by Secondo » Sat Jul 12, 2008 2:19 pm
(Thanks Jim
)
The more interesting point about the building process is, to my opinion, the fiberglass molding: I would like to discuss about this with you all, because I still have mixed opinions about it.
What I'm still asking myself is: finally, was it worth all that work? Could it be a useful modelling technique for large scale RC models?
It was not an idea of me, however: it was my father, used to work on real boats, that suggested me to use the molding, offering me the materials. Even if I'm sure that most of you already know the process, I'll shortly resume it.
First of all, a traditional wooden hull has to be built: this will be used as the plug for the mold. As the mold itself will be almost impossible to correct when finished, the plug must be without any defect. Then, it must be covered with several layers of a release agent, that can be a special wax or PVA (polyvinyl alcohol), but I had many troubles with PVA and I definitely prefer to use the wax.
Gelcoat, a very durable resin, can then be applied, followed by layers of fiberglass and resin (4 or more). Finally, the plug has to be separated from the mold.
Then, to get the fiberglass hull, apply wax to the mold, then fiberglass and resin; Gelcoat is not necessary for the hull, as it will have to be painted anyway.
It's not really difficult: the problems are that the process is time-consuming, resin must be manipulated with caution, and those materials may not be easy to find.
- Attachments
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- The wooden hull that served as the plug for the mold
(Thanks Jim :wave_1: )
The more interesting point about the building process is, to my opinion, the fiberglass molding: I would like to discuss about this with you all, because I still have mixed opinions about it.
What I'm still asking myself is: finally, was it worth all that work? Could it be a useful modelling technique for large scale RC models?
It was not an idea of me, however: it was my father, used to work on real boats, that suggested me to use the molding, offering me the materials. Even if I'm sure that most of you already know the process, I'll shortly resume it.
First of all, a traditional wooden hull has to be built: this will be used as the plug for the mold. As the mold itself will be almost impossible to correct when finished, the plug must be without any defect. Then, it must be covered with several layers of a release agent, that can be a special wax or PVA (polyvinyl alcohol), but I had many troubles with PVA and I definitely prefer to use the wax.
Gelcoat, a very durable resin, can then be applied, followed by layers of fiberglass and resin (4 or more). Finally, the plug has to be separated from the mold.
Then, to get the fiberglass hull, apply wax to the mold, then fiberglass and resin; Gelcoat is not necessary for the hull, as it will have to be painted anyway.
It's not really difficult: the problems are that the process is time-consuming, resin must be manipulated with caution, and those materials may not be easy to find.