Top Flite TOPA0405 - Manual (Page 51)

Suggested Covering Sequence
Fuse:
1. Bottom, then top of stab
2. Fin (olive drab on our prototype)
3. Aft, then forward fuse bottom
4. Nose checkers (see HOW TO APPLY THE
NOSE CHECKERS)
5. Wing fillets
6. Fuse sides (up to forward and aft deck)
7. Olive drab on aft, then forward fuse top
(overlap nose checkers 1/8")
8. Elevators and rudder
9. Invasion stripes on stab
Wing:
1. Hidden areas and corners such as the TE in
the flap and aileron area
2. Forward wing fairing on bottom of wing
3. Bottom of one side, then bottom of the other side
4. Top of one side, then top of the other side
5. Ailerons and flaps
6. Hatch covers
7. Invasion stripes
HOW TO APPLY THE NOSE CHECKERS
The nose checkerboard on the fuse was done with
MonoKote film. The checkerboard on the cowl was
painted. Applying the checkers does require a
slightly higher level of skill and some additional
time. If you are not yet confident with your covering
and painting techniques, you may just forgo the
checkers or simulate them with red and yellow
rings around the nose (like the spinner). Here’s
how we did ours...
Start with the fuse, then paint the cowl to match.
Before you proceed, the cowl should be primed
with the front end painted Cub Yellow as a base for
the checkerboard pattern.
❏
1. With the cowl in position, determine the location
of the aft edge of the checkerboard pattern on the
fuse and cowl. Essentially, you need to make a
ring around the front of the fuse. Our checkers
were approximately one-inch squares so, with two
rows of checkers, you need to make a ring 2-1/8"
(to allow for overlap) from the front of the fuse.
Wrap the front of the fuse with 1/8" flexible vinyl
tape carefully viewing from all angles to make sure
your tape line is square and true with the front of
the fuse.
❏
2. Use a soft lead pencil or a Top Flite Panel
Line pen to lightly mark your tape line onto the
fuse and cowl. Remove the tape.
❏
3. Remove the cowl and set it aside. Trim a
piece of Cub Yellow MonoKote film so one edge
matches the line you marked on the fuse. Iron the
Cub Yellow into position.
❏
4. Replace the cowl onto the fuselage. Determine
the size and location of your checkers by evenly
dividing and marking the ring around the fuse and
cowl, keeping in mind that the checkers will
converge and decrease in size as they reach the
front of the fuse. On our model, we evenly marked
twenty-two checkers along the aft edge of the ring
drawn on the fuse and cowl.
NOTE: It may be difficult to make all the checkers
exactly the same size so, if you have to slightly
enlarge or shrink any of the checkers to make them
all “add up,” this will probably not be noticeable to
the naked eye.
❏
5. Use 1/8" wide vinyl tape to extend the lines
you marked to the front of the fuse. This will be a
trial and error procedure as you may have to
remove and reposition the masking tape lines over
and over again until the lines converge evenly.
❏
6. Make the second “ring” around the front of
the fuse that notes the aft edge of the first row of
checkers.
❏
7. Once you have marked off all the checkers
and are satisfied with their size and placement,
use a Panel Line pen to mark the checkers on the
MonoKote on the fuse and a soft lead pencil to
mark the checkers on the cowl.
❏
8. Remove the cowl and peel off all the tape.
Cut checkers from Missile Red MonoKote film to
match your guidelines on the fuse and iron them
into position.
❏
9. Set the cowl aside and continue with the rest
of the covering sequence or, paint the checkers on
the cowl as described below at this time.
❏
10. Paint the Missile Red checkers on the cowl
using the lines you marked as a guide for your
masking tape. You’ll have to do it in two steps
because you can only paint half of the checkers at
a time. If possible, use an airbrush to paint the
Missile Red checkers. With an airbrush, you can
apply the paint finer, drier, and in a much smaller
amount. This greatly reduces the chances of paint
bleeding under your masking lines. You can apply
LustreKote through an airbrush if you spray some
through a tube into your airbrush bottle.
❏
11. Paint the rest of the cowl with Aluminum
LustreKote to match the fuse.
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