On to the fins...
After much deliberation and a major amount of soul searching
, I decided to paper the booster fins and seal the others after attaching them...
Yeah, we'll just wait a while and see if it stays that way...:eyeroll:
Prepping of the fins
After cutting them (all fins) free of their balsary bonds, and sanding to match, marked the LE with a sharpie
To get them rounded over, used 220 grit paper (150 will eat this thin stuff quick!). It only took a few swipes back and forth (kinda like stropping a straight razor) before a rounded edge emerged. I stopped when a pencil thin line remained.
Now that that is finished, on to the papering...
I use Avery full sheet labels here, and cut out a piece large enough to cover front and back with the round-over at the LE. After placing the fin on the paper, I press it on using a flat piece of plastic. I personally like to trim as I go, rather than all at once, but either way works...
Before I roll the LE over completely, I start it, then add a few drops of a super-thin CA to the LE before rolling it the rest of the way. This helps reduce separation of the paper from the balsa (looks like a bubble under the paper) at the LE during weather changes and such; especially if the LE isn't as straight as it should be. More than a few paint jobs needed fixing because of that...
And this fine gem is what we end up with. I'll seal all edges 2x's with the thin CA, then as a final step will seal the paper with a thin coat of that very same CA. A little sanding and they'll be good to go!
While I was at it, and on somewhat of a roll, decided to, ahem, paper the other fins too... Even the tiny b$%^@#*s up top. In the end, it was all worth it. At this point everything's papered up and edges sealed; luckily only added about a gram to total weight (without paper they weighed 4.3 grams) so performance won't take a huge hit.
Next up we'll be sealing the paper, then attaching them to the body tubes...
'Till next time
fm