Painting leading edges

[shiney]

For those who have painted their wing leading edges, how far back did you go, a rivet count will do if you know it!

Thanks

Martin

 

[mike newall]

Yea,

We painted ours 47 rivets back - in fact, all the way to the trailing edge.........

 

[Mel]

For those who have painted their wing leading edges, how far back did you go, a rivet count will do if you know it!
Thanks
Martin

If you're asking for appearance sake, that's completely your choice.
If you're asking for aerodynamic sake, it's still your choice.
A spanwise paint line only affects a laminar airfoil. It has no effect on a turbulent airfoil such as the RV has.

 

[Captain_John]

I tell you what...

I am flying a polished -6 now and if I were to paint ANYTHING, it would be the ends of the wings!

Those things can be BLINDING!

As far as the leading edges go I would paint where the bugs go SPLAT.

I don't know what is in bug guts but they are hard to get off of bare aluminum!

CJ

 

[[email protected]]

just past the wingtip lights...

for the leading edge solid color I think it looks best just past the wingtip light cut outs in the tips...

 

[turbo]

if you like the look of this i will give you more picks and rivet count.

 

[CDRDATA]

Bug guts

Capt John,

When I first heard this I thought it was urban legend. How to clean bug guts without damaging the finish they splatted on? Dunk a dryer sheet like Bounce in water, then rub off the guts. Its gooey and looks like you just made a bigger mess, but it rinses off completely without hurting any finish. Rub it on, leave about 5 minutes and rub again before rinsing. For a sticky leading edge you might go through half a box of sheets, but its cheap, effective, leaves your airfoil sweet-smelling, and the clouds it passes through will be fluffy Good Idea to take care of it soon, bug guts are corrosive to automotive finishes and I suspect many aircraft are painted this way. Who knows what they will do to bare aluminum. My son's car was encrusted with insect corpses and took roughly an hour to undo years of neglect, which included the parental stern lecture and 4 beers.

For you chemists out there, the wax/water emulsion is non-abrasive and contains no solvents to soften the finish.

Anyway, try a small patch on your car on the bumper underside where it won't be seen to suit your suspicions before doing the whole wing.

Dennis "CDR Data" Snyder
RV-7A wannabee, awaiting retirement

 

[Captain_John]

WOW! Sounds too good to be true!

I will try the dryer sheet method! It smells fresh too I will bet!

CJ

 

[CDRDATA]

Cool paint for leading edges

I just saw this ad for NeverWet on AvWeb and wanted to pass along. Its a nanotube coating that apparently repels all liquids. I can't imaging flying through a Hershey's Chocolate Syrup storm, but they apparently have that covered. Anyway its an entertaining video with amazing possibilities for ice and bug prevention. If the paint systems are compatible this would make an intriguing clearcoat.

http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/NewTechnologyPromisesIcingCorrosionProtection_205810-1.html

 

[polishpilot]

Capt John,

When I first heard this I thought it was urban legend. How to clean bug guts without damaging the finish they splatted on? Dunk a dryer sheet like Bounce in water, then rub off the guts. Its gooey and looks like you just made a bigger mess, but it rinses off completely without hurting any finish. Rub it on, leave about 5 minutes and rub again before rinsing. For a sticky leading edge you might go through half a box of sheets, but its cheap, effective, leaves your airfoil sweet-smelling, and the clouds it passes through will be fluffy Good Idea to take care of it soon, bug guts are corrosive to automotive finishes and I suspect many aircraft are painted this way. Who knows what they will do to bare aluminum. My son's car was encrusted with insect corpses and took roughly an hour to undo years of neglect, which included the parental stern lecture and 4 beers.

For you chemists out there, the wax/water emulsion is non-abrasive and contains no solvents to soften the finish.

Anyway, try a small patch on your car on the bumper underside where it won't be seen to suit your suspicions before doing the whole wing.

Dennis "CDR Data" Snyder
RV-7A wannabee, awaiting retirement

Another method MIGHT BE baking soda. I have used it for years on my autos. I wet the surface, sprinkle baking soda on a wash mit and rub it on the bugs. Let it sit while I am washing the rest of the car; then rub the bugs off and rinse. I have never seen any scratches (no abrasives in baking soda). I would test it on piece of bare aluminum first, however.

 

[RV9A Bill]

neverwet

After checking out the neverwet video, I wonder how that might work on
a Catto prop to protect it in the rain?
RV9A Bill

 

[CDRDATA]

NeverWet hydrophobic coating

After checking out the neverwet video, I wonder how that might work on
a Catto prop to protect it in the rain?
RV9A Bill

Or a cheap Sennsenich wood prop? Or the canopy to keep rain from occluding vision and ice from forming and stressing the plastic?

I really wish I could retire and start building.

CDR Data

0% completed
100% thinking about it