After 18 months of being bored, unable to pursue my motorsport here, I finally decided to take up a hobby that I had when I was a schoolboy.

I am making a radio controlled model boat in balsa wood. I am scratch building it from a 30 year old plan that I found in an old model magazine retrieved from my parent's attic. So far, everything has been going well sourcing materials and parts. However, I am unable to find Sanding Sealer or Cellulose Dope here.

I found a 500ml tin of Holz Schutz Grund which I think maybe sanding sealer but I don't know for sure. I can't work out what the usage instructions are in the store with my poor German skills.

Anyone know what sanding sealer and cellulose dope are in German?

I think Sanding Sealer may be called Porenfüller.

I found a product called Graupner Glattfix that is available in Germany. Now I need to find out what paints can be used with it and where to buy it in Zurich.

Hi MoabMan,

Do you have a brand name of the products you know..? Maybe that way we could cross reference it online via a search. Back in my teenage years (many many moons ago) I used to build control line airplanes the largest having a wing span which equalled my arms span. Sometimes I too flirt with the idea of a second childhood...

Thanks. I don't know the brand. I was browsing in Jumbo.

I used to fly control line planes too! I made lots of control line planes at high school. One of the teachers organised a lunchtime club for making them and after school club for flying.

On a recent exploration of my parents attic I found two of my undamaged control line diesel engines (1cc and 1.5cc) and two R/C glow plug engines (.20 and .35).

I crashed my R/C trainer on its first flight in the 80's and I quit the hobby soon after. It was going to prove too expensive to acquire any flying skill and I was saving up for my first car. I am going to make another R/C trainer when I have finished making the boat.

I am currently using RealFlight G4.5 Simulator on my laptop to get some virtual model flying experience. I reckon after I have completed 100 hours or so I will get an electric ready-to-fly 'foamie' that I don't mind destroying. When I think I am ready for something more I will start making another glow plug trainer with 5ch 2.4Ghz radio.

Does anyone know of any model making shops in Zurich where one can buy balsa wood?

The hardware store run by Migros in Brunau and in Steinhausen (Zugerland) is where I usually buy mine.

http://www.rc-fly.ch/index.php?k=199

Spannlack is Dope. Porenfüller is Sanding Sealer.