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Digital Iron / Fabric Covering

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rlborger

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Fellow rag wing lovers,
I took the EAA Fabric Covering Workshop that was held in Dallas last weekend. It was an excellent course that provided me with the confidence that I could actually cover the wings on Taz when the time comes. During the course the subject of a digital ski wax iron came up. No one was familiar with or had used such a device. I went home that evening and did some on-line research. I found two digital ski wax irons which had a useful temperature range (225ºF-350ºF) for fabric covering work. One cost over $2000. The other was $69.99+S&H. I ordered that one, total cost was $80 + a few pennies. This morning I ran some tests of the iron and it is pretty darn neat.
It is of German manufacture: Wintersteiger Digital Ski Wax Iron. To be used ONLY for the application of wax to skis and snowboards and nothing else. Got that? Specs: 90ºC - 180ºC +/- 2ºC (194ºF - 356ºF +/- 3.6ºF) Down right handy temperature range for shrinking Polyester fabric doncha think.
It can be purchased through Amazon or RaceWax.com. Same price at both places. If you purchase through Amazon, you still purchase from RaceWax.com. Seems they are the sole source for this device in the USofA.
I ran some tests of the iron this morning and it appears as if it will do the job. I covered a small frame with some fabric and used the iron to shrink the fabric. Fabric shrinking temps are 225ºF, 250ºF and 350ºF. Here's where I ran into the first issue. The iron can only be set in 5ºC increments, ie: 90, 95,100, 115, etc. So converting from F to C that's 225ºF=107.2ºC, 250ºF=121.1ºC & 350ºF=176.7ºC. Going to the closest 5ºC yields 105ºC=221ºF, 120ºC=248ºF & 175ºC=347ºF. Those temperatures are probably close enough.
Here's a picture of the iron in front of the covered frame:
Well, darn, upload is being cranky again... Beej, if you want to contact me, I'll tell you what it's doing.
I did the shrink at the 105ºC, 120ºC and 175ºC temperatures and shrinkage seemed correct for the temperatures. Final shrink has the fabric tight. I guess you could go up to 180ºC (356ºF) for one more shrink if you had a small spot that need just a bit more shrink and still be OK as you are well below the relax temperature of the fabric.
You can go to my gallery and see three pictures I posted in my "General Bits & Pieces, Ideas, Etc." album.
I still feel like I need to calibrate the sole plate temperatures to make sure they are accurate. I know they are close, but can't say they are dead on. If I can find my IR thermometer, I'd like to map the sole plate temperatures and see if there are hot spots that might cause problems. And I really don't know how well it will work for an entire wing. So those issues are still for evaluation in the future.
Remember: The iron is to be used ONLY for the application of wax to skis and snowboards and nothing else.
So this is NOT a recommendation for anyone. Should you choose to proceed from here, you are in test country and on your own.
 

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