What prep work needs to be done if I want to paint the inside of the tubing on the frame?
You need to do some prep work on the tube even before you put the covering on the body and the fin. Once the frame is all built, clean all of the tubes at once. First, use an aluminum cleaner. Use this cleaner (it is an acid so put gloves and safety glasses on) with a scotch brite pad and scrub the tube down. Rinse the cleaner off with water and make sure the cleaner does not dry on the tube before you rinse. After you rinse the cleaner off, put alodine 1200s on the tube. Rub the alodine on with a soaked cloth (no scotch brite pad) and then rinse with water. Again, do not let the alodine dry before you rinse. Your tubes will now have a copper tinge to them and this means the primmer will adhere to the tubes. Blow all of the excess water out of the tubes and brackets and let them dry before you cover the body and fin. If you follow these steps and keep them clean before you paint, then you will have no problems later on with the paint peeling off of your tubes.
