At 09:39 PM 2/15/2010, you wrote: >Hey Guy's, I finally have the wings covered with foam and am looking >forward to glassing them asap(which is always a month longer than I >had planned.) Is peel ply the way to go for a slick finish and why >is there not a good web site for the cosmetics on the KR ? >Mike Sylvester +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
A "slick" finish will depend on the amount of fill and sand and the paint you use. Getting it as light as possible and with the least amount of work starts with doing a good job sanding the foam. If you don't get the foam right you're just a dog chasing it's tail the rest of the way. If you get the foam as "perfect" as possible the KR cloth will wet out to a contour that requires the least amount of fill and sanding. What I did, and what I recommend, is when the KR cloth is wetted out, cover the entire wing with "deck cloth", a 1.5 ounce glass. It has a finish like a nylon stocking and requires very little fill. If it is applied while the KR cloth is still wet, it will soak up excess resin from below and require very little additional resin to wet out. The "deck cloth" from Wick's is wide enough to cover the entire wing in one piece. Just lay in on, dry brush and tug at the edges to remove all wrinkles and finally, brush on any additional resin required to wet it out. I'm convinced the few ounce of weight you're adding per wing is equal to or less than the amount of fill required to fill the weave on the KR cloth and you're doing it with a lot less work, not to mention the extra strength the glass adds. If you plan to do the wing glass lay up as a one man operation, I suggest you do the "hard shell" process that has been discussed on the net several times in the past. To "hard shell" you simply seal the foam with an epoxy / micro slurry and let it cure. Do a light sanding, one or two swipes with some sand paper to remove any prickles that tend to snag the glass if you slide it around on the foam, then do the glass lay up as usual. The glass to foam bond is just as strong as doing the entire process in a single operation. Sealing the foam takes some time and remember, you're dealing with cure time of the epoxy. Making it a two step process made the operation a lot easier for me. Try making two small test blocks using each process and, when cured, peal off the glass. See if you can tell any difference on the bond. The critical part of the process is the glass to spar bond. Make sure the spar wood is clean and ready to soak in as much pure resin as possible. That's one area you don't want a "dry lay up". Get the foam right and the rest is a down hill slide. Good luck........ Larry Flesner
