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).
- Polyurethane 1/2" thick foam
- Headliner fabric
- 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
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.
