by SuperFly » Tue Mar 03, 2015 9:42 pm
I agree with Jak. Painting a fuselage is tough. And tedious. And you'll use way more paint than you think. (most of it going into over spray) Did you know a round tube has six to eight sides. you cant cover it in four passes. Wont happen. Unless there is some super secret trick I was not able to locate. In order to cover the tube evenly and make it look nice, it will take that many passes up and down the tube.
I had my fuse powder coated, then when I welded on the SS gear, I had to epoxy primer the areas I welded on. Then I wanted it black where it would be seen. and just as Jak said, you wont believe how many spots you or others will find that you missed. It is astounding. And frustrating.
If you are looking for a serious alternative, I know there is some type of electrostatic liquid paint process where by a charge is applied to the metal and the opposite charge is applied to the paint and then spray.(much like powder coat is applied) That would cut down on overspray, but I know next to nothing of the process or even what paints are compatible. It may not even be and option.
In addition to what people have posted on here, another thing that I found incredibly frustrating about painting my fuselage is how uneven it came out. The problem is that as you are spraying, you get a good finish on one tube, then as you move around, the over spray from another tube gets onto the previously very nice finish and makes it look bad. and this happens nearly every time you pull the trigger.
I cant give you the best option, but I can tell you, I personally would certainly avoid painting the fuse if I were able on future projects...