martin collins 1 Posted November 16, 2018 Share Posted November 16, 2018 I have a 1/4 scale model to cover in antique tex, are there any alternative options to the hard to source/very expensive Solartex?.........Martin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Harris - Moderator Posted November 16, 2018 Share Posted November 16, 2018 Nylon or Sig Koverall and dope? Although out of fashion for many years, the results are excellent and give a very strong structure. Edited By Martin Harris on 16/11/2018 20:31:48 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted November 16, 2018 Share Posted November 16, 2018 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Cotsford Posted November 16, 2018 Share Posted November 16, 2018 Not that hard to source, but it's true it's not cheap! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronaldo Posted November 16, 2018 Share Posted November 16, 2018 As Bob says, still available but in limited colours and lengths. A club mate bought some from the website in the link, they take paypal, ..... but yes the prices have gone up !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Skilbeck Posted November 16, 2018 Share Posted November 16, 2018 I've seen large scale gliders covered in Diatex, and they are now doing a covering with adhesive for modellers, Diacov http://www.diatex.com/-Aeronautical-fabrics-.html Note sure where you can buy it in the UK though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roger Marshall Posted November 16, 2018 Share Posted November 16, 2018 Hi, Is dope fully fuel proof? In larger amounts its cheaper than some other fuel proofers I uesd. Is it still available in different colours? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cymaz Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 Posted by Bob Cotsford on 16/11/2018 21:14:11: Not that hard to source, but it's true it's not cheap! Had a look Bob....no sign of Clearcoat or paints ? Any thoughts on an alternative? Edited By cymaz on 17/11/2018 06:18:49 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stearman65 Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 The nearest thing to Solartex is Oratex, various UK suppliers, but it aint cheap. **LINK** Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edgeflyer Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 Solartex is great and easy to use especially good round complex curves where it takes a lot of pulling and shrinking to shape. However I think it still looks plastic unless spray painted. Silk and dope is the way to go, cheaper than oratex and in my op, the easiest of all to apply and finish if you are patient. Can't find silk? Search for lightweight dress lining for synthetic (polyester) or real sllk. Polyester will heat shrink too, to an extent. For tricky bits, overlaps and edges can be sande smooth after drying and dooing. Difficult to get under 100 g per Sq m. For the best, get Etaki Silk from Freeflightsupplies.co.uk. Only 3o g and doping doesn't add much if you are careful. One coat to apply and shrink. Another to fill, then pu satin varnish to fuel proof. Cellulose paste (wallpaper paste ) mixed thin for allocation also works well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ernie Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 diacov ernie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alex nicol Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 I agree with Percy, although My experience of tissue or nylon doped finishes is limited to my time in control line early/mid 70's dope and light sand the airframe before covering then use dope to stick the covering on.......tensioning was done by pinning the nylon around the perimeter. once the structure was covered and dried out......remove the pins and then dope the remainder of the nylon. A doped nylon structure is about as strong as you'll get, having flown a lot of the old control line combat wings where it wasn't uncommon for them to be piled in, pulled out muck scraped out restarted and flung back into the air to complete the bout. You could be left with a nylon bag containing a semi destroyed structure that held its shape and was still fly able................mind you I don't miss the three days spent after completing a model picking the dope off your fingers!!! Final point I've used solar text but for me a nylon and doped finish looks much better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Fry Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 Ceconite, available from LAS aerospace, Exeter Airport. Does mail order. We need the lighter version. It's without glue, use a heat activated glue like an equivalent to BalsaLoc. It's not painted, a translucent white fabric, so best used for models which have more than one colour. I have found water based acrylics seals it well. Very nice to apply, nice shrinking. Finished weight on the plane, painted is similar to Solartex, but cheaper. Way cheaper than Oratex. For someone versed in silk or nylon finishes, exactly the same, but with precise control over the shrink with temperature on the iron. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Fry Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 Double post digit tremble. Edited By Don Fry on 17/11/2018 11:39:02 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Cotsford Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 Posted by cymaz on 17/11/2018 06:18:23: Posted by Bob Cotsford on 16/11/2018 21:14:11: Not that hard to source, but it's true it's not cheap! Had a look Bob....no sign of Clearcoat or paints ? Any thoughts on an alternative? Edited By cymaz on 17/11/2018 06:18:49 When I enquired about Clearcoat they told me that it was only available to callers because of restrictions on posting it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Former Member Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 [This posting has been removed] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cymaz Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 I put the Clearcoat on after paint..it doesn’t matter now with these not in stock anymore Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Harris - Moderator Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 Back in the days before Solartex and buddy leads (mid-70s) I built a trainer called a Lumpers (I suspect Pete Christy was one of the people who recommended it?) which I covered with nylon. This model survived numerous "incidents" during training with Brian Cooper trying but not always succeeding to snatch the transmitter from my white knuckled hands in time to save it - including the odd vertical terminal dive. The fuselage (and on occasions the trusty Enya .15 engine/silencer - what happened to that white heat resistant Devcon?) just being stuck together with epoxy (cyano was not yet generally available) and the rubber banded wings which would generally fly off from the scene of the crash in a hurry to escape the worst of the carnage just rattled more with each repair of the fuselage... P.S. Every crash was the result of interference from CB radio. Edited By Martin Harris on 17/11/2018 13:22:50 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stearman65 Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 Covering in Solartex/film was oftetn described as having a built in carrier bag for the bits when you did a whoopsie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alex nicol Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 Hi Percy, Happy days indeed, the really scary thing is I remember getting banished to the hut because dope wasn't allowed in the house........thing is in winter, the door would be shut and an old naked flame parifin heater was used to keep out the cold.........with absolutely no thought to the potential fire risk or effect of the fumes.........but these things aren't important when you're in your early teens. Certainly a lot simpler days Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Christy Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 Don: Thanks for the pointer to Ceconite! I'd heard of it before in the full-size context, but didn't realise they did a lightweight version. Sounds perfect for our purposes - must order a sample... That still leaves the problem of paint and fuel-proofer. I've always used Clearcote as a heat sensitive adhesive for Solartex, and as a fuel-proofer. Solarlac was always my "go-to" choice for paint. I've never found anything to match either product, and will sorely miss them. Balsarite (USA) used to be good, but then the US regulations required it to be "watered down", and it was never the same afterwards. Clearcote seemed to be the same stuff as the original Balsarite. I can't believe that model finishes were the only use for this stuff. It must be used for something else, somewhere. I would buy a load, but I'm a long way from Lancashire! Martin: I do vaguely recall your "Lumpers"! Back then, Brian always seemed to be teaching someone, and rescuing models from the most extreme situations! But I don't think it was me who recommended the Lumpers - I've never had one. Perhaps it was Tony Rose? It all seems so long ago, now! So, if Ceconite is an acceptable substitute for Solartex, where do we find a Clearcote / Solarlac equivalent? -- Pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Davis Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 Posted by Stearman65 on 17/11/2018 13:47:16: Covering in Solartex/film was oftetn described as having a built in carrier bag for the bits when you did a whoopsie. That's precisely what happend to my double-sized Tomboy mind you, I was a very inexperienced pilot in those days. I had built the fuselage using cyano exclusively. Never again! I still have the wing and tailplane somewhere. Picture of the model and my much younger self attached. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Fry Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 Peter, re glue to stick stuff to airframes, I am sure that there are American equivalents to Basaloc. Perhaps some Formumite can come up with a name. Fuel proofer over the paint finish, Klasscote from Fighteraces? Last time I did an airframe in (mostly) Ceconite I did one coat of non shrink dope to seal, colours in acrylics. No fuel proofer, petrol motor on 50 to 1 mix, and some care to direct exhaust. Edited By Don Fry on 17/11/2018 15:42:17 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Christy Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 Don: I seem to recall some folks recommending watered down PVA as a substitute for Balsaloc. I've only ever used Balsaloc once, finding Clearcote worked much better! Most of my models are still glow powered - not least because I have boxes of engines, accumulated over the years, that still have plenty of life left in them. I also have a few diesels left - the PAW 149s in particular are nearly as quiet as electric when muffled, and throttle brilliantly! The only down-side is the smell of burned diesel! The raw stuff may be nectar, but once its been through an engine.....! Acrylic is what is used on many modern cars. Certainly Halfords "rattle-tins" are mostly acrylic and give a good finish. But while it may be petrol proof, it isn't glow-proof! Clearcote was brilliant because it was genuinely fuel proof, and could be brushed on just like dope! I always find with two-pack that I either mix too much (expensive waste) - or worse, not enough! <sigh!> Decisions, decisions.... -- Pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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