Which is lighter for interior side panels?

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Leo Langston

Pre-takeoff checklist
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I am getting ready to redo the interior of my Navion and I want to reduce weight anywhere possible. My question is which would be lighter, a side panel made out of .020 aluminum sheet or an equivalent one made out of kydex. By equivalent I mean the same Size, relative strength and durability not necessarily the same thickness. If you have used Kydex for side panels what thickness did you use?

Thanks
Leo
 
Leo Langston said:
By equivalent I mean the same Size, relative strength and durability not necessarily the same thickness.
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For DIY options, aluminum will not handle the abuse like Kydex especially at .020". And if using Kydex only in sheet form (no forming) it needs to be thick enough not to "warp" over time. The lightest route is no trim and only make covers for the important stuff like cables, lines, etc. If want trim, the lightest option tends to be mid-level aftermarket trim products formed like the OEM panels. Or a common route I've used on both airplanes and helicopters, if aesthetics are not a priority, is to Kydex the lower portion of the cabin/cockpit and leave the upper portion bare or covered in some lightweight material. Now if you want to do this work solely under a PPC via prevent mx, then the aftermarket products would be the route to take for several reasons. And don't forget to weigh the old interior products and the new stuff going in unless you plan to reweigh the aircraft.
 
Thx for that response. My current side panels are flat aluminum sheets cut to the proper shapes and covered in whatever fabric/carpet was used back in the late 60s. I am getting new covering materials (leather or vinyl) so I just want to know whether to use thin aluminum sheets or kydex to hopefully weigh less that what comes out of the plane.
 

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Kydex data sheets quote density as specific gravity.
Using the numbers for two products recomended for aircraft interiors shows:

water kydex T kydex T-LW
specific gravity 1.0 1.35 1.21
lb/cu.ft. 62.4 84.24 75.504

https://kydex.com/kydex-t-technical-data-sheet/

kydex.com

KYDEX® T-LW

Download KYDEX® T-LW is a fire-rated thermoplastic sheet that has the flammability characteristics of a PVC/PMMA alloy and features significant weight savings compared to standard KYDEX® T and is…
kydex.com

So, how many cubic feet are you planning to use? ;)

Apologize for the poor formatting. Looked ok at entry.
 
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Leo Langston said:
I am getting new covering materials (leather or vinyl)
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Didn't realize you planned to cover the aluminum. Since you have the precut alum backers, just use those. You won't save anything by switching to Kydex in this case except all the time you'd spend fitting new material. As for covering material, highly recommend Naugahyde material which even comes with Part 25 burn certificates when requested. Has been my go to for many years. Some colors come in different thicknesses, however, the thinner material the more the panel defects will "print" on the finished product.
 
Ceconite. Light weight, looks good painted. I did the door panels on a Peterbuilt that way once. Didn't help much with the weight, but looked pretty cool.
 
Bell206 said:
Didn't realize you planned to cover the aluminum. Since you have the precut alum backers, just use those. You won't save anything by switching to Kydex in this case except all the time you'd spend fitting new material. As for covering material, highly recommend Naugahyde material which even comes with Part 25 burn certificates when requested. Has been my go to for many years. Some colors come in different thicknesses, however, the thinner material the more the panel defects will "print" on the finished product.
Click to expand...
 
Yes my plane has aluminum backing panels but they need to be replaced. In some areas there is no backing sheet and they used some fake wood paneling to take its place. I am doing away with that fake wood stuff so will need panels that fit the entire side of the plane. Hence my wondering which sort of material might be lighter weight.
 
Leo Langston said:
Yes my plane has aluminum backing panels but they need to be replaced.
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If you plan to replace the existing back panels and recover the new ones, then aluminum would probably be your better option due to its rigidity vs a comparable Kydex panel thickness based on my experience. So basically the Kydex would weigh more than the alum panel in this application. Where Kydex could provide an advantage is if you need/want to form these panels to fit certain contours as Kydex can be formed with heat and aluminum would require a more mechanical means. So perhaps a combo of both materials may get the results you want?
 
Plane plastics, or whatever

Or just sticky foam
 
Felt or some material would be lighter but it still needs to look nice and have map pockets and such. Similar to way it looks now.
 
What were the backing panels of your Cherokee made of, aluminum or something else?
 
Maybe I'm weird, but if it were me and weights were close I'd be thinking about something that didn't ignite easily.
 
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