Greetings: Even with fans and plenty of air flow, Model Airplane Dope vapor still stings the eyes. My wife notices the same problem. Since she commissioned the boat, she is ok with an occasional application. I do not work with with the stuff more than 20 minutes a day to allow the vapor to be flushed out of the air fairly quickly. That dope is quite pungent. MMJR:cry:
As an alternative, some clear lacquers work almost as well and may have less of an odor. Clear polyurethanes will also work, but tend to be just as strong smell wise as dope. Agreed with using the stuff outdoors or in a room separated from the house.
I thought about it. The Florida heat index was so high that middle and high school sport teams cancelled practices outdoors several times over that last 10 days. When the heat is not an issue, rain with winds and lightning is. Outdoors is not a good place to work from May to October. Even the dope evaporates faster out of the can than one can apply it onto the balsa. Florida is a challenging place to do work outside. MMJR
Really wow. I sheeted over the long weekend in Georgia and I didn't figure it was that big of an issue. You just need to wait for the right outdoor conditions I guess since working indoors isn't really an option.
man wouldn't have and couldn't have settled Florida if it was so inhospitable that you couldn't do 10 minutes of work outside on a regular basis for half the year work in the morning or evening when its marginally cooler and there is less oppressive sun failing that, if you simply must work inside, do as Greg said, and plunk down some coin for proper protective gear for you and your wife. I hope you're not subjecting any pets to chemical exposure while you're doing this.
If it has to be done inside maybe make yourself a downdraft table that can exhaust outside. I wouldn't use aircraft dope inside with just a mask.
I got a little curious and so I did some looking. The following table is from WeatherUnderground's recorded numbers for Leesburg, Fl (which neighbors Astatula, correct?), from Sept 1 through today. This next table is, for anyone caring to figure out a heat index, a table ripped from Wikipedia on how to roughly calculate a heat index from Temperature and Relative Humidity. NOAA national weather service: heat index temperature (°F) 80 82 84 86 88 90 92 94 96 98 100 102 104 106 108 110 Relative Humidity (%) 40 80 81 83 85 88 91 94 97 101 105 109 114 119 124 130 136 45 80 82 84 87 89 93 96 100 104 109 114 119 124 130 137 50 81 83 85 88 91 95 99 103 108 113 118 124 131 137 55 81 84 86 89 93 97 101 106 112 117 124 130 137 60 82 84 88 91 95 100 105 110 116 123 129 137 65 82 85 89 93 98 103 108 114 121 128 136 70 83 86 90 95 100 105 112 119 126 134 75 84 88 92 97 103 109 116 124 132 80 84 89 94 100 106 113 121 129 85 85 90 96 102 110 117 126 135 90 86 91 98 105 113 122 131 95 86 93 100 108 117 127 100 87 95 103 112 121 132 . Effects of the heat index (shade values) Celsius Fahrenheit Notes 27–32 °C 80–90 °F Caution: fatigue is possible with prolonged exposure and activity. Continuing activity could result in heat cramps. 32–41 °C 90–105 °F Extreme caution: heat cramps and heat exhaustion are possible. Continuing activity could result in heat stroke. 41–54 °C 105–130 °F Danger: heat cramps and heat exhaustion are likely; heat stroke is probable with continued activity. over 54 °C over 130 °F Extreme danger: heat stroke is imminent. Exposure to full sunshine can increase heat index values by up to 8 °C (14 °F).[7] Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heat_index
It doesn't normally take a lot of time to dope silkspan onto balsa. The inside is done before the balsa is glued to hull so maybe 5 minutes worst case? Once the balsa is glued on maybe another 15-20 to do both sides? I think it was 97 the day I silkspanned my ship outside under a canopy in full sun. If you have to wait a bit for the optimal time no big deal. Just make sure you use a 1"or larger brush to apply.
1. A one inch or larger paintbrush--I have been using 1/2"--no more ! 2. I apply silkspan/tissue in 2" by 4" strips on the non penetration areas. This does take lots of time to do. 3. In any event, I am finished tissuing the hull! Now I go to work on the superstructure. After some thought, I am going to use BB-27 USS Michigan topside. The hull is the proper proportions for that ship. Ms Admiral may captain the ship when its done. 4. I had to open a new can of dope after emptying the old can. I noted the new dope was not as awful. Perhaps the dope get worse with age. MMJR
try water based dope and products from stewart systems. more expensive but pretty much the same stuff just water cleanup when wet. it wouldn't handle permeant submersion but neither would plain dope.
How did you do your silkspan (or tissue)?? Seems like you should be able to do it in a couple larger pieces without cutting it down as small, and it should go pretty quick. The procedure I used was to apply a couple coats un thinned Nitrate dope (not butyrate dope if at all possible -- it causes more shrinkage and can cause warping). It can be slapped on pretty quickly, it soaks in fast and dries faster. After that is completely dry, I cut (for my boat) a single piece of silkspan large enough to cover the entire side, but if there are difficult curves it would need to be done in sections small enough to not wrinkle up, like you did. Then lay it dry on the side of the hull (or balsa if you are doing it prior to sheeting). Then using more dope, but this time thinned 1:1, brush over the dry silkspan. The thinned dope will soak through the silkspan and "re activate" the previously applied dope on the balsa, sort of melting into it and forming a chemical bond with the silkspan in between. Sorry if this is all info you already know, it just struck me a little odd that it took so long for you to get through the process, so I thought I would type this up in case it could help you out in the future since you are already done at this point
Actually, you have suggested a different method of covering. I use tissue from the gift section of the dollar store to cover the non-penetration sections. Silkspan is a bit harder to get since the local hobby shop does not carry it anymore--forcing mail order. Penetration areas get the actual silkspan. I followed tissuing instructions from building-model-boats.com. This is why I did the tiny strips. I did not count how many strips I used but I use about 30-40 strips for a 40 inch long boat. This minimized bubbles, wrinkles, and voids. I do not use any epoxy or fiberglass for the boat. Tissuing is old style waterproofing. I appreciate the suggestion. Applying large sheets would make the process faster as long as as I can dodge the imperfections. MMJR
50/50 mix of Titebond II and water works great. No odor to speak of and water cleanup. I little longer on the drying time though.
