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Painting vs wrapping RV

diamond

Well Known Member
Has anyone ever done or considered doing a wrap on their RV as an alternative to painting? If so, please post some photos. I'm curious if this is a viable alternative; cost, wearability, weight, etc. Here's an example I pulled off youtube showing the process done on a larger plane.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Go-PjCuLbOo
 
Has anyone ever done or considered doing a wrap on their RV as an alternative to painting? If so, please post some photos. I'm curious if this is a viable alternative; cost, wearability, weight, etc. Here's an example I pulled off youtube showing the process done on a larger plane.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Go-PjCuLbOo

From what I have seen for vehicle wraps, it costs more than paint unless you are doing detailed graphics. If you are planning a simple paint job with stripes ect, paint would be cheaper. I would also be concerned about traping moisture around the rivet heads and skin seams where the wrap may not stick down completely.
 
I did some of the smaller parts....

After about 5 years of flying, the cockpit coaming on my -4 was rather beat up. Rather than repainting this surface, I used a 3M film. It has proven much tougher than the orginal paint. It has been in place for 5 years and still looks great. Similarly, I used film on some interior components to avoid the hassle of painting. It worked great. Doing a whole plane would be a big job, but certainly is acheivable. You can get good weight estimates from the manufacturere, but I would expect it to be similar. It lays down over rivets well (you can't tell it's not paint), but I agree with a previous poster that it may be easier to apply second/third colors with this system due to the difficulty in laying film on complex geometries like the flap brace, or the exposed portion of the rear spar of the horizontal stablizer.

Good luck,
 
Air Graphics LLC

I've also been considering this so I hope some guys that have done it can chime in. I talked to this company at OSH last year...I thought she told me $1500-2000 for a typical RV?? As you can see they have some RV pics in their gallery.

http://www.airgraphicsllc.com/
 
Has anyone ever done or considered doing a wrap on their RV as an alternative to painting? If so, please post some photos. I'm curious if this is a viable alternative; cost, wearability, weight, etc. Here's an example I pulled off youtube showing the process done on a larger plane.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Go-PjCuLbOo

In reality it is not an alternative to painting..... it is an alternative to painting trim or other graphics. You still need to paint the plane a base color. It would be nearly impossible to (and cost prohibitive) to put vinyl on everything that would be normally painted (even vehicles the get the wrap treatment start out with everything painted... door jams, etc.)
 
If you look at what those guys can do it would be neat to do the tail art with a wrap.

Most small jets are vinyl graphics now that I have seen, so the product can hold up over rivets and great speeds.
 
In reality it is not an alternative to painting..... it is an alternative to painting trim or other graphics. You still need to paint the plane a base color. It would be nearly impossible to (and cost prohibitive) to put vinyl on everything that would be normally painted (even vehicles the get the wrap treatment start out with everything painted... door jams, etc.)

Many of us would feel comfortable putting a base coat on ourselves and then having a wrap applied with design and color. Only a few of us would feel comfortable painting detailed graphics with multi colors. If the cost of spraying my own base and paying for a wrap comes in cheaper than paying for a detailed paint scheme, then you have my attention. Not to mention the ability to remove the wrap and apply something different in the future if and when you sell your plane.

I'm also curious whether those wraps would work over the rivets on a -12.
 
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I considered this too as my airplane is mostly polished. I worked with a guy locally who is great and really into airplanes, but in the end the cost drove me back to paint (I painted it myself for about 1/3rd of the cost - YMMV).
 
If you look at what those guys can do it would be neat to do the tail art with a wrap.

Most small jets are vinyl graphics now that I have seen, so the product can hold up over rivets and great speeds.

The vinyl N-numbers toward the front of our engine cowlings haven't held up well, but for the most part they do alright. Doing vinyl trim over a base coat is something that is definitely in the running for my RV when it's time for paint, as what you can lay down is limited only by your creativity and the quality of the vinyl printer. Here is an example of a busy tail vinyl decal I did for a large scale model. My idea for the design and the vinyl cutter pulled it off beautifully (The N-number decal, not the flag decal). I can certainly see this process being viable on the RV.

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I wonder about the "legality" (from the point of view of the FARs) of such an N-number, considering how fuzzy it appears in the graphic (nothing against the graphic, just wondering aloud here). There are becoming more and more registration numbers that I see that are clearly not block-type letters.

Mel?
 
I didn't mean to imply that such a design be used on a plane where the N-number meet certain criteria to be legal; only a demonstration of the complex detail easily achieved with computer graphics and vinyl printing technology. Obviously on my model no one gives a **** whether that design would pass FAA muster.
 
We almost went that route, but we could not agree on a paint scheme. If we need to modify or repaint later we wiill do it. Found the quotes much cheaper than a paint job, but we wanted a good base coat to protect the aluminum.

Will be using small amounts of the wrap to cover seems and leading edges to protect the paint.

Check out this film, it is real paint on a film. It seems to be the best out there for what we found.

http://flxpaint.com/process.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3YzZORHvrs
 
I would like to wrap the underside of my horizontal stabilizer. I seem to be getting a lot of stone chips there on my -7 . I wish it had been done prior to the stone chips.
 
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a buddy of mine did the design and knew what kind of material to use so if would form around the rivit heads. it was a very thin 3M material. very satisfied.
 
Wrap the details

Yes, I've got a bid from a local "wrapper" in Seattle to do the second color details on my RV-7a. So I'll do only a white color on the whole airplane and then add the curves on sides of fuselage, wings, and tails with wrap. The whole bid was less than $1000 including installation.

I've also seen what it looks like after years of being installed when you take it off. The paint underneath is prestine.

So, yes I think using wrap for the details, second color, pin stripes, etc is the way to go for non-painters. We can paint the RVs when they are still in major pieces rather than waiting till after final assembly. Then after final assembly have the details added in wrap.
 
Yes, I've got a bid from a local "wrapper" in Seattle to do the second color details on my RV-7a. So I'll do only a white color on the whole airplane and then add the curves on sides of fuselage, wings, and tails with wrap. The whole bid was less than $1000 including installation.

I've also seen what it looks like after years of being installed when you take it off. The paint underneath is prestine.

So, yes I think using wrap for the details, second color, pin stripes, etc is the way to go for non-painters. We can paint the RVs when they are still in major pieces rather than waiting till after final assembly. Then after final assembly have the details added in wrap.

Make sure of the material quality for that price quoted. I'm assuming this is only a very small sqft? Material cost alone would dictate the price be north of this for designs of any size while using quality material?

Feel free to email for details.
 
Complete RV9 Vinyl Wrap on Youtube

Just came across a YouTube video showing Peter McCoy's RV-9 being wrapped in vinyl. He gives the material list and shows some of the detail work as well as a link to the installers he hired. He even chose the colors I am considering.

It appears he had vinyl applied directly to primed fiberglass pieces. I could not tell if it was applied to bare fiberglass as well. I would use a heat gun rather than a torch especially around the canopy.

My thanks to Peter McCoy for a most informative video.

Vince N8432
Desert Aire (M94), WA
RV8 Flying
 
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Yes, I've got a bid from a local "wrapper" in Seattle to do the second color details on my RV-7a. So I'll do only a white color on the whole airplane and then add the curves on sides of fuselage, wings, and tails with wrap. The whole bid was less than $1000 including installation.

I've also seen what it looks like after years of being installed when you take it off. The paint underneath is prestine.

So, yes I think using wrap for the details, second color, pin stripes, etc is the way to go for non-painters. We can paint the RVs when they are still in major pieces rather than waiting till after final assembly. Then after final assembly have the details added in wrap.
Did you get a response on wether or not the glass pieces needed to be primed before vinyl applied?
 
Have a look at the current EAA magazine. There is an article about it.
I would be concerned about corrosion under the vinyl and I hvn't seen this addressed.
Will vinyl stand up to RV speeds. The vinyl rego under the wings on my Corby Starlet, have peeled off in places, but that started at about ten years in service and the Vinyl is applied on topof Stitts fabric.
 
Have a look at the current EAA magazine. There is an article about it.
I would be concerned about corrosion under the vinyl and I hvn't seen this addressed.
Will vinyl stand up to RV speeds. The vinyl rego under the wings on my Corby Starlet, have peeled off in places, but that started at about ten years in service and the Vinyl is applied on topof Stitts fabric.

I have tested our vinyl at 290kts and FL250. RV speeds are no issue if installed correctly.

There are hundreds of different levels and manufactures of vinyl. They vary greatly.

We have addressed the topic of corrosion several times on this site and while discussing our process daily.
 
RV8 Complete 3M series 1080 vinyl wrap

Used Rustoleum Sail Gloss Blue Paint for spars, spinner, and gear leg access plates. Everything else white and blue vinyl. Cost? Less than $2000.00, more like $1700, for everything including tools. Scratches and nicks easily, but the repair is pretty simple.

Better than a pro paint job? No. But very nice. I am extremely happy with the results.

The picture is from my vinyl wrap blog which I hope to complete...some day:)

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Has anyone ever done or considered doing a wrap on their RV as an alternative to painting? If so, please post some photos. I'm curious if this is a viable alternative; cost, wearability, weight, etc. Here's an example I pulled off youtube showing the process done on a larger plane.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Go-PjCuLbOo

Get a professionally primed and painted base and then add the vinyl graphics to accent . I won't be able to post photos of mine til October , that's how far out the reservation for a spot with the pro paint is. That's My two cents, opinion value, new pro paint cost including stripping of original nasty paint by other about 600,000 x my 2 cents for a total of...well you figure it out. Moral of story, do it right the first time or leave it alone like VLAD.and just spend the money on fuel.
 
Wrapped (by myself and several unskilled helpers) over very clean alclad aluminum. Most, not all, fiberglass parts were later colour matched to the vinyl. You'll have to look pretty close to find out which is which. No signs of lifting, Not perfect (neither is paint) not forever (neither is paint). About 100 man hours so this was way faster than paint. About 2500 Can dollars with lots of vinyl left over. Most people can't tell it's not paint. Not as hard as paint. No chemicals, respirators, special rooms, lights to apply or remove. No runs, orange peel or irregular metallic component (the black is metallic). Easier to repair than paint. Relatively easy skills to acquire. Fun because nothing else changed the look of the project so dramatically or quickly. Air-tight.

rkahav.jpg


Bevan
 
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Wrapped in 1080 film, no real issues other than not happy with cowl wrapping. Tends to bubble from exhaust heat will probably repaint. Wheel pants and spinner painted.
Waiting to decide on graphics for side of aircraft.
Is very light when compared to other painted RV's. Saves fuel and much lower cost.
Big advantage to builders with small space is can be done during the build and stored. Much easier than doing on the aircraft.
20160322_114229.jpg
 
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