Aircraft Tint FAQ

TLDR  Short cut  --> # 10 BELOW: "Applying preservative or protective material to components where no disassembly of
any primary structure or operating system is involved and where such coating is not
prohibited or is not contrary to good practices."

The Long Story:

"Preventive maintenance" means:
simple or minor preservation operations and the replacement of small standard parts not
involving complex assembly operations.

The 31 items that you CAN do yourself
1. Removal, installation, and repair of landing gear tires.
2. Replacing elastic shock absorber cords on landing gear.
3. Servicing landing gear shock struts by adding oil, air, or both.
4. Servicing landing gear wheel bearings, such as cleaning and greasing.
5. Replacing defective safety wiring or cotter keys.
6. Lubrication not requiring disassembly other than removal of nonstructural items such
as cover plates, cowlings, and fairings.
7. Making simple fabric patches not requiring rib stitching or the removal of structural
parts or control surfaces. In the case of balloons, the making of small fabric repairs to
envelopes (as defined in, and in accordance with, the balloon manufacturers' instructions)
not requiring load tape repair or replacement.
8. Replenishing hydraulic fluid in the hydraulic reservoir.
9. Refinishing decorative coating of fuselage, balloon baskets, wings tail group surfaces
(excluding balanced control surfaces), fairings, cowlings, landing gear, cabin, or cockpit
interior when removal or disassembly of any primary structure or operating system is not
required.
10. Applying preservative or protective material to components where no disassembly of
any primary structure or operating system is involved and where such coating is not
prohibited or is not contrary to good practices.
11. Repairing upholstery and decorative furnishings of the cabin, cockpit, or balloon
basket interior when the repairing does not require disassembly of any primary structure
or operating system or interfere with an operating system or affect the primary structure
of the aircraft.
12. Making small simple repairs to fairings, nonstructural cover plates, cowlings, and
small patches and reinforcements not changing the contour so as to interfere with proper
air flow.
13. Replacing side windows where that work does not interfere with the structure or any
operating system such as controls, electrical equipment, etc.
14. Replacing safety belts.
15. Replacing seats or seat parts with replacement parts approved for the aircraft, not
involving disassembly of any primary structure or operating system.
16. Trouble shooting and repairing broken circuits in landing light wiring circuits.
17. Replacing bulbs, reflectors, and lenses of position and landing lights.
18. Replacing wheels and skis where no weight and balance computation is involved.
19. Replacing any cowling not requiring removal of the propeller or disconnection of
flight controls.
20. Replacing or cleaning spark plugs and setting of spark plug gap clearance.
21. Replacing any hose connection except hydraulic connections.
22. Replacing prefabricated fuel lines.
23. Cleaning or replacing fuel and oil strainers or filter elements.
24. Replacing and servicing batteries.
25. Cleaning of balloon burner pilot and main nozzles in accordance with the balloon
manufacturer's instructions.
26. Replacement or adjustment of nonstructural standard fasteners incidental to
operations.
27. The interchange of balloon baskets and burners on envelopes when the basket or
burner is designated as interchangeable in the balloon type certificate data and the baskets
and burners are specifically designed for quick removal and installation.
28. The installations of anti-misfueling devices to reduce the diameter of fuel tank filler
openings provided the specific device has been made a part of the aircraft type certificate
data by the aircraft manufacturer, the aircraft manufacturer has provided FAA-approved
instructions for installation of the specific device, and installation does not involve the
disassembly of the existing tank filler opening.
29. Removing, checking, and replacing magnetic chip detectors.
30. Removing and replacing self-contained, front instrument panel-mounted navigation
and communication devices that employ tray-mounted connectors that connect the unit
when the unit is installed into the instrument panel, (excluding automatic flight control
systems, transponders and microwave frequency distance measuring equipment (DME)).
The approved unit must be designed to be readily and repeatedly removed and replaced,
and pertinent instructions must be provided. Prior to the unit's intended use, an
operational check must be performed in accordance with the applicable sections of part
91.
31. Updating self-contained, front instrument panel-mounted Air Traffic Control (ATC)
navigational software data bases (excluding those of automatic flight control systems,
transponders and microwave frequency distance measuring equipment (DME), provided
no disassembly of the unit is required and pertinent instructions are provided. Prior to the
unit's intended use, an operational check must be performed in accordance with
applicable sections of part 91.
What will I need?

APPROVED DATA

i.e. Maintenance or Service Manuals for your aircraft, any pertinent Advisory Circulars
like AC43.13 1B, ADs, and any Special Instructions provided for the Continuing
Airworthiness of Supplemental Type Certificate.

SUITABLE WORKING CONDITIONS
Perform the work at a location where all removed parts are protected from dust, dirt or
damage.

TOOLS APPROPRIATE FOR THE WORK BEING PERFORMED
May include jacks, air tools, multi-meter, wrenches, sockets and special tools specific for
the work, etc.

ABILITY
If the preventative maintenance work that you intend to perform is not simple in nature
and is beyond your ability, you are not qualified to continue and must seek the assistance
of a certified Mechanic.

The Sign-Off
Ref. CFR 14 FAR 43.9 - Content, Form, and Disposition of Maintenance, Preventive
Maintenance, Rebuilding, and Alteration Records
Each person who maintains, performs preventive maintenance, rebuilds, or alters an
aircraft, airframe, aircraft engine, propeller, appliance, or component part shall make an
entry in the maintenance record of that equipment containing the following information:

(1) A description (or reference to data acceptable to the Administrator) of work
performed.
(2) The date of completion of the work performed.
(3) The name of the person performing the work if other than the person making the
entry.
(4) If the work performed on the aircraft, airframe, aircraft engine, propeller, appliance,
or component part has been performed satisfactorily, the signature, certificate number,
and kind of certificate held by the person approving the work. The signature constitutes
the approval for return to service only for the work performed.
In the case of a Repairman who performs his own Condition Inspection, the Logbook
Entry must also include:
(5) The type of inspection and a brief description of the extent of the inspection.
(6) The date of the inspection and aircraft total time in service.