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Jabiru J450 Constructors Manual
Paint>Topcoat
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
199 of 343
Paint>Topcoat
This is what you have been working towards – the application of the topcoat.
This is a critical task where you only get one chance to get it right. If you are unsure of your
ability to apply the topcoat then you may want to hire a professional painter – perhaps the
local car painter would do the final coat for you on an hourly rate, or maybe you have a friend
who is good at such things. You could even find someone who can teach you how to paint;
perhaps there is an adult education facility near you who could help.
The work area should have all dust and debris removed and then be thoroughly wetted down
to minimise the chance of dust settling into the final finish. Hose the floor and sweep it out.
All parts should be supported or suspended in such a way that you can paint them and leave
them to dry (it might be necessary to paint the fuselage separately from the smaller parts if
you are working in cramped conditions).
Ensure that you have plenty of ventilation while painting and that any air being directed over
the work surface is clean air – in our paint booths we use automotive grade air filtration across
the inlets to each booth with large extractor fans that vent above the booth, however you
should be able to achieve a reasonable level of filtration by drawing air from openings that are
above ground level and screening them with clean insect screens with muslin or similar open
weave cloth placed over them. If using the prevailing breeze you may have to wait for a day
when the wind is blowing in the right direction before painting, or perhaps you could use an
industrial fan as an extractor fan to draw clean air over the work surface.
It bears repeating here that the topcoat
must be white
– under no circumstances must any
other colour be used, and any coloured trim can only be applied to vertical surfaces: never use
any colour other than white on the horizontal surfaces.
Finally all surfaces should be wiped over carefully with a new tack cloth.
It is not possible to give written instructions regarding painting technique and so all that can
be written has to be this: read the directions from your chosen paint supplier very carefully
and follow them to the letter. Expect to use about 4 litres for the fuselage, 4 litres on the wings
and 3 litres on the remaining parts.
Mix your paint and hardener together thoroughly and in the exact ratio given in the paint
manufacturers instructions, clean and lay out your air hoses so that you will not trip over them
and make sure that you wear your coveralls and respirator at all times while painting.
Take your time, apply the paint in an even pattern and good luck!
Once you have finished painting leave the area and keep the ventilation system running for a
few hours. Leave the paint to cure undisturbed – read the manufacturers directions for
guidance on how long to wait – and resist the temptation to rest anything on the newly painted
surface for at least a few days as it might make a mark in the still curing paint.
Peel the “
Fine Line
” tape back very carefully from around the windscreen and windows,
taking care to peel back along the masked line, which will give you a nice clean edge.
Unmask the engine and the door openings, refit the noseleg and nose wheel and remove all
other masking. In general peel masking back away from the painted surface.
Reassembly will be addressed in the next major section of this manual:
Post-Paint
.
This completes the
Painting
task.