Polish?

[Greg Bockelman]

How does one go about polishing out overspray on a fabric covered airplane? When it warms up a bit, I need to do some detail work on mine and need suggestions.

[Ragwing nut]

Re: Polish?

use some hand rubbing compound to clean it up. I ran out of time to get it all off before you picked it up. I was using a machine buffer but won't recommend unless you know what you are doing

Mike

[Pearson]

Re: Polish?

Depending on what type of paint the overspray is on and what type of paint it is sprayed onto, there are some do's and don'ts.

Using rubbing compound by hand can actually take off more paint than using a buffing machine. If you are going to do it by hand, I suggest trying to find very fine compound. Chrome polish has a very fine grit, but be careful of the other chemicals. They could ruin a recent paint job.

If the overspray is in large drops, you might try picking them off individually with a finger nail or the corner of a razor blade. Obviously if the whole side of your plane is covered with overspray this wouldn't be an option.

If the droplets are very small, a fine grit compound should do the trick. One of the many problems is that if the overspray is of a type of paint that is harder than what it is sprayed onto, you could end up polishing through your paint job while the overspray is still there.

I have seen people use the edge of a brand new razor blade to scrape overspray off. But I have never had the nerve to try it.

Start on the least conspicous area and see what works.

[Greg Bockelman]

Re: Polish?

use some hand rubbing compound to clean it up. I ran out of time to get it all off before you picked it up. I was using a machine buffer but won't recommend unless you know what you are doing

Mike

Thanks Mike. Thats kind of what I thought. Off to the paint store.

[ohlinger]

Re: Polish?

I have used detailing clay in the past. You may want to give it a try.

http://www.automagic.biz/specialt.htm

Mark Ohlinger
Akron, Ohio
180 HP Clipped Wing T-Craft
1046 Bellanca Cruisair 14-13

[Hank Jarrett]

Re: Polish?

I did the razor blade trick on mine and it worked fine, but I was a LOT more careful than when I shave my face (try shaving first with a bare single edge blade and see how careful you are!) The areas that are flat are easy to cut into the fabric with the edge of the blade (I stoned the last 1/4" of both ends of the edge to the point where it wouldn't cut any more). The middle of the blade will cut the fabric anywhere there is a bulge (I shaved the fabric off where there was a rivet I couldn't even see! (FEEL the area you will shave, you can feel bumps you can't see!) Of course I also cut my neck a couple of times. Once I got good at it I could shave off layers of paint right down to the clear dope and first coat of Nitrate. Really handy to do repairs and not use stripper or sandpaper to remove the paint. Sandpaper cuts the fibers in the fabric no matter how careful you are and stripper messes up the new dope. I have done it on Dope and a Polyurethane paint now but honestly, I would recover before I did a major area again. I don't think my nerves are in shape for anything more than a square foot of full paint removal and I did HUGE areas with this technique. But I'm NUTS!!!(;f
Hank
By the way, tooth polish works great for compound. It is fine grit, doesn't mess up the surface with funky chemicals, cleans with water and smells good!

[Ragwing nut]

Re: Polish?

Overspray is on urethane and you don't notice it until you are looking right at it. I got most off befor it left, but not all

Mike

[Pearson]

Re: Polish?

If the original finish is fully cured urethane, you can use a solvent that is made for final prepping just before painting. Years ago there was a product called Prepsol. I forget who made it (Dupont/Ditzler), but I am sure there are similar products on the market today. Just make sure you use a CLEAN cloth, ie. cheesecloth. Solvents are used to remove any oils or dirt just before painting. They are not strong enough to cause any damage to urethane unless you rub really hard in one spot. It has NO abrasive. The sooner after overspraying you use it, the better.

[Gary Snell]

Re: Polish?

I second the vote for the detailing clay as a first attempt. It's simple and fast and generally works very well on paint finishes. About 10 bucks at the auto parts store.

[Hank Jarrett]

Re: Polish?

I keep a couple of cans of Prep Sol around all the time (one in the hangar and one in the garage). You can get it anywhere they sell auto paint supplies (not the rattle cans, a REAL auto paint supply). It is great for removing tar and sticky gunk from your car and never bothers the paint at all. I used it to remove some over spray that was fresh on the Taylorcraft and the base coat of dope was dry but not cured yet. It didn't seem to bother the base at all (of course I didn't rub very hard, didn't need to). It is a very mild solvent and I have used it on lots of different things (testing a small spot first) without ever having a problem. It DOESN'T take off dry over spray very well. You will need compound, wet sanding or nerves of steel and the razor blade for that.
Hank

[Ragwing nut]

Re: Polish?

Clay bars are mostly for removing impurites on the surface right before waxing. Prepsol works good on anything but a catlylized overspray except when the overspray has not fully cured. It will require a little more elbow grease.

Mike

[ohlinger]

Re: Polish?

When I repainted the top of the wing on my Cruisair because I had to replace a gas tank, I got some overspray on the other wing. A guy I know at the airport, who had an automotive body shop, recommended the detailing clay. Over time, I have been able to remove the overspray with the clay. I tried several solvents, including Prep Sol with no joy. The clay is cheap, and worth a try. I was painting with Ranthane (sp?) at the time.
YMMV with the clay.....good luck

Mark Ohlinger
Akron, Ohio
46 Bellanca 14-13 Cruisar
46 180 HP Clip Wing T-Craft