Before you apply the silk to your structure, have you already prepped the structure with a couple of coats of nitrate dope ? The reason I ask is because from what I know back in the old tissue / dope days, we always prepped the surface with a couple of coats of thinned nitrated dope as a "base" ... Then, laying the material on top followed by dope, that dope will "grab" the base and lock the covering for good. Please clarify if this approach also works for silk as well. Also, where do you buy your silk ?
Charles Bjovalis. Yea, I used to read that stuff about putting enough dope on your frame but thought that was crazy. I have never used dope to adhere any covering and that is because it doesn't hold nearly as well as alternative adhesives. Prep with very thin white glue and lay dry silk on the frame and paint more thinned glue right through it. You try to eliminate all the wrinkles, not just the big ones, and you "wet" the silk very slightly. You can get a drum head this way and the covering will never loosen on a cold day. Have you ever tried tissue over silk? Saves a lot of dope and weight and offers a unique trim opportunity. Cheers!
VampeD4. Yes, there is no better. The biggest thing silk has going for it is its looks. It also makes structure much stiffer. But I just love the look. For those who fly gliders and big FF, silk can also be dyed and it looks even better than Esaki when doped. Then just "paint" it by doping on colored tissue. It won't look like a real airplane but it will look fantastic, its translucent structure practically explaining why flies. Thanks for the comment--best!
Charles Bovalis. I get pure white silk of a tight weave from Minnesota Fabrics or Joanne's but since it is commonly used to finish the inside of fine garments it isn't scarce. Of course you want the fine, uncolored silk. I dye mine in large trays with RIT (use darker hues of selected color since they dry lighter. Can be double dyed for creative effect. Even tie dyed I imagine. I often color trim the models with tissue doped on the silk. For me, the synthetics are too heavy and won't dye like silk or silk span.
So, I am new to model A/C building and after watching your vids on silk covering I am definitely wanting to give it a go. I went to Ebay and Amazon looking for silk and did not find a lot of anything.. I did find a product called "silkspan" on Ebay, Is that what you are using? Do you still have a good source for your silk? Thanks for the great instructional vids!
i dont care for silkspan if you do some looking you can find it cheaper. keep an eye on ebay a few guys sell it now and then. brodak.com/lite-silk-1-yard-white.html brodak.com/brodak-lite-silk-white-1.html
Very interesting stuff but why use silk? I used to use Esahi silk for my OT planes (about 4 lives ago) but it became too expensive and, I thought, not strong enough for an RC plane such as you are building.. I turned to Nylon/dope. So, why silk??? great looking job you're doing there.
Mike White. The silk I use is a lot lighter than nylon, especially after sealed with dope. It has a look and feel that is unique. I always thought that synthetic coverings were like a blanket, being so heavy and thick. Just personal choice, I admit.
Thanks, James. What type of silk do you use as you sat its "special". As info, I have used sari silk (not pure silk but with some polyester in it) , over lightweight tissue and dope. It has lasted 30 years or more but the colour is now fading from a very nice blue to a pale blue.
no. just the edges. then get the silk damp. lay it over the wing. get it as tight as you can. keeping it damp. then dope the edges of the silk to the wood. lets dry then a good 3 to 4 coats of dope over all.
overall you mean you coat the open structure with dope after you finish the process shown in this video? what's the momme of the silk shown here? I would like to try it on a sig kadet mk2 would a 5mm do good for silk or maybe 8mm is better?
I just got off the fone w/ a customer (I run a hobby shop), who needed advice on wing covering. I said type "Covering model airplane wing with silk" on YT. His response was "I didn't see anything". Well, here's your video, and I sent him the link. Thanks, HobbyRI.com
i have lots of videos applying silk. and thanks. this is from start to end without paint. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-igrwZsRP6cE.html after paint. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-phKPDPehObM.html
if you look. i have lots of other videos on this. should cover whatever you may ask. from start. to flying. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-igrwZsRP6cE.html
