Ain't nothing wrong with doing it old school, and it still can be done these days. Silk span seems to be getting hard to find for some parts of the country. Polyspan is a new `covering material that has been on the scene for a while now, and is sort of the best of both worlds. Dope it on, heat it to shrink it, then apply dope as usual, but the material isn't as open weave type material like silk or silk span so it fills easier and requires less dope. It does take some getting used to, and there is lots of info here on the list. Sparky has a subscription series of videos that you can watch on line and has done one specifically on Polyspan, along with the rest of a traditional dope finish. Silk is still preferred by some, especially for OTS models but it's expensive at most outlets, but the internet sources that Larry mentioned seem to be pretty reliable for that material.
Good luck and have fun,
Dan McEntee