Comment

Comment by William McClain on February 17, 2018 at 10:00pm

Beautiful job, I am giving serious consideration to wrap on my Cruzer. I contacted a company, Plane Vinyl who does vinyl wraps at my airport, KRYY. They did not want to do the job, said wrap would not stick. They did not elaborate nor did I press the issue, if they don't want my money it's their loss. After watching your video and seeing these responses I think I will tackle the job my self. Thanks for the excellent input.

Regards

Bill McClain

Comment by Terrence "Dr. Terry" Hall on September 11, 2017 at 3:59pm

Kevin:

Thank you and I am thinking of going that way. I was considering doing it myself, Did you prime it before with the standard, Alodyne? I am stationed in Kwajelein Atoll until 1/2018 or 3/2018 so I have plenty of time to think about the completion of my Cruzer til then. I powder coated ALL OF MY HARDWARE BLACK.

Terry

Comment by Kevin Lippert on September 11, 2017 at 10:41am

Terrence, The nice thing about the wrap is it can be reapplied if you make a mistake without much hassle. Make sure that you are able to find a paint color that matches your wrap for the end caps of the flaperons, strut hardware, jury struts and any complex pieces to wrap. I did hire a local company that wraps cars, boats, etc. Be sure to post pics, would like to see the finished plane.  Good luck.

Comment by Terrence "Dr. Terry" Hall on September 9, 2017 at 11:44pm

Very nice result and video. I am contemplating priming for paint, flying the 40 hrs and then 3M wrap on a Cruzer. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Comment by Kurt Satter on January 31, 2016 at 11:43am

Thanks Kevin ... My "jobber" is a 3M shop and it looks like the "checkerboard" vinyl also comes in pre-colored strips.  I've requested samples to look for color matches.

Comment by Kevin Lippert on January 31, 2016 at 10:49am

The cost for the vinyl wrap was half the cost of having my plane painted. And saved me the hassle of disassembling the plane and transport.

My installer stated that they bid jobs on square foot, and that taking the components to them would not save me money or time. Although I did see that is would be easier for the installer, especially the underside of tail/wing sections.

One thing to make sure you do for prep is paint (rattle can) the brackets and areas that may be difficult to wrap. I got lucky and a regular color at the hardware store matched.

Also, I would suggest the 3m product.  My tail numbers were of a lesser quality vinyl and it was very time consuming to work the product around the rivets.

Comment by Kurt Satter on January 30, 2016 at 11:34am

OK Kevin, I asked these same questions 6-8 mo. ago. Can you give us a rough estimate of the cost. I have a local jobber that is willing to "try" an aircraft. My 701 will be ready (hopefully) by this summer. My "paint scheme" is rather simple (like yours) except for the possibility of "checker-board" slats.

Do you think much time would be saved if the components were done piece-meal? My wings, slats, flaps & empennage are sitting in storage and could go for wrapping.

I'm very interested in doing mine this way.

Thanks

Comment by Kevin Lippert on January 30, 2016 at 10:27am

I hired a local company and very glad I did, it is harder than I thought. I don't know the exact time but about 60 man hours to complete. This was their fist aircraft and there was a little learning curve for the installers. I do not have the W/B before/after. This was the 3m product.

Comment by Phil Smith on January 29, 2016 at 10:42pm

Kevin,

Ok you started it:

Did you do this yourself with the help from the folks in the video or a custom vinyl crew / shop?

If we stretch out the video how long did it take?

Did you weigh the plane before and after for weight gain of the vinyl ?

And most of all what vinyl product did you use and what does it cost?

Probably about a hundred or more Zenith owners - and others - waiting for your answers... jealous you bet.

Maybe a blog about your thought process and a helpful article of tips and traps.

BTW NICE, Really NICE job!!!

Still grinning

Phil Smith
CH - 701
Buhl, ID