ideas for sealing covering seams
 

Looking for a faster method of applying clear nail polish on covering seams.[>:] Using the small bottle brush is proving to be to time consuming. Any device made that might help? Or, a better method?

beagle

RE: ideas for sealing covering seams
 

Air Brush,,, what material are we talking about here?

RE: ideas for sealing covering seams
 

Hold the seam upright and let a drop (or three) of thin CA run down the seam.

Afterward, wipe off the excess with acetone. But enough CA will stay in the seam to hold it.

RE: ideas for sealing covering seams
 

Seems to me that the quality of current plastic coverings just ain't what they used to be, as in earlier days once ironed down the seams stayed put.

Karol

RE: ideas for sealing covering seams
 

"Seems to me that the quality of current plastic coverings just ain't what they used to be,"

They ain't. Thank the EPA, again.

Les

RE: ideas for sealing covering seams
 

Thanks for the responses, going to look into the air brush and see how narrow it will spray. Turning the seam vertical is good idea also. thanks again
beagle

RE: ideas for sealing covering seams
 

I like Minn's idea, The nailpolish idea has 2 things working against it. One, the covering by nature will not accept paints. Ultracote will after some scuffing but hadhision is not ideal. Two Nailpolish is not fuel proof. IMO you would be better off keeping a coat of wax on the airplane thus providing a barrier so fuel can't get to the seam. I actually have never had an issue with seams coming up provided they were put down correctly in the first place. Keeping things clean during the covering process helps this greatly.

RE: ideas for sealing covering seams
 

Minns idea does work very well, I saw him give the same advice some time back, tried it and have used it since. There are few out there as good at making covering work as Minflyer is (I wish I was even just 25% as good at it as he is).

Unfortunately we don't always get to apply the covering ourselves in this age of ARF's so we don't necessarily have control over what is actually applied or how it is applied.

RE: ideas for sealing covering seams
 

You must either fly electric or have hanger queens because every plane I had that was covered in plastic eventually peeled up especially the side of the exhaust. You need to fly a lot more, stop being scared.:D

RE: ideas for sealing covering seams
 

Forgot to mention... The Acetone idea works on MonoKote and coverings with similar adhesives

For Ultracote, use Xylene or Xylol

RE: ideas for sealing covering seams
 

The thin CA does work, and it's easy. The most important thing though is to make sure the seam is ironed down right to start with. This is rarely the case with an ARF direct from the factory.

RE: ideas for sealing covering seams
 

I've got an older Sig Seniorita, probably 10+ years old and my covering is still pretty good except for an accent piece just below the exaust outlet that has peeled loose. I pulled it back a bit and can detect oil where the loose trim is still firmly attached. What are my options for removing this oil and what can I use to re-attach the trim. I kinda like the thin CA tip. Will that work for me? I'm thinking I need to somehow apply new adhesive between layers of film. I think it was originally covered in ultracoat.

RE: ideas for sealing covering seams
 

In an area like that your best bet is to clean it with alcohol or acetone. And I mean CLEAN it! I would clean it at least three times using a fresh paper towel each time. Then scratch the surface a little with steel wool or very fine sandpaper and just glue the whole thing down with thin or medium CA

Note, if acetone takes the coloring off of the underside of the trim, it's probably not ultracote - switch to alcohol instead

RE: ideas for sealing covering seams
 

I have found that being sure seams face rearward is all you need. I don't do anyting but iron them down.

RE: ideas for sealing covering seams
 

Some seams don't lend themselves to running the CA down very well. You can take a Q-tip and dip it in thin CA and run it over the seam then wipe the excess off. Clear polyurathane (comes in pint cans) from the pain section is fuel proof and works good with the Q-tip too. If it's the underside of the plane and you know it's going to get really slimed with oil I'll run the polyurethane over the seam and not even wipe the excess off. For the seam on the leading edges of the stabilizer and fin, if you know they are going to be a problem area you can run a length of Blenderm or other clear tape over that leading edge while the plane is still new and squeaky clean. You don't even see the Blenderm tape after it is applied. The clear polyurethane is a good alternative for coating the inside of the tank area and firewall with also. Just use a little disposable foam brush....

Ernie Misner