Good points all.
Bob,
The vinyl wrap of today goes on dry. At least with the 3M that I am testing with, has tiny "grooves" or air channels in the adhesive that allows the air to be squeegeed out and seems to make sort of a vacuum seal. It is down strong immediately once squeegeed. I would think it would get a little stronger in stick over time but that's only a guess. Hopefully not so much stick that it's too labour intensive to remove eventually.
Perry,
Do you agree that the vinyl of today is non-porous?
I don't expect a paint job to look good for ever. I also don't expect a vinyl job to last for ever. However, I do expect them to age differently. The paint will tend to fade and erode away. The vinyl will fade and likely start to lift around the edges at some point. I expect to pull it up and redo, or paint 5-10 years down the road. Perhaps there will be something different by then.
In addition, I plan to remove the vinyl on a small piece (ie: elevator or trim tab) after some underermined time (say two years) and inspect. If all is well, re-apply new vinyl. Then two years or so later, pull up a different piece to get a feel for any corrosion, and ease of removal, and repeat
PS. I plan to attempt the vinyl myself and the aircraft will be hangared. Otherwise there may be no paint for the forseable future.
Bevan