Now that the fabric has set, it's time for the finishing tape. I cut out 2" strips of fabric to use as tape for the rib seams with the pinker after tracing out the strips with a pencil. I figured for this practice rudder there was no need to order a roll of tape and the spare fabric could get me by. They turned out nice and straight with clean pinked edges.
A quick sizing and pinking the edges for a precise fit and they are ready to glue down.
Per the suggestion of the fabric system manufacturer, I started by gluing about a two inch square on the wing fabric, then placing the leading edge of the strip over the glue patch while wet. I pressed in the strip, then brushed glue on top. While wet, I wiped the glue with a shop towel to help press in the glue and to clean off any glue ridges that would show through finish. I repeated for the rest of the rib tape strips, then let dry. This gave a good base to work with that allowed be to tug the strip straight as I worked it later.
Once the tip was dry, I finished the tape with the same process as the initial spot.
I let that dry, then worked the other side of the rudder in the same manner.
Next was the finishing tape for the rudder bow. I use 3" Bias Dacron tape for the bow because I wanted something that could stretch out the wrinkles around the curve. Turns out that was a good choice. I started by tracing clean glue line with a pencil around both sides of the bow.
Just like the rib tape, I started with a glue patch on the top edge of the bow, then let it dry as an anchor while working the bow tape. Again, using a shop towel to clean off the excess glue while wet.
I worked out the wrinkles while working the tape around the bow. The bias tape worked well and with a little tugging along the way the wrinkles were not a problem.
Once finished, the tape looked decent enough. Time to let it all dry fully, then do the final shrink of the fabric.
Practice Build Time = 2 hours
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