Why no one wants to paint carbon fiber

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Many questions have been asked about whether the DarkAero 1 prototype would be painted or if the raw carbon fiber look would remain. We chose to paint the prototype for several reasons. Find out why in this video!
Start learning about aircraft design and composites today by checking out the DarkAero Knowledge Base:
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Paint Equipment Used:
GORILLASPRO Inflatable Paint Booth 26x15x10Ft: amzn.to/3VntnfD
DeVilbiss HVLP Spray Gun, Gravity amzn.to/3Vq5m7W
DeVilbiss DeKups Demo Kit amzn.to/3Ovs2S1
DeVilbiss DeKups Disposable Cup and Lid, White (24 oz) amzn.to/3Ovs2S1
DeVilbiss DeKups Disk Filter - 24/34 oz. Capacity amzn.to/3OB2EtX
DeVilbiss DC101 Paint Prep Wipe, (Box of 300) amzn.to/3EZLvqQ
DeVilbiss Digital Gauge with Air Adjusting Valve amzn.to/3OAr46X
DeVilbiss DAD500 3-Stage Desiccant Dryer Unit amzn.to/3EA1af0
Quincy QT-54 Splash Lubricated Reciprocating Air Compressor: amzn.to/3EuLLfU
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[@BringTheRain]

My inner child says if you add racing stripes and flame decals, it will absolutely go at least 1% faster

[@DarkAeroInc]

You are giving away all our engineering secrets! XD

[@bernhardjordan9200]

Red definitely helps

[@XXfea]

Experiments prove more like 2-3%

[@cabanford]

Add Skulls & Crossbones to get at least 3% 🏴‍☠️

[@helplmchoking]

I understand a shark mouth usually gets you 1-2% higher speeds

[@Conn653]

Place the fuselage in a rotisserie, which will allow you to rotate the fuselage 360 degrees. Then you wouldn't be cramping your body when trying to paint various areas of the fuselage. A rotisserie is also used to hold a welded tube fuselage to be able to apply the fabric covering. Keep up the good work ! 🙂

[@lamberto6405]

Kinda tough with that long horizontal stabilizer in place.

[@Conn653]

@@lamberto6405 Not really. The height of the rotisserie is very adjustable, on pre-made units. This would need to be a custom built rotisserie to accomplish a full rotation - but - it can be done.

[@DarkAeroInc]

We considered something like this initially, but decided that for the minimal amount of time we’ll be spending to paint the fuselage it was a decent trade off to just do some painting in awkward positions compared with implementing a rotating jig. A nice side effect of having a light fuselage is that two of us can easily rotate it when we have to.

[@doncunningham3124]

Or you can just use a pot gun instead of a gravity fed one.

[@CrashNBurn5150]

I'm not a professional painter. I am a fabricator. But I need to paint everything. And when I say everything, it includes a lot of sizes and shapes. I built myself a universal Rotisserie that holds pretty much anything. Including a lead clocktower from the top of a college. If you have more projects coming, it might be a good idea. The one I built breaks down and stores easily. Also transportable and easily moved around and set up by one person.

[@markleightonson1770]

Great to see you are this far with the DarkAero. I think it is probably the best thought out light plane in history.

[@itoibo4208]

It is a beautiful plane. It looks fast.

[@maxwellsmechanical9117]

I love following this project, the dark aero is looking more like a light arrow now! Hoping to see a cool paint scheme, keep up the good work!

[@johannesgaida3137]

It's great to see you are making progress! I come from gliding, so painting composite aircraft makes total sense. We use a PU or in older gliders UP gelcoat, and we use special templates for sanding to make sure that the profiles are shaped right after painting!

[@iaincrockett744]

Even after the first coat of paint the aircraft looks CG as the lines and contours are so perfect! Nice work!

[@palletcolorato]

Great to see the progress!

[@SuLokify]

The monologue at the beginning answered all the questions that I had after immediately considering the problem - well done

[@DdDd-ss3ms]

I remember as child (years 1970's) I was "allowed" to polish with waterproof sandpaper repair spots on gliders. They were painted with a coat of what they called "Schwabbellack" and polished afterwards . A lot of work but with perfect smooth result. The new ones produced by for example Schleicher, Glasflugel and others were 'prepainted' in the molds. the molds were first sprayed with this Schwabbellack befor the glass or carbon fibers were placed. Nice to see the plane painted white for the reasons you mentioned (and to prevent the sun warming up the epoxy) and not showing the carbon despite how nice carbon may look.

[@neiltwaterhouse]

The early composite gliders used gelcoat as their surface finish and this was applied in the molds. Gelcoat is a polyester resin with pigment. Repairs on gelcoat use flowcoat which is the same as gelcoat but with added wax solution so the surface can cure properly and can be refinished. Unfortunately polyester gelcoats do not weather well and will craze, blister or crack over time. It is desirable in the secondhand glider market to purchase an older glider that has been refinished with a polyurethane paint, as this is much longer lasting and easier to repair.

[@patrickdavey9692]

Looking good guys!

[@bigmuz_pilot]

Amazing work as always, you guys are unreal!

[@joshish9884]

I cannot wait to someday order one of these kits. I've got a WHOLE LOT of saving up to do before then, though

[@rileyswing9731]

Prime, no problem splitting operations. However, when painting you will need to get it all in one go or you will have some dry spot issues and will need to prep the airplane a certain way for round 2. I’m sure you know this already just wanted to make sure! Thing looks sick all white!!!

[@AndyRRR0791]

Just needs a rolling jig that allows the fuselage to be rolled 45° or so each direction. Crack out that extrusion and get bolting!

[@volatilis4526]

"Thing looks sick all white!!!" Of course Mr. Swing would say this! Kinda like a Velocity, huh? ;-)

[@MACaronyboy]

Did you consider wrapping it? It has been done for fixed wing UAVs to give a smoother surface than paint at a lower weight.

[@MRR-qv3bw]

He would have to at least prime it first to seal the carbon fiber or use a clear epoxy! But it is a good idea if the wrap will hold up to high speeds constantly!

[@vonbuzz9009]

I dont think it would have to be sealed if the finish is allready 800grit smooth ...

[@spdcrzy]

Paints are aerospace-proven. Wraps are not, sadly.

[@shanetyson6989]

I'm from the Auto Body Painting world. Some advice would be to build a jig that has a base on the ground with wheels and then connects to the fuselage to it on the engine mount points and the tail section (viticle stabilizer area) The mounts must be on a bearing system at both ends to allow you to roll it when painting.

[@TheBarzook]

I thought about this too and that's what we use into manufacturing bigger vehicles, but their market is a guy like us doing that in their garage, so building a whole rotisserie fixture might be too much. I think putting the aircraft up 1-2 feet more would help in painting the bottom part and then using a ladder for the top.

[@brianb-p6586]

@@TheBarzook There are home auto enthusiasts that use rotisseries. It seems extreme at first, but it's not unreasonable.

[@bastienrobert1444]

for your paint problems, the 3m pps solution is one of the most suitable. the flexible vacuum pocket system allows the spray gun to be painted in any position. I personally painted a p300 pioneer, concerning the lower part of the fuselage the most practical remains" the mechanic's horizontal wheeled trolley". nice project, do you have any particular feedback on the inflatable paint booth?

[@DarkAeroInc]

The 3M PPS system is similar to what we used in the video, which was the DeKups system by Devilbiss. We like it a lot! The inflatable booth works well for our requirements where we’ll just be painting our plane and storing the tent for production. We’d recommend it for anyone that just needs a semi-temporary clean space for painting. The link to the tent we used can be found above in the description of the video.

[@darrenbradnock4553]

@@DarkAeroInc Did you hold the gun upside down at the start and pull the trigger? that sucks all the air out of the paint cup and you should be able to spray on any angle including upside down.

[@JAGFG42]

It’s probably already been asked, but isn’t their a UV blocking clear coat that you could use? I think I’m just too in love with the carbon fiber look

[@SavouryLobster]

Yes but they wear down over time, and rather quickly. You see it often on cars that have exposed carbon on them. The clear coat starts to flake and yellow.

[@hc8714]

have sunlight directly hit on carbon fibre is just slow burning money

[@oOAltoOo]

I love seeing this thing progress, excellent work, have you guys ever tried slicksand? Basically a polyester high build primer, it's been one of the best things I've found to get my composite stuff optically flat for paint, you can build it up so easily and quickly that I never even bother with filler nowadays, not on composite stuff anyway which is already so close to right.

[@DarkAeroInc]

Thank you for checking out the video and for the product recommendation! We haven’t used slicksand but we will look it up.

[@thomasbialzik3060]

There is a range of in-mold vinylester sprayable primers offered by Hawkeye Industries. I believe it's called Duratek.

[@kwittnebel]

Duratek sands great but isocyanate polyurethane paints dont stick to it very well. Best is to use female tooling anx pull a painted part.

[@thomasbialzik3060]

@@kwittnebel Yes. We spray it in our tools and let it cure/dry then infuse the parts inside the coating. It's recommended to scuff the part and primer before paint. Many customers use epoxy primer .

[@mgreenl24550]

Fantastic surface finish @5:53. If that is just two coats, your molding was really great.

[@heinrichhemker8123]

5:55 The fuselage contour looks excellent!

[@russellesimonetta9071]

Looking very good! Waiting for flight testing! Are you going to use a pro test pilot???

[@rpaulwaddington1858]

Hi guys thanks for your effort in revealing so much of your build. Thought...to paint fuselage a 'skewer' rig and rotate as you paint. Not a lot more work considering what you have already done.

[@jakobusjohannes2195]

Amazing work can’t wait to see this airborne! Might one one someday

[@kenhurley4441]

Its been a long road traveling to get this far. Looks like you're rounding 3rd and heading for home!

[@texastad1989]

very nice job ! would also look beautiful in a uv protectant clear as well!

[@ryanmcgowan3061]

I noticed while getting back in to doing some body work that there's new primer fillers on the market that seem to be the new "thing". Basically it's a lightweight primer with more filling. Not sure if there's such a product that's good for aviation, but it looks like you're not using that zinc phosphate primer, so maybe automotive primer is OK? If so, I could see it being very useful in QC during production for the first coat.

[@LTVoyager]

A rotisserie would help a lot with both fuselage and wing.

[@becraftcorey]

happy I found this, I love experimental Aircraft, inspiring me to build my own from carbon fiber.

[@satoshimanabe2493]

Very nice! It would be interesting if there was a way to lift the tail higher (perhaps putting a long lever on the engine mount, which also prevents overrotation). That would make it much easier to get to the underside.

[@solarfunction1847]

For painting any tubular section of the fuselage you really need to have 2x pyramidal triangular frames with pillow block bearings at the top so that you can attach an axle at either end of the fuselage & you'll be able to spin the plane 3t60 degrees for painting optimally in the best light as well. You could attach a temporary jig that attaches to the vertical stabilizer that has a horizontal pipe that fits into a pillow block bearing at one end & put an engine mounted jig that also mounts to a horizontal pipe that goes into the pillow block bearing.

It's going to take some getting used to the new look. Maybe Light Aero or White Aero now instead of Dark Aero? Anyway, I love following this project. Happy Thanksgiving!

[@oldieman730]

Rotating the air cap will change the angle of the spray pattern to help get into tighter areas.

[@-suncheez-]

You guys rocking. You're creating so great thing that I wish I would be rich enough to just volunteer at your facility.

[@steaditex]

Would it put too much stress on the engine mounts if you used them to mount the fuselage on a rig that would allow it to rotate on it's longitudinal axis kinda like being on a rotisserie?

[@steamtrac]

thank you for the video. can you share more details about the paint booth, maybe the manufacturer of it, and the ventilation system? thank you.

[@JohnCHansen01]

Will you weigh the parts before and after the paint is applied to determine how much weight is being added by the painting process?

[@appa609]

Based on the process I'd guess about 1000 gsm. Maybe 40 kg for the whole aircraft?

[@noelwade]

@@appa609 40kg would be a pretty heavy paint-job on a plane this small. Hopefully its closer to 30-40 pounds. (I just finished painting my kit airplane, also a small 2-seater, and the paint job was around 30-35 pounds; though I used a different primer & paint system so its not exactly apples-to-apples)

[@DarkAeroInc]

We will definitely get a weight total on the airframe after painting to check how much was added and assess our process. The total amount of primer that was mixed and prepared to paint both the wing and fuselage was ~8.5lbs. This gives us an upper limit on how much paint is currently on the airframe since we sanded a lot of this off on the wing and not all of it was applied to the airframe either because of overspray or leftovers in the cup. The true amount on the airframe is probably closer to 5-6 lbs presently, but we will come back to this topic once we have completed the priming and have done a final weight check.

[@logankistler]

@@DarkAeroInc a lot of that is the solvents that will evaporate as well! Excellent progress!

[@Jokemeister1]

Perhaps use a jig that allows you to rotate fuselage during painting.

[@dginia]

Nice plane! It is so lean looking that I thought it was an RC model when I first saw pictures.

[@williamchamberlain2263]

Great explanation, looks great. Could you hang it from a gantry from the engine mount, or is that load too much over multiple hours.

[@dot73]

Science and perseverance. All the best gentlemen.

[@ThinkSlowFlyFast]

Great Work! How did you ensure that the primer was smooth? Just by feel?

[@kaltenbach.alexander]

Added my own background music, really helped

[@tommyboy054]

You guys have made such a fantastically light fuselage, it may not take much to create a jig that rotates the body along the longitudinal axis while in the paint booth. It may pay itself off in reduced spraying/sanding time.

[@daleyoung87]

Beautiful build! To simplify painting bottom, Maybe consider putting a mount in front and rear that would allow you to partially "roll" the fuselage.

[@stanwooddave9758]

The rotisserie idea is the best, just some other thoughts on how to paint. Look for an old Model 7 Binks (1-quart-size) suction spray gun, or to make your life much easier, go with a pressure "Spray-Pot," setup. FYI Spray-pots come in all different sizes, from 1 quart size, up to 20 gallon spray-pots, with air operated constant mixing / stirrer (BIG $$$$.) Another option is to go "Airless - Spray setup," that's what we used when painting 747 Wings, and be able to keep the entire wing paint wet during cross lap's. As someone who has 25 yr's autobody experience, 5 year's as a painter 747's & 767's Boeing Aircraft, Everett, Washington, U.S.A., the word Epoxy and flexible is a non starter. Flexible = Polyurethane, Epoxy = rigid / kitchen stove top finish, read it and weep.

[@marlondelgadillo7444]

It's looking awesome already! Are you guys planning some design or just plain white?

[@DarkAeroInc]

Thanks Marlon! We've only had a few brief discussions on the final paint scheme so nothing is set in stone yet.

[@Jpifr]

I'll very interested by what paint you will use, direct gloss/base + clear... PPG is an excellent brand, in my experience direct gloss will be the lightest option but if you try to minimise labor and orange peel then a clear coat can do that. Oranges peel might be a thing because with such curvature, to not have orange peel with direct gloss and runs...

[@user-cq4ge5jn1u]

Considering both decreasing the air resistance and increasing weight, what integral effect does painting have in terms of range capability?

[@triedproven9908]

Net neutral resultant.

[@mckenziekeith7434]

I know that in boats, they sometimes paint the mold before adding the laminates. Not sure if that process could work for you. It might slow down production too much.

[@TheJustinJ]

This is Gelcoat technology and its great for boats and it would also work for aircraft. But, gelcoat has long term issues as it degrades over time and is difficult to repair. Laying up quality composite materials in smooth molds under vacuum should produce a smooth and pinhole free surface thats as easy to paint as a scale plastic model. I believe there is a wide discrepancy in builder hours to fill, sand and paint Rutan style mold-less composite aircraft. First, RAF prototypes were often built and flown with fewer man-hours start to finish than some people claim to have spent just on sanding filler on their projects. There is a wide variance in not only skillset and productive ability, but also in mental concepts about what the task actually entails. And what level of finish can be archived with a certain process. People don't know whats involved, and the EAA is full of "expert" builders offering advice like how to sand and finish composites who also believe it takes 2,000hrs to do it right. But their claim to fame is taking 20 years to build a grand champion that deviated from the instructions in two hundred places and required re-building and fixing and fitting. And then there are absolute masters of finishing who can make a true laminar surface award winning Velocity or LongEZ and they claim they have leas than two weeks of sanding on the whole airplane to get there. True experts who are highly Productive generally dont waste their time trying to teach people of mediocre ability who lack potential. They work fast alone. And cant convey the nuance of what they do verbally. And teaching hands on takes ten times as long to demonstrate.

[@mckenziekeith7434]

@@TheJustinJ the vast majority of boats use gelcoat. But sometimes for epoxy/fiberglass boats, they spray the mold with 2 component polyurethane paint before putting down the laminates. Gelcoat would be terrible for dark aero. But taking the time to have a perfect mold, and then spraying it with paint prior to placing the laminate, that could be a huge long-term time saver.

[@Lemev]

And of course, the gel coat colour chosen, "white", helps to reflect the sunlight which would also contribute to keep the temperature lower inside the airplane, while on ground! The resin used on the skins, could also "suffer", just in case the gel coat was pigmented black, for instance... It could "melt" a little bit!

[@Aheitchoo]

Do you paint extra on the leading surfaces? Do you worry about small wear points in the paint exposing sections of the airframe to UV?

[@andresaristi5646]

Is it possible to put the fuselage at 45 degrees? to get all the surfaces accessible at ±45° maybe that way will be easier

[@CraigVanSickleAK]

Incredible guys!

[@21mozzie]

I remember listening to a radio interview with a late war spitfire pilot - flying a griffon engine with clipped wings. He was obsessive about aerodynamic cleanness. He filed down the rivets on his plane and filled in all of the rivets an smoothed over joints. After every flight he would clean and polish his plane etc. The result was that his plane was something like 40 mph faster than other Spitfires. (I'm stretching my recollection here, I reckon this interview was in the 90s) He shot down a few Me-262s. They just didn't appreciate that he was almost as fast as them. Anyway, moral of the story... I can totally see where you are coming from. Obsessing about aerodynamic cleanness can have huge payoffs.

[@AlaskaSkidood]

Are there any paint guns available that can spray upwards? Even if the nozzle was tilted up at 45* that might be enough to reach the underside of the wing better and that corner under the horizontal stab would be a piece of cake.

[@DarkAeroInc]

The gun and cup system we used can spray while tilted upward. This is how we were able to paint the inverted surfaces. My complaint about the setup was that it isn’t ideal to crouch under the airplane to paint the underside.

[@AvianaAircraft]

Did you need to sand down any orange peel afterwards or did it all lay down pretty flat?

[@ottifantiwaalkes9289]

Awesome project. How did your Sherwin Williams fill bond filler at the stabilizers work out after painting. Ever see any cracks yet? In marine use, we tend to apply g-flex from west system. I guess the stuff you used is much lighter.

[@oldschoolmotorsickle]

You succeeded in removing a great deal of the Suck in painting composites in your crafting the high-precision molds. A front line finish is still going to swallow many hours, but Dark Aero’s construction methodology will save many more hours. It’s a big Win, overall.

[@michaelbishton9439]

Wow. She just keeps getting better.

[@harrypudd5367]

Too late now but there’s a product called xcr coating which has uv protection and a shiny clear surface it also self levels it’s used a lot in carbon manufacturing I run my own carbon company so thats how I know. If you ever make spare parts or new/updated parts maybe consider it as it would look awesome in visual carbon.

[@jdgrit]

I would love to build a scaled R/C version of this.

[@abel4776]

Motion RC can get this going.

[@DarrylZubot]

Need to change the name to White Aero now! Looks awesome.

[@yoyobow1]

I have a question what about clear coating it? Couldn’t that’s leave the naked finish but keep the carbon epoxy protected?

[@DarkAeroInc]

We are experimenting with some clear coat options, but we haven’t tested it enough to be confident using it to protect flight critical structures.

[@monokheros5373]

may want to look at a suspension cradle/crane for paint ... will allow painters complete under access and the ability to lower/raise the surface being worked on ... cradle may be set to rotate +-45

[@phpn99]

What about galvanic issues with the conductivity of carbon fibre ? We saw recently the feud between Emirates and Airbus because of the paint cracking, owing to the electrostatic characteristics of the carbon fibres.

[@conservativeokie]

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

[@DarkAeroInc]

Happy Thanksgiving! Thank you for checking out the video!

[@ShovelMonkey]

I have been building composites and the molds for them for over ten years, I worked building mid-size drones for six years. If you haven't already, you may want to consider; First, waxing/seasoning your mold surface I can't remember if we could use the TR 104 for painted surfaces, or the Partial Paste #2 (we waxed/seasoned new molds five times, less is needed after you start pulling parts, and you will want to play around with different types of wax, my preferred was TR 104, but I did both painted and unpainted parts, as well as different mold and mandrel materials and cloths carbon, kevlar, and glass). After you pull a part from the mold, wash both the mold and the part with dawn soap and warm water. Second, DO NOT USE the PVA. The painter and I spent a couple of days playing with different combinations of wax as well as PVA/no PVA. You do not gain anything from it beyond potential runs on the mold surface, which result in low spots in the paint which need filling, and consequently adding an uneven distribution of mass via filler to the surface as well as changing it's shape. Yes, these small variations can be taken care of with trim, but that is additional drag. Third, just paint the waxed/waxed and PVA'd mold surface. You will want to play around with WHEN you start your layup on the painted mold surface to get a feel for your paint/resin finish and bond. When you paint the mold surface, you end up with no pinholes. When you paint the wings/fuselage/cowls/spinner cones et cetera, you DO end up with pinholes. Fourth, when you paint the mold surfaces, you skip then entire priming process, and that saves a significant amount of mass. Fifth, you may consider a temperature stepping post-cure, to toughen your parts. You will need a large oven with a good blower to circulate that air for your wings and fuselage, but easy enough to make with cinderblocks. I am sure you are aware that it is pretty easy to damage sharp/thin areas, and carbon is soft. That post cure helps a lot, and makes working/repairing go a little better. Talk with your resin supplier about this. Sixth, you may want to think VERY HARD about a surface layer of 1oz glass or to provide a tougher surface than carbon. It also eliminates the issue of the cloth pattern printing through the paint.

[@geepytee]

Hey, any chance you could post a high resolution version of the picture in 0:37? I'd love to make it my new wallpaper :)

[@kenl.3775]

1:34 is it that carbon fiber doesn’t require the sanding that foam/fiberglass does, or is it just the molds that removes the need whatever the material?

[@wingbolt]

What size inflatable spray booth are you using? Looking to get one. Any other details would be useful. Thanks!!!

[@DarkAeroInc]

Thanks for watching and the question. Our paint booth is 26x15x10Ft. We left a link in the description to the actual one used.

[@FriedrichWinkler]

With black body filler would it be psooible to use clear paint to achieve a full carben/black look and retain the anti-UV properties?

[@SameAsAnyOtherStranger]

This video got me curious about a couple of things. I looked them up on line and it is evidently possible to powder coat carbon fiber which makes sense because carbon fiber is electrically conductive. Was powder coating a consideration among the painting options? The second thing was lightning protection which led me to a website that said composite materials are poor conductors of electricity and they build airplane parts with an integrated conductive mesh to address this issue. What kind of lightning protection does your plane have?

[@RobertsonDCCD]

Ailerons. They’re very handy for turning away from thunderstorms! 😂

[@triedproven9908]

They probably don't want to modify the structural integrity of the carbon as any for of electrolysis would do.

[@SameAsAnyOtherStranger]

@@RobertsonDCCD yeah proly feels pretty dumb to experience death by misadventure.

[@matthewsellers82]

The 3M PPS H/O system, provides a pressurised paint supply and is excellent for painting out of position.

[@dalekdozer8209]

could you do some form of clearcoat/topcoat to protect the airframe while preserving the carbon-fiber look?

[@michaelmcconnell3777]

Did you consider using horizontal and wing to body fairings like Andy Chiavetta created for Lancair Legacy racers?

[@GroovyVideo2]

use hand held card to block over spray at tail surfaces joint - also lower air pressure with narrower pattern this area can help -

[@nestorswoodworking2728]

Would a ceramic coating after painting and final polish be helpful?

[@homomorphic]

What about wrapping after the primer? Have you considered a wrap?

[@Iowa599]

I think you need a chassis rotisserie. They are made for cars (to access everything during restorations) but one could be adapted to a plane fuselage (without wings).

[@nuttyDesignAndFab]

could you hold the fuselage on a spit roast type setup and rotate it along the longitudinal axis for better access?

[@papparocket]

For production I think a rotating jig that works like a rotisserie would work really well. Should just require two metal rod to serve as axles with a flange welded to one end that allows one axle to be bolted into the bolt holes for the rudder in the back and the other to the engine mount in the front with the axles in line with each other. A-frame stands for the front and rear with two bearing each at the apex of the "A" supports the axles. Oh, and by using two bearings on each stand, there are no bending forces in the flange and into the fuselage like there would be if a single bearing was used. To make it easier to get the axles go through the bearings as the A-frames are moved over the axle, you could make the axle OD smaller than the bearing ID. Then thread the axle and put one threaded collar with a tapered OD on the axle first with the taper facing towards the bearings. Slide the A-frame and the bearings over the axle to the desired position along the axle. Then thread a second tapered collar onto the axle and screw both collars so the tapered end goes into a bearing until both are snug to take out the play between the axle and the bearings. This also serves to lock the A-frame to the axle. Once both A-frames are in position, two "ladders" trusses made with square tubing and cross pieces at 45 degree angles could be used to lock base of the two A-frames together. I suggest this ladder structure so that an racking forces as the fuselage is rolled into the painting bay go through the ladders rather than the axles and the fuselage. Once in the paint bay, thread a crank handle onto the end of each axle and you can easily use it to rotate the fuselage to allow you to paint every section from the optimum angle. No more having to stand on a box and stretch to spray the top or squat and try to spray upward to get the bottom, while still allowing the entire fuselage to be painted at one time. Sorry if this is over the top, but I am a design engineer and I can't help but see design solution leap unbidden into my mind's eye.😊

[@IainMcClatchie]

Why not use gelcoat when you mold the wing skins, as they do on boats? If the gelcoat is heavier than paint, WHY is it heavier? Is there some reason the gelcoat has to be thicker than paint and primer would be?

[@ericeaton371]

just a thought.......for the Carbon look wouldn't a quality clear coat with uv protection... ie automotive paint, work ?

[@automan1223]

you could use a high end clear coat that could cut UV issues.

[@rjthomasindyusa]

Is this going to be sold as 'experimental'? Do you know when you are going to start taking orders? Great job!

[@DarkAeroInc]

Yes, this aircraft will be sold in the experimental category as a kit. We have started taking deposits for the kit. More information can be found on our website: darkaero.com/aircraft.

[@tevitasteen766]

LightAero! looks dope

[@trickedouttech321]

You should be able to build a jig that lets you put the plane on a rotisserie style mount.

[@jamesburns2232]

Ten years ago, painting was completed on the first Boeing 787 in Everett, WA and it came out looking really slick. Little did Boeing or Airbus know at the time that the paint would at some point peel off from composite surfaces. Emirates got really mad at Airbus for their peeling paint and Boeing has also had its issues with peeling paint. 🤠

[@FiferSkipper]

Would it be possible to set the fuselage on a jig that allowed it to rotate (bank) 90' to make it easier to do the top and bottom? Looking great and thanks for the update!

[@cabanford]

That's what I was thinking too (also for the wing)

[@triedproven9908]

On a rotisserie.

[@darrell3118]

I am a 45 year ( Just retired ) PPG Automotive Paint Refinish Technician and you will have better results if you go with 2 quart pressure Pot paint spray system, many manufacturers still make them , Anest Iwatta, DeVilbiss, Binks. Its a very easy to use spray gun , as all you have is the gun and a couple hoses in your hand , and with a pressure filled system the paint sprays in any position with no spitting or sputtering. But the real bitch of this system is making sure you take off the FLUID HOSE and CLEAN IT VERY VERY well, this is the BANE of a pressure pot system, but works so well on big spray projects, I used mine when I had to spray complete Box Vans and Suburbans and the like . Try this and I think you will like the ease of spraying. Cool ass airplane too by the way 👍😎

[@soullessred5785]

maybe a dumb question, but are there not uv blocking clear coat options as well?

[@fantabuloussnuffaluffagus]

Paint will only make it go faster if you paint it RED!

[@CapNemoDRS]

Hello! Why you dont use rotax turbo engine for your plane?

[@tommills9473]

What about gelcoat doing the "paint" being the first layer in the mold like they do with boats?

[@daveinwla6360]

I noticed that you didn't mention *heat buildup* from *sunlight* as a problem for carbon fiber parts. Back in the days of glass-fiber-on-polyurethan-foam, that was a reason to paint parts white. Is heat not a problem for a carbon fiber composite?

[@cptairwolf]

Does this mean you'll be changing the name to light aero? :P

[@christopherbeddoe406]

Looking great. 👍 Can't wait to see her cutting through the sky.

[@cyanoacry]

This is awesome, thanks for the overview! Does the as-molded surface need to be prepped or sanded in order to have enough adhesion/surface energy for the primer? (Or is there a magic treatment wipe that takes care of that -- spotted the last wipe as the fuselage got rolled into the booth!)

[@DarkAeroInc]

You are exactly on the right track with your question about surface energy. The surface does need to be prepared to improve adhesion between the paint and the structure. We solvent wiped the surface to clean it of any contaminants, then scuffed it with Scotch-Brite pads, then solvent wiped it again. This has yielded good results with the primer.

[@cyanoacry]

Awesome! I'm amazed that just scuffing with a Scotch-Brite was enough, that's a real game-changer for finishing.

[@harryprendergast7499]

Hey I'd like to 3d print the cool looking model of dark aero one, could you share a 3d model/stl

[@trickedouttech321]

Did you think about maybe just wrapping the plane, Primer then wrap or just Vinyl wrapping alone.