Ambroid, it does exist!

I'm a fan of Ambroid. I love it for several reasons. Unfortunately, the smell isn't so gratifying at least not to my wife who flips when she smells it. The newer formula however is extremely thin and runs all over. If your not aware, pinch the side of the tube slightly with two fingers and this stops the flow from running all over your paints and work bench. Double gluing is a must. One reason I like Ambroid is the fact that it shrinks when drying. It's also sandable when dry. When I glue sheeting on my center section, I run beads of Ambroid over the ribs and with the center sheeted sections precut and glued, I place them on the ribs pressing the sheeting into the glue. I then remove and put the sheeting aside to air dry. As the glue dries, the sheet will curl due to the shrinking and this assists the sheet when being finalized for gluing. I then use pin clamps to hold the sheeting onto the ribs during the drying process.

Gluing sheeting works wonders when your edge joining due to being able to sand it smooth when your done. This makes for clean undisturbed joinery which your covering benefits from due to not seeing the joints in the sheeting. You can also mix micro balloons into the Ambroid for a paste like filler which is extremely light with good sandability which is softer than most balsa allowing for clean faired in repairs. Keep in mind this isn't like CA and these steps take time and most people enjoy the instant gratification that CA allows. I rarely use CA due to it not being user friendly. I personally accept the steps that Ambroid and white and yellow glues allow and I'm in no rush to finish any of my planes. Field repairs to me aren't done in the field and I do these at home as well. Another tip is that in the event you have an exposed area of balsa or ply, keeping a tube of Ambroid in your pitbox will allow you to smear a little onto that exposed area and within minutes it's now fuel proofed for a days flying session. Ken