ACF 50 treatment

[akclimber]

Has anyone done the ACF 50 treatment on their 170?
Is it worth it?

[Bruce Fenstermacher]

I did not do the treatment but my first plane had it done. Here is my observation. The ACF 50 will forever wick its way out of the structure at nearly ever rivet and or seam.

In addition to that about 10 years ago at Sun N Fun at the ACF 50 booth they were showing electronics boards submerged in ACF 50 and well as a host of other things. One of the things they were demonstrating is how well ACF 50 lubricated objects like hinges and sliders just like one might use a silicon spray or WD-40 if your from Spicewood Texas.

I bought a can and used it to lubricate all sorts of stuff in my airplane from aileron hinges to pulleys. Over about 3 years it completely removed the paint from my aileron hinges and the surrounding attachment bolts. Seems it works it's way between the paint and the surface the paint is sticking to and no more paint.

Would I ACF 50 an airplane? Maybe, specially if I was operating in a corrosive environment like next to the ocean. What's better? A plane with no corrosion and no paint or a painted corroded plane? I'll take no corrosion but as some here can attest, I really don't care what the paint on my plane looks like.

[GAHorn]

Everything Bruce just said.

Solution:
1)-Use WD-40 (it's carrier-agent does not weep forever)...and re-new it every few years...
2)-preferably on planes with very little paint ...(polished works good)...
3)- and those that have paint, make certain it is RED paint which resists peeling like green does.

(I have used ACF-50 on my C-206 and a friend's C-175 and it weeped and weeped and weeped and.... )

WARNING: If you "bomb" WD-40 into your fuselage/wings/etc. ... BEWARE that as it is "fogged"...(I use a fogging-wand, or an engine wash-down siphon-blow-gun)... it is explosively flammable. Keep all sparks, etc. away. Keep a fire extinguisher handy. Wear cotton or wool...no polyester/synthetics. Do not inhale the fog...instant pneumonia. (Same as with ACK50/etc.)

[akclimber]

Will Corrosion-X peel away the paint as well?
Is there a better treatment?
And yes, the plane will be in a highly corrosive environment - airport next to the ocean, topped with 80" of rain a year.

[cessna170bdriver]

ACF50 will not remove paint correctly applied to correctly prepared surfaces. I had ACF50 applied to my entire airplane when I moved to Picayune, Mississippi 20 years ago (7 years after a new Imron paint job), and the paint has yet to fall off. It is messy, especially in the first year or two after application. Even after 20 years (the first 6 based in Picayune), the seams still preferentially attract dirt, but all the skins are still holding hands.

[wingnut]

I will second (or third) the opinions of Bruce and George. I don't like the stuff. It is messy, collects dust, dirt, etc and when that build up on pulleys and cables and hinge points it actually does more harm than good. Both ACF50 and CorrosionX are designed to have a capillary action, and they weep between all mating surfaces, reducing structural integrity by reducing or eliminating friction on joints from compression loads. Riveted assemblies in high vibration areas are especially prone to start 'working' loose. I've seen it myself and worked on THE corrosionX A36 for 15 years; loose (smoking) rivets everywhere.
I only suggest using it if your in an enviroment where it is absolutely needed; where the benefits would outway the problems associated with those described above. And don't plan on getting a good paint job after treatment.

[c170b53]

Sorry I'm in the other camp and use the stuff. Yes it does weep out forever especially if you unload the whole can in one spot. All the points mentioned so far could be discussed, regardless corrosion is something that must be controlled, so if its not the ACF-50 and you want to use WD-40 or some product, doing something is better than doing nothing.

[ginbug92b]

Jacek, did you end up buying my old 170 in oregon?

[bagarre]

I was looking into ACF 50 as well since I keep 81D outside. My impression was a few months of weeping but it sounds to be more than that.
Can anyone confirm that it can actually work under and flake paint like that?

WD-40 can add one more use to their list. But, the possible Boom has me more worried than paint flake
By bulk, I'm guessing WD-40 might be cheaper too.

[GAHorn]

A possibly good alternative method to apply WD40..and less hazard...might be to use a common
Garden sprayer. It would not create so much fog,...but it would be important not to saturate...
You merely want a light coating....WD40.wil spread out after application.

[bagarre]

Garden Sprayer: meaning the pressurized sprayers used for weed killer and such?

The fogger would get better coverage but the sprayer would draw less of a crowd if something went wrong.

[GAHorn]

When I did OlGars 150 I used a siphon blow gun and fogged it. I did it outside the hangar and used
A long compressed air hose. I didn't feel it was dangerous because no electricity was present and it
Was outdoors.
Don't breathe the fog.

[KG]

I've used ACF-50 very little on my airplane, limited to a little spray on a couple of surface corrosion spots and a bit here and there on a hinge or two, but I have sprayed the heck out of my Chevy Trailblazer with the stuff. I bought the Trailblazer used and later found out that it has severe corrosion problems. I put it up on a rack and, with a spray can of ACF-50 (Aircraft Spruce, about $15) I sprayed everything I could see (including some over spray on the brakes, which I don't recommend). That stuff worked! It basically stopped the rust everywhere I put it. That is some of the slickest stuff I've ever seen. I can see why it would make a rivet loosen its grip. But it did stop the rust. No question at all about that. I dare say that it bought me another four or five years of using my truck. It would have long ago gone back to the earthly elements had the rusting continued at its previous pace.

As for the brakes, I accidentally got some over spray on the rear discs. I didn't even know it at the time. The stuff is so slick that the rear brakes were not working, putting the entire braking load on the front brakes, which soon overheated and warped. I suspect that had I spilled a little oil on the brake discs it would have quickly burned off. Not this stuff. Cost me the price of some new brake discs to fix it.

After wingnut's comments, I wont put much of it on my airplane rivets, but I do like it for my rusty car.

Keith

[n2582d]

Here's what Sacramento Sky Ranch has to say about CIC's.