Superflite vs Poly fiber?

[wmcfi1325]

I have used the Poly Fiber system on my Taylorcraft and find it easy to use, however I am dissatisfied with the wearability of the final finish over metal parts. I notice many aircraft in the Sonerai Gallery show similar wear and wonder whether the Superflight finishes are stronger and wear better. Any experiences? Thanks.

Bill

 

[soneraifred]

Hi Bill:
I've used both Poly Fiber and Superflite II on my IIL. When the airplane was first built, I shot the entire airplane with Polytone. It was easy to shoot, and things turned out pretty well. About ten years later, because of the failure of the clear Polytone overcoat that I used (the clear was taken off the market after I used it), I decided to recover the airplane, and decided to use the Superflite II two-part polyurethane system. I did it because my hangar partner had just finished painting his Acrosport with it, and it turned out gorgeous, and he volunteered to shoot my airplane with it.

If you are talking about the Poly Fiber Polytone system, you are right about wearability on metal and fiberglass surfaces. The single-part Polytone paint is not really designed to be painted on metal because it relies a a mechanical bond rather than a chemical bond. Because of that, many people spray the fabric with Polytone, and then shoot the metal and fiberglass with Aerothane. Like I said above, I shot the entire airplane in Polytone, and did find that the non-fabric surfaces were sensitive to scratching.

The Superflite II system (I think it has now evolved into the Superflite VI system) poyurethanes stick to everything and hold up very well. And they are very wet-looking, as compared to the satin finish that Polytone gives you. The main problem with the polyurethanes is that the chemicals in them can kill you if you don't protect yourself by covering your entire body, and using a fresh air supply for breathing. One of the other advantages of Superflite is that it only takes about four coats of paint (two filler/primer and two finish color) versus eight to ten for Polytone (three Polybrush, three Polyspray, and two to four Polytone).

What would I use if I was to build another airplane? Well, I'm currently building a Wag-Aero Wag-a-bond, which of course is entirely fabric covered. I'm probably going to use Polytone with color-matched enamel on the metal surfaces to avoid the polyurethane risks.

Hope this helps.

 

[wmcfi1325]

Thanks Fred, that's exactly what I wanted to know.