Repairing glue stain on canopy

[SirFrancis]

Hey guys I have on this old N1K2 I'm rebuilding a glue stain on the canopy. It's on the inside front right panel. I remember years ago advice about putting clear gloss on it. Not sure if there's a better method. Should I scrape away some first? ok any advice appreciated. cheers

 

[Donivanp]

Hey guys I have on this old N1K2 I'm rebuilding a glue stain on the canopy. It's on the inside front right panel. I remember years ago advice about putting clear gloss on it. Not sure if there's a better method. Should I scrape away some first? ok any advice appreciated. cheers

You ca try sanding it out but depends on how deep the damage is. Using fine sand paper and going to ultra fine.

 

[Wurger]

I agree, the sanding is the best way to fix that. However it depends on the glue and damages to the polystyrene caused. These "milky" ones are difficault to remove usually because the white colour means that the plastic structure was damaged deeply. So the white panel may be a problem. The two small ones at the another panel and the front glass should be fixed with no trouble.
Regarding the white panel, you may try to sand it down a little bit. If the white gets reduced partially towards the clear you may continue. Then the area should be polished. But if it won't you may try to cut out the panel and replace it with a fitted piece of clear plastic.
My experience says that it is better to make the canopy from scratch using the damaged one as the former for the vacu process. Certainly you may try to find aftermarked one or somebody who doesn't need the one and may trade it to you.

 

[Crimea_River]

Sanding with progressively finer grits usually works for me. I test the look by dipping the clear part in water and if the cloudiness is gone then a dip in Future will finish it off nicely.

 

[Wurger]

Oh yes. The dipping in the Future is a nice way for the final touching as well. A very good point Andy.

 

[SirFrancis]

Ok thanks guys. So far scraping / sanding and clear coat hasn't done much. Only a very slight improvement around outside edge of the milky stain. I don't think I'm skilled enough to cutout & replace that panel without damaging the canopy. I might have to buy a new one. Grrrr

 

[Airframes]

After sanding with progressively finer grits, polish the area using toothpaste, or "T Cut", a car body colour restorer. This should remove any sanding marks, and help "clear" the area. Use a cotton bud to do the polishing.
Once polished, give the part a wash to remove any residue form the toothpaste or "T Cut".
If this doesn't work, then the damage is probably too "deep" to repair fully.

 

[WARSPITER]

Sanding cloths used to be available right down to I think 12,000 grit. Don't know if they still are.

 

[Wolfman_63]

Wet sanding then polishing is the best way. Here is how I do it: How to repair, clean and polish clear parts.

 

[Vic Balshaw]

You can get sanding bud sets (12 buds) graded from 100 to 12000.