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I think I'm going to give it a go !!

D

Darren S

Well Known Member
I am looking into my options for painting my RV-7. I plan to paint it before final assembly so currently there are the two wings, fuse, emp , cowling etc...

To have it done by an aircraft painter is in the range of $8000 for a single colour!! Kind of steep and yea I know, you get what you pay for :)

As a homebuilder I want the pride and bragging rights of doing it myself, or at least doing most of it myself.

I found a local paint booth rental place that provides the gun, booth and necessary supplies. There are some local fellas with painting experience that I can hire to do the actual painting job.

I am aware of automotive guys laying on heavy coats for cars, so I will have to choose a correct paint and find a painter who is "weight" conscious.

I plan to do most of the prep at home before I rent a moving truck and take the parts to the paint booth.

The plane will be hangered most of the time, I'm doing just basic White and will use vinyl to dress it up afterwards but as for paint, just one color.

I want some advice:

1. What one part paint is most user friendly. I'm looking for a paint that is easy to apply (no base/clear), a paint that covers well and doesn't need many coats to cover well. I have seen a few RV builders using PPG Concept ?

2. What paint requires the minimal prep. Is there a product that all I have to do is; Scotchbrite the surface, spray aluminum etch primer and then Top Coat ?

I was told that some products require; Scotchbrite, Acid wash, Self etch primer, some sealer then Top Coat. I'm looking for the easiest dang paint to apply.

Thanks for helping a paint newbie, I hope this Painting won't be the death of me (as per the previous posts)

Darren
 
Darren, I am happy with PPG Concept

I did my basic white and some day I will get around to put some vinyl color on it. :)

I used my DA sander with grey scotch brite to scoff up the alclad and then wiped it down with acetone to clean off the buff-dust.
From then on use the PPG products. One coat of their primer (I can't remember the number), then two to three light coats of the paint. You only wait about 15 minutes between coats. By the time you have got the first coat on the part is time to start on the next coat.

The fiberglass needs to have all the holes (pin holes) filled before you apply the primer (it is a different number then the AL primer), then the same paint goes on top.

If you get the correct amount of paint on the final coat, it turns to a beautiful gloss finish. If is not shinny enough you can buff it to get more.

Kent
 
Hey thanks Kent,

I think the PPG Concept is the direction I am leaning. I would like to do the fiberglass work (fixing pin holes) at home.

I can't see any pinholes till the primer is on. I did a little testing on the wheel pants. I used a high quality automotive fiberglass primer in a spray bomb. I got it from a body shop that puts automotive paint in cans. Then I used glazing putty to fill in the pinholes and then primed again.

Maybe you don't know but, would I be able to apply the PPG primer over top of my spray can primer ?

Darren
 
Lots of thing will work

Darren, Kent, et.al.
Well I've painted two RV's now and I can say that there are lots of ways to approach this. (All of which can work) :D I painted my '9 with PPT Concept (DCC single stage) and the '8 used PPG base/clear (DBC with 2002 clear). All in all I think the base clear is actually a little more forgiving. Especially if you are painting a metallic or other oddball color.

A lot of guys will tell you that white is the easiest color to shoot. And it does tend to hide flaws; however, I find that the second coat of white using a direct gloss paint like DCC is REALLY hard to see. And seeing is everything with paint work. If you can't see the paint film well, then its becomes easy to shoot orange peel or runs. I think the base clear is actually much easier to shoot with consistent results. The base goes on really easy and dries dead flat. When shooting the clear, its actually easier to see the wet paint film so that you know whether you're up on the edge of a run or not, or if you're shooting orange peel. Plus you have the option of shooting your trim colors all in the base and covering them all up with the clear. Makes for nice smooth transitions.

The base/clear is a bit more expensive because there are more components, and some folks get intimidated by the clear. My feeling is that material cost is secondary to the WORK that is involved. If I can get a better result by spending $2500 on materials versus $2000, then I think that's a good trade off. As for shooting direct gloss (not base clear). Well the direct gloss paints are basically just clear with tints in them. If you can shoot them, you can shoot clear.

The bottom line is both systems can work well. Both can produce good results. Painting is a lot of work, but its really a lot of fun once you get into it.

Good Luck
 
Primer on exterior?

Darren,
Is the rattle can primer on the exterior? I would be really tempted to remove it if so. I bet you can wipe it off with a rag and lacquer thinner or MEK. Then shoot PPG epoxy primer. This would give you better adhesion. Might be okay, but I'd hate to go to all the work and have it start lifting latter.
 
I can't easily find PPG Concept up here in Gold Medal Hockey Country. I spent the better part of today on the phone getting the run around. Maybe it is an older product that PPG doesn't sell much ?

One place recommended Endura. I have heard of this type of PPG paint before but no one could tell me the difference between Endura and Concept.

I eventually found a place that sells R-M paint. I think it is by House of Kolor. They have a one stage white paint, a self etch primer for aluminum and also a fiberglass primer in a rattle can that won't react with the top coat. Good price too. About $170 for 2 sprayable gallons of primer and $210 for 2 sprayable gallons of top coat (this included the hardner and reducer).

Any comments ?

Darren
 
Hmm

Well...
What a lot of folks refer to as Concept is really Deltron DCC. Any PPG dealer will have it. It is the current high end single stage paint in PPG's Deltron line.

I'm not familiar with Endura. It probably belongs to one of the other PPG lines. They have several paint lines each oriented to a particular paint segment, price point, etc... The Deltron line is basically the top of the automotive refinish line. Their OEM paints, aerospace paints, etc... are different.

I haven't used the House of Kolor stuff. I think they were sold a few years back, but just have no experience with them.

One comment on the self-etching primers on aluminum. I wouldn't bother. The modern epoxy primers are excellent for both corrosion and adhesion on properly scuffed and cleaned aluminum. The self-etching primers also must be sealed before shooting urethane paints. If you shoot a urethane directly over a self-etching primer, it stands an excellent chance of blistering. So you seal it with either an epoxy primer, or a urethane sealer. I would just avoid the whole issue and shoot the epoxy to start with. Scuff and clean the aluminum with scotch bright pads so that is a uniform satin, clean thouroughly with alcohol or other solvent, then shoot the epoxy, then the top coat. If you're using epoxy primer from someone other than PPG, check their data sheets for surface compatability first, but I suspect this will be just fine.

Good Luck
 
dedgemon said:
One comment on the self-etching primers on aluminum. I wouldn't bother. The modern epoxy primers are excellent for both corrosion and adhesion on properly scuffed and cleaned aluminum. The self-etching primers also must be sealed before shooting urethane paints. If you shoot a urethane directly over a self-etching primer, it stands an excellent chance of blistering. So you seal it with either an epoxy primer, or a urethane sealer. I would just avoid the whole issue and shoot the epoxy to start with. Scuff and clean the aluminum with scotch bright pads so that is a uniform satin, clean thouroughly with alcohol or other solvent, then shoot the epoxy, then the top coat. If you're using epoxy primer from someone other than PPG, check their data sheets for surface compatability first, but I suspect this will be just fine.
Click to expand...

Same process for many RV's that I'm familiar with. I did the same, and the finish is a bright and strong as it was three years ago, when painted.

L.Adamson -- RV6A
 
Thanks for the input fellas,

I will check around today and see if Deltron DCC is a term that the paint shops are familiar with.

As for the self etch primer. Maybe I mis-spoke. I thought that all primers over aluminum were self-etch. I'll double check with the House of Kolor guy that it is just an epoxy primer.

Either way, I seem to be on the right track. Scuff surface with Scotchbrite, clean and degrease, primer, top coat, done. Lots of work but I am just doing one color so no masking and re-spraying.

No need to acid bath the plane as some paint shops said I had to do.

Darren
 
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