Interior Paint
Running Total Hours:
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| 2007.04.17:
(0.0) This log entry
covers the past few weeks, most of which has been research on the
internet and in various stores. While this is definitely a
necessary and time-consuming part of the process, I won't log the
hours here because I haven't been logging this type of time for any
other task. Still, I'll log the info I've learned.
My primary considerations in selecting the interior paint are as
follows (not necessarily in that order):
1. It should be "invisible" in flight. By that I mean
that color/sheen shouldn't be distracting to the eye, and should not
generate an excessive amount of glare.
2. Aesthetics. Prefer clean and simple. Nothing fancy, but
nothing horribly ugly either.
3. Availability & cost.
4. Ease of application. The fewer steps the better.
5. Safety of application. Something I can spray in my garage and
not blow up the house, or give myself cancer.
6. Ability to hide dirt, and/or ease of cleaning.
7. Durability. It shouldn't chip or scratch too easily.
8. Ease of touch-up. No matter how durable, it will inevitably
get scratches and chips, and will need to be touched up.
These primary considerations lead to the following conclusions:
1. Satin gray preferred. Aesthetically neutral, and should not
clash with gray seat belt harnesses I've already purchased.
Satin finish will reduce glare compared to glossy, but will be easier
to clean than flat paint, which tends to have more surface texture.
2. Store-bought common brand rattle cans preferred over specialty
aircraft or automotive paint. Cheaper and easier to get, and
much simpler to apply. Might not be as pretty or durable, but
probably more than good enough.
Now in searching for a specific brand and type of paint, I discovered
that "satin gray" is actually not very common at all.
There are plenty of other satins (in ugly hues) and plenty of glossy
grays. But I've actually only found one satin gray.
Fortunately, everything about it so far is looking very good. It
is:
Krylon (a Sherwin-Williams brand) Fusion: 2439 "Satin Pewter
Gray". This paint boasts that it will readily bond to most
plastics, but it is also recommended for metal and various other
surfaces. The color is a lighter gray than what I had initially
envisioned, but seeing what it looked like on some test patches I
sprayed, I was very pleased. It is different enough from the
color of the seat belt harnesses that it looks different but not
clashing. And as an added surprise bonus, it's a close enough
match to the color of the powder coating Van's uses on steel parts
(just a little darker/grayer, and obviously not as glossy) that I can
leave the powder coat as is and it'll look just fine. As for
durability, we'll see in a few days. I painted a couple of test
patches: one on clean aluminum, and one over AKZO primer that's been
cured probably over a year. This paint specifies that it can be
handled after an hour, but is fully cured ("fully chip
resistant") after 7 days. So I'll beat on it then.
Another cool thing about this product: It comes in the typical 12 oz.
rattle cans, but it doesn't have the typical unidirectional spray can
nozzle. The nozzle on this can puts out a nice vertical fan
spray pattern like a real spray gun. And it can be adjusted to a
horizontal fan by twisting the nozzle tip. Pretty spiffy!
Krylon Fusion is available at Marshall's Industrial Hardware, but I
believe I should be able to find it at many consumer retail stores
too.
For the record, I also tried Rust-Oleum Gloss Protective Enamel (7786
Smoke Gray) from Home Depot. A test patch (on clean aluminum)
also came out very nice. The color is a much darker gray, which
has a nice but very different effect. Anyway, the deal-breaker
is the sheen. It is soooo glossy, that in full sunlight it
produces a blinding glare like a mirror. That's what I
suspected, and now I know for sure.
I also ordered a can of Tempo Aircraft Enamel (Medium Gray A1105) from
Aircraft Spruce to try. But instead they sent me a can of
Plasti-Kote (a Valspar brand) Super Enamel (T-10 Machinery Gray)
without asking. I don't think that's a good substitution, so
I'll probably return it (if $6.20 is worth the hassle and shipping
cost). |
| 2007.10.02:
(0.0) After painting
test patches on bare aluminum, AKZO primer, and the P60G2 used in the
quick-build stuff, and then abusing them in various ways, I decided on
the Krylon Fusion: 2439 "Satin Pewter Gray" (see previous
entry). I bought a 6-pack at Marshalls.
I decided that this would be a good time to paint the forward cockpit
(forward of the center section bulkhead) before I start permanently
mounting the gear mounts, etc. I decided to first prime
everything with AKZO (with the exception of the stainless steel
firewall), and then spray the Krylon paint over all that except for
the floor, which will be covered by a carpet. Most of the work
(hours upon hours) was in stripping the P60G2 and masking. Doing
the actual painting was anti-climactic, and the results were quite
good.
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| 2008.08.11:
(0.0) Prepped and
painted the rest visible non-removable surfaces of the cockpit, aft of
the main bulkhead. I did this now because some of the nooks and
crannies will start becoming less accessible to paint as I install
various things in the cockpit. I know for certain that some
areas of the cockpit will need to get touched up before all is said
and done. But some of that is unavoidable no matter what
sequence I choose for construction and paint. Such is life.
|
| 2008.12.18:
(0.0) Note: A few
days ago I did some paint touchups on the forward canopy frame in
areas the will be inaccessible once it's complete. Well, the
touch up resulted in severe "lifting" or
"wrinkling" problems. I suspect the problem was that I
didn't observe the manufacturer's specified recoat time: "recoat
before 24 hours or after 7 days." I did it after about 2
days. So I'll remove the affected areas, and try again in a
week. |
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