Dope over carbon fiber

[steve pagano]

     I know this is kind of a dumb question but i just want to be on the safe side. I have a set of carbon fiber landing gear on my plane and am thinking of painting the wheel pants and gear while their on the plane, When i paint my base color (Diana Cream). Has any body sprayed dope over c.f. landing gear With good results? Will it have any effect on the carbon fiber gear? (strength wise) And can the gear be buffed out with the rest of the plane?


                                       TIA
                                         -Steve

[Busby]

Hello,
The best way to paint the gear and wheel pants is to clean them well with
thinner ,acetone, or some such prior to sanding them.
After cleaning them wash them with Dawn and hot water.
You must remove all traces of mold release or nothing will stick.
Try not to handle them with bare fingers.
After cleaning sand throughly with 320 grit and then apply one or two coats
of auto primer ,sand and then apply you favorite brand of dope.
Treat them at that point like any of your other painted surfaces

[ptg]

Steve,

Everything Ty said and maybe a little more.. 
I've painted at least 10 sets of carbon wheel pants with dope with very good and lasting results.  Sanding is critical in order to remove all of the mold release and give the paint some "teeth" to hold on to.  I have used 220 and 180-grit remove the shine and make everything dull but 400 will work fine just takes more work.  Sand lightly but thoroughly.  What I have found is that virtually all lightweight molded carbon has small pin holes where the resin or epoxy did not seal the surface completely, sometimes you can't see them until you paint.  Before painting and after sanding get some lightweight Spackle type filler either from the hobby shop or any hardware store.  Thin the filler with water to the point that it is liquid and smear it all over the carbon and let dry completely, usually 24 hours or more.  When dry sand again with 220 or 180 until the filler is all gone.  You will have some tiny white spots in patches where the pinholes are.  You now have a very smooth surface to apply your color to.  Just do it! Clear over the color and forget about it. 

Here is a link to Doug Moon's web site.  If you scroll down you will see a picture of a pant I painted over 5 years ago and today it still looks very good.

Good luck and happy painting.

http://www.angelfire.com/ab2/dougmoon/