Here are some random thoughts.
I am using 3M 1080 from metrorestyling.com. Ask for Tom. You can order samples for every option.
http://www.metrorestyling.com/3M-1080-Scotchprint-Gloss-Vinyl-Wrap-s/19976.htm
The only pop rivets I have done were on the LE of the ailerons. What 3M recommends doing is heating the area at least up to 200F, let it cool down a bit so it can be handled without damage, work a plastic scraper all around the circumference of the head. Pressure and heat activates more of the adhesive removing the air bubbles. It turns out perfectly, which was surprising to me.
Actually, I did the horizontal surfaces first, which is easier. The hershey bar wings were the easiest things to wrap because of their flat surface and symmetry. It required no stretching around curves which is the hardest thing to wrap. I chose to do mine all in 1' wide strips which my vendor scored for me on their CNC machine.
I am doing mine over polished metal. There is no risk of paint failure underneath or anything like that. Vinyl will pretty much perfectly preserve the shine. One day i can peel it off and start over with shiny metal.
The automotive vinyl installers are VERY careful about what they wrap over. Typically, they want OEM paint with clear coat finishes only. It has to be both perfectly strong and perfectly smooth. Primer starts to get trickier because it might not be smooth enough. I found vinyl to stick fine on my sherwin williams epoxy primered interiors. A spot on my HS, it wouldn't stick though for some reason.
As a test, I took a vinyl piece out of the trash, put it half on uncleaned bare metal, half on the fiberglass windshield fairing right in front, flew some 6,000 nm and the vinyl stayed perfectly in place!
I am not sure about weight savings or not. I heard it does save weight. I think some of that comes from the consistency of the material. Instead of having thick and thin layers and multiple coats of paint, Vinyl is a consistent 3mil or so and up to 7mil i believe for some of the fancier carbon fiber matte designs.
I think worries about corrosion and other issues come down more on installation itself vs. material. A bad install job will ruin things more than any material. They have been vinyl wrapping cars for 30 years already They have been using it on billboard signs for even longer. It is only recently that people are starting to hear about them now. 3M realized a bad installer would damage their reputation. Thus, they have a comprehensive certification course to try and ensure better install quality. Unfortunately, this is mostly for auto techniques, so we are on our own for planes.
Also, it is very labor intensive. You can just spray paint and get broad coverage very quickly over a lot of area. With vinyl, you have to purposely cover every square millimeter of area, which takes conscious thought and planning for the least amount of waste and effort.
Scott, i love your passion. I wish we were closer and not 3,000 miles physically apart. I would love to look at some of your full wrap jobs, as i always wondered why i had not heard anyone doing this yet. I am still formulating my strategy for how to do this.