After Peter publicised the existence of this fine 2000 model PA46-350P, and some other comments in the “first flight of the year” thread, I wanted to share a few pics as promised:
This is the aircraft as of December 2013 – the paint is still in good shape but the design is quite dated… Plus our youngest son only agreed to let us buy it if we painted it red.
I met the guys at Airtime Paint in Bournemouth when I did my Type Rating. I booked a slot for the first week of January, and we exchanged tons of emails on paint schemes, colours, detailing and logos. After the annual I dropped them the plane and they got to work. First they stripped the paint, then primed the bare metal:
The white coat was applied, and the masking put in place – that’s the real art of the thing, and what takes a lot of time:
They then applied the first coats of coulored paint. I’ve found it very hard to chose tints based on small samples, so a lot of it was done comparing samples vs actual planes. The issue is that even if you put it side by side, there is a big difference between the sample and the actual rendering on metal. But when they sent me the picture below, it was obvious it was going to be too dark for my taste:
This colour was supposed to be the same as the one on the right in this picture, so for the top coats we switched to the colour at the top (Coral Red Pearl)
Finally yesterday the aircraft was put back together and weighted, and this morning I went to Bournemouth to pick it up. Through the whole process, the guys at Airtime paint have been great. On time, on budget, and always very responsive. So I didn’t expect to be disappointed, and I wasn’t!
The detailing is perfect:
“SHAG2000” has been replaced by a more low key custom logo:
I took it for a spin over the flooded countryside… One of the nicest wings in GA, in my impartial view 
Back to base:
Was it very difficult to clean the cushions?
PS: Why did you respray an aircraft built in 2000? The original design doesn’t look bad to me.
My kids wanted a red plane. At least that’s my excuse…
Nice work. Should keep it tidy for quite a few years.
Very nice, looks like another quality job. Beautiful aircraft.
Very nice!
A few questions:
- Did they redo the cement around the boots? How did that turn out?
- Did the shop do the design or did they pay Pait Scheme Designers in the US?
- Did they paint the landing gear etc.?
- Did the plastic which connects the wings and the hull crack? Was that repaired somehow?
- Did it come in heavier or ligther then before the repaint?
- Did you paint the callsign or is it glued on?
- Finally, you can also send me a private message, how was the pricing. I got a rough quote for this kind of job on the Mirage from the most reputable shop in Germany and it was about 20k Euro plus VAT.
Nice job!
I am very tempted to get mine done when I next bring it to the UK.
I too would be very interested in the questions posed by Sebastian.
Enjoy the new look and welcome to the PA46 family.
E
- Did they redo the cement around the boots? How did that turn out?
They did, and it’s a quality result. They had issues with a Jetprop last year where they had to redo everything, and based on that experience they’re very comfortable with the boots.
- Did the shop do the design or did they pay Pait Scheme Designers in the US?
They used a shop based on a mix of pictures I sent them. Not Paint Schemes, don’t know where they’re based.
- Did they paint the landing gear etc.?
Yes. The only bits not painted are the fuel caps.
- Did the plastic which connects the wings and the hull crack? Was that repaired somehow?
Not cracked.
- Did it come in heavier or ligther then before the repaint?
Heavier by 17lbs, but the aircraft had not been weighted for 14 years, and I have a new engine mount which I suspect is heavier. That’s the only issue I have with the whole thing, and is not easy to understand to be honest – the total amount of paint laid on the aircraft once you remove the solvents isn’t that much.
- Did you paint the callsign or is it glued on?
Painted. The “Mirage 2000” and “Piper Freedom of Flight” logos are effectively stickers.
That’s the right order of magnitude for the price.
It’s great to hear of Airtime Paint doing such good work. The main company itself went bust a while ago and the paint shop followed. The quality of the paint shop was always good however. The people there were always very nice. I used to go there to get my landing gear properly lubricated because my local firms refused to do it on the Annual. Unfortunately for me, the train transport between Bournemouth and Brighton is a big hassle.
Also good to hear the details were done correctly. Most resprays are not done like that.
On the landing gear, did they take it all apart, strip the paint, and re-paint it? That’s very expensive. I see it done all the time on King Airs where I am hangared, and I believe it is a mandatory periodic service on those (to NDT the gear).
The gear wasn’t removed, but it was stripped and repainted.
