Tweaking The Canopy Fairing Lay-up
Today, I decided to add a couple of layers of
cloth to the left and right side of the canopy fairing lay-up in the area where
the glass cloth got depressed above the canopy frame arms. The reason being is so
filler will not need to be laid on so thick in this area. Did not want to waste
a full pump of epoxy resin for such small pieces, so taking the advice of
builder Bob in Wisconsin, I made plunger stops for the pumps so they only depress
half of their full range … thus dispensing half the amount of resin and
hardener. It would be a nice touch if West Systems would provide plunger stops
with the dispenser kit for those small batches that are so often needed …
because I see a few small batches of micro filler on the horizon.
Wooden stops made for the resin and hardener
pumps to only allow half the normal amount of resin and hardener to be dispensed.
After making the plunger stops, they were
quickly put to use. I used some tracing paper and made a template for cutting strips
of cloth to help fill the depressions above the canopy frame arms. A small
batch of epoxy resin was mixed and two strips of cloth were applied to the
depression and covered with peal-ply. It looks like the remaining imperfections
on the left side can be filled with filler but the right side may benefit from
one additional layer.
Two narrow plies of glass cloth were applied to
the depressions on both sides and covered with peal-ply. Here on the right side
it is hard to see, but there is still a little dip under the peal-ply in the
area between my fingers.
Of note: I should have been wearing the above
T-shirt last Friday during phase one of the canopy lay-up.
