Original paint restoration

[lithium366]

I have an original paint on my bird and it’s pretty oxidized at this point with a lot of scratches. Before I decided on re-painting I wanted to see what can be done to remove heavy oxidation and really see how many places I need to sand and re-paint vs full repaint. If I understand correctly it’s a single stage acrylic enamel and in a car world people recommend Mirror Glaze Show Car Glaze #7 as a gentle way to bring the shine back. I also heard good about Top Coat F11 that is a completely different product and is not removing oxidation but kind of sealing the surface. Anyone has their favorite techniques to restore an original paint? Polishing pads / abrasive compounds suggestions to not cut too much?

[RLCarter]

Your on the right track, depending on how bad the paint is will determine your final results. Use an automotive DA (dual action) buffer and get several spare pads of each type as you’ll need them. Wash the plane really good then follow the instructions for the rubbing compound (and each step for that matter), this cuts the oxidation but will also remove paint as it is abrasive, then polish and seal. Plan on several days. 

keep the buffer moving so you don’t “Burn” through the paint, 

tape off your wing walk, if you do get compound, wax, sealer...etc on it, let it dry completely and use a soft bristle tooth brush, the tooth brush also works good for cleaning the compound and wax from around rivets and screws

keeping things clean is key so you don’t introduce crap back into your work

 

Edited March 6, 2021 by RLCarter

[carusoam]

I used Maguires polish / wax... it is all about removing the oxidized layer.... while leaving a nice layer of wax behind...

We only have a few thousandths to lose... so don’t go overboard...

Restoring the 1965 paint only took a small amount of effort... the thin layer of paint shows up on the towel you are using...

It is easy to be aware how it works... by looking at the towel...

Doing it by hand... allows you to skip arm days at the gym for a week!

Best regards,

-a-

[RLCarter]

4 hours ago, carusoam said:

Doing it by hand... allows you to skip arm days at the gym for a week!

Best regards,

-a-

At least a week, maybe two 

[lithium366]

By hand effort - 30min per section  Fawk rivets

Edited March 6, 2021 by lithium366

[lithium366]

What if I only polish top surfaces? Will that decrease lift because lower surfaces will have more drug? :)

[Jim Peace]

3 hours ago, lithium366 said:

What if I only polish top surfaces? Will that decrease lift because lower surfaces will have more drug? :)

so what did you use?

[lithium366]

1 hour ago, Jim Peace said:

so what did you use?

I tried:

1. F11 - nothing special about it. Adds a little bit of a shine and surface is very slick after it but it does not remove oxidation

2. MirrorGlaze Show Car Glaze #7 does a good job pulling dirt from paint pores and filling it with oils but it is a short-term fix with a lot of elbow grease

3. Finally on another surface I used a combination of a clay / polishing compound / polish / sealer with some minimal amount of nano ceramics (because the real thing is very expensive) and I really enjoyed the result except for surface corrosion that now stands out on a mirror surface.  I think I will stick to this approach for an entire airplane but I am still not sure that after all the effort my sealer is good enough to protect my work

 

 

 

Edited March 7, 2021 by lithium366

[carusoam]

Ilya,

Fortunately the way airflow works...

The roughness/smoothness of the surface is all the same... air speed flowing along the surface is essentially zero for both... until, away from the boundary layer...

wax both sides for best performance... pay extra attention to the leading edge...

PP thoughts only, not an aero guy...

 

Best regards,

-a-

[carusoam]

I,

another important topic...

If you can... Work on a plan to handle the surface corrosion... it spreads very quickly... it was a constant battle with my M20C being outdoors...

-a-

[lithium366]

Just now, carusoam said:

I,

another important topic...

If you can... Work on a plan to handle the surface corrosion... it spreads very quickly... it was a constant battle with my M20C being outdoors...

-a-

Fortunately I am in SoCal but yeah, this corrosion is one of the most important reasons I wanted to repaint.

Any suggestions how to deal with it without making an airplane polka-dot because paint can’t be matched?

[carusoam]

I went polka dot with a rattle can... not even paint matched...  it was close enough that other people couldn’t tell... my C was off-white/beige...

One spot at the top of the door where people enter at eye level... 

The battle was much larger by the landing gear where it was harder to see...

see if you can get a close match from a good auto paint place... get some practice on a small area...

You may be surprised at how easy it is, and how good the results can be...

Best regards,

-a-

[Hector]

If you are going to do this in the future get a 6 inch random orbital polisher (Porter cable 7424XP). It’s really hard to remove all the oxidation by hand. If the paint is heavely oxidized then try a cutting compound first (Meguiars 105) then follow that with a polishing compound (Meguires 205), and then follow that by a good quality wax (Collinite 845). If you want to go the extra mile then clay bar the surfaces too.


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[lithium366]

5 minutes ago, Hector said:

If you are going to do this in the future get a 6 inch random orbital polisher (Porter cable 7424XP). It’s really hard to remove all the oxidation by hand. If the paint is heavely oxidized then try a cutting compound first (Meguiars 105) then follow that with a polishing compound (Meguires 205), and then follow that by a good quality wax (Collinite 845). If you want to go the extra mile then clay bar the surfaces too.


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I purchased a cheap DA polisher from Harbor Freight, I am not planning on skipping arm days in a gym