allinaviation
Member
We need a little advice on the type filler that is best to use to straighten the line where the fiberglass meets the windscreen on my RV 8. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.
Van's Air Force
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Fiberglass to windscreen filler
- Thread starter allinaviation
- Start date
rivetdriver
Active Member
West system 410
I use West system 410, mixed with epoxy.
you can mix it to about peanut butter consistency.it spreads out nice and sands very easy.
hope this helps
I use West system 410, mixed with epoxy.
you can mix it to about peanut butter consistency.it spreads out nice and sands very easy.
hope this helps
rightrudder
Well Known Member
I'm using epoxy & microballoons, tinted with black pigment. Good stuff, light and pretty easy to sand.
AAflyer
Well Known Member
Windscreen filler
I just did mine in the last few days. I watched and followed the Van's video that was recently added to their RV-14 support site. Prepped my Todd's canopy and the top fuselage skin laying a double layer of electrical tape, and sanding with 80 grit. Used West Systems #105 resin with slow hardener #206.
I bought a small jar of grey tint from ACP ( Aircraft Composite Products) along with other fiberglassing supplies, and used just a pinkie fingernail of it, and it still turned the epoxy slurry grey, despite the micro-ballons being rust colored. The ratio of micro-balloons to liquid turned out to be about 1:1.
It may have been a mistake, but I bevelled the windscreen to more closely match the top skin; consequently, there really wasn't a substantial gap into which I could squeeze the epoxy, but, I'm confident that it is plenty secure. I feel confident because I squeezed epoxy both inside and out. The inner bead turned out pretty good. ( Sorry, no pictures) When I was SIKA-ing my canopy, I learned how to lay a good bead, run a filleting tool across it, pull one layer of tape, re-tool, and finally pull the second layer of tape and then DON"T TOUCH IT! This techniques was used for the inside bead only…the outer bead was applied without any electrical tape boundaries.
The micro-slurry sanded very easily; I glued some 80-grit to a 4" long piece of 1" diameter PVC pipe, with worked quite well. I did the sanding while holding the end of the vacuum hose next to the sanding block, so I was able to do this in my shop; I thought I was going to need to pull the fuselage out onto the driveway in order to keep the dust out of the garage, but the 80-grit produced relatively large particles that were sucked up by the vaccuum pretty cleanly.
Here's the front edge and side/corner areas- BEFORE.
[URL=http://s1381.photobucket.com/user/AAflyer/media/Windshield%20Epoxy/IMG_5835_zpsxvnpft9b.jpg.html]
[IMG]http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/ah213/AAflyer/Windshield%20Epoxy/IMG_5835_zpsxvnpft9b.jpg[/URL][/IMG]
[URL=http://s1381.photobucket.com/user/AAflyer/media/Windshield%20Epoxy/IMG_5833_zps7qtcrgkd.jpg.html]
[IMG]http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/ah213/AAflyer/Windshield%20Epoxy/IMG_5833_zps7qtcrgkd.jpg[/URL][/IMG]
URL=http://s1381.photobucket.com/user/AAflyer/media/Windshield%20Epoxy/IMG_5838_zpssafsbbqw.jpg.html]
…and here's the same areas-AFTER sanding.( You can see the small bracket I pop-riveted to the top skin to keep the plexi securely positioned while I SIKA-ed the canopy bow.
[IMG]http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/ah213/AAflyer/Windshield%20Epoxy/IMG_5838_zpssafsbbqw.jpg[/URL][/IMG]
[URL=http://s1381.photobucket.com/user/AAflyer/media/Windshield%20Epoxy/IMG_5839_zps1qwbio3i.jpg.html]
[IMG]http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/ah213/AAflyer/Windshield%20Epoxy/IMG_5839_zps1qwbio3i.jpg[/URL][/IMG]
Overall, it went a lot easier than I expected; but I credit the Van's video in giving me a lot of confidence and motivation to ..JUST GO FOR IT>!
Now..on to the fiberglass layups.
I just did mine in the last few days. I watched and followed the Van's video that was recently added to their RV-14 support site. Prepped my Todd's canopy and the top fuselage skin laying a double layer of electrical tape, and sanding with 80 grit. Used West Systems #105 resin with slow hardener #206.
I bought a small jar of grey tint from ACP ( Aircraft Composite Products) along with other fiberglassing supplies, and used just a pinkie fingernail of it, and it still turned the epoxy slurry grey, despite the micro-ballons being rust colored. The ratio of micro-balloons to liquid turned out to be about 1:1.
It may have been a mistake, but I bevelled the windscreen to more closely match the top skin; consequently, there really wasn't a substantial gap into which I could squeeze the epoxy, but, I'm confident that it is plenty secure. I feel confident because I squeezed epoxy both inside and out. The inner bead turned out pretty good. ( Sorry, no pictures) When I was SIKA-ing my canopy, I learned how to lay a good bead, run a filleting tool across it, pull one layer of tape, re-tool, and finally pull the second layer of tape and then DON"T TOUCH IT! This techniques was used for the inside bead only…the outer bead was applied without any electrical tape boundaries.
The micro-slurry sanded very easily; I glued some 80-grit to a 4" long piece of 1" diameter PVC pipe, with worked quite well. I did the sanding while holding the end of the vacuum hose next to the sanding block, so I was able to do this in my shop; I thought I was going to need to pull the fuselage out onto the driveway in order to keep the dust out of the garage, but the 80-grit produced relatively large particles that were sucked up by the vaccuum pretty cleanly.
Here's the front edge and side/corner areas- BEFORE.
[URL=http://s1381.photobucket.com/user/AAflyer/media/Windshield%20Epoxy/IMG_5835_zpsxvnpft9b.jpg.html]
[IMG]http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/ah213/AAflyer/Windshield%20Epoxy/IMG_5835_zpsxvnpft9b.jpg[/URL][/IMG]
[URL=http://s1381.photobucket.com/user/AAflyer/media/Windshield%20Epoxy/IMG_5833_zps7qtcrgkd.jpg.html]
[IMG]http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/ah213/AAflyer/Windshield%20Epoxy/IMG_5833_zps7qtcrgkd.jpg[/URL][/IMG]
URL=http://s1381.photobucket.com/user/AAflyer/media/Windshield%20Epoxy/IMG_5838_zpssafsbbqw.jpg.html]
…and here's the same areas-AFTER sanding.( You can see the small bracket I pop-riveted to the top skin to keep the plexi securely positioned while I SIKA-ed the canopy bow.
[IMG]http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/ah213/AAflyer/Windshield%20Epoxy/IMG_5838_zpssafsbbqw.jpg[/URL][/IMG]
[URL=http://s1381.photobucket.com/user/AAflyer/media/Windshield%20Epoxy/IMG_5839_zps1qwbio3i.jpg.html]
[IMG]http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/ah213/AAflyer/Windshield%20Epoxy/IMG_5839_zps1qwbio3i.jpg[/URL][/IMG]
Overall, it went a lot easier than I expected; but I credit the Van's video in giving me a lot of confidence and motivation to ..JUST GO FOR IT>!
Now..on to the fiberglass layups.
Last edited:
Robert Anglin
Well Known Member
I vote for West systems also.
I have come to like the West system epoxy. I use the 105 base just as the others here have said, But I like using the Tropical hardener I think it is 207.
The Tropical hardener has some "U.V." filter in it and sets up a little slower so you have more working time. I will add what ever I think is needs to do the job at hand. The west system has a number of additives so you just practice with them till you get good at mixing to get what you want.
Hope this helps. Yours as always, R.E.A. III # 80888
I have come to like the West system epoxy. I use the 105 base just as the others here have said, But I like using the Tropical hardener I think it is 207.
The Tropical hardener has some "U.V." filter in it and sets up a little slower so you have more working time. I will add what ever I think is needs to do the job at hand. The west system has a number of additives so you just practice with them till you get good at mixing to get what you want.
Hope this helps. Yours as always, R.E.A. III # 80888
Van's has an RV-14 support site? Is it the information that's included at http://www.vansaircraft.com/public/service-rv14.htm?
If so, that's a nice surprise...and helpful for us lowly non-RV14 builders!
Dave
Looks good, but one comment....
Micro mixture is not for structural bonding. It is a filler only. The actual fiberglass lay-up is what it being relied upon to attach the wind screen to the fuselage
I would recommend (same as shown in the videos) that builders work in such a way that they are maximizing bond area for the fiberglass layup directly to the aluminum and the acrylic canopy. I.E., avoid laying fiberglass over micro mixture (regardless of how thin) in areas that the fiberglass layup is being relied upon for structural attachment of the canopy
