Top Flite TOPA0400 - Manual (Page 50)

slightly contour the epoxy to make a fillet. Remove
the masking tape, wet your finger with isopropyl
alcohol and blend the epoxy mix into the stab, fin
and fuse sides.
FINAL SANDING
Remove the engine, servos, control horns and any
other hardware that may restrict sanding. All edges
should be rough sanded and rounded following the
cross-section views on the plan. Nearly every
imperfection in your wood structure will show
through the covering material; therefore, before
covering, you should make a final check of the
entire structure. Fix any “dings” before sanding the
entire structure. Fill all dents, seams, low spots
and notches with HobbyLite™ balsa-colored filler.
After the filler has dried, use progressively finer
grades of sandpaper to even and smooth all the
edges, seams and surfaces. Remove all the balsa
dust from the model with compressed air or a
vacuum with a brush and a tack cloth.
BALANCE THE MODEL LATERALLY
Do not confuse this procedure with “checking the
C.G.” that will be discussed later in the manual.
Now that the model is nearly completed, you
should balance it laterally (side-to-side). An
airplane that is laterally balanced will track better.
Here’s how:
❏
1. Temporarily attach the elevators, rudder,
engine, cowl, landing gear and wing. Lift the model
by the propeller shaft and the bottom of the fuse
near the rudder. This will require an assistant. Do
this several times.
❏
2. The wing that consistently drops indicates
the heavy side. Balance the model by adding
weight to the other wing tip.
COVERING
NOTE: The vacuum formed machine guns may be
“sunk into” the wing, flush with the LE, or they may
be trimmed and painted separately and glued on
after covering.
Cover the model with Top Flite ® MonoKote ® film,
using the suggested covering sequence that
follows. Before you cover the fuselage, first apply
3/8" wide strips of MonoKote film in the corners
where the stab meets the fuselage and the fin
meets the stab. Then, proceed to cover the fin and
stab with pre-cut pieces that meet in the corners
and overlap the 1/4" strips. Never cut the covering
on the stab and fin after it has been applied except
around the leading and trailing edges and the tips.
Modelers who do this may cut through the covering
and into the stab and fin. This will weaken the
structure to a point where it may fail during flight.
Some modelers prefer to cover the top and bottom
of the ailerons with one strip of MonoKote film. This
is done by covering the bottom first, then wrapping
the MonoKote film up over the leading edge.
We used Top Flite MonoKote Aluminum, White,
Black, Flat Black and Sky Blue to cover our P-51D.
NOTE: See the Apply Trim section for hints on
how to apply covering details.
Suggested Covering Sequence
Fuselage and Tail:
1. 3/8" strips at fin and stab as described
2. Aluminum on the wing fillets of the fuse
3. Aluminum on aft fuselage bottom
4. Aluminum on forward fuselage bottom
5. Fuselage right side up to the Sly Blue on the
turtle deck and the Black on the nose
6. Fuselage left side up to the Sky Blue on the
turtle deck and the Black on the nose
7. White followed by the Black strips on the aft
fuselage bottom
8. Sky Blue on the turtle deck
9. Black on the nose
10. Fin TE, followed by stab tip and TE
11. Stab bottom, followed by top
12. Fin right side, followed by the left side
13. Elevator LE and root ends
14. Elevator bottoms, followed by the top
15. Rudder LE, right side followed by the left side
Here is an easy method to remove minor
dents in wood where the wood grain has not
been broken.
A. Wet the area of the dent with water.
B. Carefully rub a hot sealing iron over the dent.
C. As the wet wood is heated, the wood grain
will swell up.
D. Allow the wood to dry before sanding smooth.
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