Anyone Tried This Silkspan?

[mike londke]

Medium Weight from EasyBuiltModels    http://www.easybuiltmodels.com/Evaluation%20of%20EBM%20Silkspan.pdf

[Dave_Trible]

Yes I've used it three airplanes now.  It 's great.  I believe it's pretty much the silk span of old.  You buy it in a roll 10 ft. by 18".  It's roughly the old GM weight.  Seems a little pricey but I think it's worth it.  I'm using it on open bay wings and tail surfaces and the last of my old Sig light weight on the solid parts.

Dave

[john e. holliday]

Was it really the strength of the silk span or the amount of dope we put on?   

[wwwarbird]

Yes I've used it three airplanes now.  It 's great.  I believe it's pretty much the silk span of old.  You buy it in a roll 10 ft. by 18".  It's roughly the old GM weight.  Seems a little pricey but I think it's worth it.  I'm using it on open bay wings and tail surfaces and the last of my old Sig light weight on the solid parts.

Dave

 What's "the old GM weight"?

[Dave_Trible]

Wayne the silk span used to be sold in three weights at the hobby shop:

SGM...heavy
GM.....medium
OO.....light

Never really understood what the codes stood for but that's how you bought it.  This new stuff is very close to what I remember the old GM to be.  I recently built an original Jetco Dolphin kit from the early 1960s.  The silk span in the kit ( which I did use) was nearly identical to the Easy Built silkspan.

Dave

[mike londke]

Since his is laid over foam, almost  any type paper could do that, even the crap they now pass off as silk span. It could well be silk span, but without the silk fibers that made it so strong. What passes now is wood fiber paper. NOT the same.

Ty I was more interested in his comments about using it on open bay models. It seems he's a modeler so I want to believe him.

[mike londke]

Wayne the silk span used to be sold in three weights at the hobby shop:

SGM...heavy
GM.....medium
OO.....light

Never really understood what the codes stood for but that's how you bought it.  This new stuff is very close to what I remember the old GM to be.  I recently built an original Jetco Dolphin kit from the early 1960s.  The silk span in the kit ( which I did use) was nearly identical to the Easy Built silkspan.

Dave

Thank-You Dave, That's exactly what I was looking for. Someone here who has used the product.

[Randy Cuberly]

So!  Anybody have a link to where to buy the stuff?

Please!

Randy Cuberly

[david beazley]

http://www.easybuiltmodels.com/parts.htm

[frank mccune]

         Hi All:

         I have some of the SGM that I have attempted to use.  I did notice some characteristics of it that were unique:

         1. It is very thick not unlike what is sold as the material sold a flannel as in flannel shirts sold today.

         2. It is VERY strong! I can only tear it one direction.  I have to use scissors for the other direction.

         3. It will absorb dope like a diaper and shrinks very tightly.

         4. It is almost bullet proof but a bit heavy when used.

         I would like to find some more to use.  Anybody know where I may find some SGM silkspan?

                                                                                                                                 Tia,

                                                                                                                                  Frank McCune

[Jim Svitko]

I have used the silkspan from Easy Built Models.  I use silkspan to cover bare wood, not open bays.  Nevertheless, it works as well in covering bare wood as the silkspan that at one time was readily available from every hobby shop.

For open bays I use something stronger, such as Polyspan.

[Mike Griffin]

I do not want to drift off point with what Mike was trying to find out with his post , but Ty is right about the Silkspan of years ago, it is not being made anymore.  I tried some of the stuff that Brodak had and it is not even close to what was made years ago.  I went on a mission trying to find soneone who still made the good stuff but finally gave up and went to Polyspan.  It took me a while but now I actually prefer Polyspan over the old good Silkspan.  I remember asking Charlie Reeves how to apply it and dope it and after that, I never looked back.

Mike

[riley wooten]

Back in the days of old all kit mfg. bought silkspan from Aldine paper co. in Chicago.. Weather they mfg it or not I do not know.. I have tried but can not find anything on them now. It came in boxes of several hundred sheets per box and I don't remember minimum order. Good project for someone.............
RW

[FLOYD CARTER]

The "silkspan" now sold by Brodak works OK, but remember, there is a rough side and a "not-so-rough" side.

Floyd

[Randy Cuberly]

http://www.easybuiltmodels.com/parts.htm

Thanks very much David.  Site looks good.  Ordering some now.

Randy Cuberly

[Mike Griffin]

The "silkspan" now sold by Brodak works OK, but remember, there is a rough side and a "not-so-rough" side.

Floyd

Yes there is Floyd.  I found out the hard way.

Mike

[Randy Cuberly]

Back in the days of old all kit mfg. bought silkspan from Aldine paper co. in Chicago.. Weather they mfg it or not I do not know.. I have tried but can not find anything on them now. It came in boxes of several hundred sheets per box and I don't remember minimum order. Good project for someone.............
RW

Riley,
The only Aldine company I could find in Chicago was a publishing company.  I did find and Aldine Printing company in Manhattan NY, that is a specialty printing company for "luxury printing" whatever that means.  Lots of photos of very high end printed stuff.  I sent them an email questioning about the "silkspan paper".  It's possible they use it in laminations of fancy cards etc.   They appear to be closed today as I tried to call them but got only a robot telling me they couldn't take my call today.

The Chicago publishing company, as is typical with publishing companies, only wanted to be contact by email or snail mail but didn't provide any email address.  Go figure?

Randy Cuberly

[Don Hutchinson AMA5402]

Frank Zaic had a 2.5 page section in his book "Model Glider Design" that goes into detail on silkspan as developed by the Aldine Paper Co. of New York. Everybody that builds their own models should have a copy of this book. Worth it just for that info alone!