Gents,
You may remember my problem with some glass along the rib flange for my
starboard TP-2; it didn't want to lay down. After thinking I had fixed
it twice, I went ahead and did the same layup on the port core. Once
that had cured, I compared the two and realized something was decidedly
wrong with the starboard core's rib layup. (It's harder to rationalize
away any flaws when you have something to compare them to.) The
"problem" flange still sat high in several spots and no amount of
heating and squeezing was going to change that. I decided that I had
not shaped the rebate properly, leaving some areas too shallow. After
talking with Bob in Lakeland, I tried to remove the bad flange, hoping
to redo that part of the layup without disturbing the rest. About 2
minutes into this process I discovered what was causing my problem.
I had wetted out the first two layers of bid on cling film, then
transferred them to the core while still on the film. I trimmed the
glass through the film where needed, then peeled the plastic away and
went on with the rest of the layup. What I didn't notice was that some
of the cling film had wrapped around the bottom of the glass along a
section of the rebate and had stayed behind, trapped between the glass
and the foam. You know what that boneheaded move resulted in.
Knowing I couldn't trust any of the layup anymore, I stripped the core
bare. (No mean feat, let me tell you.) After several hours of cutting,
heating, and cursing, the core was free of any traces of the initial
layup. Some micro here and there and a new flox "corner" around TP-6
and the core will be ready for a second layup.
I'd changed my cling film technique during the port core layup
(luckily!) so there's no danger of a repeat performance of my farce.
Now I trim the cling film right to the edge of the cloth before I take
it to the core. I also don't do any trimming until I've removed the
cling film. I may even mark the film with black stripes or something to
further prevent leaving any behind.
This was a sobering episode for me. I'm thankful for all the support
---From the group as well as Bob in Lakeland. Without it, I may have just
shrugged my shoulders, and turned my back on a potentially fatal flaw in
my tailplane. Thank you all for your unstinting assistance. Eileen and
I are very grateful.
Steve Genotte
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