Hatz Biplane Association

The forum got a little slow so I though I would post a question. I'm working on the second wing and thinking about varnishing them. I will probably use System 3 Clear Coat. I used it on the center section. I clear coated all the ribs as I made them. I left the spar holes and front edge unvarnished as they needed to be glued.

So the question, did anyone remove the fittings before the varnished the wings? I varnished under the fittings but was thinking they will look nicer if they are not splashed with clear coat. Not that anyone will see them under the fabric.

By the way, Happy fourth of July. We celebrated Canada's 150th here on Saturday.

I used clear coat on all the areas that fabric glue would contact. I also did the spars and the areas under the compression struts and wing fittings, this was mostly to control rot. I used spar varnish on the ribs. I brushed everything on.

Hi Murray, I did not remove the fittings. I used Stits epoxy spar varnish for the majority of the wings, and also applied two coats under the fittings prior to installing them for the final time. The Stits stuff "wicks" well into the wood, I used the system 3 clear coat on the ribs after constructing them, paying close attention not to coat the areas that would be glued later. I think either product works well. I didn't worry too much about getting the spar varnish on the flat fittings, I just tried to be as neat as possible. I didn't think it would hurt to seal the edges of the fittings either if I happened to bump up against them when I varnished.

Rick

Thanks guys. I was looking over the wing the other days and it looked like a lot of work to remove the fittings just to do a cleaner varnish job. Perhaps a little patience is all that is needed. I'll probably have to use clear coat for everything as I don't think I can get spar varnish in Canada.

Just fixing the spelling on the Subject line for easier future searching.
Thanks for the post!

Done