Prime the firewall?

[dmhodge]

Just starting the fuse kit and we're just about ready to assemble the firewall. Should the firewall be primed??

 

[L.Adamson]

No. It's stainless steel, and does fine without it.

L.Adamson --- RV6A

 

[RWoodard]

I like a painted firewall because it is easy to clean up the inevitable oil drip. I like white, in particular, because it reflects light well and makes it easy to see any oil drips.

The engine gets in the way of the firewall in this picture a little bit, but I decided it wasn't worth removing the engine to get a better picture.

 

[dmhodge]

Thanks for the replies . . .

But still without consensus. Any others want to chime in?

btw - nice baffles!!

 

[szicree]

1. Anything you paint will someday need a repaint.

2. Paint does not stick well to stainless.

3. Slows down build.

4. Paint can hide cracks.

 

[DanH]

Bare stainless. If you're not going to cover it with an insulator, polish it. A giant mirror behind the engine makes a lot of things real easy to do.

 

[John Clark]

Bare Stainless, thanks!

Stainless steel won't rust or corrode and cleans easily. Painting the firewall will just cause you to have to repaint the firewall.

John Clark ATP, CFI
FAA FAAST Team Member
EAA Flight Advisor
RV8 N18U "Sunshine"
KSBA

 

[RWoodard]

I guess there's a reason this is in the "Never Ending Debate" section.

As others have said: From a purely functional standpoint, there's no need to paint or prime the firewall. Beyond that, it's personal preference.

All the arguments against could also be applied to painting the airframe. From a purely functional standpoint, we'd all probably be driving beige Honda Civics!

Do what looks good in your eyes. I do like Dan's polished stainless suggestion, however. Functional benefit and a bit of pizazz.... ('course it'll add to the build time! )

 

[dmhodge]

Very helpful!!

Thanks everyone for the input. This was very helpful!

 

[aerhed]

Paint burns. When it burns it's usually toxic. Paint can absorb stuff. Stainless won't. Some Cessnas have green firewalls. It always falls off and lays around in chips/sheets. Very ugly. I might buy it on a galvanized Piper firewall, but on stainless, no way. Maybe that's just me being me.