Airtex Colors

[SoCalPilot88]

Anyone have recent experience with Airtex colors? Specifically the Elk leather/vinyl color? I'm seeing a big difference between the shade of Elk on their website vs the samples they sent me (circled in red). The lady at Airtex said the same shade of Elk color was used in my sample and the aircraft on the website, and she chalks it up to variation in the angle or lighting. I'm having some doubts before I place my order. I like the look of the website Elk, but the sample looks too dark. I took the photo of the sample inside my airplane, parked outside in direct sun.

 

[dmspilot]

It does seem to be a lighting issue. In the first pic, the armrests on the left door and right door look like they're 2 different colors.

 

[aggiepack]

There is a lightning issue with the first pic. It becomes obvious on the Airtex webisde where there is a pic from a different angle clearly showing that the both armrests have the same colour.

I would ask them for a sample of their sand carpet. Based on the pics there should not be a big difference between the elk leather/ vinyl and the sand carpet.

 

[Jim_R]

If you were drawn to the website photos of the seats, then apparently you are looking for a light tan / beige / off-white color.

I have not seen that many elk, but I would not describe them as "light tan" or "beige". Perhaps you are really looking for a different color?

But getting back to the photo: The armrest on the open door (in the foreground) looks like the same color as the seats. But looking across the cabin to the closed door on the far side (which is presumably the same color), it looks darker. So I'd say you're being fooled by lighting...probably something like this:

Checker shadow illusion - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[WDD]

We just did our club plane with Airtex. Go with the sample book, not the web site.

 

[camorton]

I've spent a lot of time on this also. The pics on their website are god-awful! I think most of them are customer photos, so different cameras, white-balance, conditions, exposures, etc. I can say that what you get is true to the sample swatches. The web site pics are only useful to get a general idea of how the different color tones with relate to each other. If you're using the 'beige' palette, Barley looks good with either tan or elk accents and sand carpet. I just did a 182 with those colors and it looks fantastic.

C.

 

[SoCalPilot88]

I've spent a lot of time on this also. The pics on their website are god-awful! I think most of them are customer photos, so different cameras, white-balance, conditions, exposures, etc. I can say that what you get is true to the sample swatches. The web site pics are only useful to get a general idea of how the different color tones with relate to each other. If you're using the 'beige' palette, Barley looks good with either tan or elk accents and sand carpet. I just did a 182 with those colors and it looks fantastic.

C.

Thanks for confirming. I was thinking of doing the exact same thing on my Skylane. Since I like the color shown in the website photos (regardless of the color they claim it is), I think Barley seats with Elk accents would be the best match.

 

[BrianM]

Can’t help you with elk but the Barley leather I used was an exact match to the sample book. Ask them to send you a larger sample of the colors you are interested in. They will send bigger pieces. Or if you want a really big sample pay the $70 or so for a yard of the material. I found Airtex customer service to be very accommodating.

 

[Bob Noel]

Be aware that the actual material used might not match the color samples

(sometimes being a little color blind can be nice)