Great Planes P-51D Mustang 40 Kit - GPMA0175 - Manual (Page 43)

D 2. Thoroughly clean your airplane before applying
decals.
D 3. Cut out the individual decal items and apply them in
the locations shown on the plan. NOTE: Certain non-scale
decals are provided which you may use at your discretion,
such as the "Great Planes" logo.
HINT: To apply decals accurately, peel only a small
portion of backing from one end, cut off the backing with
a scissors, position the decal carefully, press down the
exposed portion of the decal, peel off the rest of the
backing, then (working from the already stuck down end)
carefully press down the rest of the decal.
D 4. The top of the fuselage in front of the canopy was
covered with Super Monokote "Olive Drab". The Monokote
is glossy, and this is supposed to be a non-glare panel;
therefore, we masked and sprayed the olive drab monokote
with Chevron flat satin, which provided a great-looking flat
finish.
D 5. Chevron spray aluminum and spray yellow paints
were used on the cowl, and these provided a satisfactory
match to the Super Monokote. (The canopy frame may be
masked and painted before or after gluing the canopy in
place).
D 6. For drawing the "panel lines," we used a "Staedtler
Lumocolor 313 Permanent" fine point pen, which is available
from engineering/drafting supply stores. Although not com-
pletely fuelproof, we like using this pen because it draws very
nicely on Monokote, and the lines may be removed if neces-
sary with 70% rubbing alcohol. The plane may be cleaned
with most cleaners without affecting the lines, however.
D 7. Trim away the excess plastic from the "wing can-
nons" and the "exhaust ports," and paint them to match your
covering material. (We used Chevron spray aluminum).
Glue these trim items to the airplane in the locations shown on
the plan.
D 8. Note that some of the promotional photos for this
airplane show a 4-blade propeller. We made this propeller by
simply gluing two 14" wood props together at a 90-degree
angle. The hub section of each prop was cut out halfway, so
the two props would mate at the center. This prop is for
static display only, as it would not be safe to run the engine
with a "homemade" propeller of this type. Only run your
engine with a commercially available propeller.
INSTALL PILOT
Assemble and paint your pilot figure, and glue it to the
cockpit floor. NOTE: To avoid the possibility of the pilot
coming loose inside the canopy, we recommend that you drill
up through the cockpit floor and pilot base, and use two #6 or
#8 sheet metal screws (not included) to lock the pilot in place.
GLUE CANOPY IN PLACE
D 1. Using a scissors, carefully cut the canopy along the
trim line (which is the bolder line around the base of the canopy).
D 2. Lightly sand the inside of the canopy around the
edge (sand a strip approximately 1/8" wide). NOTE: To
avoid sanding more than you want, it is helpful to first apply
strips of masking tape on the inside of the canopy, 1/8" in
from the edges.
D 3. Poke pinholes (1/8" apart) through the covering
material in the area where the canopy will be glued to the
fuselage.
D 4. Hold the canopy in place on the fuselage and very
carefully apply medium viscosity CA glue around the edges.
To control the amount of CA, it is very helpful to use the small
diameter teflon applicator tubing which is supplied with most
CA glues, or use a "Z-End" applicator tip.
D 5. The unsightly glue that is visible now will be hidden
when you paint the framework of the canopy.
WING SEATING
D 1. Apply 1/4" or 3/8" wide foam wing seating tape to
the wing saddle area to seal the wing/fuse joints.*
D 2. Also apply a couple pieces of the foam tape to the
1/4" ply wing hold-down plate, which helps to distribute the
load when the nylon bolts are tightened.
*NOTE: An alternate method of sealing the wing/fuse
joint is to use "silicone bathtub sealer". This is an
excellent method, used by many experts because it
results in a permanent and nearly perfect wing saddle
joint. Briefly, the technique is as follows: 1. Cover the
top of the wing center section with waxed paper or plastic
kitchen wrap. Pull out all wrinkles and tape it to the wing.
2. Squeeze out a bead of silicone sealer onto the wing
saddle area of the fuselage. 3. Lay the wing in the saddle
and push down gently. The excess silicone sealer will
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