Rear and Canopy Headliner

Replacing the Rear Headliner in a Tiger

APPLICABILITY This discussion refers to the rear (turtleback) headliner in aircraft that do NOT have rod hangers for the headliner, such as my 1977 Tiger. My headliner started to sag and even squirting spray adhesive through a hole in the fabric didn't re-glue it. Time to replace!

MATERIALS To complete the installation, you will need:

• Self-adhesive 1/2" thick sound deadening foam (black). (Airtex or Aircraft Spruce)
• Polyurethane 1/2" thick foam (Airtex)
• Headliner fabric (Airtex or Aircraft Spruce)
• 3M Spray Adhesive (90 and/or 70 - see discussion below)
• Plastic paint remover scraper
• Quart of MEK
• Solvent based thick brushable paint remover (or citrus based)
• Various knives and scissors and different size Phillips screwdrivers

When I started this project, Airtex in Langhorne, PA just had a fire and their stock wasn't available. I ordered the black sound-deadening foam and "off-white" wool headliner fabric from Aircraft Spruce. Note in the picture that the fabric has a slightly speckled off-white surface and a very uniform gray surface. The gray is actually a sprayed-on coating and is the UNDERSIDE. The speckled surface actually hides dirt and defects a bit and looks very nice installed. I had a hard time locating the 1/2" polyurethane foam and finally tried Airtex, by which time they were back in business.

Foam and Wool Headliner

PREPARATION Start by removing the rear hat shelf and rear window plastic trim. You might want to take the time to repair and re-paint the plastic, as I did. I used all-purpose plastic pipe cement and SEM "Phantom White" spray paint for as-new repairs. Also remove the two halves of the bow molding on the front edge of the turtleback. There are several fiber pieces behind the metal - keep them together.

You will now have access to the headliner fabric. Carefully peel it away from all edges and try to remove it in one piece. It will serve as a template for cutting the fabric and foam. For my Tiger, the foam glued to the aluminum had become so oxidized over time that it would turn to powder when you touched it. However the foam bonded to the fabric was in pretty good shape.

Remove all the foam glued to the aluminum skin and also be sure to remove the thin plastic film that was the foam's self-adhesive backing. You may also see that the factory sprayed contact cement on the aluminum as well as using the self adhesive foam. This belts-and-suspenders approach only makes it harder for us, as you'll note that the self-adhesive film sticks tenaciously to the aluminum. Therefore, when you fit the new sound deadening foam, I would NOT use glue in addition to the self-adhesive backing.

If you have contact cement to deal with, brush on a gel-type solvent based paint remover rather than MEK, which will dissolve your brain faster than the glue. The newer citrus paint removers will also work but they take longer and really should be washed off with water. After a half hour, scrape off the goo with a plastic scraper. It may take several applications to soften all the glue. Finish with a good wipe-down with MEK.

INSTALLING SOUND-DEADENING FOAM Using scissors or a sharp knife, cut the black sound-deading foam to fit between the aluminum stiffeners. Hint: Use "White-Out" to mark black foam for cutting. When installed, the foam will be almost flush with the top of these stiffeners. Before removing the backing paper, carefully fit the foam to be sure it is the right size. When you're ready, clear all innocents from the vicinity so they don't hear you when you get the foam stuck wrong! I tried partially peeling back the paper and sticking one area first, then peeling and pressing. But I think just lining up an edge, sticking it and working fore or aft or sideways, will work just as well. Press the foam firmly to set the adhesive. But once that sticky backing adheres to the aluminum, ain't nuttin gonna free it! That's why I recommend AGAINST using additional spray adhesive. The self-adhesive bond is much stronger than the contact cement bond. If you goof, you can always cut another piece to fit 'cause there's another layer of foam covering your sins.

INSTALLING POLYURETHANE FOAM You could use two layers of the sound-deadening foam but that foam is heavier, more dense and more expensive. Now this was the most aggravating part of the entire process - getting the poly foam to completely stick to the black foam! Airtex recommended the 3M #90 "High Strength" spray but searching the web, I found a car headliner site said to use #70 "High Tac" because it was more heat resistant. I think I should have taken that advice. Either way, start with a full can and spray three coats of the adhesive on the black foam AND poly foam (cut at least 4" larger on all sides). Be very careful of the flammable vapors. Allow it to get tacky but follow the can instructions not to wait too long. Then stick the foam up against the black foam and hope that it sticks uniformly.

I had the biggest problem at this point, as some areas stuck very well (impossible to remove) and other areas didn't stick at all. If that happens, hopefully you can start from a loose edge and spray the adhesive into the void. Or you can try fitting a tube (like from a WD40 can) to a nozzle and squirting through the poly foam into the void. Now use a sharp knife to trim the excess foam around the windows, front and rear. Don't overtrim!

INSTALLING THE HEADLINER You are now repeating the process of spraying the poly foam and the headliner material - precut with at least 4" extra all around - but you don't need more than two coats and be sure not to saturate the headliner or the glue will soak through. When the adhesive's almost dry, work from the center to either side (or any way you feel comfortable), pressing the fabric against the foam. It should stick quite easily and completely. Try not to get wrinkles but if you do, spray wrinkles with a little water and use a hair dryer to shrink the fabric. I found that this part was the easiest. Finally trim the fabric - don't overdo it like I did in one area - and replace the plastic.

File:Rear headliner.jpg

Finished headliner (cellphone pix -not real clear