Ted's Aircraft Shop

Step 5. Covering the Wings, page 3

Step 5.   Covering the Wings

The white fabric gives shape to the whole wing with virtually every surface covered.  An amazing sight.  Only now can we tighten the fabric.  We do this with a clothing/steam iron.  These irons leave a little to be desired.  They do not hold heat constantly, but turn full on and full off in sequence.  I used a Raytek® MiniTemp infrared temperature measurement handheld.  An amazing instrument, it uses a laser pointer to pinpoint the item being measured.  The MiniTemp showed the iron fluctuating in temperature tens of degrees.  It would get too hot and then cool below the needed temperature.  I am looking for an iron that holds a temperature.  The Poly-Fiber instructions say to tighten the fabric initially at 250 degrees. Final tightening is done at 350 degrees.  Above 375 degrees the fabric starts to melt.  Temperature is critical.  After tightening, the fabric is scrubbed with MEK and brush coated with Poly-Brush.  The Poly-Brush fills the weave of the fabric. 

 

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