|
Custom
self-adhesive vinyl services for those larger projects by
|
|
|
Completed Projects . . .
|
Shown here are
photos illustrating some of our completed projects, as well as
short descriptions of each. If you are a private warbird owner, aircraft refinisher or museum curator and CanMilAir can be of service to you,
please refer to the "CONTACT"
page for various methods of communication through which we can
discuss your project. References are available upon request.
See "WARBIRD
FAQ" page for examples of graphics styles
available through CanMilAir.
|
|
You will find the newest additions
at the top of this page, while the oldest are at the bottom. |
|
|
| 2002 Kawasaki ZX-9R "Ninja" |
|
|
| This 2002 Kawasaki Ninja was originally
finished in the Burnt Orange/Black/White colour scheme, but
was repainted Black after being blown over onto its right side
by the rotor wash of an Augusta Westland AW-139 air ambulance
operated by Ornge. (The hospital's helipad is just located
just off the top of the photo) CanMilAir was able to supply
the bike's owner with replacement
graphics in white, red and metallic silver self-adhesive,
high-performance cast vinyl. |
|
|
| Custom graphics for a
Carpenter's tool cart |
|
|
As some of the readers here may know, by day I
work as an Industrial Mechanic (Millwright) in the Engineering
Services department of a large urban hospital. One of the
carpenters down the hall built himself this cute little wagon
to carry his supplies, tools and work-orders in. True to his
trade, it is finely crafted and fitted with aluminum edging
all the way around. Propulsion was originally a rope handle,
but it has since been modified with a "T" handle
after more than a few collisions with the rear end of his work
boots! Many of us in the department often joked that he
should paint it red so it could then be his "Little Red
Wagon"!
One day he surprised all of us by actually painting his wagon
red, but with the addition of a silver accent stripe down the
middle.
Opportunity doesn't often knock twice, so a quick internet
search soon found an old Radio Flyer wagon logo I needed. (How
many out there are old enough to remember those?) I then
added his initials in a matching font and using my ALPS
printer, I printed two sets for the sides of his wagon in
white with a black outline on clear self-adesive vinyl film.
The miniature licence plate on the back was created by tracing
individual letters from several licence plate images to get
the desired set of letters and then tracing a whole licence
plate to get everything else. The yearly sticker in the upper
corner is red and black on metallic silver and has my initials
and a renewal date of May 2012, which was the month I made
this.
Not long after I had finished printing the artwork, BJ took a
couple of days off work and while he was away, my accomplice
applied the new graphics to his wagon and had a good chuckle
thinking about BJ's reaction when he returned to work! We were
not disappointed - he absolutely loves it! |
|
|
| R Laidlaw Lumber Co. Ltd -
Propellor Manufacturer Decals |
|
|
Built in 1942 by the R Laidlaw Lumber Company,
this 76" diameter wooden propellor was recently
overhauled by Q1 Aviation Ltd in Mississauga. It
will be fitted to a 145 hp Gypsy Major engine on a DHC-1
Chipmunk.
The refinishing staff at Q1 needed accurate manufacturer
stickers for the prop blades to finish the project and
contacted CanMilAir for assistance. Available period images of
the original sticker were scanned, then imported into our
vector graphics software and a new design was created using
the original image as a guide. Multiple copies of his new
image were then digitally printed onto self-adhesive vinyl and
were then contour cut to final shape to create ready-to-apply
stickers. |
|
|
| Canadair CT-133
Silver Star 133577 - C-FRGA |
|
|
Owned by Hammond Aviation,
Silver Star 133577 was refinished in April 2011 in this striking scheme and
made it's debut at the Canadian Aviation Expo at the
Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum on April 30, 2011.
CanMilAir supplied all markings in cut white and blue
vinyl except for the
shark's mouth, which was hand painted. The eyes were made
with three layers of cut vinyl: white, black and yellow.
In 1992, this special commemorative paint scheme was worn
by Canadian Forces CT-133 Silver Star serial 133504 from VU32 at CFB Greenwood,
on the occasion of the squadron's disbandment. It was nicknamed the "Mako
One" from the squadron's call sign "MAKO". With
roots going back to 1946, VU32 was one of two Royal Canadian Navy utility squadrons.
On a more personal note, this was a special project for me as
my late brother, LCdr. James R. Burns RCN was the
Commanding Officer of VU32 from March 1955 until February
1957. |
|
|
| Canadair CT-133
Silver Star 133346 - C-FUPM |
|
|
| Owned by
the Jet Aircraft Museum, in London, Ontario, Silver
Star 133346 is the first of the museums six T-33's to be returned to its former Canadian Forces
appearance. CanMilAir supplied JAM with self-adhesive
vinyl spray-paint masks for all of the Grey FIP markings that
were painted over when it left CFB Mountainview. She once
again proudly wears the 434 "Bluenose" Sqn's schooner emblem
on the tail! |
|
|
| Canadair Sabre 6
- N186PJ |
|
|
This Canadair Sabre
6 was built at the Canadair plant in Montreal (c/n 1710) as
part of an order by the German Luftwaffe. It made its
maiden flight on 18 April, 1958. It served in the West German air force with 2 /JG 72 and was marked as JB-240. After this,
it was used by a civilian contractor in Germany for target
towing for the air force. Eventually the Sabre was acquired by
"Air Spray Ltd." of Red Deer Alberta and used for
target towing at CFB Cold Lake from 1998 to 2005. The Sabre is
currently owned by the Classic Aviation Aircraft Museum
of Hillsboro, Oregon and registered as N186PJ.
Stripped of its Yellow and Black finish at the Evergreen
Aviation and Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon, the
Sabre was given a new coat of Aluminium lacquer. CanMilAir
Decals supplied all new self-adhesive vinyl markings to give
it the appearance of an RCAF Sabre from 410 "Cougar"
Squadron while based at North Luffenham, England in the early
1950’s. The black, red and white tail bands, Red
Ensigns and the RCAF roundels were all digitally printed and
contour cut to finished shape. All other markings were cut
from solid colour cast vinyl. The red and white nose band was
made by applying red cut vinyl triangles over white paint. The new serial number and "Last
Three" are the Sabre's Canadair construction number
(1710). The new owners chose not to use the historically
correct "AM" fuselage codes but instead opted for
the "RCAF" lettering on the fuselage sides. |
|
|
|
At last count, there were only 13 airworthy
Sabres left in flying condition throughout the world.
ONE
built by CAC in Australia
FIVE built by North American
in the USA
SEVEN built by Canadair in Montreal
CanMilAir markings are now
used on two of those seven Canadair Sabres ! !
|
|
|
| Lockheed T-33A
Shooting Star - Oshkosh, Wisconsin |
|
|
Built by Lockheed in
1951, this pedestal-mounted T-33A (c/n 580-6411) is located on
the grounds of the Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh,
Wisconsin. After years of exposure to the elements, a
make-over was in order. The aircraft was removed from its
mount, stripped of its original markings and its exterior
polished to bring back that beautiful natural metal
shine.
CanMilAir supplied EAA AirVenture with
all new cut vinyl markings (except for the four Stars and Bars,
which were painted on by the EAA staff). The cresting on the
tail identifies this T-33 as belonging to the USAF's Mobile
AMA (Air Materiel Area) which was phased out in the late
1960's. These tail crests were digitally printed on self-adhesive
vinyl while all the remaining striping, lettering and graphics
were supplied in cut vinyl in Black, Red, Yellow and
White.
The T-33 is shown being carefully placed back onto its pedestal, just
in time for the week-long 2010 EAA AirVenture in July. |
|
|
| 1952 Dodge M37
Truck |
|
|
This 1952 Dodge M37
three-quarter ton, four wheel drive military cargo truck was
restored by John Hooper of Echo Bay, Ontario in Korean
War era RCAF markings. John is the President of 432 RCAF
(Algoma) Wing of the Air Force Association of Canada.
CanMilAir reproduced the RCAF cresting for the doors by
digitally printing the design on self-adhesive vinyl, which
was then contour cut to finished shape. |
|
|
| Canadair CT-133
Silver Star 133564 - N134EM |
|
|
| Built in the
early 1950's, this Canadair CT-133 Silver Star (Canadian
Forces serial 133564) went through the Avionics Upgrade
Project (AUP) in the late 1990's. It proudly served with
AETE and finally 414 Sqn before retiring in 2005. After it was
de-militarized, it was purchased from CFB Mountain
View by Jared Isaacman in 2007 and US civil registered as N133MQ
the following year, still wearing its overall Black finish and
414 Sqn tail band. It is currently registered as N134EM. In early
2009 CanMilAir Decals provided custom-designed 2-mil self-adhesive
vinyl spray-paint masks for all national insignia, lettering and
service/maintenance markings. Modifications made to this
aircraft included stripping out the two analog cockpits and
installing all new digital "glass" cockpits.
The T-33 was then painted in the Black/Grey/White "Arctic Aggressor"
scheme worn by the F-16 Fighting Falcons of the 18th
Aggressor Squadron (18th AGRS) at Eielson AFB, Alaska. The
vinyl paint masks were then used to paint the markings in
contrasting colours.
The beautiful dusk photo was taken by long-time CanMilAir
customer Allan Sauer at the 2010 EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh,
Wisconsin. |
|
|
| 2008 BMW Mini
Cooper |
|
|
And now for something completely
different . . .
This 2008 Mini Cooper is owned by Dr. Joel R. Kann MD of
Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The British Racing Green colour
inspired Joel to add Spitfire-style roundels to both doors of his
Mini with carefully selected "code" letters to
either side. While the "MD" is obvious, the
"Z" is for his nickname "Zeke".
Barely discernable in the photo due to the glare of the paint
is the "pilots" name under the canopy, I mean
driver's side window. It reads: Joel "DOC"
Kann.
Commonly used on Canadian Spitfires and Mosquitos during the war,
small RCAF "maple
leaf roundels" were added to the fenders (engine cowlings?)
to further
enhance the Spitfire look.
She's definitely an eye catcher! |
|
|
|
Canadair CT-133
Silver Star 133577 - C-FRGA
|
|
|
After its retirement from
CF service, Silver Star 133577 was registered as N577KK and
was one of 14 Canadair
Mk.3 Silver Stars purchased by Air Combat Warfare
International in Kitchener, Ontario. Now owned by Hammond
Aviation and registered as C-FRGA, 577 once again wears her Canadian Forces markings from 414 Sqn,
including the "Black Knight" cresting on the tail.
All FIP Era CF markings were provided in 2-mil self-adhesive
grey high performance cast vinyl. The 414 Sqn cresting
was supplied in white and red vinyl that was applied over a
painted black tail band. |
|
|
| Canadair T-33
Silver Star 21556 - N133KK |
|
|
This old
Silver Star (sos from the Canadian Armed Forces inventory in
November 1970) is currently registered as N133KK (ex N99179,
ex RCAF 21556) and is owned by Ken Pacholski from Chicago,
Illinois. Ken wanted the T-33 finished in full colour USAF
markings so he made arrangements with CanMilAir Decals to
provide the self-adhesive vinyl spray paint masks for the USAF national insignia
and lettering.
The T-33 was stripped and painted by Pat Janczak at
Superior Plane Aircraft Coatings in Rockford,
Illinois. |
|
|
| CF-101 Voodoo
Ejection Seat Data Label |
|
|
| Eric Chapman from Kars,
Ontario needed assistance while rebuilding an ejection seat
from a CF-101 Voodoo. He needed a new data label for the
seat's rocket motor. Eric supplied the dimensional
information and a new label was created and printed using
Black
and Metallic Silver on clear self-adhesive vinyl to
give it the same raised 'feel" as if it were an original
metal label. |
|
|
|
|
| 1944 Chevrolet
Canadian Military Pattern C60L GS Three Ton Truck |
|
|
| A bit of a different job for
CanMilAir was making replacement dashboard switch plates for this CMP
truck currently under restoration at the Comox Aviation Museum
in Comox, British Columbia. Used by the RCAF, this particular
C60 variant was one of about 2000 vehicles made to pull a radar trailer in the
Second World War. These trucks were supplied with a winch to hoist the radar sail. |
|
|
| Van's Aircraft
RV-4 C-GOIV |
|
|
Pictured above is a RV-4 kit plane by Van's Aircraft. This particular one was built by Joe
Schweers of Langley, British Columbia. The RV-4 has a
wingspan of 23' and is 20' 4" long. Gross weight is 1500
lbs and is powered by a 150 to 180 hp Lycoming engine giving
it a top speed of 201 to 213 mph, depending on the engine
used.
CanMilAir supplied Joe with the upper wing and
fuselage roundels as well as the pair of Red with Black
outline CANADA
titles typical of those found on Canadian military aircraft of
the late 1970's to mid 1980's. All markings were supplied in
computer-cut, high-performance, self-adhesive cast vinyl.
|
|
|
| Canadair T-33 Silver Star
21616 |
|
|
In October 2008, the Nanton Lancaster Society Air Museum
contracted CanMilAir to provide cut vinyl markings for a complete make-over of their
pedestal mounted T-33 marked as serial 21616 (the real 616
crashed during its ferry flight to its new owners, the
Bolivian Air Force, in October 1973). The Nanton Silver Star
was previously finished in a quasi "RCAF+3" Era markings
(complete with a backwards
Red Ensign).
The T-33 was converted to "AB+3 Era"
markings complete with full underwing markings. The goal was to
recreate the period when 21616 was with the #2 Advanced Flying
School and used by the Golden Hawks demonstration team as
their support aircraft. During this period, 21616 wore a specially
modified Golden Hawks design forward of the canopy on either side of the nose.
The aircraft pays homage to Wing
Commander Jack Allen, who was the commanding officer of the Golden
Hawks from 1960 to 1962, and was born and raised in Nanton,
Alberta. |
|
|
| Avro CF-100 Mk.3 Canuck 18152 |
|
|
Avro Canada CF-100
Mk.3 Canuck 18152 was taken on strength by the RCAF in May,
1953. Initially assigned to #3 Operational Training Unit, it
was based at North Bay, Ontario and later at Cold Lake,
Alberta to train aircrew destined to the more advanced Mark
IV's and V's. In 1956, 18152 began service with 428 Sqn at
Uplands, Ontario and then two years later was transferred to
432 Sqn at Bagotville, Quebec. The aircraft was then
reassigned back to 3 OTU from 1962 until 1964 when it was
transferred to the "Electronic Warfare Unit" based
at St. Hubert, Quebec. It's last flight was in September of
1968 traveling to CFB Suffield where it was involved in
testing by the Defence Research Establishment.
In 1981, the aircraft was restored in the markings of 3
OTU (coded JF-152) and placed on display as Gate Guardian to the
entrance to CFB Suffield. In August of 1994 the Canuck was
acquired by the Nanton Lancaster Society after being declared
surplus to the needs of the Department of National Defence,
and was placed on a pedestal in front of the Museum.
Showing the effects of over 20 years of exposure to the
elements, CanMilAir was contracted in October 2008, to provide the restoration
staff with all-new replacement self-adhesive vinyl markings as the
museum prepared for the "Anniversary of Powered Flight"
celebrations in 2009. In May 2009
the old markings were stripped off and the new ones
applied. |
|
|
|
Vintage Wings of Canada's "Hawk
One" Sabre
|
|
|
In September 2007, Vintage Wings of Canada
acquired a Canadair Sabre Mk. 5 (ex RCAF # 23314) which was prepared for
the 2009 air show season to commemorate the 100th
Anniversary of Powered Flight in Canada and the 50th anniversary of the
Golden Hawks demonstration team. Hawk One flew at airshows
all across the country with the
Snowbirds, a specially painted Golden Centennaires
Tutor and a fully painted CF-18 Hornet.
In early February 2008, CanMilAir was approached by renowned
artist Jim Belliveau at CFB Cold Lake to ask if we could
assist him with the project. We readily agreed to supply our
Golden Hawks Sabre artwork as our contribution to this most
worthy project. The artwork was used to create spray-paint
masks so
that the hawk motif could be painted onto the sides of the Sabre.
Shown above is the Vintage Wings of Canada
"Hawk One" Sabre fresh out of the paint shop at CFB
Cold Lake on December 15, 2008.
The most obvious differences between the 2009 "Hawk
One" and the 1959 Golden Hawk are found at the rear
of the aircraft. Absent is the Red Ensign and military serial
number and in their place is a specially adapted "Century of
Flight" logo on either side of the fin and the civil
registration in white on the red band.
|
Letter received from the Hawk One Project
Director:
March, 2009
From the start of the Hawk One project, Mr
William Burns of CanMilAir Decals expressed a strong
interest in supporting the restoration of the Vintage Wings
of Canada F-86 Sabre to Golden Hawk livery. When Jim
Belliveau, the Project Manager for the Centennial of Flight
~ Specialty Aircraft Paint Schemes, contacted Bill in early
February 2008, to ask for research support for the Golden
Hawk markings, Bill promptly and cheerfully provided
complete digital vector drawings of his own markings artwork
which he professionally produced for his graphics company.
These full size drawings allowed Hawk One to take a huge
leap forward towards its goal of faithfully producing these
historically significant markings.
Bill’s boundless energy, attention to detail and obvious
dedication were instrumental in the success of the Hawk One
paint plan.
Hawk One Project Director and Team Lead
|
|
CanMilAir's William Burns and LCol Steve
Will, the Hawk One Project Director and Team Lead,
with the Hawk One Sabre at the St. Thomas
air show in July 2009. |
|
|
| Canadair
CT-133
Silver Star 133610 - N133DV |
|
|
Now owned by
Bob Davis of Lake Geneva, Wisconsin and civil registered
as N133DV, this Silver Star, ex-CF serial
133610, last served with AETE at CFB Cold Lake, Alberta.
CanMilAir supplied Bob with all the major Canadian insignia
and markings as cut vinyl "spray-paint masks" to restore 133610 to its
former Canadian Forces
service appearance. The actual painting was performed by
Pat Janczak at Superior Plane Aircraft Coatings in
Rockford, Illinois, and the freshly refinished Silver Star made
its public debut at Oshkosh during the last week of July,
2008.
Photographed by Al Sauer at the EAA
AirVenture Convention at Oshkosh’s Wittman Regional Airport
in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, Bob's Silver Star 133610 once again
proudly wears its Canadian Forces FIP markings, complete with
AETE markings on the tail.
Just behind the nose of 133610 can be seen the camouflaged Silver
Star 133579 belonging to Paul Keppeler (see camo T-33 below). These two
Silver Stars made an aerial rendezvous enroute to Oshkosh so
they were able to arrive together in formation. |
|
|
|
|
| Canadair
CT-133
Silver Star 133467 - C-FYGM |
|
|
CT-133,
ex-CF serial 133467, is owned by Tom Rogers of Victoria,
British Columbia and civil registered as C-FYGM. Tom wanted to return his aircraft to a natural metal or painted aluminium,
appearance and apply 1960's "RCAF+3 Era" markings,
complete with Red Ensigns on the tail. Also required was a complete package of new
service markings and stencils.
All design elements were provided in computer-cut,
high-performance, self-adhesive cast vinyl, with the exception
of the Red Ensigns on the tail, which were digitally printed
on self-adhesive vinyl and contour cut to finished shape. |
|
|
| Canadair
CT-133 Silver
Star 133579 - NX433RD |
|
|
Purchased from CFB
Mountainview by retired USAF Major Paul Keppeler
of Wisconsin in 2002, Silver Star 133579 (now civil
registered as NX433RD) has appeared at
many air shows in the US mid-west in pseudo USAF markings over
the original Canadian two-tone Green / Grey wraparound camo.
To acknowledge the aircraft's proud heritage, Paul
wanted to restore his Silver Star to the Canadian marking
configuration it wore at the time of its retirement. CanMilAir was able to
supply Paul with the required roundels, FIP markings,
flags, serials, and "Last 3" for his Silver Star
produced in
flat black high-performance, self-adhesive cast vinyl. The
439 Sqn crest on the tail was supplied as a self-adhesive
vinyl spray-paint mask, since Paul already had the right shade
of grey spray paint on hand.
|
"I was in a quandary. Where am I going
to get marking stencils or 1:1 scale decal templates to
restore the Federal Identification Program (FIP) Canadian
Forces (CF) markings to my Canadair T-33?
I posted the question on the Warbird Information Exchange or
"WIX" website forum and one of the recommendations
was to ask around in the modeling community. I'm an old
modeler and I figured I'd give it a shot since I knew the
modeling community had a lot of knowledge about the historical
accuracy of markings and aircraft finishes.
One of the links supplied from the forum was Bill Burns'
CanMilAir Decals site. I contacted Bill to see if he could use
the vector based artwork in collaboration with a graphics
shop to make me the full-size markings for the T-33 i.e. the
roundels, the "Canada" Wordmarks, the flag for the
tail and the serial numbers for the wings and nose. Bill shot
me an email with a sample sheet, said "can do", and
the rest is history.
That was almost too easy! The accuracy and scale of the
markings is perfect, the finish excellent and the price
reasonable.
With the help of a friend, I cleaned and smoothed as necessary
all the aircraft surfaces before applying the decals. I also
referenced historical photos of my aircraft and the official
CF application diagrams furnished by Bill to aid in accurate
placement of the markings. What I learned is that the CF
maintenance personnel sometimes took some liberties in placing
markings so where we had guidance from historical photos of my
specific aircraft, we used that as guidance, otherwise we
referenced the CF diagrams.
I can't say enough good things about my experience working
with CanMilAir. The finished product and supporting diagrams
were first-rate and the service from Bill outstanding. He's a
tremendous resource and it sounds like my fellow warbird
cohorts who own Canadair T-33s 599 and 610 will be calling on CanMilAir in the future for help to "re-Canadianize"
their historic aircraft.
Thanks Bill for a job well done!"
Paul Keppeler
|
|
|
| Canadair CF-104D Starfighter 104645 |
|
|
As acquired by the Canadian Museum of Flight in
Langley, BC, CF-104D Starfighter 104645 was an Instructional Airframe
(serial number 878C) from the Aircraft Battle Damage Repair
Program. Volunteers at the museum required full size cut paint
mask templates
to spray paint the primary markings, national insignia,
lettering, numbering, etc., after
their Starfighter was repainted in its Symmetrical Era
Green/Grey over Grey camo scheme.
Contacted by the museum in September, 2006, CanMilAir "up-scaled" the Starfighter
decal set
#019 to full size and pulled out just the required elements to
enable the museum staff to complete
the project and get this Starfighter back on public
display - on time and within budget.
|
|
|
| |
