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Paint shop in central Fl?

ka6dan

Well Known Member
Need (finally) to paint my 9A. Does anyone know of a shop they can recommend for a fairly simple paint job somewhere a reasonable distance from Dunnellon Fl? Or a Vinyl wrap that has turned out well over time?
 
I used Hawk Aircraft Painting, Tampa Exec (KVDF), on the recommendation of several other satisfied customers. It took him a while to get it done but he did a real nice job with the rather simple pattern on my RV-12. I would use him again. Quite near to you both. http://www.hawkaircraft.com/

Stop by and talk to him about what you want ...
 
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Would anybody mind giving a rough estimate of what they are paying and for what type of paint job? I have a feeling they are all 5 figures and up but I'd love to be wrong and actually be able to afford it sometime this decade :D Can't justify that much money at this point; the wife has been patient enough...

Chris
 
It's so dependent on your exact situation you really need to talk to the painter or the vinyl guy if you go that way with your paint scheme with your airplane there so he can see it. It depends on your paint scheme, whether you get the fiberglass in a paint ready condition or you want them to do it, the type of paint among probably many other factors.

For example, I've seen estimates to do fairly simple schemes on RV-12s range from $6K - $8K using Imron Axalta paint.

Lead time is also an issue. Late last summer the lead time for me was about 3 months. I talked to someone a couple of weeks ago and theirs was about 5 months.
 
Priming, sanding and pinhole filling all of the fiberglass parts is very labor-intensive, requires multiple iterations and adds significantly to the cost. I'm paying right around $10K for a three-color paint job, all prep included, with epoxy primer, three coats of polyurethane paint and a clear coat. Also went with a checkerboard rudder, which added a bit of complexity.

I was lucky with lead time..about 2 weeks...because the owner of a King Air in primer needed to go to the avionics shop on the field, freeing up a spot in the paint shop.

Roughly $1000 went into the cowling prep alone (pink cowl with exposed honeycomb mesh, and assorted other voids that needed filling).
 
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I used Hawk Aircraft Painting, Tampa Exec (KVDF), on the recommendation of several other satisfied customers. It took him a while to get it done but he did a real nice job with the rather simple pattern on my RV-12. I would use him again. Quite near to you both. http://www.hawkaircraft.com/

Stop by and talk to him about what you want ...

+1 for Hawk Aircraft Painting at Tampa Executive Airport (KVDF). I agree that it can take a bit of time for Joe to get it done, but he is great to work with. I just got my airplane back after a complete strip and repaint (don't ask) and I'm very happy with the results. Price was very competitive, plus, I am sure Joe will stand behind his work if I ever have a problem, and I am very sensitive about that issue. I got a simple base color paint job and am going to add vinyl stripes. Joe let me do all of the flight control and fairing removals and re-installation myself, and was very generous with hangar space, tools, and a helping hand when I needed it.
 
Another + for Hawk at VDF

Need (finally) to paint my 9A. Does anyone know of a shop they can recommend for a fairly simple paint job somewhere a reasonable distance from Dunnellon Fl? Or a Vinyl wrap that has turned out well over time?

Tampa Exec is only about 25 min south of Dunellon and would be worth the trip.
I'd be glad to help giving you a ride back if you dropped it off.

Fly down and check him out.

http://www.vansairforce.com/community/showthread.php?t=1742&page=14

Post 140 and on the next page 143.
 
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