In years gone by, this method was considered for experts only, using specialist vacuum equipment and miles of loo roll.

The method I use employs nothing high-tech at all, standard modelling equipment plus an out of date credit card (or the Wife’s current one)

As with any covering material, no technique that I know of will cover a duff sanding job. The surface must be as smooth as you can get it, spend time doing this and you will be rewarded later.

At this point a word on ‘shop safety’. Epoxy resin can aggravate, or sometimes cause, a dermatological condition. I always wear protective gloves, available from Chemists, Car accessory shops and even Model shops! The Catalyst is an ‘Anaerobic acid’ and if got into the eye can cause tremendous damage if not treated promptly. (Not just washed out – seek medical help) I’m OK on this one – I wear glasses! This is true of ALL Resin/Catalyst products, not just of Epoxy finishing resin. As with most adhesives used, ensure adequate ventilation.

Cut the glass cloth to approximate shape, leaving an overhang, just the same as Tissue, Nylon, Film & ‘Tex. While there is a weave that we can take advantage of for moulding around corners, this stuff does not shrink at all – wrinkles left in will stay in! Along the line of filaments there is no stretch at all, but at a 45-degree angle, you can pull the material out of shape, around wing tips for instance.

Mix up the epoxy resin in the proportions stated in the instructions (always RTFM!). If possible, be as precise as you can, epoxy is fairly tolerant to the mix ratio, but don’t tempt fate! While I use the resin as is, it can be thinned using either Methylated spirit or Acetone. There is now a thinner marketed for epoxy – “from all good model centres.” Once thoroughly mixed, leave to settle for about 5 minutes for the constituents to combine fully.

Apply the mix using a paintbrush. I use cheap brushes, they do ‘moult’ hairs onto the job sometimes, but as it is very difficult to successfully clean the mix from the bristles, I dispose of the brush after use. The epoxy is spread over the area to be covered, and then the glass cloth laid on top. More resin is brushed on to the cloth stippling through to ‘wet out’ the cloth. It will become obvious when the cloth is ‘wetted out’ because it becomes translucent. Now, out with the credit card, and squeegee the resin off the surface and back into the mixing pot for re-use (a useful point to remember for us tightwads) during the stippling and squeegeeing, pull on the overhang to remove any wrinkles. It is surprising how hard you can press down on the job, the harder the better. Once you have squeegee’d all that you can, ensure that the overhang droops over the edges. The appearance will be like that of doped nylon, you should just be able to see the weave. Allow this to set overnight and then trim off the excess. File or sand the edges smooth, ready to cover the other side.

Once the entire model is covered in this way, give it a good sanding, using 600 grit wet & dry, used wet. This will take all the ‘nibs’ and lumps off, ready for the second coat of resin. Mix this up as before, leave to settle, and then brush on carefully. Ensure that you cover the entire surface, while brushing out to a thin layer to prevent runs and drips developing. Let this coat dry and then sand with fine wet and dry, used wet. If you do suffer some runs, you will need some really rough sandpaper to get rid of them; I use the rough side of a ‘Permagrit’ block. Sometimes, especially if the ratio is not quite right, or you haven’t stirred it enough, there might be a slightly tacky surface to it – don’t worry it will simply sand off.

The model is now ready for painting, or whatever. If you’ve done a good job, leave as is – so the model looks like it’s ‘woodgrain fablon’ covered…

The beauty of this method is that it is totally fuel proof, even resisting the long-term ingress of fuel, it is tough, reducing ‘Hanger rash’ and if you do break it, the model comes apart in large lumps – making it easier to glue back together.

Happiness is aeroplane shaped.

Tom Gaskin