When and how to primer fuselage parts

[Morriem]

I'm about to start on the fuselage kit and wanted to get opinions on when and how to primer the components of the fuselage kit. Should I primer all the parts, just the inner sides of the skins and the floorboard, wait until the individual modules are constructed or the entire kit is complete. I plan to use rattle cans...should I primer some parts first, then a second coat after completion? I live in a dry area ( Las Vegas) and only primered parts required on the empenage and wing kits, or should I bother priming the fuselage and finishing kit components at all?
Thanks for the feedback.

 

[wirejock]

One opinion.
Airid climate.
Keep the weight down.
Prime mating surfaces before assembly. One light coat. Shoot epoxy primer on the interior parts. No top coat. It will last a lifetime.

 

[jsalley]

Don’t primer the outer faces of the skins, or any other parts that will receive exterior paint - most paint shops will remove it when the plane is painted. I painted everything that is inside the airframe, including the cockpit and all parts that will be “buried” or closed up during assembly - primering the cockpit made it much easier to final paint the interior once the fuselage was assembled (but if you do that, leave the stainless steel firewall panels unprimered and unpainted).

 

[ravenstar]

I went the rattle can path as well, I primed and painted some parts before I assembled them and the rest after the fuselage was fully assembled. I made the decision early on to only prime non-Alclad pieces, exposed interior, or parts that were marked in some way. If I were to do it again, I'd prime and finish paint the interior before assembling the parts. It's a lot easier to spray parts one by one on a stand than to mask off the interior and hang upside down over the edge and spray. Having said that, it wasn't really terrible doing the final painting in place. Like everything else in the build, it just took twice as long as I had hoped. As others mentioned, don't bother with exterior surfaces. It'll just complicate the final painting. My build is 4 years in, and the unfinished Alclad parts look as good as they day I got them. They'll be in good shape when they finally reach the paint shop.

 

[PhatRV]

I'm about to start on the fuselage kit and wanted to get opinions on when and how to primer the components of the fuselage kit. Should I primer all the parts, just the inner sides of the skins and the floorboard, wait until the individual modules are constructed or the entire kit is complete. I plan to use rattle cans...should I primer some parts first, then a second coat after completion? I live in a dry area ( Las Vegas) and only primered parts required on the empenage and wing kits, or should I bother priming the fuselage and finishing kit components at all?
Thanks for the feedback.

I alodined all the parts before assembly. I epoxy primed the interior when a subassembly was completed. I painted the interior after most of the fuselage was completed.

You can always prime and paint all the sheet metals before fitting, dimpling, and riveting if you know where all the parts are fitted together. This is tough to do. I just use the TLAR method to determine when to prime the subassembly and when to paint the interior.

 

[fixnflyguy]

I'm about to start on the fuselage kit and wanted to get opinions on when and how to primer the components of the fuselage kit. Should I primer all the parts, just the inner sides of the skins and the floorboard, wait until the individual modules are constructed or the entire kit is complete. I plan to use rattle cans...should I primer some parts first, then a second coat after completion? I live in a dry area ( Las Vegas) and only primered parts required on the empenage and wing kits, or should I bother priming the fuselage and finishing kit components at all?
Thanks for the feedback.

I have mentioned in other primer posts, a process I used and we use at my day job (heavy jet overhaul), applying primer to skin surfaces is quick, easy and no mess if you roll with a foam smooth roller. I primed 100% of everything on my RV-4 with the Akzo fluid resistant primer. The Alcad material is fairly resistant to corrosion itself, however the edges (including holes) are the prone areas to the onset of corrosion. Since I spent many years working the corrosion prevention/corrosion control (CPCP) program, my mind doesn't rest unless I prime everything. The roller method, and slight overthinning of the primmer will layout just fine, and it will work into the holes as well.