Best Way to Paint Canopies

[KirkH]

I'm building the Hawker Hurricane and I'm debating the best way to paint the metal frame parts of the clear vacuform cockpit canopy. I remember doing this years ago, but my results were never very good so I'm looking for any recommendations. Thanks.

[heywooood]

For canopy work, this is what I do. First - it depends on whether I am painting the canopy before it is attached - or after. The only time I paint it before gluing it to the aircraft is when I can do so without having to use filler along the glue joint. Some canopies and windscreens can be trimmed up and will fit snugly along the glue joint and others need filler for a smooth transition. In that case, prepainted canopies are not an option.
Either way - this is what works. I use blue or other low tack painters tape. I lay a strip about 4" long on a piece of glass or mirror (old picture frames or small mirrors no longer in service are good sources) then I cut approx 1/8" or thinner strips using a straightedge. Then I lay the strip along the canopy frame of the first pane of glass and carefully slice it off at the intersecting frame(s)...go around each pane of glass one at a time and SEAL the edges carefully at the canopy frame and at the tape where the strips overlap in the corners. Once the frames of the canopy are all carefully lined with the tape strips take another 4-6" section of the roll and tape it to your glass or mirror and this time cut it into 1/4" squares. Use these squares to carefully 'fill in' the cockpit glass inside the strips that you have already laid down, making sure the squares overlap to prevent paint spray from ghosting or coming through at the edges. This is the cleanest way to cover the cockpit glass and leave only the frames exposed WITHOUT having to cut the tape after it is on the canopy. The bulk of the slicing is done on your sheet of glass or mirror and only the ends of the strips need be trimmed on the canopy itself.
This method works best for me after years of trying various methods and materials. The canopy can usually go onto the plane before the plane is painted - making it easy to first lay on the interior color that you want your canopy to have (interior green or zinc chromate green in this case) and then the aircraft primer - then the top coat colors...
You can also mask the canopy as described, glue it onto the airplane - then mask over the mask if you will - along the glue joint and use the filler and sand it to get that nice, seamless fuselage to canopy transition - just remember to go easy and not sand through that outer layer of tape as you sand the filler down flush with the seam and fuselage...but if you do sand through the outer layer of tape, chances are you will only expose the frames of the canopy anyway -

[heywooood]

I should add that the glass you are using to cut your tape strips and squares should be CLEAN..so the tape retains all of its tack and doesn't pick up debris like dust, dirt or hair lol
I use the tip of my blade to lift the tape pieces I have sliced also - so as not to damage or 'bunch up' the tape sections at the corners. You want straight, clean pieces of tape - naturally

[KirkH]

That sounds like it might work but my plan is to paint it from the inside before I attach it to the plane. I was wondering if maybe diluting some acrylic paint into a thin wash and then letting it settle into the recesses that make up the framework of the canopy would work. I figure I could use a wet Q-Tip to wipe away any paint that gets on the glass areas.

Another alternative might be to paint some clear decal paper and then cut it into strips and use that instead.