Pepsi Chipmunk Build

What the ****! I have spent quite a few hours in two afternoons trying/practicing to cover one underside of the wing in red for trailing edge and white centre band and have wasted nearly one roll of red and one of white. Just can't seem to get it to shrink with out wrinkles afterwards. I have had no problems on solid surfaces but open structures............ God knows what I am doing wrong!

I've given up for now.

Heat gun or iron?

Chinakote is great at these times. If you've waster a roll of profilm you might as well just throw fivers away...cheaper in the long term than throwing profilm away!!!

MikeSeale wrote: Heat gun or iron?

A bit of both Mike. I even went to Screwfix and bought a new heat gun with a flat blade air director just like in the Oracover photos although the old one did the job just fine previously. I think after more reading it may a be case of using too high a temp and/or not pulling it taut enough before tacking. Strange, because a few years a go, well six I think I recovered a 60 size chipmunk wing with all the stripes/colours and no issues at all.

It's definitely ME!

MikeSeale wrote: Heat gun or iron?

A bit of both Mike. I even went to Screwfix and bought a new heat gun with a flat blade air director just like in the Oracover photos although the old one did the job just fine previously. I think after more reading it may a be case of using too high a temp and/or not pulling it taut enough before tacking. Strange, because a few years a go, well six I think I recovered a 60 size chipmunk wing with all the stripes/colours and no issues at all.

It's definitely ME!

Today the new iron arrived along with a pack of scalpel blades so another go at covering the wing. This time I did it my way firstly using covering stuff (pva based I think) allowed to dry and started again on laying down the red and white areas on the underside. Seems to be okay this time. Did one lay of red topside too. Will lay in servo leads before covering with white. Flap and aileron servos mounting blocks glued to hatches ready for servos.

The leading dark blue film will be here tomorrow, Royal Mail willing. Hoping that all will shrink down nice and tight.

I would suggest my old iron's thermostat is dodgy now hence my wrinkly issues.

Underside of wing now covered and shrunk. Servo hatches covered and with Obechi servo mounting blocks glued on. Tomorrow hoping to get top side done, servos installed and control surfaces hinged............. :whistle:

Wing now covered (had a couple of boo boos with film - learning curve ) Servos installed and flaps glued in. I will leave ailerons for now, a little bit of re-adjustment needed to hinges when i am in the mood.

New heat gun definitely worth it, more concentrated air in a blade pattern makes for more precise shrinking.

The ailerons were fitted on Sunday afternoon. With Monday afternoon now "free" I got on and set up the control linkages. The control horn posts were too long by 20mm (they are really for rudders but cheap from ebay - No Miracle posts anywhere ) so had to cut them down.

The control rods are from ally rod which I then die-cut with 3mm threads. Connected up the AR9000 intended for the Pepsi and set up aileron rates and flaps. Will replace ball end nuts with nylock nuts and find some large bore silicon fuel tube for the clevises.

There are a few areas of film that need some fine attention but I will leave them for now after the Chipmunk patch fiasco.... :lol:

Nice work Phil