Building with Depron

madcooie

Junior Member
Hi Guys,

I was wondering if any of you have built using Depron foam? How easy is it to follow plans for an FT model with Depron, etc? Do you have to tape the edges for example? BTW this would be 6mm foam.

All the best,

cooie
 

CrashRecovery

I'm a care bear...Really?
Mentor
A lot of people have used depron foam. We tend to stick with the dollar tree stuff since its only a one dollar a sheet.
 

Craftydan

Hostage Taker of Quads
Staff member
Moderator
Mentor
That and Depron is really hard to get in the US, while every where else seems to think so little of it they use it to line their walls ;)

the DTFB (Adams ready-board) core is very similar, though thinner, but the paper adds quite a bit of rigidity. lining it with thin vinyl sheeting or packing tape will help tremendously.
 

Jaxx

Posted a thousand or more times
That and Depron is really hard to get in the US, while every where else seems to think so little of it they use it to line their walls ;)

the DTFB (Adams ready-board) core is very similar, though thinner, but the paper adds quite a bit of rigidity. lining it with thin vinyl sheeting or packing tape will help tremendously.

Craftydan,
Depron is really not that hard to get in the US, it's just very expensive when compared to DTF. There are several hobby sites that sell it. The problem is, a 27"X39" sheet will cost you about $9 plus shipping. If you buy it in larger quantities, the price comes down a bit (20 sheets for $135 plus shipping). That's still almost $7 a sheet before shipping. If you're on a tight budget, that price will probably a be a limitation. I get my Depron at RCFoam.com. I am in the process of building a RCPowers.com F-35 V3, and will be building some of the FRCFoamies.com planes as well (some of them discussed recently on this forum). They are designed to be built with Depron (even through with some minor modifications they can be built with DTF). If your build requires Depron, RCFoam.com just started selling a Depron substitute that is made by the same manufacturer that makes DTF. They have branded it "Value XPS" (Extruded Polystyrene). A box of 16 (24"X48) sheets (not sold in individual sheets) will cost you around $50 plus shipping (~$3.15 a sheet before shipping). It's not as rigid as Depron, but will work just fine in many applications that call for Depron. The Extruded Polystyrene can also be found at ModelPlaneFoam.com.

http://www.rcfoam.com/depron-and-epp-foam-suppliers/
http://www.rcfoam.com/depron-and-ep...el-foam/value-xps-closed-cell-xps-p-1603.html
 

pgerts

Old age member
Mentor
I have used 3/6 mm depron for many years. I have got it "to my door" for about 4/8 dollars a sheet of 125*80 cm/50*32" (box of 20 sheets 3mm and 10 sheets of 6 mm). No paper= extra weight. Transparent light packing tape on the edges makes it stiff. I do not have to use any extra bamboo skewers or carbon on the FUNBAT (Bloody Wonder) to make it stiff using 6 mm depron. No need for any minwaxing on depron.
 

Jaxx

Posted a thousand or more times
Hi Guys,

I was wondering if any of you have built using Depron foam? How easy is it to follow plans for an FT model with Depron, etc? Do you have to tape the edges for example? BTW this would be 6mm foam.

All the best,

cooie

Cooie,
Here are some articles where Depron was used for the build. I have not used it for any of my FT builds, so I can't speak from personal experience. Hope this helps.
http://flitetest.com/articles/depron-baby-blender
http://flitetest.com/articles/my-scratch-built-old-fogey-d
http://flitetest.com/articles/ft3d-scratch-build-from-istanbul-turkey
http://flitetest.com/articles/nutball-unswappable
http://flitetest.com/articles/depron-foam-hinges-tape-hinge
http://flitetest.com/articles/depron-foam-hinges-hot-glue
http://flitetest.com/articles/baby-blender-depron
http://flitetest.com/articles/spitfire-for-a-friend
 

Craftydan

Hostage Taker of Quads
Staff member
Moderator
Mentor
Craftydan,
Depron is really not that hard to get in the US, it's just very expensive when compared to DTF

Jaxx,

Yes, it is available from hobby stores/sites, but it's the "line the walls" pricing we lack here in the US, because we use different materials. In the same way, those outside the US are hit with a HEAUGE price if they want to try Adams readyboard -- as material it's popular here *only* because of it's low price and wide availability. In the end we're better off finding the locally available cheap foam, learning it's strengths and weaknesses, and building to the hearts content -- which is why I don't buy Depron here . . .
 

andy_spoo

Member
I was just reading about depron. Apparently it's brittle. So if your a 'crashy' kind of person, I'd avoid. As for people who say the paper on foam board adds weight, so does packing tape that people seem to cover depron.
 

rcspaceflight

creator of virtual planes
I was just reading about depron. Apparently it's brittle. So if your a 'crashy' kind of person, I'd avoid. As for people who say the paper on foam board adds weight, so does packing tape that people seem to cover depron.

Packing tape, if you get the right stuff, weighs about the same as paper but does a much better job of preventing the foam from breaking apart. You'd be surprised how good of a material foam covered with plastic (packing tape) is. The two materials work together so you get the advantages of both without the weaknesses of either. Basically, the plastic keeps the foam from breaking/tearing apart and the foam keeps the plastic from flapping in the wind.
 

rockets4kids

Senior Member
I have only recently discovered this. I believe that a large part of the problem with dollar tree foam in a crash is how easily the paper becomes de-bonded from the foam. When tape is applied directly to the foam, the foam may crumple internally, but the tape will still stay bonded and hold it together. Although tape does not stick well directly to foam, if you hit the foam with some Spray 77 (a very light coat is sufficient) the tape becomes permanently bonded to the foam.
 

rockets4kids

Senior Member
most of it weighs less, at least the colored stuff does...

In my experience, the vast majority of packing tapes on the shelves at the local Big Box Stores do indeed weigh more than the paper on DT foam. The thinnest tape I have found is Duck HD Clear which does indeed weigh almost exactly that of the paper on DT foam. This tape has a 2.6 mil thickness, and I believe the colored tapes are 2.1 mil, so those should be a little lighter.

For reference, a sheet of DT foam board weighs about 120 grams; 60 grams for the foam and 30 grams for each sheet of paper.

I did actually weigh a roll of Duck HD Clear full and empty, and a 1.88" x 54 yard roll contains 182 grams of tape. When you do the math, this comes out to almost exactly 30 grams to cover a 20" x 30" area with no overlap.
 

xuzme720

Dedicated foam bender
Mentor
In my experience, the vast majority of packing tapes on the shelves at the local Big Box Stores do indeed weigh more than the paper on DT foam. The thinnest tape I have found is Duck HD Clear which does indeed weigh almost exactly that of the paper on DT foam. This tape has a 2.6 mil thickness, and I believe the colored tapes are 2.1 mil, so those should be a little lighter.

For reference, a sheet of DT foam board weighs about 120 grams; 60 grams for the foam and 30 grams for each sheet of paper.

I did actually weigh a roll of Duck HD Clear full and empty, and a 1.88" x 54 yard roll contains 182 grams of tape. When you do the math, this comes out to almost exactly 30 grams to cover a 20" x 30" area with no overlap.
Sorry, the stuff I use is only 2mil so it's lighter than the "normal" packing tapes. It's not available at the local store though. The type of tape used will have a dramatic effect on weight depending on what kind of tape you have available. Consider the weight differences between Duct tape(heavy), Heavy duty packing tape(medium), and the super thin colored packing tape(lightest). There is a huge range of not only weights but thicknesses, as well. You just have to choose what will work best for your needs.
 

Vintauri

Minnesota RC'r
I use Depron all the time. It is very rigid when you learn about finding the grain and use the right support as you would any DT foam airplane. RCFoam.com is a great place to purchase it and it's best to go in as a group to buy a case at a time. You can also cover it with low heat covering film such as econokote. Just make sure to use a low temp setting on your iron.
 

Shufty

Senior Member
I was just reading about depron. Apparently it's brittle. So if your a 'crashy' kind of person, I'd avoid. As for people who say the paper on foam board adds weight, so does packing tape that people seem to cover depron.

It's somewhat brittle, but it's still very durable (I've nosed dove my F-22 into the ground a few times, picked it up and flew it again) also fixes really, really well compared to foamboard using hot glue/epoxy and tape.