Spray painting tips needed!

[akemag]

I´m painting my MB shell with the right color form Tamiya. TS-8 Italian Red i think. Anywany, if painting the way Tamiya says like 25-30 cm from the shell, it hardly becoms "painted" at all. And since the shell is black, it shines thru. I´ve put on 2 layers before i started painting closer for better coverage. But the paint sort of drains of the sides in particular, leaving raised lines without paint. I´ve shaken the can alot before painting, so thats not the problem. Last run i painted closer and it got better, but the paint almost started running on one side.

So, how close to paint, and how many layers should one do.

It seems that the red color is hard to get right on the black shell.

[addict again]

well im not sure how much help i will be, but when i paint my body's i use a similar colored sealer/primer as the base coat it helps with coverage. Oh btw i use automotive paints i am not realy familiar with the rattle cans. And also with any type of painting many light coats is way better than a couple of heavy coats. as far as distance it realy depends on what color or rather what type of color you are shooting, if you are doing a solid such as the mb you can get away with being a bit closer however if you are shooting a pearl or metallic type color you want to be a little further back. I know when i am spraying lexan body's i usually hold the can about 8-10 inches away from the body.hope I was of some assistance.Oh and as far as how many coats I usually do no less than 3 coats of color although some colors that i have sprayed (yellow comes to mind) I have sometimes done 7 to 8 coats.and also another important thing to keep in mind is to allow proper flash time in between coats (time to dry) If you put on too many coats too soon you wont actualy be building up the color rather only bleading each coat into the last..not good so be sure and give the paint the proper dry time inbetween coats. good luck!! and be sure and post some pics when she's all done!!

[akemag]

Thanks alot for your input. The paint seemed to dry quickly, so i didnt wait too long between coats (1hour or so). I´ll put on the final layers today, if not just beacuse the fact that the paint is starting to run out in the can.

Thanks alot for your tips![]

I´ll be sure to post some pictures when i´m done.

And another thing on the downside, a bug landed on my "bug" and got stuck. Took the little terrorist out, but it left a mark in the paint of cource.

[HunterZero]

When using the TS rattle cans, I've heard it helps if you sit the can in hot tap water for a short time. This increases the pressure and reduces the thickness paint, giving a finer spray.

Don't go too hot or you'll end up painting the room! []

- James

[DJTheo]

When you want to paint a colour which is lighter then the surface like the BB body you have (MB bodies are red or white), you need to prime first, Tamiya makes some excellent primers, would recommend you gettiing one of them. Otherwise you will have either a dark and dull red or a very thick paint skin which will hide of details of the body.

Cheers

[Type49rs]

Are you priming the shell first? Any hard body should be primed before applying the top coats. It gives the paint something to bite onto. Light colours benifit from having white primer applied first. The italian red will never look any good when applied straight onto a black shell. use the tamiya white (fine) primer first, then lightly sand it (i use a really old piece of worn out 1200 grit) then apply the red in very fine coats, allowing 10 or so minutes between coats, and 'gradually' apply the paint in 'slightly' thicker quantities. It is an acquired skill and the only way to learn is by practising.

Good luck.[]

[akemag]

Oh man...heard about using primer first and all, but thought it might come out allright anyway. I´ll paint it a couple of layers more and see how it comes out. Guess it´s a little trial and error the first few times.

Really glad for all your help here[^][^]

I´ll let you all know how it turnes out.

[Shodog]

Like others have said, you got to prime it. I would spray a few coats of primer on right now before any more color coats. your color coats are not going to cover and you will just end up wasting the paint along with gumming up all the details on the body.

[DJTheo]

Yes, just sand the existing paint smooth now if it has runs and imperfections with 500-800 grit and then apply a light coat of primer and 1 light and 1 bit heavier layer of red not to loose too much body detail.

Cheers

[Stevo309]

Tamiya don't sell acrylic primer that i know of the uK so i use white paint instead. Primer is afterall a type of paint. I always "key" the plastic first though by just wet sanding it with fine paper (1500 grit) which gives the surface very fine scratches to help the paint/primer bond. The main advantage to primer is that being matt you can build it up quickly to cover the underlying plastic colour and this lighter undercoat means you need less top coat paint. That said though i've put top coats straight onto the white plastic shells and it works out fine but i know what you're saying about the edges. Don't worry though you just have to keep applying very thin layers. For a monster beetle shell i would use 2 or maybe 3 cans of Tamiya TS paint because they're small cans and it's very thin. Don't be tempted to spray too close or spray on too much at a time. It's not uncommon to appy 8 layes or more of paint plus lacquer to achieve a great result. Ypu just have to be patient but it's worth it, these paints will give a finish like no other [8D]

[mr_pushrod]

I recently found out that Tamiya primer is not available in the uk much to my dismay. I have been recommended Gunze Sangyo Mr Primer sufacer as a replacement which sounds as good if not better than the Tamiya stuff. I am waiting for some to arrive at my LHS to try on my King Hauler shell so look out for the results!

[Shodog]

I have never had good luck with spraying the Tamiya TS paint directly onto the shell with out some sort of primer. The paint will always look thin in the door lines and seams. I would go with what Theo said, sand the paint smooth, throw a primer coat on then re-shoot the color coats.

[akemag]

I should have asked you guys before i started painting. I´m finished now anyway, and the result is ok considering. The color tone isnt that red as it should be. But it´s a nice tone in itself. I´d rather it would be more red if i could choose. I´ve had problems with the raised lines as can be expected also. But with the decals on, it should be rather nice i guess.

I see now that it´s not just to take the can out and spray for a good result.

I´ll be sure to learn from all your tips before my next encounter with a hardbody.

I´ll be posting pics in my showroom on the result by the end of this weekend for anyone thats interested.

Once again, thanks for all your tips[^][^][^][^]

[Shodog]

I recall from the last discussion about Monster Beetle painting was to paint a base coat of pink then shoot the red over it. supposedly Ferrari does this to get a bright finish color.

[akemag]

Finally finished painting.

Anyone thats interested in seeing the result, can go here...

http://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_model.a...=26408&sid=4995

[jonny_bravo]

I find Halfords acrylic primer works fine with Tamiya paints,. just give it a light rub down with 1200 grit paper before you spray the top coat.

[chewie]

Hi folks, new to the website and forum, but would like to add this. GW white paint acts as a good base when priming things. Just give it a rub down with say some vfine wet and dry to give it something better for the desired colour to grip when you do the main colour coats.

A lil prep time always adds to the end result.

As soon as i get time to paint my new acquisition (don't laugh, i'm recapturing my childhood here [] ) G'Hopper2 i'll get it posted. Won't be a plain white, ut will look good i hope.

Must find some decals now []

[akemag]

I´ll be sure to do things the proper way when painting the next hard body. Got lucky with the MB, since it came out ok just painting it.