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For those of you seeking guidance in covering your plane,
here are some tips and techniques that you may find helpful,
especially with the recommended SoLite covering:
Click any picture
for larger view
- Lightly sand your
structures with 320 or 400 grit paper and a sanding block.
Then carefully wipe off the structures with a tack rag to
remove all sanding dust. This will ensure good
adhesion between covering material and wood.
-
HIDE YOUR HEAT GUN! You don't want to use a
heat gun anywhere in the process of covering this plane, as
it will guarantee warps. All shrinking is done with a
trim-seal tool set to "Hi".
- Use your built-up
structures as "templates" for cutting out your covering
pieces. I use a fine-point Sharpie pen to draw around
the perimeter of the part directly onto the SoLite backing.
- Cut the SoLite about 1/16"
bigger all around than the part you're covering. This
is easy... just cut 1/16" outside your ink lines, using a
sharp X-acto knife.
- I stick a corner of
covering (backing up) down on a piece of double-sided tape.
Then scrape the backing at the corner with an X-acto
blade... it will separate from the covering. Pull the
backing off your covering.
- Place the covering
(adhesive side up) on a flat surface. Center your
structure over the covering and press it down firmly against
the covering. Now pick up the structure with the
covering lightly stuck to it from the pressure.
- Tack the covering around
the perimeter of your structure, using your trim-seal tool
set on "Low" heat.
Then iron down the covering to all of the internal
structural pieces as well. This will prevent
the surface from warping during the next step.
- Set your trim-seal tool to "high" heat. Wait a couple
of minutes for the temperature to come up to high.
Holding the piece flat to your work surface with one hand,
carefully shrink the covering by gliding the trim-seal tool
slowly over one bay at a time. Keep the tool moving or
you will burn a hole in the covering. If that happens,
simply cut the covering out of that bay and cut a new piece
1/8" larger than the bay. Tack with low heat; then
shrink with high heat. You won't even see the "patch".
-
BEFORE COVERING THE OTHER SIDE:
Dust the adhesive side of your covered piece with talcum
powder. This will prevent the covering from "fusing"
together if you subsequently pinch the two sides together
after both sides are covered.
- Repeat steps 3-8 for the
other side.
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