Davepar
Well Known Member
I've been using the Aircraft Finishing Systems Primer/Sealer for a while, so I thought I'd write up some impressions of it. It's a one-part, water-borne, epoxy primer and sealer. I chose this product initially because it is a less-toxic alternative to chromate primers, and it is easy to clean up with water. I'm not affiliated with the company in any way. Specific product info on the primer can be found here.
When I first called AFS to order the primer. I talked to a great person on the phone, who gave me lots of useful info. The aluminum first needs to be cleaned. You can either use their high strength cleaner, lacquer thinner, or Dawn. I decided to just use Dawn. She said to make sure all of the soap is washed off. Next step is the AFS cleaner/etch. She recommended spraying that on with a spray bottle and scrubbing with a Scotch-brite pad. Let that dry, but spray the primer within 2 hours. For the primer, make sure it is the right viscosity. I bought a viscosity cup to measure that. After stirring the primer well so that the solids from the bottom are gone, stick the cup in the paint. Pull it out and see how long it takes for it to start dripping out. It should be about 22 seconds. If it takes longer, thin with distilled water. More prep and spraying info can be found here.
So far I have used about 2.5 quarts on the empennage, wings, and part of the fuselage. I was initially priming the inside of the skins on the empennage, but stopped doing that with the wings. The paint does have a shelf life of about a year, so don't order too much at a time. A quart goes a long way, especially since you can pour back in what you don't use after each session.
Last winter I was painting in an enclosed paint booth in the garage with a respirator. That worked pretty good, as long as I wasn't spraying too much at a time. There is a pretty strong ammonia odor when spraying.
One drawback to the AFS primer is that it is not resistant to acetone or MEK. That can also be seen as a plus, as it's easy to clean off overspray. I haven't used a lot of different paints, so I don't have much to compare it to. I have used the Sherwin-Williams GBP-988 spray can primer. I'd have to say that the AFS primer is not quite as tough as GBP-988. The AFS can be knicked pretty easily.
It sprays pretty easily. I dries to the touch in about an hour, depending on temperature. I usually let it dry overnight before handling the parts much. It seems to set up much more by then.
I haven't had any adhesion problems. I think doing the right prep for the parts is key there. I have a strip of alclad mounted horizontally on my fence outside that I painted a year ago, and it still shows no sign of deterioration.
Having said all of that, lately I've been using the Sherwin-Williams GBP-988 much more. It's super easy to clean a part, shoot it with the rattle can, and be done. No messing with air lines, spray gun, etching, etc.
Dave
When I first called AFS to order the primer. I talked to a great person on the phone, who gave me lots of useful info. The aluminum first needs to be cleaned. You can either use their high strength cleaner, lacquer thinner, or Dawn. I decided to just use Dawn. She said to make sure all of the soap is washed off. Next step is the AFS cleaner/etch. She recommended spraying that on with a spray bottle and scrubbing with a Scotch-brite pad. Let that dry, but spray the primer within 2 hours. For the primer, make sure it is the right viscosity. I bought a viscosity cup to measure that. After stirring the primer well so that the solids from the bottom are gone, stick the cup in the paint. Pull it out and see how long it takes for it to start dripping out. It should be about 22 seconds. If it takes longer, thin with distilled water. More prep and spraying info can be found here.
So far I have used about 2.5 quarts on the empennage, wings, and part of the fuselage. I was initially priming the inside of the skins on the empennage, but stopped doing that with the wings. The paint does have a shelf life of about a year, so don't order too much at a time. A quart goes a long way, especially since you can pour back in what you don't use after each session.
Last winter I was painting in an enclosed paint booth in the garage with a respirator. That worked pretty good, as long as I wasn't spraying too much at a time. There is a pretty strong ammonia odor when spraying.
One drawback to the AFS primer is that it is not resistant to acetone or MEK. That can also be seen as a plus, as it's easy to clean off overspray. I haven't used a lot of different paints, so I don't have much to compare it to. I have used the Sherwin-Williams GBP-988 spray can primer. I'd have to say that the AFS primer is not quite as tough as GBP-988. The AFS can be knicked pretty easily.
It sprays pretty easily. I dries to the touch in about an hour, depending on temperature. I usually let it dry overnight before handling the parts much. It seems to set up much more by then.
I haven't had any adhesion problems. I think doing the right prep for the parts is key there. I have a strip of alclad mounted horizontally on my fence outside that I painted a year ago, and it still shows no sign of deterioration.
Having said all of that, lately I've been using the Sherwin-Williams GBP-988 much more. It's super easy to clean a part, shoot it with the rattle can, and be done. No messing with air lines, spray gun, etching, etc.
Dave
