Hi all,
 I know this has been brought up before, but......

 Which dope is which? 
 
 I believe that Nitrate is the non-shrinking dope and that butyrate is the shrinking type,No?

 The reason that I ask is that the dope that I have become very accustomed to using is no longer in production. Bummer! 

It was just labelled "model aircraft Dope". Never stated whether or not it was butyrate or nitrate, but I assume it was nitrate.

Unfortunately, due to all of the hazmat rubbish, it appears that no one will import Brodak or Sig dope into Australia as the market is so small.  The options are fairly limited.

There is one particular brand of nitrate available here that I am loathe to use as it has caused me huge problems with thinner compatability and the company concerned don't make a thinner to suit it.

 Which means the only alternative is Randolph aircraft dope, which a few of the guys here have used with a fair bit of success.

The added bonus of using Randolph dope is that it's available by the gallon!

 Any thoughts before I "commit" to a gallon of Randolph would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance, Rob.

 
 Which means the only alternative is Randolph aircraft dope, which a few of the guys here have used with a fair bit of success.

The added bonus of using Randolph dope is that it's available by the gallon!

 Any thoughts before I "commit" to a gallon of Randolph would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance, Rob.

Rob,
I just got an order of Randolph from Aircraft Spruce yesterday. I got quarts of both tautning and non tautning nitrate and butyrate dopes, and both types of thinners
restocking my paint cabinet.Easy folks to deal with too! Just a FYI, make your order with quarts v/s a gallon can save you the 20 buck hazmat additional fee. My shipping was only 7.71(Fedex) total for 5 quarts. Each can is carefully wrapped and taped, so its not obvious that it could be gallons of hazardous stuff....
Richard

I only use Butyrate dope on everything!

I only use shrink type.

   Hi Folks,
  Thanks again for the replies.

 I probably should have worked out what I really needed to know by letting you guys know how I have been finishing my models.

 I generally use silkspan on open bays, a couple of coats of dope on sheeted areas (fuselage) with dope and talc (or corn starch) for grain filler. After this I generally go to grey primer (acrylic),  painted with either enamel or 2-pack base coat. Final top coat is 2-pack polyurethane clear.

 Nowdays I use the one type of thinner throughout to try to promote better "bonding" between the different substrates.

 I would love to start painting with coloured butyrate but it is unavailable here.

 Guess I really need to know which type of dope would be best to use basically as a grain and tissue sealer that will be happy with grey acrylic primer and not cause the silkspan to turn wings into a starved horse?

 Thanks again, Rob.

What Ward says is very true.  In my observations, though, the typae and amount of dope applied cancause contiinues shrinkage to all surfaces.  I have not tried Brodak Clear butyrate (although I have used Randolph's.  Sig Supercoat Clear will shrink a ton.  That is great for getting a tight covering job over open bays, but I don't want it to keep on shrinking over the wood areas.

To each his own, and you can develope your own methods that work.  Mine just happenes to be a nitrate base, non-tautening, and I can use anything over it!

Dupont Nason 2 part auto clear. No thinner. Wet sand & buff out.