...very carefully! Painting the airplane is probably one of the most visual signs of progress when doing an airframe overhaul/rebuild project. This past week, we were able to paint a good deal of parts for CMA, which was a big step forward. I don't have any pictures of the pre-paint prep work, but that is actually the most important part of painting. It's the time spent cleaning and prepping the parts that determine how the priming and painting is going to turn out. The guys did a really nice job washing the parts and then etching and alodining them to get them ready to paint. It's been proven over and over again that if you don't prep the metal or fiberglass well, the finished product will be very poor. I think that the final result on this job was fairly good. We used Dupont paint this time, and it was my first time shooting Imron in this quantity, so there was a little bit of a learning curve, but it all turned out pretty well. Of course, there are the tell-tale signs of fatigue when you see the runs and the sags in a few places, and also some parts that were not so super glossy. But hey, we all have areas to work on, and this is one that most guys don't have too much experience. Some of the national guys were able to give painting a shot, and I think we'll all see good progress in the future as we hone our skills.
Here's our paint booth...we worked for a couple days cleaning it out and sealing all the cracks and holes. It worked well, though. Much of the smell/overspray was contained, which is great for all the office staff.
First batch of parts, with primer already sprayed.
Here I am spraying white onto the tip tanks.
Here I am spraying white on an aileron with Marko and Adamson giving me good lighting.
Finished products...mostly flight controls on this batch of parts.
Finished tip tanks and wing strut fairings.
Pete (L), our new AIM Air short termer, Marko (C), and myself (R) discussing paint techniques.
Pete and Marko getting the primer sprayed on our second batch of parts.
Lots of smaller pieces this time...often those small parts are harder to paint.
We also had the wings in the second batch, along with the doors, wing struts, etc.
Finished wing. Notice the vortex generators on the leading edge, courtesy of
Micro AeroDynamics. The inboard three sets have just been painted red to show a warning in relation to the fuel cap. Don't want the fueler to break them off...or more likely, to rip his trousers. :)
Finished parts and pieces.
