almost done painting!!

[Bob Brown]

After 250 hours prep, the fuselage got covered with basecoat yesterday, clearcoat today and the wings get clearcoat tomorrow!!! Looks HOT...will post a pic tomorrow afternoon! I'm stoked. The Glasurit 55 basecoat/clearcoat system with the Glasurit etching primer underneath went on great and looks like glass.

[trib]

I'm interested in figuring out what paint system to use. I plan on painting the RV myself, and have limited experience from painting two cars in the past. Did you paint this yourself or have a shop do it? If you did, any feedback on how the paint went on (in addition to the results you mentioned) will be appreciated.

[RV_7A]

Hey Bob-

Thats what I'm painting my plane with as well. I've already painted my tail and canopy. However Im curious as to what etching primer you are using to put down under the basecoat. I used Epoxy Primer and it stuck pretty good, however any info is good info using Glasurit stuff.

-Jeff

[DanH]

Yes Bob, tell us more. Is that the 283-150 etch primer under 55 base/clear? What kind of prep did it need? Is there anything sprayed prior to the etch primer?

[Bob Brown]

We painted the plane in my hangar. All control surfaces were removed and prepped separately. After all the glass and surface prep was done, I washed the plane with Prep-All and a gray scotchbrite to remove any remnants of oils and such...I had 50 hrs on the plane when I started the paintjob, so there was some gunk on the belly that had to come off. After the Prep-All treatment, I washed the whole plane with TSP and a red scotchbrite pad, rinsing well with a fresh water spray. That is a nasty job at 40 degrees in the wind (especially the underside) and took my family and I the better part of a full day...but at least the TSP/water mixture stays liquid and rinses off well, something that may be more problematic at higher temps. The plane was then dried with filtered air and allowed to sit for a couple of days. I then used prep-all again,wiping it off immediately, then tacked the surface and shot on Glasurit 283-155 Etching primer with 352-228 Activator. Within a few minutes, I shot the base coat where the stripes are, then shot clear over that. When it cured, the stripes were laid out with 3M fine line tape. Then the rest of the plane was shot with Etching Primer/Activator followed by the 55 base coat, with hardener and reducer. I used Glasurit 923-255 HS Multi-Clear and 929-91 hardener with reducer. One of my neighbors (familiar with Glasurit products) guided me through the process and shot the paint. I think I could do it now, but there are definitely "painters tricks" along the way to deal with runs, bugs, dust, tape adhesive that didn't get removed properly, etc. I spent about $2500 dollars on materials (paint products and additives, 3M Fine line tape, green masking tape, good disposable gloves, masking paper, tyvek suits, etc. I also bought a hobby air system with full masks so I lived through the painting process. My neighbor had the full set of Anest Iwata HVLP sprayguns, so I didn't have to buy that stuff. We used air filter bulbs on the end of the hoses and had no issues with contaminants. The whole process once painting began took 5 (10-12 hr) days, including control surfaces. Masking sucks, but the better you do it, the more you'll like the end result. There are some dust specks in the paint here and there, and one cat hair is under the clearcoat for character...but all in all, I love it. Now, if I can just remember how to post a picture here...

[Bob Brown]

I know the colors are not very bright...it'll probably be hard to spot this bird in the air...

I freely admit I stole ideas from Paul Dye (leading edge treatment) and Doug Weiler (tail paint style). Thanks guys...

I take full responsibility for the color choices.

http://img476.imageshack.us/img476/1...ting041yp4.jpg
http://img476.imageshack.us/img476/4...ting042jq5.jpg
http://img259.imageshack.us/img259/3...ting059tt9.jpg
http://img476.imageshack.us/img476/5...ting063mr7.jpg
http://img259.imageshack.us/img259/9...ting062nh9.jpg

[Ironflight]

Yeah Bob, that one's gonna be tough to spot...

Actually, I have a whole lot of respect for someone that's willing to paint yellow - I know that's tough to get right. Then again, I have a lot of respect for everyone that paints their own plane. Having done it once to my old Grumman, I was more than happy to pay to have the RV painted by someone that knew what he was doing....

Nice plane Bob!

Paul

[TSwezey]

Very nice job. I just started the paint prep and hope mine comes out as good as yours. I like the yellow!

[PainterJohn]

MAN i dig YELLOW!!! Looks great Bob.

[Jconard]

Did you mask the floor...noticed no overspray, wonder how you contained it.