Secret Formulas

[Sam Laughery]

I know many of you have your own made up concoctions for cleaning your planes.  How about sharing some of these secret formulas with us

Sam.

[Andrew Hathaway]

Well, you take Windex, add a bit of Dawn dish soap, and some ammonia... Mix it up really good... then promptly lose the bottle and use automotive glass cleaner instead. 

Seriously.

[RandySmith]

I use  Windex  or  Dow  bathroom cleaner,  After  that  I use  Pledge  furniture  polish, it shines the plane  and   the wax  or  silicone  helps  keep the  plane  cleaner  and  looking  better

Randy

[Dennis Moritz]

At the field I use 409 or windex. At home I use dishwashing soap and lotsa paper towels. Put only a a few drops where plane has picked up castor and dirt, suds up and wash it off a few times. Figure the soap won't strip off any finish no matter the mix of the dope. Also leaves a bit of slippery film behind that keeps the bad stuff from seeping into the wood. (I think.) Use whetted down paper towels. No direct water on plane. This is my procedure for sport planes that will be beat. Including the planes I compete with on the low level at which I'm qualified. Don't know exactly what to do with a tarted up show bird. I've seen 409 used on a few nifty expert stunters at our field. Amazing how casual we are about this important process. My best planes have survived into a hundred or so flights. What do you do with a bird one expects to fly a thousand times?

[George]

Clean your plane...what's that? 


Windex!

George

[Sam Laughery]

Hey Dennis,

How about electric??

[Dennis Moritz]

Mike Palko shows up with his Silencer " "Shut Up I'm Flying Electric" at our field, and I'm often a  bystander at the Mike Palko show thinking up new electric stuff to sell under the "Palko Products" name, our little running joke. One top secret device undergoing market testing as we speak in an "Electric condom," - "when the passion happens, sparks fly." Un ohh there we are, out of the packet.

Electric is advantageous in so many ways. Presents me with an Arf like conundrum. What to do. What to do. Planes that look better, often fly better, than my questionable quality craftsmanship. Planes I DON'T HAVE TO BUILD. With electric the motor runs the same. Starting doesn't aggravate my carpal tunnel syndrome. And of course no more gloppy oil and burnt fuel to sort of get off. For the moment I've got an out. The cost to get into it. Lots more than my typical ebay special or swap meet bargain FP, LA or Tower clone.  Then there's the math, I glaze over soon after Mike begins to do the equations, figuring out a configuration to work with such and such parameters of wing area and weight. All those different motors, with different windings, all those brands of battery pacs. All the alien info rubbing in how old and out of touch I am with these new techies. Computers at least came along  20 years ago when my mind was a sprightly forty. At my present number it's easier to be a crank, practising my coming role in years to come. Red faced outbursts at the present decadent state of the kids.

Then there is the reason I've observed many of us do the hobby. We did it like this at a simpler time in our lives, when we were innocent young guys and flying plane on wires felt so good. Just like we do it now. The noise of engines still a siren song. My my. Imagine flying without the noise and mess. Not the way I did it when I was eleven and twelve. Palko's a crazy young kid trying to ruin everything.    That turncoat BH. No matter how he tries to affect a young modern image, we all know why he wears a hat.

[Phil Spillman]

My formula is CHEAP at least I think so ! Prepare one gallon of hot water and add one ounce of Dawn to the jug. This mix becomes 1/2 of the total. The other 1/2 is straight Fantastic cleaner. Combine the two ingredients in another bottle and dispense through your favorite spray bottle, the one which fits in your flight box!

[Leroy Heikes]

I got my secret formula from a RC guy at work. Take windshield washer fluid put it in a quart spray bottle with one teaspoon of gel dishwasher detergent. shake gently! watch the blue color go away. Spray on airplanes wipe off nice and clean with no residue.

Leroy

[Bill Little]

I second the truck driver's spray windshield cleaner.  it foams up and removes all tht gunk.  Doesn't harm paint.

Randy mentioned Dow bathroom cleaner, that's great, too.  Pledge is a great idea as it helps the clean up process next time..

Bill<><