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Building Tips and technical articles. => Paint and finishing => Topic started by: t michael jennings on November 23, 2013, 08:59:50 AM
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Gentlemen,
Considering purchasing a gallon of Nitrate Dope from Aircraft Spruce or Wicks.
Not sure which one to get.
Plan to use it to seal bare balsa, flat balsa surfaces (flaps), and on Silkspan and SIG Koveral over wing ribs. My guess is a Tautening dope.
1) Should it be a Tautening or a non-Tautening dope?
They advertise Randolph as a;
Nitrate Clear High Solids
2) Is the above the correct for a Tautening dope?
3) What does the 'High Solids' statement mean on the label?
4) Is there a Shelf-Life to the Nitrate dope?
Thanks for the info.
T Michael Jennings AP^
Knoxville, TN.
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He t Michael
I have used the Randolph Taut Nitrate dope for years for the applications you are doing and it works really well. I have some that is several years old and turned kind of an amber color but it still works fine. I thin mine 50/50 with Nitrate thinner. I am sure there is a shelf life but it has to be several years. Anyway, it is a very good product and works well.
Mike
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When I was a kid I used nitrate dope on one side of silk wing and didn't paint the other side. Looked like a barrel hoop in the morning ....
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I have used a lot of Nitrate dope in my time, but if I didn't have any, I wouldn't bother to get some now! I do think it sticks covering on a little better, if you're doing an undercambered or polywog airfoil, but not a major deal.
One thing to watch for is that Aircraft Clear Dope (either Nitrate or Butyrate) typically comes with a blue tint to it, and you don't want that. You'll probably have to ask for it without the blue tint! :! Steve