

I apologize if you already have your answer for I did not read the entire thread.

It sounds like to me that you're pulling the glass because you haven't adequately thinned your resin. The resin should be about the consistancy of milk, not much thicker.....It should take a very, very light stroke with a brush to wet out the glass. If you're having to press hard and swipe the brush hard to get the resin to spread then you're resin is too thick.

If I might suggest another method? I use Zap finishing resin. Get yourself some of those little cough syrup cups. Mix one part resin, one part hardener and two parts denatured alcolhol. You lay out the glass and then just use a 1.5 in. paint brush to apply. To fill the weave just mix one part resin , one hardener and one part denatuered alcolhol. This has always worked fine for me. Take care, Capt. Winters