Oratex glue solvent?

[ksatter26]

Janina says there are numerous restrictions for shipping Oratex glue remover and paints. Does anyone know of a possible solvent to remove excess glue from the finished fabric?

I have an email off to Janina at Better Aircraft Fabrics for a recommendation but have not heard back from Anchorage as yet. It's probably a weather problem up there.

On a sample, I tried: rubbing alcohol, mineral spirits, lacquer thinner, soapy water, and xylene. Not much help.

[LA F2 Flyer]

What is the active ingredient in nail polish remover? If none of the aforementioned, perhaps worth a shot. It seems to be the go-to for a lot of other things!

[ksatter26]

Acetone. I have some, and will try it. It seems rather harsh, but it may work. I'll try it on a permanent felt-tip marker spot as well. I font want to destroy the sky blue.

[ksatter26]

Acetone is a no go. However, I spread some glue on the sky blue side of a fabric sample and let it dry. I then did a thorough wipe down of the area with XYLENE and the glue came off. It does not appear to damage the fabric or discolor the sky blue. I did NOT try it on a seam that has had heat applied. I will try that test tomorrow.

I tried the curved Sentinel heat gun nozzle on the Oratex wraps around the fuselage tubing. It works pretty well although the problem still seems to be that 3 hands are needed: hold the gun; pull the fabric edge; and swipe down with the felt pad.

I rand a doubler over the "backbone" of the fuselage to cleanup the kinks. This worked preyty well, but it is a straight section. My real problems are working the leading-edge curves on the empenage.

[Badland-F5 Pilot]

Acetone is a no go. However, I spread some glue on the sky blue side of a fabric sample and let it dry. I then did a thorough wipe down of the area with XYLENE and the glue came off. It does not appear to damage the fabric or discolor the sky blue. I did NOT try it on a seam that has had heat applied. I will try that test tomorrow.

I tried the curved Sentinel heat gun nozzle on the Oratex wraps around the fuselage tubing. It works pretty well although the problem still seems to be that 3 hands are needed: hold the gun; pull the fabric edge; and swipe down with the felt pad.


IMG_1111.JPG


I rand a doubler over the "backbone" of the fuselage to cleanup the kinks. This worked preyty well, but it is a straight section. My real problems are working the leading-edge curves on the empenage.


IMG_1112.JPG

I wouldn't underestimate your work Kurt. Looking at YT videos, it appears your work of at least equal if not better than many others. It's looking really good.

Todd

[LA F2 Flyer]

Are you comparing it to mine?

[ksatter26]

Apples and oranges? Yellow and blue ( so far).

[LA F2 Flyer]

Haha, I'll take it (scalloped edges and all).

[ksatter26]

Finally heard back from Janina in Anchorage ... Official from Better Aircraft Fabric:

If the Oratex hot melt adhesion glue has not been activated or has not been triggered by artificial temperatures in excess of 70ºC (158ºF), it can be removed by a solution of three parts water and one part normal white household vinegar! Apply the vinegar-water solution with a rag soaked in the mixture. Hold the soaked rag on the glue requiring removal and you will see the translucent/clear appearance of the dried glue return to the white color it had when in the glue container. The glue will become rubberized, and, now, you will be able to peel the glue off the surface area cleanly! - This is a great alternative to the Oratex factory produced glue remover because of its expensive International HAZMAT shipping cost.


Heat activated glue: Because of glue properties, once you have activated the glue with artificial heat in excess of 50oC (122oF), it will be very difficult to remove, and removal may be necessary by mechanical means, which will probably lead to fabric damage. Use an industrial pencil remover (rubber block) to physically erode the undesirable glue on the top surface of Oratex. This will take time; The sooner after triggering this is tried, the better and faster it will work. Do this while the Oratex is cold, do not warm it up at all. You can exploit the fact that the Oratex6000 surface is way tougher than the glue itself when it comes to abrasion. Use this to your advantage, but do not rely on this trick, work neat and clean instead.

I sure could use a roll of the "edge tape". The blue painter's and the green "frog" tapse seem to allow some penetration of the wet glue and when I peel it off, sometimes a feathering of the tape line adheres to the fabric and I have to spend time very carefully semi-scraping it off with an exacto knife. I'll give the vinegar water a try. I hope it makes it easier.

[LA F2 Flyer]

How would this work if you are looking to remove the scalloped edges though? To properly stretch the fabric around the corners you would have had to heat it well over the 122oF threshold, right?

Let us know how it all works out! I am very curious. I still have plenty of fabric left, so you might motivate me to "fix" my rough edges...maybe.