Adding a modern flair to a 1970s airframe
After refurbishing everything ahead of the fire wall, installing a new instrument panel, and adding a plethora of lighting and aerodynamic speed modifications, it was finally time to put a new cosmetic shell on our 1997 Sweepstakes Piper Arrow.
At the beginning of the project, Mod Works of Punta Gorda, Florida, was chosen to paint our 1978 Arrow III because of its reputation for consistently good work. Mod Works, in turn, offered AOPA a one-stop shop that could also refurbish the panel and interior of the Arrow, which will be given away in January as part of the annual membership sweepstakes.
Why not? It certainly made our job easier. The company ended up rebuilding the panel from the floorboard up, installed a new custom leather interior, and sprayed a distinctive paint job on what is now known as the Ultimate Arrow.
After many months of effort, what rolled out of Mod Works' paint shop was a completely transformed airplane. No longer was the Arrow a basic IFR airplane with a burnt orange interior and plain-vanilla paint job. We had a new-looking airplane with a plush leather interior and panel capabilities better than those found in some turbine-powered aircraft.
The Mod Works team started by gutting the Arrow's interior from fire wall to tail cone. With the airplane completely opened up, the staff took the opportunity to address any airframe problems that would ordinarily be hidden by the interior. Particular attention was paid to the wing spar carrythrough area and to corrosion caused by moisture trapped in the factory-installed insulation. Our Arrow, which was hangared for most of its life, did not suffer from leaking windows and soaked insulation, but Piper owners should take a leaky window or door very seriously if the water has no escape path.
Speaking of windows, there's no better time to replace them than when the interior is gutted. We replaced the Arrow's thin, cracked windows with new and thicker tinted windows from LP Aero Plastics. The windshield halves and side windows were stepped up in thickness, from 1/8 of an inch to 1/4, in order to provide better soundproofing and bird-strike protection; the four rear windows were replaced with standard 1/8-inch acrylics in order to keep weight down. The copilot's side window now has a built-in storm window, just as on the pilot's side, to aid summertime cooling without having to open the cabin door. LP Aero recently received an STC for the window with built-in vent, which in 1/4-inch thickness lists for $410. Overall, the windows' solar-gray tinting helps to keep cabin temperatures lower in the hot months and adds a modern flair to the look of the airplane.
LP Aero, in partnership with Kosola and Associates, offers a one-piece windshield conversion that was considered for the Arrow project. After careful thought, we decided against it, given the cost and complexity of the STC. In hindsight, however, the one-piece windshield may not have been such a bad idea after all because a leak formed along the upper corner of the centerpost. A window upgrade such as we performed on the Arrow would cost approximately $1,000 to $1,500 for the glass alone.
A peek inside
After the interior was gutted, the seats were taken over to Mod Works' paint and interior shop, located on the west side of Punta Gorda's Charlotte County Airport. There, Chris Lovegrove and Rich Brenner removed all of the foam from the seats; cleaned and repainted the frames; and rebuilt the cushioning with two layers of Temper-Foam, a NASA-developed material designed to form-fit to any posterior. Mod Works' Mooney background is evident in the suspiciously Mooney-looking seats installed in the Ultimate Arrow. Inflatable lumbar supports were added to keep the front-seaters comfortable during the 6-hour-plus legs that this Arrow is capable of flying.
For noise reduction and soundproofing in the Ultimate Arrow, Mod Works used The Insulator, a foil-faced insulation and soundproofing material from Unlimited Quality Products. This material was glued into the side walls and along the fire wall. When considering soundproofing for your own airplane's restoration, remember that some soundproofing material is heavy and, if used too liberally, can add significant weight to the airplane. The Insulator is remarkably light compared to some other soundproofing materials on the market. Consider using such materials only on the fire wall and forward sections of the cabin, as that is where most of the noise enters.
The seats and side walls of the Ultimate Arrow were covered in leather from Perrone/Townsend Leathers. We chose a two-tone gray with burgundy accents — safe and simple. When contemplating a leather interior, carefully choose the colors and consider the time it takes to dye the material. Bill Perrone, Sr., of Perrone Leather Apparel, recommends picking the color of the headliner and the carpets first. Perrone can then match the leather material to those colors. Of course, cost is another major consideration, and leather is expensive; also, the dye process can take more than two weeks. The five hides that we ordered from Perrone to outfit the Arrow list for $2,100.
A popular alternative to the custom interior is the do-it-yourself interior. Companies such as Airtex and Kinzie Industries make lower-cost replacement materials for many general aviation airplanes. These interiors and a creative hand can make an attractive, low-cost (about $1,500 for a four-seater) alternative to the custom job. When it was stock, our Arrow would have been a good candidate for this type of treatment, as the fabric color was its only major eyesore. The rest of the interior (headliner, vents, and plastic parts) was in good condition, and many components were reused.
Almost taken for granted in any airplane are the seat belts — which, ironically, are likely to be your ticket to survival in a crash. Take the opportunity to send them out and have them rewebbed and inspected. We sent the Arrow's seat belts to Aircraft Belts, Inc. to have them fitted with different-color webbing and checked over for airworthiness. One of the buckles in the Ultimate Arrow was red-tagged because it was missing the nylon retaining ring that holds the shoulder belt in place.
Further improving the safety of the Ultimate Arrow are new rear shoulder harnesses. The New Piper Aircraft company sells an STC'd kit that uses inertia reels just like those in the front seats. The kit lists for about $350 and can be installed in a few hours.
Proper painting
While a paint job can make your airplane look new again, it also should be viewed as an opportunity to address any past and future exterior problems. Now is the perfect time to take care of corrosion, dents, dings, and any other cosmetic annoyances your airplane may have acquired over the years. This is also the time to protect your craft from future damage caused by corrosion and exposure to the sun. Remember that a paint job can last more than 20 years, so there's no sense in ignoring the details.
Our Arrow still had its factory original paint when we acquired it late last year. It also had its fair share of dings, corrosion, and cracked plastic that needed attention. The actual painting of an airplane is only part of the cost of an overall paint job. Anyone can take a spray gun to an airplane and hose it down. Unfortunately, you're likely to get a "50-foot paint job" — it looks good until you get closer than 50 feet from the airplane.
Details such as removing the inspection panels from the aircraft before painting it provide a better barrier against future corrosion and better protection of areas that get attacked by tools at least every year during the annual or 100-hour inspection. Using nylon washers and stainless-steel fasteners in high-traffic areas such as the cowling access panels lessens the chance of future scratches and eliminates rusting of the fasteners.
For the average Piper or Cessna single, you can expect to add $1,000 to the cost of a paint job for the purchase of replacement wing tips, stabilizer tips, and the myriad other plastic fairings installed on those airplanes. This is the time to do it since these parts will come off the airplane anyway for the stripping process. In fact, you may be surprised at what you find when you pull off some of these fairings. Inside the left wing tip of the Arrow the Mod Works crew found a hammer that had been presumably left there by a Piper factory worker in 1978.
Next, Mod Works replaced the Arrow's cracked plastic fairings with fiberglass versions from Globe Fiberglass. The fiberglass is generally stronger than the plastic originals. In addition, utilizing fiberglass makes subsequent repairs of these fairings less difficult. The original plastic fairings are hard to repair in the field.
Choices, choices …
You do have a detailed paint scheme picked out, don't you? Your scheme and colors should be selected well ahead of time and presented in at least two (preferably four) views on a dimensionally accurate draft. Many paint shops will help with this crucial step. For the Ultimate Arrow, we had to design a paint scheme that we hoped would be eye-catching and modern but not crazy enough to turn off a good part of the AOPA membership. Keeping those constraints in mind, AOPA Pilot Art Director Mike Kline drafted the Ultimate Arrow's paint scheme on a Macintosh computer, using a side view of a Piper Arrow III that was copied from a CD-ROM. Using a copier to enlarge the three-view diagram found in the airplane's operating handbook will work, too. We also checked with the paint shop regarding the FAA's acceptable typefaces and fonts for N-numbers. Look over the options and choose your favorite.
Many people like to paint the aircraft exactly as it appeared when it rolled out of the factory. Frequently this can be the best option for retaining the value of the airplane — especially if it's a classic. With the original scheme, it is easier for many aficionados to recognize the model and year of your aircraft. Some paint shops recommend painting your aircraft in the design of the most recent model that was built — for example, painting your 1968 Cessna 182 like the 1997 182 paint scheme. Of course, if you don't like either of those ideas, a custom paint job is the way to go.
If you decide on the custom scheme, be extra sure to have a dimensionally correct drawing — or simply map out the scheme on the airplane itself with masking tape, and take many overall and detail photos. Pictures of other airplanes also help to convey to the painter what you would like. To point out dings and damage that you would like repaired, your best bet is to circle them with a crayon right on the airplane and then take a picture of it. Also, be sure to get a written estimate, including all of the damage repair.
Take it all off
Stripping an airplane is the nastiest part of the painting process and often the most controversial. Different methods of stripping include chemical, media blasting (using plastic beads or baking soda), and sanding. Most shops use only one method and stick with it. Chemical stripping is the most popular method, but it utilizes hazardous chemicals that require expensive cleanup methods. Media blasting does not have the government-mandated chemical remediation requirements but does involve lengthy cleaning of the aircraft to be sure that the substance is completely removed — inside and out. Sanding is used in areas where chemicals or media blasting may be harmful, such as near windows and plastic fairings or on magnesium surfaces where corrosion can quickly form if exposed.
Mod Works uses a chemical stripper and has its own lengthy process of treating and disposing of the insidious byproducts. Windows are masked off with a special tape and foil to avoid any contact with the harmful stripper. Most plastic or fiberglass parts are removed for sanding and any joints are sealed off to keep the stripper out of the innards of an airplane.
Details, details …
After stripping comes the most important part of the paint job — the preparation. This is the area where the good shops set themselves apart from the bad. Every possible bit of stripper must be rinsed away from the aircraft with plenty of water, which neutralizes the stripper. An acid-etch wash is given to the airplane to open up the pores in the aluminum and stop any minor surface corrosion. Next, an alodine coat gives the airplane a barrier to ward off future corrosion. Any surface imperfections are filled in with putty and sanded to get ready for the application of the primer. In order to get the best results, Mod Works uses separate primers for fiberglass, aluminum, and the spot-repaired surfaces.
Lay it on
After the airplane is thoroughly free of dirt, dust, and other debris, it's ready for painting. There are many types of paints available, but it's best to use something that the painter prefers to apply. Alpha Coatings donated the Pratt & Lambert Jet Glo and Acry Glo paint that was applied. Jet Glo paint is a durable and hard polyester-urethane paint used on many turbine-powered aircraft. At 140-knot cruise speeds, the eventual winner of the Ultimate Arrow should have no paint-peeling problems to contend with. The Arrow's base colors are Jet Glo Really White and Starlite Silver. Accent stripes are Acry Glo Mack Truck Red and Sunoco Blue. Most shops include three colors in their estimates (base color and two trim). Anything more than three and the price goes up. Most metallic paints are two-stage paints — meaning that they have a clear coat — so the labor cost will be higher for them.
After applying all of the colors and tearing off all of the masking materials, it's time to rebalance the control surfaces and hang them back on the airplane. Control balancing is an important and, in many cases, a required step in bringing the airplane back to flying condition. Also important to the customer is the detail work involved after the paint is applied. Is all of the overspray removed? Are the stripes even over the rivet heads? New exterior placards and wing walk compound should be added to bolster the new look.
In the case of the Arrow, what emerged from the shop pretty closely matched what we drafted up in our custom scheme. A few subtle differences were not noticed by attendees at AOPA's fly-in and at the EAA Oshkosh convention. In the case of your own airplane, if at first you don't like it, it's most likely because your airplane just looks different. You'll probably warm up to it again after a few flights. If plans are followed, though, you won't believe your eyes as your trusted steed emerges with a gleaming new look. Ego-inflating stares and comments over the unicom frequency will reassure you that you've come away with a winner.
E-mail the author at [email protected].
AOPA wishes to thank the following companies that donated or discounted products and services to refurbish the paint and interior of the Ultimate Arrow:
Interior and instrument panel installation, paint application
Mod Works Inc., 8250 Skylane Way, Punta Gorda, Florida 33982; 800/252-0231 or 941/637-6770.
Logo decal
Moody Aero-Graphics, Post Office Box 1450, Belleview, Florida 34421; 800/749-2462 or 352/347-3330.
Leather products (seat and side wall coverings)
Perrone/Townsend Leather, 48-50 South Main Street, Gloversville, New York 12078; 800/222-6341 or 518/725-9144.
Paint, Norstar cleaning products
Alpha Coatings, Inc., 310 West 12th Street, Post Office Box 131, Washington, Missouri 63090; 800/875-3903 or 314/390-3903.
Replacement fiberglass parts
Globe Fiberglass, 4033 Holden Road, Lakeland, Florida 33811; 800/899-2707 or 941/644-2178.
Seat belts
Aircraft Belts, Inc., 2020 Anders Lane, Kemah, Texas 77565; 713/538-2225.
Soundproofing/thermal insulation
Unlimited Quality Products, 710 West Broadway Road, Suite 508, Mesa, Arizona 85210; 800/528-8219 or 602/461-5235.
Sun visors
Rosen Product Development, 4678 Isabelle Street, Eugene, Oregon 97402; 800/284-7677 or 541/342-3802.
Windows
LP Aero Plastics, RD #1 Box 201B, Jeannette, Pennsylvania 15644-9730; 412/744-4448.
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