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RV14 #141180 Central Minnesota

General-Lee

I'm New Here
Hello All,

Just got my RV14 Empennage kit recently and I am very excited to get going on it. Anyone else recently get their kits full of duct tape? I’ve watched countless YouTube videos of kits being opened and never seen anything like it. Every piece was duct taped together with multiple pieces. This was frustrating because I was hoping to save the blue vinyl protective coating and strip out the pieces along the rivet lines( I know not necessary if painting). Anyway, there was no damage to the kit and it was well packed, besides all the tape.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/196071549@N06/52211444286/in/dateposted-public/
 
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That is typical. Keeps things from bouncing around and getting damaged in shipping. With a heat gun you might be able to remove the tape without taking off the blue film.
 
Haha, I feel your pain. My 7 kit had plenty of it. Plus it’s not ordinary duct tape. The black stuff they use is the strongest tape known to man.
 
It's Gorilla tape and is impossible to lift off of the blue vinyl protection. Just remove the blue stuff as needed.
 
You can cut the tape at the edges of each kit item for now (blue vinyl still doing its job under the tape).

When you're ready to remove blue vinyl over rivet lines, use a soldering iron and take your time going through the tape - the soldering iron will cut it just like it does the blue vinyl.

I ended up buying a higher wattage soldering iron which is faster. I used a wheel to smooth the tip down to reduce any scratching of the aluminum.
 
Vans stickers

And your next post will probably be that it's hard to get off the white Vans part number stickers, they are paper and tear instead of coming off, and why doesn't Vans switch to plastic so they're easier to remove. This is correct!
 
And your next post will probably be that it's hard to get off the white Vans part number stickers, they are paper and tear instead of coming off, and why doesn't Vans switch to plastic so they're easier to remove. This is correct!

Haha funny, that’s a great idea😂
 
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