Returning to the initial topic of this blog…

I’m now returning to the initial topic of this blog; the use of the Simonini Victor 2 engine.
The plan is to get the wings on the plane this weekend and as soon as my new propeller arrives I'll be back in the air again (yes Mother, of course I will do all the required tests and verifications first...)
But before leaving the ORATEX history let me share my thoughts so far…

What I really liked

• The ease of use It turn out to be very pleasant to work with. It easily adapt to the required shapes like rounded wing tips. It is “clean” to work with and smaller parts can be covered in your office or living room…
• Mastering the weight Weight is always a to be considered and knowing for sure, in advance, how much you will add when covering the plane is very nice. And it is light… covering the wings of my Avid Flyer added just under 3 kg.
• No solvents Sure, covering a plane it is a “once in a lifetime” event and breathing the traditional solvents when doing it once won’t kill you (but it might make you dizzy…). With the hot-melt as only liquid component, and this being non inflammable and free of smell, the exposure is reduced to next to nothing (you might still have to degrease some parts before applying the hot-melt). There are no concerns heating your workshop and working with the doors closed. Some might wave this “no solvent” argument but for me it is a really strong point in the system.
• No paint job This goes with the 2 previous points. Some like the paint part of the work, I don’t. Once you have put the final tension of the fabric you are done, finished. It saves a lot of time. With traditional methods you would just be ready to apply your first coating, or maybe not even that, maybe you would just start the sanding of the surfaces to paint…And there is no paint that will crack and peel off later…
• The quality of the product I have been using the UL600 for most parts and it is very strong and resistant (there are good demos on the web and see also my stress tests on this blog posted September 2011 ). For a few parts (landing gear) have used the 6000 version (600 is for planes up to 600 kg while 6000 is for up to 6 tons…) and it appears extremely rugged.

  

  Popular passenger footwear

  There is no way your passenger will harm it when climbing in or out unless wearing ice skates (and even then…). The hot-melt creates, through polymerization, an incredibly strong bond to both frame and fabric on fabric. The impression is that it is much stronger than Dacron to frame or Dacron to Dacron.  Yes, the second part of “quality” is obviously how it resist in time, but I don’t have that knowledge yet to share.
• Very good and friendly service from the manufacturer They don’t hesitate to send you a mail to verify you have ordered the right stuff and come with advice. The product is expensive by the meter (but total cost is fully comparable with traditional methods) so you don’t want to buy more then you need. I found they had been very generous when cutting the ordered length and I have leftovers for future repair and could even redo the elevator that I did first and is not 100% satisfied with.

To be considered (but without therefore being real concerns):

• Surface aspect For most parts of what is covered the final aspect is perfect. Not as shiny as you get from (new) paint but it looks really great. But there are no filler or multiple paint layers of paint that will hide where you have an overlap. If you look close you will always see the different pieces of fabric. And difficult to cover “straight corners” of rudders etc. might not be esthetically perfect.  You should be aware of this if you are looking for the all over glossy and perfect “just out of the factory” look.
• The hot-melt turns yellow The hot-melt, white when liquid, transparent when dry, will turn light yellow once the polymerization is completed. As mentioned it is incredibly strong and therefore impossible to remove once set. Make sure you don’t get glue where you don’t want it. I have been forced to cover some clue stains with paint…
• The white UL600 is not opaque I have been using white UL600 and it is very white but not completely opaque. Covered dark elements sometimes give the impression of less “white” areas. This is not a major concern but be known when preparing the structure (or making the choice of color).
• “Smelly paint” While the hot-melt for the fabric is without harmful solvents the matching 2 component paint is something you should avoid breathing. It feels unfair to complain about smelly paint when the traditional alternative is smelly "everything', maybe it is the contrast to the fabric and glue process that makes me sensitive. However, the color matches perfectly the color and aspect of the fabric and the result is a highly resistant and elastic paint that is really up to the job.

Conclusion

For me, with my taste, my preferences and my intended use, the positive side of ORATEX clearly wins over the above mentioned “inconveniences”. Without hesitation I would use it again if I was to start over again and I will definitely use it for my next project (that at the moment is just an idea in the back of my head…)

The next step in sharing the ORATEX experience will be to see how it stand up to maintenance and time... I will post comments on this in the future.