Canopy tinting

Yes, I have a dark tinted canopy. I believe it came from Thermotec (Roy Poquette, now deceased). It is noticeably cooler on a hot summer day (~10-15 degrees F). But it is way colder on a freezing day. As a result, I don't fly winter wave as much as I used to.

As far as adding the plastic film to a plastic canopy, you better do some experimentation on something other than your expensive canopy. Most tinting shops use a heat gun to activate the adhesive and make the flat film conform to contours. Car windows generally have a relatively gentle curvature, well within the capability of the film to stretch or shrink. I don't think the film would do too well on the pronounced compound curves of a canopy, and the heat necessary will probably deform the acrylic. And then you will have to buy a new canopy. Not to worry- you can get the new one tinted.

There is one aircraft (T-34 Mentor) here at Moriarty with a canopy that had the film applied, but there are a number of seams where the film had to be cut and overlapped. It looks pretty good, but the seams are pretty obvious.. Fortunately, the T-34 canopy panels do not have as much curvature as a sailplane canopy, so there aren't too many and most are unobtrusive to the pilot's sightline.