Painting Wheel Wells

[Browncbr1]

11 hours ago, RLCarter said:

I call dibs on black for the wheel wells, I don't want to have to repaint mine

truck bed liner spray paint??  Could do your wing walk at the same time?

[1964-M20E]

20 minutes ago, Browncbr1 said:

truck bed liner spray paint??  Could do your wing walk at the same time?

I think you can get it in different colors as well.

 

 

[gsxrpilot]

27 minutes ago, Browncbr1 said:

truck bed liner spray paint??  Could do your wing walk at the same time?

Weight? I certainly don't want anything heavier than the paint.

[RLCarter]

Spray on bed liner is very thick (0.100"+), any corrosion that started under it would be hidden until it's too late. And like @gsxrpilot said, it's weight. As a side note, most people tend to apply paint way too thick, which leads to chipping, cracking and peeling and getting to do it all over again in just a few years

[Yetti]

I would suggest that "Wing Walk Paint"  is from the same barrel as "Spray on bed liner" paint just in a smaller can with maybe some grit added to it.   It seems very similar to "gate paint" https://www.tsdistributors.com/store/p/1769-Blacksmith-Brand-Super-Premium-Metal-Paint.aspx

Too heavy for the wheel wells

Mooney knew the value of a thin coat of paint.  Too bad current paint shops can't duplicate

[bradp]

Or if you need a relatively safe degreaser use isopropyl or ethyl alcohol.  Avoid areas where sealant is present.  Soap is alkaline and corrosive especially if used in a concentrated form.  If you use soap rinse with 10x more water than you think you'd need to adequately rinse the soap off.  

[FBCK]

Primer was mentioned above, I thought all paint jobs over metal would require a primer, is it not needed with the auto paint mentioned above?  My wheel wells need paint as well.

[LANCECASPER]

The Gloss White is pretty much an exact match for the "Really White:" factory color.  

http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/cspages/aircraftcoatings.php?clickkey=456519&PANEL=292Click%2BHere%2Bfor%2BSlick%2BStyle%252FabrA%2BHREF%253D

This primer in green is a good choice: 

http://www.aircraftspruce.com/catalog/cspages/aircraftcoatings.php?clickkey=456519&PANEL=292Click%2BHere%2Bfor%2BSlick%2BStyle%252FabrA%2BHREF%253D

[FBCK]

Went out to the hanger last and chipped some of the old paint out of the wheel well, it just chips out, most of it, but with rivets and bends, maybe half of the paint is gone and the other half remains. Its a mess, I dont want to paint over the old, I know in the shops they would us a stripper, is this getting beyond do it yourself, if not what kind of stripper.  Had the tank resealed a coup[le of years ago, wouldn't want to have to redo it again.

[Andy95W]

I would never use any kind of paint stripper inside a wheel well.  Too many opportunities for it to not be removed completely.  Nasty stuff, kinda scary around fuel tanks and aluminum in general.

Here's what I'd do:

1.) use a plastic scraper to remove any paint that that isn't stuck on well.

2.) use red scotchbrite pads with mineral spirits to smooth out any rough edges and do a cleanup of old grease and oil.  Finish with paper towels and mineral spirits.

3.) wipe down with dry paper towels and let the mineral spirits dry up overnight, Then wipe it down with lacquer thinner (don't pass out from the fumes) OR alcohol to remove any lingering oil.

4.) prime with Rustoleum Self Etching Primer

5.) paint with the Rustoleum color of your choice.  Decent paint, believe it or not, and easy to apply.

6.) write down the paint color you used.  50 years from now you will still be able to buy that color for touch-ups.

[jetdriven]

Good shops prep the wheel wells then prime and paint over that. That spar cap is 7075 aluminum. More reactive than the 2024T3 the rest of the plane is build from. Thee are also many seams and areas where chemicals such as soap and stripper can get into and cannot be removed.  Paint stripper is also corrosive when left in these seams. You don't want either getting loose in this area.  Hand prep the loose stuff off with scotch  brite, rinse with alcohol, then prime and paint.

a friend of mine had to have the upper spar cap replaced. It cost 26,000.  The lower spar cap totals the plane, its seriously a 50-60k repair. 

Edited June 22, 2017 by jetdriven

[RLCarter]

Adding to @Andy95W post above, toothbrushes work well for cleaning seams and tight places. The one thing I wouldn't use is paper towels (you'll never get rid of the lint), use lint free cloth for cleaning. Use good automotive grade masking tape and masking paper (NO newspaper, rips too easy). Once it's ready to start painting, wipe it down one last time with thinner followed by a tack cloth

[Skates97]

On the subject of wheel wells, does anyone have any experience with the LASAR wheel well liners? There is no picture on their website, just a description.

"The liner reduces the turbulent air flow in the wheel well, and provides a barrier for mud, debris & mice."

[gsxrpilot]

Thanks @Andy95W and @RLCarter.  This might be a good project for the hangar fairies while the plane is down for annual.

[jetdriven]

22 minutes ago, Skates97 said:

On the subject of wheel wells, does anyone have any experience with the LASAR wheel well liners? There is no picture on their website, just a description.

"The liner reduces the turbulent air flow in the wheel well, and provides a barrier for mud, debris & mice."

 I installed them. It makes for a cleaner looking installation and I suppose it does I'll keep the rats out better and it does seem slightly quieter when flying but other than that I could not really detect a measurable difference.

many of those mods are similar.  The airplane responded in total 3-4 knots with all of them but individually the gains are very small and hard to quantify. 

[Skates97]

31 minutes ago, jetdriven said:

 I installed them. It makes for a cleaner looking installation and I suppose it does I'll keep the rats out better and it does seem slightly quieter when flying but other than that I could not really detect a measurable difference.

many of those mods are similar.  The airplane responded in total 3-4 knots with all of them but individually the gains are very small and hard to quantify. 

I wasn't thinking of it from the standpoint of a speed gain but just a cleaner look and the benefit of keeping critters out of the plane. When I bought mine it didn't have any mouse boots. I thought of just getting or making some but then have been kicking around the idea of the liners.

[RLCarter]

53 minutes ago, gsxrpilot said:

Thanks @Andy95W and @RLCarter.  This might be a good project for the hangar fairies while the plane is down for annual.

Give the hangar fairies a rest, they have plenty to do... Painting is considered preventative maintenance (as long as you don't remove the gear. I helped a friend do his several years back, took 2 days, but we spent all morning screwing around with my small paint gun, ended up going to HF and buying a cheapo for under 20 bucks that works just as good as my $350+ gun (which I still haven't ordered the parts for )

[INA201]

Just a quick pirep.  I asked Dan at Lasar about the wheel well liner mod and any speed improvements a while back. Dan said that there are no noticeable speed improvements and frankly he talked me out of purchasing them.  At the time I was buying inner gear doors that were missing from my J. 

[Andy95W]

I put them on my first M20C. I will not be putting them on my current one.

[FBCK]

Thanks @Andy95W and @RLCarter, great community here.