The larger the pieces, the more difficult it becomes. Removing it from the backing can stretch it because it’s so thin. And because it’s so thin it can tear, stretch and wrinkle. So you have to center the piece, then choose a side to start pressing down and carefully working across the piece evenly being careful not to stretch or wrinkle. I find starting with my finger tip first, to tack it in place on the first edge, and then coming behind that with a q-tip to press it down and conform to surface irregularities, works best. If I have tiny areas that the q-tip can’t reach well, then I use the end of my toothpick with a flat surface cut at an angle to burnish the foil. It will stretch over bumps and fins, etc. very well. To do this without creating wrinkles takes a little practice.
My success has been mostly because I am doing small sections at a time and cutting the edges to the panel lines. That way there is no overlap of pieces and no large pieces.
The edges of wings have to be overlapped a little bit to help hold it on. The adhesive is great for holding it down, but not very strong for edges. If you have too much overlap, the thickness change will show. It’s all a delicate balance. This was an experiment mostly to use the Bare-Metal and gain experience. I’m not sure I want to do another aircraft with it, however I won’t rule it out either, as I have a few upcoming builds that would look good with it.
And finally I want to see how decal adhesion and clear coat work with it.
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