Finishing; Final Sanding; Cover The Model With Monokote Film - GREAT PLANES Profile 38 Instruction Manual

Now that you have the basic airframe completed, this is a
good time to balance the airplane laterally (side-to-side).
Here is how to do it:
1. With the servos, canopy and engines installed, level
the wing. Then, lift the model by the nose of the canopy and
the center of the trailing edge. Do this several times.
2. If one wing tip consistently drops when you lift the
plane, it means that side is heavy. Balance the airplane by
gluing weight to the inside of the other wing tip. Note: An
airplane that has been laterally balanced will track better in
loops and other maneuvers.

FINISHING

Final Sanding

Remove the engines, canopy and radio gear from the plane.
Fill any scuffs and dings with balsa filler or by the
"expansion" method described earlier. After the filler has
dried, use progressively finer grades of sandpaper to even
and smooth all the edges, seams and surfaces. Remove all
the balsa dust from the model with compressed air, a tack
cloth or a vacuum with a brush.
Cover the Model with MonoKote
The technique described here is how the model pictured on
the box was finished using Top Flite MonoKote film and
LustreKote ® high quality paint. The use of a Top Flite
MonoKote Hot Sock ™ on your covering iron will prevent
scratching the MonoKote film.
Before covering the fuselage, first apply 1/4" [6mm] wide
strips of Aluminum MonoKote film in the corners where the
stabilizer, fin and booms meet. Also apply 1/4" [6mm] wide
strips of Aluminum MonoKote film along the joint between
the wing and the booms. Do not, under any circumstances,
attempt to cut the covering on the stabilizer or wing
after it has been applied except around the leading and
trailing edges and the tips. Modelers who do this may cut
through the covering and into the stabilizer or wing. This will
weaken the structure to a point where it may fail during flight.
We suggest covering the larger areas first, such as the wing
and stabilizer center sections. Then, use the smaller leftover
pieces of film to finish the stabilizer and wing tips and the fin
and boom.
The black and white invasion stripes on the wing can be
applied using several different methods. The first method is
to cover the wing completely with aluminum MonoKote film.
Then, the white and blacks strips are ironed on at a lower
temperature. The problem with this method is that air
bubbles can get trapped under the covering. This becomes
a bigger problem when covering over an open structure.
The second method is to use Top Flite MonoKote Trim
Solvent to apply the black and white stripes. This method
will give you a smooth, bubble-free finish, but requires 24
hours to dry.
A third method, as explained in the following Expert Tip , is
to iron the black, white and aluminum films on a piece of
glass overlapping the colors by 1/4" [6mm]. Then, iron the
film on as one big piece.
Covering An Open Structure With More Than One
Cut a piece of aluminum MonoKote film 8" wide by 11"
long [203mm x 279mm]. Place marks 1/4" [6mm] in along
one of the 11" [279mm] sides. Lay the aluminum film on a
piece of glass that has been lightly wetted with a glass
cleaner such a Windex
Film
®
paper towel to remove the glass cleaner from under the
film. The film must lay flat on the glass.
Cut two white stripes 2-5/8" wide by 11" long [67mm x
279mm]. Again, lightly wet the glass and align one of the
white stripes with the marks on the aluminum film.
Cut a third white stripe 2-7/8" wide by 11" long [73mm x
279mm]. Position this stripe 1-7/8" [48mm] from the edge
of the first white stripe.
Position the third white stripe 1-7/8" [48mm] from the
edge of the second white stripe. Make sure all three white
stripes are parallel. Use a squeegee and paper towel to
remove the glass cleaner from under the covering.
36
Color Of MonoKote Film
. Use a squeegee wrapped with a
™