used on a plane for night flying..I will be using 8 red LED lights on my plane...and was gonna paint the plane in a luminescent/glow in the dark paint...but it seems that none of these paints work well from the threads I have read...so my next option would be the refractive/reflective tape I guess...im assuming if I point a few of the led's towards the tape..it would really help with nightime visability??..

have you looked at trying the little light/chem sticks you use for night fishing? they come in a pack of three (green or red) and can be bought at any sporting good store for about $3.00. tape or velcro should hold them down. i'm not talking about the big ones but the tiny ones you hook onto your bobber.

No, it won't help much with visibility.
If you can't see the model well enough with the lights you have, you need more light.
..a

A white plane is your best bet, reflective tape won't help.

My experience tends to differ. I build a lot of Bluecor foamies. I found at times due to distance and light, they could be difficult to see up there in a blue sky.

I found some very thin, lightweight red reflective tape at an automotive parts store that I put on all my Bluecor foamies. It makes a world of difference. I usually put it on the stabs and/or rudder so it's visible during normal flying. Just a small amount I can pick out of the sky from across the field.

I tried a few different "reflective tapes" until I found this one; very thin, light and very easy to see. In fact this manufacturer has two colors, orange and red...the red works much better.

Had I quit after trying the 1st reflective tape I tried, I'd agree they don't work. But for me, this stuff is great. I buy 2 rolls of it at a time, when I can find it.

Here's my Insulator that I flew this morning, with the tape on the stabs...a real god-send for these aging eyes.

Jimsky


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Sorry, I just re-read the original post and missed the whole point of the "LED illuminated night flying" part....didn't have my coffee yet.

My T-IFO is highly illuminated with LEDs as is my "dusk flyer". Flashing red and flashing green navigation LEDS, and lots of bright white LEDs illuminating the plane. Works OK at dusk, never really tried night flying. I've got one "LED headlight" to help with orientation, but illuminate the plane as best as possible for best visibility. I found bright white LEDs work best.

Your milage may vary.

Jimsky

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Radium!

Paint it with Radium!

Pete (with tongue in cheek)

Addendum: Solarfilm makes another product called Solartrim which doesn't require heat to make it adhere. You just peel and stick and heat will shrink it if you need to do compound curves. It's available in flourescent yellow and flourescent red and both of those colors are BRIGHT. -P-

edit double post

I use this stuff called Scotchlite on the wing bottom. Shine an LED light on it. There is a paint used in specialty vehicles such as modern ambulances that is very reflective but I think it is the kind of paint that cost like $1000/quart. eek

Leigh

Jimsky..I was told that white LEDS are 1 of the worst colors to go with..for night visability...and that green/red were the best...funny how so many different opinons..

PGR..do you have a solartrim link??? sounds interesting..

My T-IFO is covered with blue ripstop nylon. I shine white LEDs on the top of it and the rudder from a few positions and you can see it pretty good. I've only done dusk, not night flying.

A friend here Quacker tells me he's got an IFO that he covered with special stuff that he illuminates with IR LED's. He says the whole thing glows like a UFO. Says he can fly it at night with no troubles at all.

Jimsky

Originally Posted by rumme

PGR..do you have a solartrim link??? sounds interesting..

Solartrim is made by Solarfilm who are the folks who make Solarfilm Lite or Solite. I think Solartrim is Solarfilm with a standard peel-n-stick adhesive on it.

I get mine from AeroMicro but I'm sure others carry it as well.

Pete

Jimsky..whats the name of the stuff your friend colored his plane with..that glows??..thank you..

Originally Posted by PGR

It's available in flourescent yellow and flourescent red and both of those colors are BRIGHT. -P-

That would work good if you had some ultraviolet LEDs to light it up like people used to do with a blacklight and flourescent posters. Maybe you could play some Pink Floyd or Hendrix and burn some incense while flying too.
Wow man, I think I'm trippin' !.

Actually im a Beatles fanatic myself...Helter Skelter would work...lol..