Mating surface primer

[Fredwbouwman]

I have a question about priming mating surfaces.

If I have two pieces, that have been alodine conversion coated, should I still use primer on the mating surfaces prior to riveting?
Or is that just overkill and not necessary?

Thank you,

[GaryK]

In a dry climate like Utah you may not have too much concern with the Alodine Coating. For raw aluminum , I still primed mating surfaces on my Yukon( but not any other area) in Colorado. I first used Zinc Chromate but switched to Rust-o-leum Self Etching Primer. The Rust-o-leum sticks to the aluminum better and I made some test pieces of Zinc Chromate and the Self Etching primer and they have been outside in sun and weather for 5 years and the Rustoleum is holding up better than the Zinc Chromate. The area on airplane that is most concern would be the under the Cabin Floor. That area is easy to get more dirt or spills.

[Fredwbouwman]

Thank you sir, I too switched to the rustoleum because of availability and found it applies better and seems to adhere better.
I live very close to the great salt lake and it’s naturally a salty environment so I made the decision to do the conversion coating, if only to make myself feel better
Realizing it will add time and expense to my build