Advice on Glues \Coverings & Replacing "Tarzans Grip"

I think there are plenty of glues that will do that nowadays.

A lot depends on your taste and temperament.

And the kind of joint you're trying to glue (dovetailed in some fashion, end-grain, butted, etc.).

Cyano-acrylate (CA) glues (thin, medium, and thick) set very quickly and do an adequate job on most joints. Some people even use them for holding firewalls on.

I've used both Titebond and Elmer's glues (outdoor formula) and been happy with the outcome. These set more slowly and usually require clamping for best results. You can take more time getting the pieces aligned because the glues set slowly.

Epoxy is great stuff to work with. As a general rule, you get more strength with the slower-curing mixes (30 minute vs. 5 minute).

I've had some fun with the new polyurethane glues. I was very impressed with how well they held hardwood pieces together. These glues are catalyzed by moisture in the air or the wood and foam before they begin to set. The foam can make a mess if you're not careful, so I normally use these glues where looks are not important. The glue sets in the bottle, too, if you don't use it all relatively soon, and I don't know of any thinner that can retard or reverse that process.

I haven't tried any of the poly-vinyl chloride (PVC) glues. Some folks seem to like them.

So much depends on your goals and your skills. I've worked mostly with Monokote, but there are other excellent coverings available. I've done a little bit of fiberglassing and hope to do more as time goes on.

Marty

Megan Woods wrote: I am looking for a balsa wood adhesive that will set in a reasonable

Sounds like CA (cyanoacrylate) glue to me. It sets quickly, often within seconds, depending on the type used. It's not overpriced, since you use so little of it on a typical model. One drop will cover about

1/2" of joint. Check it out at your local hobby shop or Tower Hobbies online.

There are many plastic heat-shrink coverings available. Monokote and Ultracote are the two best, IMO. If you want a fabric appearance, use any of the *tex" coveringe, like Solartex, Colortex. Coverite also makes a good fabric covering material. All coverings mentioned are fuel proof and heat-shrnikable. Dr1

Ted shuffled out of his cave and grunted these great (and sometimes not so great) words of knowledge:

Many people today use CA (Super Glue ) for building. There is a drawback to CA though. Some people are allergic to the fumes. The symptoms are, typically, running eyes, stopped up nose/sinus. If you use CA and find you are allergic to it, they have an Odorless (Foam Safe) CA, however, it is about twice the cost of regular CA.

I have developed an allergy to CA, so I only use CA when I absolutely have to. The rest of the time I use Titebond II. Titebond takes longer to set and does require clamping though.

Epoxy is good where you need extra strength - firewall, landing gear blocks, etc. I would avoid the 5 minute stuff though. Besides having a short working life, it is not as strong as a 30 minute epoxy. 30 minute is 3 - 5 times stronger. The downside to epoxy is that it is very heavy compared to CA or Titebond.

Pre painted film and fabric coverings are much more prevalent than the older style of coverings (Koverall, silkspan, etc.) Monokote is what is referred to as a high temp film. It usually takes about 275 - 300 degrees to shrink it down.

I, and many others, have switched to Ultracote for a film covering. It shrinks down at about 225 - 275 degrees. I have found it much easier to use on wingtips and other curved areas. Price is comparable with Monokote.

The primary pre painted fabric coverings are Coverite and SolarTex. My experiences with Coverite have been:

1. The airframe needs to be coated with BalsaRite or a similar adhesive because the adhesive on Coverite is marginal.
2. Coverite is heavy compared to SolarTex. A prime example - I covered two identical 40 - 60 size planes. The one I covered with Coverite was

3 1/2 - 4 oz heavier than the one I covered with SolarTex. Before covering there was less than 1/2 oz difference in weight.

I have found the adhesive on SolarTex to be excellent - the airframe does not need to be coated with an adhesive.

For matching colors for the films there are two out there - LusterKote and Ultracote. There have been numerous complaints about LusterKote. These range from very poor color match to and including VERY poor spraying. I no longer use LusterKote because of this.

For fiberglassing a plane many people still use epoxy resin and 1/2 -

3/4 oz fiberglass cloth. A "new" technique has evolved in recent years using water base polyurethane to apply the fiberglass cloth. The end result is: Strength about 60% of a resin job. Weight is about 50% (or less) of a resin job. Sand ability is SUBSTANTIALLY easier than resin and final results prior to painting are equal.

For painting, many people are now using paints such as Krylon, Rustoleum, etc instead of the traditional dope. MOST of them require clear coating to be fuel proof. I have been using latex for my painting the past several years. It does require clear coating to be fuel proof. The only downsides I have found with latex have been the shine is not as high as with dope or an enamel, the paint is not as hard and the paint needs to "cure" for about 7 - 10 days before clear coating. Here is a link to an article by Top Gun winner Roy Vallencourt on using latex.

A couple of other links you may find helpful are:

RC Universe

's RC Tips/Links Hope this is of some help to you.

another covering that is excellent is Century 21 fabric. It has a nice gloss, goes on easily and is durable. It comes in several colors. I like it better than coverite or solartex.

in article VshXd.189425$ snipped-for-privacy@news-server.bigpond.net.au, Megan Woods at snipped-for-privacy@bigpond.com.au wrote on 3/8/05 8:08 AM:

On a built-up wing, a number of adhesives can be used. Cyanoacrylic (CA) is very fast, but rather expensive and the fumes are toxic. My pick would be yellow carpenter's glue of some sort. It's strong, easily sandable, relatively nontoxic and cheap. Just about any adhesive will be stronger than balsa. Most of us use 30 minute epoxy for high stress areas like wing joiners, landing gear plates, firewalls and attaching the elevator and rudder to the model. Epoxy is also good if you're going to use pinned hinges for ailerons, flaps, etc. However, the CA type hinges must be stuck with thin CA.

There are a whole range of coverings out there, too. In the U.S., Monokote and Ultracote seem to be the most popular. In Oz, though, these coverings may not be as readily available. I'm thinking Ultracote is sold outside the U.S. under the name Oracover, and it would be my choice because it's pretty strong, has a paper backing, (it's sometimes difficult to separate the film from the plastic backing other brands use), goes around curved surfaces well, and can be applied over foam surfaces without melting them.

Morris

Thanks guys...

Cheers Megan

WRONG!

It's listed under the toxic group, a LOT of chemicals are. Read the entire MSDS. CA is harmful and an irritant, but not likely to cause death or serious illness. You Henny-Pennys keep this up, and you'll get it banned or heavily controlled, just like a lot of other things have been due to a knee-jerk reaction. Be sure of your facts first.

I'm not sure whose post you are replying to or what the person said.

But I suggest that it is conceivable that some few people may have bad allergic reactions to CA that could, in the wrong circumstances, be life-threatening.

Some folks react that way to peanuts.

Peanuts haven't been banned (yet) just because some people are allergic to them. I doubt that CAs will be banned just because they might hurt some people.

I am personally taking greater care to limit my exposure to the glues we use, especially epoxy. I heard a man whose opinion I respect say that almost anyone who gets enough exposure to epoxy can develop allergic reactions to it. I'm much more careful than I used to be when I was younger (circa 1995-96).

I'm grateful to the "Henny-Penny" who issued this warning. It's not something that I would like to learn about from personal experience.

YMMV.

Marty

There's nothin' like the smell of Randolph dope, Testors or Ambroid cement, early in the mornin' drool, slobber, hic! ;-0

Yup.

I used to love to paint my models with dope just before bedtime when I was a boy (mid-1960s).

Marty

Well the chicken littles and their little lawers have managed to have peanuts banned on airliners. And it is the only good food the airliners served.

Don't forget the best compromise for glow fuel durability, price, and ease of use. Plain old acrylic laquer, it is fuel proof to about 15% nitro. You can buy it in the auto stores under the brand Plasticote. Dries in a hurry, to touch in 15 minutes. Nice gloss finish, and doesn't need a clear coat. Be sure to read the back of the can as Plasticote also make's enamels and nitro based laquer (the same thing as nitrate dope).

But presumeably you are still allowed to take your own ?

Oh. I thought it was a cost-cutting measure. But I have no information either way.

Marty

There's nothin' like the smell of Randolph dope, Testors or Ambroid cement, early in the mornin' drool, slobber, hic! ;-0

I love the smell of nitrate in the morning!

Dr1

No, the smell and dust can be recirculated through the air conditioning system.