In the sunlight.

I re painted the bleed through spots this morning in prep for the clear. I put it on the scale and it's 55.0 ounces without the battery or tip weight. It looks like all the weight I got rid of got put back in paint. Anyway I'm off to Harbor Freight to get a new spray gun for the clear and future projects. I'm retiring my old gun as It's not good enough for the clear coats that really count.

A little short on paint.

The base coat had over 4 days to dry. I started taping off for the first trim color. That took a few hours but went smoothly. I got the spray gun and hooked it up to the compressor. I got the jar of paint and I figured it would be enough. Then I got the opportunity to go to the hobby shop for some thinner. Everything was falling into place. I started to paint and got about 3/4 done with the first coat when I ran out of paint. A panic run back to the hobby shop for another jar of paint. I got back and mixed the paint real good, thinned it and dumped some in the gun. A couple squirts and the paint cup fell off. I hurriedly mixed what was left and finished the job. But the paint had black spots in it. I looked at the container and cup and there was stuff in them. I dumped the paint out and shook it up again and got a piece of fiberglass cloth to strain the paint. Another coat and all was well. Except that the masking tape lifted and I got overspray in a few places that required some cleaning up and tomorrow I have to spray white in a few places. My first dope paint job since the early 1960's. I weighed the plane and came up with an increase of 3 ounces with the paint so far. I figure another 3 ounces of clear which will bring me to the same as the other Legacy built with all kit woods. As far as the other Legacy, I've been stripping the paint off the nose using that as a test for color sanding and polishing.

First coat of paint.

I had severe doubts as to the compatibility of the primer I used on the plane with butyrate dope paint. Anyway the weather was dry enough today and that is rare this time of year in the south. I got the cheap detail spray gun and filled it with white paint. I sprayed a stripe on one wing and nothing happened. I expected the primer to wrinkle but it didn't. I sprayed a coat on the whole plane and mixed up another batch and gave the plane a second coat. Then a third, why not I'm on a roll. Now the paint will sit for a few days while we go to Dallas for a contest. It should be ready for the trim colors next week. The primer I was concerned about is Dupli-Color FP101 Gray Filler Primer. It's just like the stuff I wanted to use but the formula has been changed and it's crap now. The Dupli-Color has a fan spray tip that works very well. I've been sanding the black nose of the first Legacy trying to get the paint off. When Rustoleum finally cures it's tough stuff. I'm going to try color sanding and polishing that plane before trying it on the new one.

More fillets.

It was time to glue the rudder/fin on today. It took a bit of time to get it aligned but I got it. Then it was time for the fillets. I got the micro fil out and on the bottom of the hardener jug was a brownish liquid. I hadn't noticed that before. I put a stick down through the white stuff and into the liquid. It flowed onto the top of the white stuff. I figured it must be part of the hardener and that I should mix it up. It took a few minutes but I got it mixed and now the white stuff is creamy smooth. I mixed up a batch of fillet stuff and made the fillets for the stabilizer. The stuff flowed out real smooth this time not grainy like before. I went right into adding the fillets for the fin before the batch went hard. After that I installed the motor. Hooking up the wires proved to be quite a challenge. While I was at it I installed the landing gear and a battery. I checked the leadout position using the position that is shown on the plans. I didn't change a thing there. It may need changing after paint but it's just right for a test flight before paint. Except the ground is wet and muddy. While I had it with everything installed I weighed it without tip weight. I'll ad an ounce for flying. 63.3 ounces. A full 5 ounces less than the one I built using all the kit parts. I have 2 batteries that are 2 ounces lighter than the one I used so I can change the balance point easily without adding more weight. While using a light to align the motor and mount holes I saw a few defects that needed attention. Then I used the light on the rest of the plane and found more blemishes. I thought I was ready for paint. I have some paint and a pilot bust coming today. I'm still trying to decide on a color scheme.

Some progress on the Legacy.

I had a bad time trying to get up the courage to use poly span on the wing. I finally did it and it's not bad. I put 4 coats of dope on it and sanded some. Then more dope and sanding. I got sick of that and got some primer and sprayed that on and sanded some more. Then I used some Dupli-Color primer and sanded that. more coats of primer and sanding finally with 1000 grit and the wing is real smooth. I sprayed another coat of primer to cover the bare spots and will sand that with 1000 and then 1500 grit paper. I ordered some colored dope from Brodak and a pilot bust. The canopy is sitting in room temperature black Rit dye. It may not tint it much but to heat the dye will destroy the canopy. I had some original silk span and covered the tail pieces with that. I should have covered the wing with it. It's much easier to work with. I squared the stab and wing on the fuselage and glued that in. Now I have to wait for the fin/rudder as it will cover the slot for the elevators.