Ceconite v. Poly Fiber - Is one better than another??

[DPB]

Hello to the group.

I'm probably going to be acquiring a '46 Champ project in the near future
and I've never done a recover before. I've been reading a little about
Ceconite and Poly Fiber - For you old heads at this - Is one better than
another? Are there plusses & minuses that I should know about before picking
one over the other?

I see from promo stuff that Poly Fiber is supposed to be less weight, which
is important as I want to keep the Champ below the max for the new light
sport aircraft regs.

Any thoughts or comments are greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance,

Doug B
www.aircrafthomebuilder.com

[Tom]

The fabric is esentially the same polyester on all systems today although
the Polyfiber STC requires "Polyfiber" fabric regardless of the fact it is
not any different than Ceconite.

The choice you need to make is the use of traditional dope, polyfiber's
vinyl system, a combination of PF's vinyl with urethane topcoat or an all
urethane system.

I have just finished covering my Maule with Air-Tech's all urethane system.
You can find them on the web. http://www.airtechcoatings.com/index.html
This system uses "Ceconite" fabric. It is glued on with adhesive that is
the same as PF's basically. Then a urethane two component primer filler is
applied to the fabric. Just a couple coats. After that the urethane high
gloss topcoat. Some people don't like the high gloss on a Champ as the
original dope was not so glossy like a new Mercedes. I found the Air Tech
system easy to use and despite the claims of Polyfiber it is not difficult
to repair. No aluminum coat. The UV protection is built in chemically.

If you want a "traditional" finish the easiest to use is Polyfibers vinyl
system. It gives a similar finish to dope, easy to repair but lacks much
chemical resistance. Easy to spray and not as toxic as Urethane. With
urethane you need a separate air supply and "space suit". No mask will work.

Both Polyfiber and Air-Tech will be lighter in weight than the old systems.
I have found the Air-Tech materials easy to spray with my HVLP unit. Have
heard some comments about the Polyfiber urethane top coats being more
difficult but probably just takes getting used to it.

Just to give equal time Randolph makes systems too.

Regardless of what system you use Polyfiber has the best manual and a good
DVD on covering that can apply to other systems.

Good luck. it will take more effort than you think.

Tom



"DPB" > wrote in message
...
> Hello to the group.
>
> I'm probably going to be acquiring a '46 Champ project in the near future
> and I've never done a recover before. I've been reading a little about
> Ceconite and Poly Fiber - For you old heads at this - Is one better than
> another? Are there plusses & minuses that I should know about before
picking
> one over the other?
>
> I see from promo stuff that Poly Fiber is supposed to be less weight,
which
> is important as I want to keep the Champ below the max for the new light
> sport aircraft regs.
>
> Any thoughts or comments are greatly appreciated!
>
> Thanks in advance,
>
> Doug B
> www.aircrafthomebuilder.com
>
>

[john price]

Latest buzz on the grapevine is that Poly Fiber bought out
Randolph, so one might expect to see some changes in the
various STCs on what can be used on what... At least we
can hope...

John Price
CFII/AGI/IGI
http://home.att.net/~jm.price


"Tom" > wrote in message
...
> The fabric is esentially the same polyester on all systems today although
> the Polyfiber STC requires "Polyfiber" fabric regardless of the fact it is
> not any different than Ceconite.
>
> The choice you need to make is the use of traditional dope, polyfiber's
> vinyl system, a combination of PF's vinyl with urethane topcoat or an all
> urethane system.
>
> I have just finished covering my Maule with Air-Tech's all urethane
system.
> You can find them on the web. http://www.airtechcoatings.com/index.html
> This system uses "Ceconite" fabric. It is glued on with adhesive that is
> the same as PF's basically. Then a urethane two component primer filler is
> applied to the fabric. Just a couple coats. After that the urethane high
> gloss topcoat. Some people don't like the high gloss on a Champ as the
> original dope was not so glossy like a new Mercedes. I found the Air Tech
> system easy to use and despite the claims of Polyfiber it is not difficult
> to repair. No aluminum coat. The UV protection is built in chemically.
>
> If you want a "traditional" finish the easiest to use is Polyfibers vinyl
> system. It gives a similar finish to dope, easy to repair but lacks much
> chemical resistance. Easy to spray and not as toxic as Urethane. With
> urethane you need a separate air supply and "space suit". No mask will
work.
>
> Both Polyfiber and Air-Tech will be lighter in weight than the old
systems.
> I have found the Air-Tech materials easy to spray with my HVLP unit. Have
> heard some comments about the Polyfiber urethane top coats being more
> difficult but probably just takes getting used to it.
>
> Just to give equal time Randolph makes systems too.
>
> Regardless of what system you use Polyfiber has the best manual and a good
> DVD on covering that can apply to other systems.
>
> Good luck. it will take more effort than you think.
>
> Tom
>
>
>
> "DPB" > wrote in message
> ...
> > Hello to the group.
> >
> > I'm probably going to be acquiring a '46 Champ project in the near
future
> > and I've never done a recover before. I've been reading a little about
> > Ceconite and Poly Fiber - For you old heads at this - Is one better than
> > another? Are there plusses & minuses that I should know about before
> picking
> > one over the other?
> >
> > I see from promo stuff that Poly Fiber is supposed to be less weight,
> which
> > is important as I want to keep the Champ below the max for the new light
> > sport aircraft regs.
> >
> > Any thoughts or comments are greatly appreciated!
> >
> > Thanks in advance,
> >
> > Doug B
> > www.aircrafthomebuilder.com
> >
> >
>
>

[Richard Lamb]

john price wrote:
>
> Latest buzz on the grapevine is that Poly Fiber bought out
> Randolph, so one might expect to see some changes in the
> various STCs on what can be used on what... At least we
> can hope...
>
> John Price
> CFII/AGI/IGI
> http://home.att.net/~jm.price
>

Not likely. The chemistry is totally different.

Richard Lamb

[Roy and Primrose Fox]

Is this true and will ceconite continue to be supported?
In Australia the supplier, Avial, have heavily discounted their Randolph
products in order to clear their shelves.
What is happening in the U.S.A.?
Roy Fox
"john price" > wrote in message
...
> Latest buzz on the grapevine is that Poly Fiber bought out
> Randolph, so one might expect to see some changes in the
> various STCs on what can be used on what... At least we
> can hope...
>
> John Price
> CFII/AGI/IGI
> http://home.att.net/~jm.price
>
>
> "Tom" > wrote in message
> ...
> > The fabric is esentially the same polyester on all systems today
although
> > the Polyfiber STC requires "Polyfiber" fabric regardless of the fact it
is
> > not any different than Ceconite.
> >
> > The choice you need to make is the use of traditional dope, polyfiber's
> > vinyl system, a combination of PF's vinyl with urethane topcoat or an
all
> > urethane system.
> >
> > I have just finished covering my Maule with Air-Tech's all urethane
> system.
> > You can find them on the web. http://www.airtechcoatings.com/index.html
> > This system uses "Ceconite" fabric. It is glued on with adhesive that
is
> > the same as PF's basically. Then a urethane two component primer filler
is
> > applied to the fabric. Just a couple coats. After that the urethane high
> > gloss topcoat. Some people don't like the high gloss on a Champ as the
> > original dope was not so glossy like a new Mercedes. I found the Air
Tech
> > system easy to use and despite the claims of Polyfiber it is not
difficult
> > to repair. No aluminum coat. The UV protection is built in chemically.
> >
> > If you want a "traditional" finish the easiest to use is Polyfibers
vinyl
> > system. It gives a similar finish to dope, easy to repair but lacks much
> > chemical resistance. Easy to spray and not as toxic as Urethane. With
> > urethane you need a separate air supply and "space suit". No mask will
> work.
> >
> > Both Polyfiber and Air-Tech will be lighter in weight than the old
> systems.
> > I have found the Air-Tech materials easy to spray with my HVLP unit.
Have
> > heard some comments about the Polyfiber urethane top coats being more
> > difficult but probably just takes getting used to it.
> >
> > Just to give equal time Randolph makes systems too.
> >
> > Regardless of what system you use Polyfiber has the best manual and a
good
> > DVD on covering that can apply to other systems.
> >
> > Good luck. it will take more effort than you think.
> >
> > Tom
> >
> >
> >
> > "DPB" > wrote in message
> > ...
> > > Hello to the group.
> > >
> > > I'm probably going to be acquiring a '46 Champ project in the near
> future
> > > and I've never done a recover before. I've been reading a little about
> > > Ceconite and Poly Fiber - For you old heads at this - Is one better
than
> > > another? Are there plusses & minuses that I should know about before
> > picking
> > > one over the other?
> > >
> > > I see from promo stuff that Poly Fiber is supposed to be less weight,
> > which
> > > is important as I want to keep the Champ below the max for the new
light
> > > sport aircraft regs.
> > >
> > > Any thoughts or comments are greatly appreciated!
> > >
> > > Thanks in advance,
> > >
> > > Doug B
> > > www.aircrafthomebuilder.com
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
>
>