WebRuss
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- Jun 14, 2013
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Greetings all!
This thread will serve as a record of the paint touch-up on N803TW. Background: N803TW is a 1968 Piper Cherokee 180 D. Engine overhaul completed last year by FlyGuyDon.
Current Times:
SMOH: ~220
TTAF:~ 7030
Yes I am working with an A&P who is supervising my efforts and will be doing most of the re-painting for me. He is letting me do the hard part of taking off all the old paint while he watches me.
Overall the base white paint on the plane is in good shape, but the Blue stripe that covers the nose, sides and up the tail, has faded, chipped and looks bad. The Gold/Bronze paint is also starting to look bad so it needs some touch-up too.
Here is a look just before I begin sanding
So I got some 60 grit sandpaper disks for my orbital sander and carefully, gingerly began sanding off the blue. Keeping in mind that I must not sand off the heads of the rivets.
Here is a look at the right rear side after the first pass.
Here is a look at the left rear side after the first pass.
The blue paint is on top of primer, which is on top of the white paint. I tried to take it down just to the primer. The paint is really thick on here. There is something peculiar about the rivets. Many of them seem to have been smoothed over with Bondo. As I started sanding carefully around the rivets, large pieces of red Bondo or body filler started falling off. Notice the circles around the rivets where the Bondo popped off.
Is that Bondo?
Okay so I went back over the rivets a second time with a special nylon bristle wheel on a drill and cleaned off the body filler that was all over the rivets. Seems someone tried to smooth out the look of the plane.
More to come later this week as I tackle the paint around the windows and windshield!
Regards
Russ
This thread will serve as a record of the paint touch-up on N803TW. Background: N803TW is a 1968 Piper Cherokee 180 D. Engine overhaul completed last year by FlyGuyDon.
Current Times:
SMOH: ~220
TTAF:~ 7030
Yes I am working with an A&P who is supervising my efforts and will be doing most of the re-painting for me. He is letting me do the hard part of taking off all the old paint while he watches me.
Overall the base white paint on the plane is in good shape, but the Blue stripe that covers the nose, sides and up the tail, has faded, chipped and looks bad. The Gold/Bronze paint is also starting to look bad so it needs some touch-up too.
Here is a look just before I begin sanding
So I got some 60 grit sandpaper disks for my orbital sander and carefully, gingerly began sanding off the blue. Keeping in mind that I must not sand off the heads of the rivets.
Here is a look at the right rear side after the first pass.
Here is a look at the left rear side after the first pass.
The blue paint is on top of primer, which is on top of the white paint. I tried to take it down just to the primer. The paint is really thick on here. There is something peculiar about the rivets. Many of them seem to have been smoothed over with Bondo. As I started sanding carefully around the rivets, large pieces of red Bondo or body filler started falling off. Notice the circles around the rivets where the Bondo popped off.
Is that Bondo?
Okay so I went back over the rivets a second time with a special nylon bristle wheel on a drill and cleaned off the body filler that was all over the rivets. Seems someone tried to smooth out the look of the plane.
More to come later this week as I tackle the paint around the windows and windshield!
Regards
Russ
