[Terry Gauvin]

Does anyone have any experience with Sig Koverall and Stix-it adhesive? I will need to cover a 1/3 Decathlon shortly and was planning on Super Coverite until I found out what their new "low" price was. Now I need a more reasonable alternative. If anyone has something even more cost effective than Koverall I would welcome that info also. Thanks.

[Kevin McGrath]

My experience with Koverall is all positive.I did my last major project which was a 1/3 Spacewalker with it ,and it remains unholed and unsagged (is that a word?) two years later.....
The stuff is cheap,shrinks like crazy and wont sag.It is somewhat heavier than plastic film but appearance is much more scale and I cant get excited about a few extra ounces on planes the size of mine and yours.
The best finishes for it IMO are latex or dope,with the nod to latex due to cost.I dont think a primer will be required using latex based on some experimental panels I did up to test the idea.......
Stixit works well,(it stinks! )but my experience taught me to use two thinned coats on all wood areas to be covered.I had originally advised here to use denatured alchahol to thin it but I just tested that theory and it doesnt work.Can anyone reccomend a cheap thinner?
All above IMO

[craigk]

never seen Kev get to excited about any weight - anywhere

[Kevin McGrath]

Boy its great to have friends..........trying to get your input count up to win the current contest?

[craigk]

that would be post padding and I wouldn't do that

[Terry Gauvin]

Thanks for the info Kevin. I got some Koverall and Stix-it coming from GH and will try it soon. Did you coat all of the framework with Stix-it or just do the edges? In you opinion would just doing the edges work? Thanks again.

[Kevin McGrath]

Do you mean the edges of fully sheeted areas?

[cplant]

My experience with Koverall was also positive. I covered my Citabria with it and it is great to work with and bulletproof. A few points though. It shrinks like mad. Leave lots of extra material around the edges as it has the potential to shrink so much that it will pull away from the edges of open areas if you're not expecting it. It's easier to trim it off afterwards than to have to recover a whole side . Be careful with the heat around fragile areas. Again it will shrink to the point of crushing weaker balsa substructures. Use very sharp scissors (I stole my wife's good sewing scissors ) or razor blades to cut it or the edges tend to fray. After it has been doped it is sandable so any loose threads can be sanded off usually. All in all, if you're not in a hurry it works really well. It is relatively inexpensive. It can be finished in any way from the scale "fabric look" to a high gloss depending on how many coats of dope you use and how much you enjoy sanding. It can be coaxed around some very complex compound curves that other materials would have a tough time handling. And it is really strong. A friend of mine sometimes jokes that if I ever crash that plane, the coveing will probably remain intact providing a ready made "trashbag" for the shattered balsa inside.

[ronm]

A friend of mine sometimes jokes that if I ever crash that plane, the coveing will probably remain intact providing a ready made "trashbag" for the shattered balsa inside.

As funny as this sounds, it is true!!

Ronm

[Kevin McGrath]

Actually I beleive Koverall is a light weight version of the same stuff used to cover full scale aircraft so strength is not an issue.You really do end up with a neat sac-o-parts if you have a severe crash.
It does shrink severely and definitley will crush very light weight structures but its too heavy for ideal use on models that light anyway......
It has a definite grain and direction and you must use a very sharp trimming tool as it does fray very easily,or as pointed out sand the loose edges clean after the first coat of sealing dope.
I guess nothing is perfect but this is the best all round fabric for large models in my experience so far........