Thread: I may take up knitting......

Bartley,next time forget the clear dope,two problems using this soon to be banned substance,the weight penalty is very high and unless you thin it right down it just keeps on pulling and warping the structure out of shape,those porous tiny holes will always be present unless you add more weight inflicting fillers,but weight is the last thing you want on a lightweight structure model such as the one you have built,steer clear of colour finishes the best you can,just add a bit of colour to wingtips,cowlings etc.
The best lightweight finish that is non toxic as well is well thinned Polyvinyl Acetate Adhesvive,otherwise known as PVA,just get a bottle and add a small quantity then top up with water,add a tiny amount of gum arabic ( obtainable from art suppliers ) shake the bottle and allow to settle for about one hour to get rid of the air bubbles,take your model which has been pre water tightened ( you did remember to do that now ?) by flicking the bristles of a water dipped stiff domestic brush drawn against a kitchen knife,let this dry before using your thinned liquid,next with a soft well loaded brush apply the thinned PVA to the tissue,wherever possible pin down the parts of things like wings/tail etc,this way as the material dries the tension flat against the building board will not warp and pull the structure out of line,two 'thin' coats should suffice,if you really must add colour then use artists poster paint,this dries nice and flat and is above all lightweight.
Remember grams of extra weight really add up with these small models,you need to go easy on that colour !