research on interior paint

Well, After a fair bit of searching I found the perfect colour match to CAD's Leather/Ash (LTHR-1502) swatch I plan on using for my interior. The paint of choice is rattle-can Rust-oleum specialty appliance epoxy. It's a satin finish. It looks like a matte gray (stainless steel look). I was trying to aviod the green/grays or blue/gray hues. I would have perfered something I could throw in my sprayer, but since I'm going with CAD's Aviator interior, there's not going to be too much painted surface showing anyway. The perfered application is to apply to bare (clean/dry) metal. A spray application to a test area which was primed with NAPA 7220 netted excellent results. The instructions do indicate this product should not be applied to previously painted areas. A coating of this product over a sample of Tremclad enamel prooves the Rust-oleum appliance exopy to be a darn good paint stripper! Applied less than three hours ago and seems very scratch and burnish resistant. Touch-ups and partial re-coats are seamless with no signs of demarcation. Rust-oleum sku 020066132453.

Hi Lorne,
I've been researching trying to find a good paint for my interior as well, and I'm also going with a CAD interior. I want a flat grey for my interior, but have been having a lot of trouble finding something suitable.
I might try this appliance stuff out... are you still happy with it? My only concern is it says "indoor use only". Does this mean it might have problems when exposed to the extreme temperatures of Ottawa, Canada? I'm not sure what the creteria for indoor vs outdoor paint classification is...

I used Rustoleum Professional "Stainless Steel" color over NAPA 7220 14 months ago and it has held up really well as I continue to work (and drop a lot of tools) inside the fuse. Because it has slight texture, it also touches up really nice. Had I known there was an appliance version, I might have used that. I would assume that it would be a tougher finish, but you never know. Good luck.

Epoxy inflexible

I did some more research on this issue, and found out the following (I don't know how reliable this information is, so hopefully somebody more knowledgeable than me will chime in).
Apparently epoxy has poor flexibility. This may be why the RustOleum product says "for indoor use only". There are two reasons why poor flexibility might make epoxy a poor choice for airplanes (this is just me guessing - I'm no expert). Airplane skins, being thin metal, will expand and contract significantly with temperature changes. Regardless of your climate, temperature changes will be experienced with altitude. Also, airplanes vibrate a lot. An epoxy-based paint such as the appliance paint may crack due to its inherent inflexibility.
I also picked up a can of RustOleum's "professional high performance enamel" (indoor/outdoor) in both the stainless and the new grey colour they have. I'm going to test these products out, and I'll report back here soon.

Appliance interior paint

Hi Phil.
I don't think there with be any issues using this product within the cockpit area. This product line is available in a number of different colours. The grey is the one the best suited for my application. Actually it closely matches our raw scuffed aluminum colour. On one area of my cockpit I applied the paint with the nozzle too far from the surface. This left too much of a textured (read rough) surface. So I agressively scoured the surface with a maroon scotchbrite pad and it turned out smooth and uniform with no indication of burnishing. Now, Interestingly, the residue from the "sanding" is magneticly attracted. Further testing by building up multiple coats of the paint did not show the surface to be influenced by a magnetic. And keeping the surface wet for an extended period showed no evidence of oxidation (rust). As to the flexibility issue, I'll look in to this as well. I painted my brake pedals with this product last night. It dries to touch in 2-3 min.

texture

I tried out the "professional high performance enamel" in both the Stainless steel and the "light machine grey" last night. I really liked the look of the stainless on the lid of the can, but when I sprayed it, it looks quite different. I get quite a dark, and very textured finish that looks almost "fuzzy", and I don't like the look of it at all.
On the other hand, the light machine grey seems very soft so-far (16 hours after spraying). Finger nail scratches very easily and deeply. I'm hoping another day or two may make this cure to a harder finish, but I'm not optimistic.
Looks like I may have to go back to my HVLP gun and an automotive paint to get the durable finish I want for the interior.

Phil-
You can't expect a spray can paint to be cured after 16 hours! It takes days, if not weeks. I know this is true for Rustoleum, particularly. I didn't touch my panel until it had cured for a week, and that was just because I was getting impatient and wanting to see what everything looked like installed. However, once it does cure, I've found it to be VERY durable.

Ah - ok that's good to hear. I'll leave my test peice for a few days and check it then. Funny that neither the can nor the rustoleum website say anything about curing!

Did not find that "can" over here (Belgium/Holland/Germany)

I have also been testing rattle cans for the interior paint, but?.. so far no luck! All the paints I tested (gray /anthracite), from different manufacturers, were all c**p. I tested several manufacturers and different types of paint, non of them were ?finger-nail-scratch-resistant?, even after 1 to 2 weeks ?curing?. Then I had some 2K automotive paint mixed in a can specially to test and???.. no good either. The guy who mixed and filled the spray can told me that they put a different hardener in it, than the normal hardener, to give it a sufficient shelve life for the spray can to be taken home and used, at all.

Please note: I wanted a flat (non shiny) gray, a glossy paint seems to be a lot easier to get a hard finish with!

I did not test any Rust-oleum, because I just did not stumble across a supplier. I checked the Rust-oleum website and did not find an importer for either Holland or Belgium! So it looks like I will have to get some paint mixed at the local automotive-paint-supply-store and spray it with my spray gun.

Regards, Tonny

How about a paint MADE for aircraft interiors?

FIY Check out Sherwin Williams Jet flex interior paint....

http://www2.sherwin-williams.com/aerospace/jflex.asp


This is what I plan on using

JetFlex

Here's another vote for JetFlex. I used fog-grey, water soluble. It went on easily after thinning with water, easy to clean up and it seems pretty durable, but is easy to touch in. It was expensive to buy here in England - may be that won't be an issue. Here's a photo so you have some idea how it looks.

Chris

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How about a paint MADE for aircraft interiors?

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I looked at that JetFlex stuff, but there are two reasons why it may not be the most practical choice - cost and availability. I don't beleive there's a local supplier of that paint in my city (Ottawa Canada), so I'd have to drive to Montreal to get it or have it shipped. Also, I'm not sure if the inside of our RVs really require the same quality of paint that is used for the interior of arliners that are subject to all kinds of passenger-abuse on a daily basis.

phil and others

I agree with you. SW automotive paint distributers could likely order it for you. In my case I'm finishing less than 10 square feet of interior surface. everything else is covered with CAD's interior panels or seats. Van's wash primer only back of the baggage panel.

SW JetFlex $$$

lorne green said:

I agree with you. SW automotive paint distributers could likely order it for you. In my case I'm finishing less than 10 square feet of interior surface. everything else is covered with CAD's interior panels or seats. Van's wash primer only back of the baggage panel.

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I'm probably going with some old Imron I aready have for the interior.... but I did contact Alliance Coatings in CA about the JefFlex.

http://www.alliancecoatings.com/jetflexwr.php

Compared to other aircraft paints it's quite reasonable in $$$ -- at least in the US....

A gallon ready to use of the H2O based stuff is in the under $90 range - with an additional mixing fee for a color match if you don't like their standard colors.

gil A

By comparison, a fresh pint of Imron hardener was $63, and a qt. of fast accelerator (smallest size available) is around $173 at the local DuPont dealer

just to update everyone, sherwin williams no longer sends color samples/wheels as their site implies, you have to order them from the dealer nearest you

Jetflex

I am going with the Jetflex water reducible for my RV-9A, but haven't tried it yet.

I did some research on color matching to the Van's powder coat light grey. The Cardinal powder coat color T009-GR230 references RAL 7035 an international color code. This is matched by the following Jetflex satin codes:
Solvent based: Jetflex L09511
Water based: Jetflex P09511