Could be worth trying to get 'Cellulose thinners' from your local hobby or DIY store: thats mostly acetone. But note that that pure "RC Hobby Stores" may not stock any thinners since most RC models are covered with heat-shrink plastic film rather than tissue paper and nitro-cellulose dope.
You could also try ordering cellulose thinners from an online supplier, but beware that postal deliveries may be a nono in some places due to its flammability.
From memory, Tyndall?
But see the paragraph BEFORE , which page contains also "From 1853 to 1887 he was professor of physics at the Royal Institution of Great Britain in London" and "(but there is no evidence that he owned commercial patents)".
Sadly not. Itconatns no acetone whatsoever.
MEK and xylene mostly.
But note that that pure "RC Hobby
None of it works. ONLY acetone which you can get from people who sell fibre glass supplies.
Or in small quantities as 'nail varnish remover'
++1
OK. Current composition noted.
I know it *used* to be acetone, but that the smell changed in the last decade or two. I'd assumed it had become adulterated with something to put off the glue-sniffers but that there was still quite a lot of acetone in the mix.
That makes sense.
This is probably the best source: you don't need much to unstick fingers and FG suppliers want to sell it by the litre.
Check that it is acetone though, a lot of them these days are 'Acetone free'.
acetone is handy stuff to have in the cupboard.
It is for me, but then I make epoxy/glass mouldings and cover wings with tissue and dope, so I tend to have the odd litre of thinners and/or acetone around for thinning dope, cleaning brushes etc. I've bookmarked Fibreglass Direct: thanks.
OTOH people who don't do this sort of thing probably don't mess with cyano much either - hence my nail varnish remover suggestion. However, a little more research soon shows that this is a bad recommendation: while you can get nail varnish remover packages for less than a litre of acetone from the likes of
you can get purpose made debonder, which is a witches brew of nitromethane acetone and a sort of gelling agent - it works but its eye wateringly expensive
Or from riskier sources...
I'm certain, but personally, I don't need it. I have glow-fuel containing
25% nitro to hand if I ever need a debonder, but I can't remember the last time I needed even that. In any case I have only one use for cyano in the workshop - putting carbon capstrips on balsa wing ribs. Thats a job for slow Zap in any case, so you just don't get stuck. In the workshop I use either epoxy or aliphatic wood glue for almost everything: thin cyano is for field repairs.
I use PVA for that.
Only use CA when feeling execptionally lazy or tacking block together.
Or for that bit that will NOT stay down..or for stiffening thin sheet.
Its orrible stuff. sticks everything except the part you want and sears your lungs and makes your eyes water. And ends up as a lump you cant sand, is brittle and doesn't key well when you have end grain as that sucks it all up.
For plastic work half the time it attacks what you want to glue, and the other half it doesn't bond. I tend to use hot glue for plastic these days.
Thats a
I try not to crash :-)
>
How do you manage that? I've never seen PVA or aliphatic stick to carbon. IME its always been peelable.
For cap strips its got to be thick cyano, which also gets rid of most of the smell and sticking the wrong piece. Under surface is easy: cover the jib with the heat-shrink film sold by Flitehook (normally used to wrap ciggies and CDs), hit it with a mist of 3M Spraymount and drop the cap strips in place. Dabs of thick cya on the ends and drop the D-box assy into place. Repeat for the carbon strip trailing edge. Then use thick cya to put the ribs in. Wait 10 mins. Use a sanding bar to finish the tops of the ribs and more thick cya to put the top cap strips in place using bits of masking tape to keep them in place. Wait another 15 mins, pull the panel off the jig and job done apart from adding sheet, joiners, etc at the root. If you want to see pics, look here:
As I said, try thick cyano next time - its a lot more friendly to use. However, I agree with everything that you said about thin cya.
I fly competitive free flight. Sometimes damage is unavoidable: think of a windy day, having the model land on a runway and being blown over and over along it. Or dethermalising into a tree.
It depends what "brand" you get and whether the Elfin Safety people have banned the good stuff by now, as they usually do :(
An old, old can of Carplan Cellulose thinners, mostly Xylene, reasonably pleasant (almost fruity) smell when in use, good for clearing congested throats :) (yes obviously use good ventilation blah blah blah).
No problems though.
But ...
A new bottle of Rustins CT, unpleasant smell, gives me a faint headache within minutes of using it. Just checked the label. MEK and MIK. Not buying that again!
How is *that* an improvement?
Don't use it to try and reform the ends of a frayed shoelace that lost its aglet.
Interesting high speed reaction, evolving acrid smoke and copious heat.
Memo to self: CA and certain fabrics: bad idea.
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