Adam's Foam Board Building Tip

[Seahunter]

I submitted this tip to Josh Bixler months ago in hopes that he would mention it in one of his builds, but it either wasn't received or not wanted as I've never heard of it again. Most of my airframes have the foam board edges sealed in the old way using a bead of hot glue and a notched scrap of foam to smooth it out and toughen up the edges. Works great, but has poor airflow and doesn't look all that good. While building my scratch Mini-SE5, I came up with a better method. All you need is a jar of Mod Podge and an applicator of some sort. I prefer a popsickle stick with one end sanded down thin. Do this step on the wings and tail feathers before you put them on so you can work on a flat surface. Do not pinch or score the edges before applying the Mod Podge. Apply a generous coat along the edges and let it rest until it soaks into the foam and starts to get tacky. Then pinch the edges evenly to the desired shape, leading edges can be rounded and trailing edges tapered in with this method. Try to keep the Mod Podge from running down the sides of your board. It is water based, so clean up is easy. I have gotten much neater with this since this build. I painted it with Krylon spray paint after thoroughly sanding as recommended by Flite Test. I used the new water resistant board. The decals were copied from some little decal sheets I saved from some old plastic scale model kits and I resized them on my printer and coated and applied them with the Mod Podge. I have used this method of decals for years, I noticed James Womley uses it also as he has a video on this. I am also flying this little SE5 on 4 channels, note the ailerons. I used a "F" pack on this build and some scale Williams wheels. Great flying design Josh!!! Thanks

 

[Merv]

Great idea, thanks for sharing. Great looking plane.

 

[Keno]

There is wisdom here. I have found that is necessary to seal the edges as described. I have found that any coating, sealer or color coating including Min Wax interferes with the adhesion of the foam to paper bond. If any presently known coating is over apply it gets worst. I have experienced what I call "Paper blistering" or bubbles in the paper separating from the foam. Nasty thing to happen to your project. This is what it appears; expansion of the paper in respect to the foam to which it was attached. Ie., spray water on (white) board and it will warp. OK now what are we to do? What I have found is that you have to accept this but minimize it as much as possible. I have been experimenting with all types of coating, You name it and I have probably tried it. Hazard waste disposal is a problem to self. So far in this endeavor I have found that spaying my project with Kylon Glitter Blast Clear sealer has not caused paper separation but does reduce adhesion of paper to foam. Thus this requires the edges of your project to be sealed to prevent air movement to lift paper from attached foam. I am only addressing white foam board I have not done much with moister resistant foam board (brown board)

 

[Seahunter]

There is wisdom here. I have found that is necessary to seal the edges as described. I have found that any coating, sealer or color coating including Min Wax interferes with the adhesion of the foam to paper bond. If any presently known coating is over apply it gets worst. I have experienced what I call "Paper blistering" or bubbles in the paper separating from the foam. Nasty thing to happen to your project. This is what it appears; expansion of the paper in respect to the foam to which it was attached. Ie., spray water on (white) board and it will warp. OK now what are we to do? What I have found is that you have to accept this but minimize it as much as possible. I have been experimenting with all types of coating, You name it and I have probably tried it. Hazard waste disposal is a problem to self. So far in this endeavor I have found that spaying my project with Kylon Glitter Blast Clear sealer has not caused paper separation but does reduce adhesion of paper to foam. Thus this requires the edges of your project to be sealed to prevent air movement to lift paper from attached foam. I am only addressing white foam board I have not done much with moister resistant foam board (brown board)

I know exactly what you are saying. The only sure way that I have learned to truly seal the old white board requires removal of the paper and re-attaching it with some type of water resistant glue such as they do in the rasterize skins. I tried the ModPodge as an outer coating and did experience blistering and release if it soaks through. Does work when paper is removed first, so does elmers white glue. Downside to ModPodge is paint tends to release when you paint over it. The method of sealing the foam edges is working for me so far. I want to try the mini corsair and mustang rastererize skins, then do the edges with ModPodge. I only have an 8 x 11 printer, so will have to have copies of the skins run commercially. Actually, the mini SE5 is the first FT model that I tried the ModPodge on. I discovered it while sealing the wings. I do all my foam models now. You can see how I shaped the trailing edges on the second photo aileron trailing edge. My neighbor came in , picked up the wing and thought I was using thinner foam board, LOL If you make any breakthroughs on the foamboard sealing and painting, please share with us as a lot of us are experimenting out here Thanks Fred

 

[Merv]

I like to cover my planes with colored packing tape. It's waterproof and repairs are a breeze. For me its' a lot easier & faster than paint. My planes look good but they are not the works of art that yours are.

 

[Hai-Lee]

For the sealing of FB edges I normally use a wipe on of white wood glue. it soaks into the paper, (top and bottom), on the edge and as it dries it shrinks pulling the paper taut and locking the in place so that even it the bond to the foam is lost the paper is held to the LE.

A second method for that shaped look for the LE I have used a 5 x 5 mm strip of balsa glued to the edge of the FB and then shaped with a little sandpaper work. Needs to be sealed or other wise covered but it works a treat and adds little extra weight.

Actually, I use a plethora of different methods and materials some of which are more effective than others but I have managed to extend the life of my models, (that I fly regularly), to be many years now without any obvious delaminating, softening, or warping. There is no one best method though so I keep experimenting but the white wood glue has shown the most reliable results long term so far.

have fun!

 

[Seahunter]

I like to cover my planes with colored packing tape. It's waterproof and repairs are a breeze. For me its' a lot easier & faster than paint. My planes look good but they are not the works of art that yours are.

That's a good way to go. downside is the extra weight it adds to your airframe. I've never done an actual weight comparison, I just like paint better. If you look at the mini scout and the mini speedster in my hanger in the media section of this forum, both are fully covered in packing tape. The mini scout is my best extreme small area foam flyer. I bought a set of eight rolls early on and still use it for trim and stripes etc, but now use the water resistant foam and paint. Most of the nose stripes on my airframes are packing tape. Thanks for your compliments, Fred

 

[Seahunter]

For the sealing of FB edges I normally use a wipe on of white wood glue. it soaks into the paper, (top and bottom), on the edge and as it dries it shrinks pulling the paper taut and locking the in place so that even it the bond to the foam is lost the paper is held to the LE.

A second method for that shaped look for the LE I have used a 5 x 5 mm strip of balsa glued to the edge of the FB and then shaped with a little sandpaper work. Needs to be sealed or other wise covered but it works a treat and adds little extra weight.

Actually, I use a plethora of different methods and materials some of which are more effective than others but I have managed to extend the life of my models, (that I fly regularly), to be many years now without any obvious delaminating, softening, or warping. There is no one best method though so I keep experimenting but the white wood glue has shown the most reliable results long term so far.
have fun!

Exactly, there are no truly correct way's to accomplish these tasks, just the end result on some is sometimes better than others. I have been experimenting with white glue and it works as well, perhaps better than the ModPodge as it dries harder than the ModPodge and accepts paint better. Also if you make a cut 1/8" - 1/4" down the center of the trailing edge before you apply the glue, it helps the glue to absorb into the foam deeper, I use a piece of wood the length of the trailing edge to press it down to the table smoothly and shape it while it sets up.
If you are in a hurry, the ModPodge seems to tack up a little faster and stays a little more flexible. All this is about appearance and airframe life, the old methods work just fine and flight characteristics are almost unnoticed because of the small size of the airframe.

 

[Keno]

Exactly, there are no truly correct way's to accomplish these tasks, just the end result on some is sometimes better than others. I have been experimenting with white glue and it works as well, perhaps better than the ModPodge as it dries harder than the ModPodge and accepts paint better. Also if you make a cut 1/8" - 1/4" down the center of the trailing edge before you apply the glue, it helps the glue to absorb into the foam deeper, I use a piece of wood the length of the trailing edge to press it down to the table smoothly and shape it while it sets up. If you are in a hurry, the ModPodge seems to tack up a little faster and stays a little more flexible. All this is about appearance and airframe life, the old methods work just fine and flight characteristics are almost unnoticed because of the small size of the airframe.

Fred I am not sure how my methods in our conversation will work on water resistant foam board. I do have some to try it on, I just did not like it because of its waxy coating. If I added colored packing tape for decoration and needed re-positing the paint pulled off, kind of ugly. However if you want to fly of water it is great stuff. I will do some work on this. "W's" don't make problems, they solve and fix problems.

 

[Seahunter]

Just an example of how Mod Podge can improve the edge seal, appearance and flight characteristics of your DTFB build. I attached a photo of the horizontal stabilizer of my current build and an untreated pattern. Which one do you like? Guess it depends on the builder and how long he wants his plane to last. On the left before, right one after sealing edges with Mod Podge.

 

[Hill Top Flyer]

I saw a YouTube video of cutting foam wings with a hot wire. After the wing was sanded and glued together, it was covered with painters masking paper. (The brown, thin, paper-bag looking stuff) The paper was cut to fit with a bit of overlap, then diluted white glue was brushed on the wing and the paper and then assembled. A plastic card was used to push out any wrinkles. The wings were cut out of construction foam, blue or pink. Looked really nice and easy to do.

 

[Hill Top Flyer]

I just scratch-built a Mini Bloody Baron out of white, paper covered foam board from $store. Cut really easy with knife, hot glued together well, but when I painted it I used 'Liquitex' water-base paint. BIG mistake. The paper on the foam and the paint didn't like each other. Oh well, live and learn. Used Rustoleum later and that worked ok. LIGHT coat first and then final coats, not too thick. Didn't add much weight and looked ok. Will try a few other painting tips next time...maybe primer on wp foam board after removing the wax. Have built many balsa planes since I was a kid. Silk, tissue, shrink wrap coverings (Monokote, solar film, etc). Balsa is nice to work with as is foam.

 

[bracesport]

I am currently working with Adams ready board and using packing tape edges. It’s effective but not easy around corners!

Let’s put our heads together to sort this out once and for all!

 

[Keno]

The only thing that I can add to this is; if you do use shrink covering use a LOW temp covering such as Econo Kote or others low temp covering that you may like. If you cover $tree white foam board and use excessive heat to apply it will cause the foam to expand, thus forming ugly bumps on your build.

 

[bracesport]

I recently used some glass and epoxy over an Adams Ready Board foam wing. When I cut the ailerons out I used epoxy to stiffen the raw edges.

I’m thinking it might be possible to seal the edges of the wing with epoxy before taping and folding as usual (leaving the edges bare of tape).

The epoxy should seal the card to the foam.

 

[FoamyDM]

I like to cover my planes with colored packing tape. It's waterproof and repairs are a breeze. For me its' a lot easier & faster than paint. My planes look good but they are not the works of art that yours are.

It's easy and fast payoff. Waterproof - no, Water resistant sure. I currently Color Tape my planes. They are Vibrant and add strength.
I may not be able to find it, but one bloke/member/fellow modeler of flying things. @AkimboGlueGuns maybe had an SE5 that he spray-glue cellophane covered his wing from $store rolls, Then hair dried it. It stuck solid and form fit any curves as it shrunk. It looked beautiful. It is currently on my agenda to try.

If it works, I'm thinking cutting out holes or a pattern in the wing and covering, then lighting from within. Like a flying lantern