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Poly tone or Aerothane

The Kid

FOUNDER
Thompson Falls
I am having my wings recovered and they want to know if I want Poly tone or Aerothane paint. What are the pros and cons to each of those?
 
My vote is for Poly tone, a lot easier to patch and repair if you are intending to fly off airport a lot.
Otherwise, Aerothane, shiny and easy to clean.
 
Poly Tone has almost become a retro thing.....if you want a 21 st. century kind of finish, if that's important to you, go with Aerothane. If you want a simpler to apply, less expensive (by a lot), a bit lighter, and most importantly easier to repair finish, go PolyTone. Kinda like the old cars that are restored, with super shiny finishes, more shiny then when they rolled out of the factory. The only Aerothane on my home built is on the fiberglas cowling and the metal parts, as per the PolyFiber manual. I actually prefer the less shiny appearance, it looks more oldtimey.
 
Aerothane is for pavement princesses
 

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I second what courierguy said. Aerothane on metal for more durable finish. Polytone on fabric.
Aerothane can ba knocked back with a bunch of flattener to compliment Polytone finish.
Note of caution, flattener is basically a bunch of fine silica particles suspended in clear base, tends to “water down” paint and will require an extra coat or two to get desired color.
I too prefer the “oldtimey” look.
 
I agree. Aerothane is best. Patching is easy, put a patch on, then build up the coatings.


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Three planes of mine were done with Polytone. All cracked along tubing, developed ringworm, and weathered/oxidised within three years. Planes were operated outdoors in Fairbanks with cold in winter and 24/7 sun in summer. Stits said waxing was recommended to maintain the cover. No hangar was available.

Meanwhile locals with Aerothane or whatever synthetic cover look as new after many years under the same conditions and use. Even overcoat Aerothane over old dope looks good. Beat it up and I'm sure it'll need repairs but it's a tough covering. Poly is soft.

I'd not spend another dollar or hour with the Poly product but if maintaining and patching a cover job is your goal then fly at it.

Gary
 
Poly tone stains from almost anything. And cracks as described above. I bought the first Legend Cub and had it for 12 years in a hangar. I had the choice and picked Poly Tone because I wanted the old school look. Big mistake. Especially with a yellow finish. I never had to make a fabric repair in 12 years, so who cares how easy or hard it is to finish but almost every surface had some sort of stain from bugs, bird crap I didn’t clean off immediately or whatever. Don’t spill any gas on it either.

It didnt take long for Legend to give up on Poly Tone.

Rich G.
 
Aerothane is "ureathane" same thing that makes automotive paint last for years with some more flex additives for the fabric. Easy to paint if you follow instructions and for me 2 coats of black color covered completely.
 
We're rebuilding an L-21 with the brown and green camo scheme. We had planned on using Polytone on the fabric and flattened Aerothane on the metal. Flattened Aerothane according to directions and it was still pretty shiny. Flattened some more and it started getting weird. And the greens don't match between Aerothane and Polytone.

So now we're using Polytone on the metal. Matches well, looks great, but scratches super easy.

If you're going with the standard Montana camouflage scheme, you can probably get them to match better.
 
I’m an observer. I look at planes closely. I’ve paid attention to working Cubs that get lots of hard use in harsh conditions and the ones with Aerothane look like new after 10+ years. The others don’t fare as well. I chose Aerothane.
 
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Fwiw: cracking may be caused by poor application, too thick in one coat, believe that is addressed in Ray's original manual. Probably applied too heavy by those wanting a show finish. I've done 6 aircraft with Polytone and saw few problems after years and k's of hours.Not for everyone, I get it. A moot subject for me anyway, Oratex for me next time!
 
Poly tone on the fabric and ranthane on the metal, color matches perfect, the shine on the metal isn’t that bad
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This is a topic that periodically resurfaces with a range of reports. I have no dog in the scuffle except money spent for what I had hoped was durability. Parked outdoors and flown year round (more so in earlier years than now) challenges any coating. Other coverings than Poly appear to wear better today including other dope and the various urethanes. Yes it may be the application method that determines longevity but I'm not an expert refinisher.

Polytone does not like environmental stuff landing on it...things like smoke from forest fires, petrochemical waste from exhaust, wildlife and their residue, and just plain dirt need to be promptly removed or staining may result. Yes that's a tough group to resist. Urethanes (hope that's the right word) parked nearby resist contamination and have maintained their condition better from what I've seen.

I've seen Aerothane applied over aged dope and that covering has weathered well. With the cost of recovering in the tens of thousands today the choice for me would be a simple one if long surface life is the goal.

Gary
 
I have covered all or the major portions of over 40 aircraft, and have used many different processes and finishes.I will do what ever the customer wants, but for my own machine it is Aerothane, and you can make it look any way you want it to look mostly by how much you use and how much you thin it. It's tough, resistant to stains, not heavier if applied correctly, and no big deal to repair. ( It does not lend it self well to paint repairs that don't show.) I find that Ranthane and Superflite urethanes are much easier to spray, but they generally end up heavier. I will do poly tone, but don't recommend it unless always hangared and kept clean from gasoline, bug, and acid rain stains. Not saving any money if you have to paint over in down the road and that adds weight. I did a new rudder for a 12 in polytone a few years ago (white) and it still looks good but is a vertical surface and that makes a difference. Lots of good info here; make a choice and have at it, good luck. Reid
 
also, one point when consolidated bought stitts, aerothane changed, at least colors/shades and i think formula maybe too....
 
I should mention Stewart's waterborne polyurethane looks good as well. If done right it should last I assume.

Gary
 
A few of my Aerothane friends are moving towards Superflight VII. That would be my second choice based upon their pireps, but based on the original question I assume the shop prefers Stits.

Aerothane.
 
Take a look at Gordon Misch's Pa-12. He shot it in Stewarts Systems in 2007 I think, maybe a bit later. He had to repaint the tail feathers after some damage this year with a very nice match. Finish looks great on his plane and he flies it a lot. Don't take my word for it; I teach with Stewarts ...... ask Gordon his opinion of how it holds up.

Marty
 
A few of my Aerothane friends are moving towards Superflight VII. That would be my second choice based upon their pireps, but based on the original question I assume the shop prefers Stits.

Aerothane.

not sure if it was that system, might of been their 6... about killed me with all the MEK it used in the steps.... looked fine...
 
Fwiw: cracking may be caused by poor application, too thick in one coat, believe that is addressed in Ray's original manual. Probably applied too heavy by those wanting a show finish. I've done 6 aircraft with Polytone and saw few problems after years and k's of hours.Not for everyone, I get it. A moot subject for me anyway, Oratex for me next time!

I should add my good luck with PolyTone is helped by my birds always being hangared. And, I'm not sure it's been addressed how much CHEAPER PT is.....as in less expensive. A very big deal way back, not so much now, but when I was scrambling to make ends meet the considerably lesser expense was very welcomed.
 
not sure if it was that system, might of been their 6... about killed me with all the MEK it used in the steps.... looked fine...
I don't use any of it without a full tyvek suit with hood and outside air respirator, rubber gloves etc.. You can't cheat with this stuff; be safe.
 
I’ve been working in a buddy’s shop during the offseason learning what I can. They use Airtech, but his long time fabric guy said he’s done covering, the MEK is getting to be too much for him. I was thinking about trying to learn Stewart’s, I haven’t developed any bad habits yet so I might as well get them on something less toxic.
 
I’ve been working in a buddy’s shop during the offseason learning what I can. They use Airtech, but his long time fabric guy said he’s done covering, the MEK is getting to be too much for him. I was thinking about trying to learn Stewart’s, I haven’t developed any bad habits yet so I might as well get them on something less toxic.
I don't do any of the systems, including Stewarts, without protection, even when catalyzing and prepping. Too many bad stories like the one you related. Develop safe habits now, and you will be OK. I'm getting old, and have my share of issues, but having inhaled any of that stuff isn't one of them!
 
I have "heard" that poly tone is a "lighter" application. Anyone have an estimate of weight difference per wing? I want to get this cub to 1050 empty weight if I can. The pounds really do keep adding up.
 
Last time I did it, I used Polytone for the color, then finished with one thin coat of clear Aerothane. Managed to keep the overall paint thickness to a minimum (key to not cracking in my opinion) and it had a nice sheen. I was happy with the results.
 
I have "heard" that poly tone is a "lighter" application. Anyone have an estimate of weight difference per wing? I want to get this cub to 1050 empty weight if I can. The pounds really do keep adding up.

I used polytone with ranthane for the red, leading edges and it weighs 1085 on 31’s 1040 on 8.50’s.

Also look at Johns 360 coatings
https://johns360coatings.com/product/1000-activated-2-part-coating/

I used the avenger on the landing gear leg as a test, prior to that the exhaust was staining the gear leg. After the coating I can go 30+ hrs and then take the speed coat and clean it up
https://johns360coatings.com/product/1010-concentrated-ceramic-spray-sealant/

I ended up doing the whole airplane, and so far, nothing has stained the fabric. I’ve spilled fuel more than once and it didn’t stain. I’m sure if you let it stand on it, it would, but so far I’m very happy with it.

The avenger coating didn’t change the look of the poly tone, it made it richer

After a few times with the spray the bugs don’t stick as easy.


Tom


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How is the avenger coat applied? Hand sprayer?

Yeah it’s two part, uses a microfiber sponge.
They recommend the decon spray first and clean it good. What ever you coat is going to be stuck underneath.

I had some bugs from the Oshkosh trip baked on the nose bowl, sprayed the speed coat and they wiped off.

I put the avenger on right after the rebuild so there was no contamination’s on the paint.


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