Glassing and Painting techniques

[Terryscustom]

We have come across a subject of finishing materials and techniques that is really growing. This is awesome because of the number of paint and body professionals we have here n GSN combined with all the build threads and the renued excitement in building!

@tylerzx9r , @Dooinit , @Jetpainter , @lakerider8 , @iahawkflyer, @Huck Truck just to name a few painting professionals that we have here. I always thought paint and body guy's were into cars.....turns out airplanes are a good substitute!!

Post away!

 

[Pistolera]

Glad to see this....lots to learn!

 

[mndless]

Terry... if you could take a step back and post the materials you use to make your molds... that would be a good item to have here as well. Good stuff !

 

[Bunky.F.Knuckle]

When i lay fiberglass down on say a hatch, I'll soak up the excess rein with rolled toilet paper. Roll it on the glasswork, and then unravel until you get non soaked TP. I did that with my Carden, and used a filler primer, and then base coat clear coat.

 

[Dooinit]

Nice thread. I can prolly help a little here. I like learning a little too!

 

[Terryscustom]

Terry... if you could take a step back and post the materials you use to make your molds... that would be a good item to have here as well. Good stuff !

Molds are pretty simple really. You need to prep your part, apply a mold release wax and finish of some sort (PVA), apply a tooling gelcoat (x2) and apply multiple layers of glass to build up the rigidity of the mold. There are other materials that make great molds such as tooling plaster (ultracal-30 is one). I'm abreviating a bit because it is a huge subject in itself, but I plan to keep experimenting with materials. I'll be doing some small cowl vents and other things in time and will show a little more detail at that time. It's a fun subject to play with and experiment with.

 

[Terryscustom]

When i lay fiberglass down on say a hatch, I'll soak up the excess rein with rolled toilet paper. Roll it on the glasswork, and then unravel until you get non soaked TP. I did that with my Carden, and used a filler primer, and then base coat clear coat.

Do you thin your resin at all Bunky? I had a hell of a time on my first couple of builds and then I was told to thin the resin 50:50 or slightly less with alcohol and that made it an absolute dream to glass canopy decks. It goes on so thin, there is literally nothing to blot off and the glass lays down very thin.

This is how we kinda got started on this subject. @Jetpainter is working on a project that will be painted and I am looking at doing a fully sheeted build that will be painted as well. We are experimenting with a few different types of fillers to fill the weave of the fabric to prep for painting with the least amount of weight and work.

Here are a couple pics of mine that I did with drywall compound after glassing. A test patch of primer shows a completely flat surface with no weave ghosting through. Jetpainter is working on some test panels as well. After seeing what we have so far I'm looking more forward to this than ever!!

 

[Pistolera]

I'd love to read a good primer on painting....specifically base-coat/clear-cote systems and required equipment. The closer I get to final prep on my Krill the more I've been thinking about doing the paint myself. Other than a small airbrush I have NO painting equipment. Maybe this should be a separate thread???

 

[3Dchief]

This is awesome, can we "sticky" the three individually? Glassing, painting, and covering. Each is really its own topic.

 

[Dooinit]

Do you thin your resin at all Bunky? I had a hell of a time on my first couple of builds and then I was told to thin the resin 50:50 or slightly less with alcohol and that made it an absolute dream to glass canopy decks. It goes on so thin, there is literally nothing to blot off and the glass lays down very thin.

This is how we kinda got started on this subject. @Jetpainter is working on a project that will be painted and I am looking at doing a fully sheeted build that will be painted as well. We are experimenting with a few different types of fillers to fill the weave of the fabric to prep for painting with the least amount of weight and work.

Here are a couple pics of mine that I did with drywall compound after glassing. A test patch of primer shows a completely flat surface with no weave ghosting through. Jetpainter is working on some test panels as well. After seeing what we have so far I'm looking more forward to this than ever!!

What resin wher you using? The zpoxy finishing resin is thin and easy to use. Minwax polyurethane is super thin. I used both methods on my thunderbolt. The resin has a more durable finish and more resistant to denying the balsa. The minwax is way quicker and easier to get applied. I am sure it is lighter too. Hangar 9 has a 1/2 ounce cloth that is nice to work with as well.