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Auto paint, have you done it?.... do you like it?

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Pilottonny

Well Known Member
I was going to use Akzo Nobel Aerospace paint for my RV9A. But at the moment I am not getting anyware, service wise.
Their tech sheet says the Metaflex FCR primer, that I used, may be painted over after beeing rubbed down with Scotch Brite, but they tell me to wash it off with thinner completely before I can continue the paint process ! :eek:. Also they tell me I need to put on 5 different layers of paint ($$$ + lbs !!) to get it right! But now, after asking three times, I still did not get a quotation for the paint that I need. I hate to do business with this kind of people.

So now I am wondering if I not better move on and find a better supplier. What comes to mind is buying the paint from a local Auto Paint Supplier (Spies Hecker). I have had good experience with them when I painted my RV (euhhh.... the one with the big wheels, kitchen, bedroom, etc.). I will be able to order more if I need to, get thinners, etc, as I need them. They will even be able to put the paint in a spray can, so I can paint small items (fairings, covers) at home, or do touch ups. It will also be easier if I have to do repairs later on, no need to order 1 Gal. at a time.

Has anyone painted their plane with Autopaint? What was the result ?? (appart of being one third of the price of "Plane paint") Does it ist stil look good after X years?

As always, thanks in advance for your replies.

Kind regards, Tonny.
 
We decided to use PPG Concept urethane for our paint, prep and painted by ourselves, and are very happy with the result. We chose to keep it simple with a one stage paint and, if I recall, only added around 20 pounds after paint. Striping was done via vinyl stripes and added very little additonal weight. Now, we don't have a Lindy-winning paint job by any means, but we're very happy with the results and spent less than $2000 for all materials. Paint was just done this summer so no word yet on durability, but we've looked at other planes with the same paint and it seems to really hold up well.

Here's a link to what our plane looks like now just before departing to OSH this summer:

Photo Courtesy of FlightAware.com

(At least I hope this works)
 
Autopaint from local supplier (small town, only one brand available). After more than 2 years and 500 hrs:


IMG_8561.JPG


My experience (materials and cost):

http://3limafoxtrot.com/painting.htm
 
Pilottonny said:
I was going to use Akzo Nobel Aerospace paint for my RV9A. But at the moment I am not getting anyware, service wise.
Their tech sheet says the Metaflex FCR primer, that I used, may be painted over after beeing rubbed down with Scotch Brite, but they tell me to wash it off with thinner completely before I can continue the paint process ! :eek:. Also they tell me I need to put on 5 different layers of paint ($$$ + lbs !!) to get it right! But now, after asking three times, I still did not get a quotation for the paint that I need. I hate to do business with this kind of people.

So now I am wondering if I not better move on and find a better supplier. What comes to mind is buying the paint from a local Auto Paint Supplier (Spies Hecker). I have had good experience with them when I painted my RV (euhhh.... the one with the big wheels, kitchen, bedroom, etc.). I will be able to order more if I need to, get thinners, etc, as I need them. They will even be able to put the paint in a spray can, so I can paint small items (fairings, covers) at home, or do touch ups. It will also be easier if I have to do repairs later on, no need to order 1 Gal. at a time.

Has anyone painted their plane with Autopaint? What was the result ?? (appart of being one third of the price of "Plane paint") Does it ist stil look good after X years?

As always, thanks in advance for your replies.

Kind regards, Tonny.
Click to expand...

Tonny, I suspect the majority of RV's in the US have been painted with "auto paint". Here are details about my use of PGG Concept single stage:

http://thervjournal.com/paint1.html

The paint has now been in service for over ten years and still looks very good.
 
PPG Deltron Base & Clear Coat

I have just completed stripping and painting our C-182 earlier this year. I have never painted anything and had very good results. I purchased Ron Alexanders book "How to paint your own airplane" an Axis Citation HVLP sprayer and went to work.............I did have a few runs, drips and errors to fix but they are much easier to fix with this system even though the clear coat takes a little more practice to master. I learned a lot and gained the confidence during the process to start thinking about an RV project...........

http://s289.photobucket.com/albums/ll239/timharris2008/59F/?albumview=slideshow
 
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I used Valspar polyeurathane. One coat on the underside, two on top...looks great after three years.

Frank
 
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