Plexiglass Paint

Installing RV7A Tip up canopy. Before I glass in the front edge, I would like to paint about a 2" strip along the bottom, front, inside, to hide the fiberglass from showing inside through the plexiglass. I have read about the dangers of acetone and loctite causing damage and destruction to the plexi. Makes me wonder about paint. Can anyone recommend what kind of paint I can safely use on my canopy?
Randy C.

color the exopy

Randy

Color the epoxy that you use to install the windshield. West Systems makes a bunch of different colors. I used black. All you see from the inside of the plane is a solid black color, no fiberglass. You can buy the color from most marine stores, it's with the fiberglass supplies.

I didn't come up with this, it's been used by many people before me.

I did what you are considering. Just used some "rattle can" flat black paint - Rustoleum brand I think, but it probably doesn't matter. Worked great. Seemed to me mixing the black pigment in the epoxy would be more trouble, although I'm sure that would work well too.

John Miller,
RV8-A, flying

Sika primer 209

I used Sika Primer 209, which I bough from Jamestown Distributors http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/



It's expensive, but seems to be designed for going on plexiglass, provides a nice black finish to the plexi.

You could probably put it on either side. If you put it on the side that will get the fiberglass/epoxy, the inside will have a pretty gloss black finish, just like the edges of the windows on your car. If you put it on the inside, then the finish is a flat black.

I doubt I would spend $40 on this if I didn't already have it - I'd just use the epoxy pigment.

jamiller said:

\ Seemed to me mixing the black pigment in the epoxy would be more trouble, although I'm sure that would work well too.

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Actually you just mix the dye in when you are mixing the epoxy. It takes an extra couple of seconds to squirt the dye in, and the results are very good.

Mel?

Hopefully Mel will see this post and give his advice. He painted a large majority of the top portion of his canopy (white).

The top of my canopy has been painted for over 12 years without any problems. I tried all kinds of primers. None worked. Finally I just painted the scuffed plexi with Jet-Glo polyurethane directly (no primer) and it has stayed beautifully.
Mel...DAR

I called the techies at West systems this morning to learn how to coler the epoxy black. They don't actually sell a black pigment as it turns out, they have grey and they have white, no black. But, the good news is you can color the epoxy with universal paint pigment available from your local paint supplier. The tech rep claimed it is safe as long as you keep the mixture well under 10%. Another option mentioned, and it is a product they carry, is graphite powder. A small concentration colors the epoxy black. It is normally used to make the final product more slippery. He did not think this would cause paint adhesion problems. One more product mentioned was a special black paint used by sign painters for lettering called "One Shot". It is a very dense black paint that can be used for the same coloring purpose. I will go with the universal black pigment as it I think I can get it very easily. Hope this helps someone. Thanks for the great responses to my question. Another potential problem solved, simply by asking the question.

Randy said:

They don't actually sell a black pigment as it turns out, they have grey and they have white, no black.

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That's funny, I have tube of black from West Systems sitting right here. Maybe they stoped making it, but the last time I was at Boat US they had a few tubes of it.

Painting Plastic

I used a can of SEM paint and painted a Cessna 172's ugly Royalite panel cover a nice light tan color. SEM stays on Plastic products without thinking of peeling or cracking. It looks good, like it is the original color. I got the tip on the SEM paint from the Cessna Pilot's Association web site.

Here are exerpts from the posts on the CPA web site:

"Go to an Auto Body Supply Shop and ask for SEM brand products. Follow the directions to the letter. For best results, do not get creative. Wear a good quality paint respirator. This stuff if bad for you. ..... JBC

I second this post. The SEM brand paint is not cheap but it's good. I'm not a great painter but somehow this stuff dries with no runs, no drips. And yes it does "mist", wear at least a mask. We did a token cleaning with ethanol prior to painting, and after using fiberglass and PVC pipe cement to repair the cracks.

I used SEM paint and it worked great. However, before I sprayed paint, I used the SEM Plastic Prep to clean the surfaces. That may help get good results.
Arne P206

Another vote for the SEM products. I painted my entire interior over 10 years ago and it still looks good. Doesn't scratch or rub off. Best part is, it looks like the factory finish, not like its been painted. Be sure to use the prep solvent "Sand Free". Spray the color while the plastic is still wet with the solvent. It works best on hard plastic or "royalite". On vinyl it comes out a little glossy. But you can top coat it with low gloss clear (also a SEM product).

slider windscreen hoop misc musings

Well, tomorrow I'll mix up this West Resin system 105 and slow hardener-- for a slider windscreen hoop. Or I'll just smudge a bunch on the windshield-cowl mating area first and let it dry.

I bought a can of SEM 39863 Plastic Adhesion Promoter (someone mentioned it) and I scuffed one inch of my windscreen and painted a metallic stripe on the inside of the windscreen. Might be overkill-- I assumed it would cover the epoxy glass lay up and make it look like a grey. I can't tell if it did any good or not. Looks just like my Ford Truck windshield.

Then I went to the local boat store and bought a Evercoat Coloring Agent (actually two) at $6.95 each and I'll mix it to make a grey tint too. And mix it in with the resin. They had six different colors but (Evercoat) not grey.

I was wondering what hoop shape I wanted and whether I wanted my rollbar to show a bit on the side. I changed my original shape(which hid the bar) and I've now got maximum visibility but the rollbar gusset will show just a bit.

Every picture I looked at on the web for ideas looked excellent so I must be over stressing.

Someone was saying they were doing their hoop last week. wish us luck I have my modelling clay all ready to go. FWIW