Tips and Tricks
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Parchment Paper
Modelers of a certain age remember when model airplane construction articles began with something like "be sure to cover your building board with wax paper to keep from gluing your wing to the board." That worked very well for a long time but it seems that modern wax paper is all but useless for our purposes.
Plastic wrap can be used, but I find it unwieldy. What to do? Enter: parchment paper.
I can't take credit for the discovery of parchment paper's (PP) excellence for model building (I think I read about it in one of Al Rabe's online treatises.) Literally nothing sticks to PP. It is also translucent, which makes it ideal to trace parts out from plans. If you need to rub dope into your covering, use a small piece of PP to rub it in instead of your finger.
Plastic wrap can be used, but I find it unwieldy. What to do? Enter: parchment paper.
I can't take credit for the discovery of parchment paper's (PP) excellence for model building (I think I read about it in one of Al Rabe's online treatises.) Literally nothing sticks to PP. It is also translucent, which makes it ideal to trace parts out from plans. If you need to rub dope into your covering, use a small piece of PP to rub it in instead of your finger.
Foam Sanding Blocks
My wife and I were out shopping one day and she needed to buy some stuff from the local beauty supply store. I wandered around and found a display of soft foam blocks with abrasive material attached to them. Presumably, their normal use is for buffing nails. There were different sizes and grits available.
The pictured unit is 1x1x4 inches and is allegedly 320 grit. I've used it for some finish sanding of dope before applying primer and it works well. 99 cents at Sally Beauty Supply. I think I'll go back and try some other sizes/grits.
The pictured unit is 1x1x4 inches and is allegedly 320 grit. I've used it for some finish sanding of dope before applying primer and it works well. 99 cents at Sally Beauty Supply. I think I'll go back and try some other sizes/grits.