Painting help needed

[hoosier_rc_nut]

I'm needing help with lacquer paints from testors. Almost every time I use them (either indoors or out) I get bubbles in the paint. I have had some luck in a couple of rare cases where I didn't get any bubbles at all. I wash the bodies before I paint them, usually with just water, so I don't think dirt and what not is an issue. I was just wondering if anyone else has this same problem and what they do so it doesn't happen. As always thank you in advance to anyone who can help.

[WrenchHead]

Are you using Lexan Specifis paints. I use Pactra and Spaz Stix brands.I wash with warm soapy water and a scrung type sponge. Dry it completely with lint free paper towels. Then wipe it out with denatured alcohol. Apply all my paint masks and then wipe with DA again right before paint. Light even coats of paint dryed by a hair dryer in between coats helps alot as well. Seems to work real well for me. Hope this helps you a bit. Just don't get discouraged.:)

[Der_Meister]

i had the same problem back when i first started painting. i found that the problem was usually contributed to ether contamination on the work surface (it wasn't clean enough). contamination in the paint (make sure your air brush and the jar you are mixing paint in are spotlessly clean), or painters error, usually i had laid the paint on to thick

[hoosier_rc_nut]

i had the same problem back when i first started painting. i found that the problem was usually contributed to ether contamination on the work surface (it wasn't clean enough). contamination in the paint (make sure your air brush and the jar you are mixing paint in are spotlessly clean), or painters error, usually i had laid the paint on to thick

Sorry I didn't specify before, but I'm using rattle cans, but the advice you gave about cleaning the body will come in handy. While I'm thinking about it can anyone tell me if it's a good idea to mix lacquer and enamel paints? Like if I spray the body with the lacquer first then do a white undercoat to make the paint "pop". As always thank you in advance to anyone who can help.

[roadrunnr43]

bubbles you say? it could be that when you spray over the first layer, the 1st isnt dry.

[Lyric]

or its stll wet befere you paint

[hoosier_rc_nut]

bubbles you say? it could be that when you spray over the first layer, the 1st isnt dry.

What if I get bubbles in the first layer? Clean the body better? Use denatured alcohol?

[roadrunnr43]

cleaning it with soap and water is what i do. has worked so far.

other then cleaning it, i dont know what it could be. the lexan may be funky, or the paint might have water in it. describe the bubbles, maybe we can find something out there.

[DaveC]

What if I get bubbles in the first layer? Clean the body better? Use denatured alcohol?

Are you getting bubbles, or craters (fish-eye)?

[NHRCA_Revo]

I use a scuff pad, blow it out with air than use glass cleaner :confused: then spray the paint and it comes out decent for rattle cans (im not picky about paint design, body gets trashed anyways:D)

[NHRCA_Revo]

Like if I spray the body with the lacquer first then do a white undercoat to make the paint "pop". As always thank you in advance to anyone who can help.

My last body was dark blue paint (kind you get at hobbytown) then I sprayed Krylon color fusion and that paint is tuff and dosent wear off when you have parts hitting it all the time.... if thats what you mean

[hoosier_rc_nut]

Are you getting bubbles, or craters (fish-eye)?

To answer your and roadrunner's questions they are bubbles. The best description I can give would be that they are small and seem to be along the edge of the body. To answer nhrca I was talking about how some people spray a white coat of (enamel) paint under a darker (lacquer) coat of paint to make the paint brighter and not transparent as sometimes happens with painting bodies. Hope that answers everyone's questions. My camera isn't the best when it comes to taking close up pix, but I will try to post one.

[Der_Meister]

does the spray can get cold when painting? cause that effects the paint and the way the can sprays. i had problems with cans getting cold. the colder the can got the thicker the paint came out and the less atomization i got.
i talked to a graffiti artist that said if i soaked the can in warm water for about 20 minutes before i used it that it would help the chilling problem and it would help spray consistently.

all he told me to do:
shake the can well.
fill the sink or a bucket with warm water. if you can't put your hand it in then its to hot.
set the can in the water making sure not to submerge the nozzle
let it sit for about 20 minutes.
take can out, dry it off, shake it
paint

that solved 90% of the problems i had with spray cans.

[hoosier_rc_nut]

does the spray can get cold when painting? cause that effects the paint and the way the can sprays. i had problems with cans getting cold. the colder the can got the thicker the paint came out and the less atomization i got.
i talked to a graffiti artist that said if i soaked the can in warm water for about 20 minutes before i used it that it would help the chilling problem and it would help spray consistently.

all he told me to do:
shake the can well.
fill the sink or a bucket with warm water. if you can't put your hand it in then its to hot.
set the can in the water making sure not to submerge the nozzle
let it sit for about 20 minutes.
take can out, dry it off, shake it
paint

that solved 90% of the problems i had with spray cans.

I never really paid attention to the temp of the can when I'm spraying, so obviously it's never gotten cold enough to get my attention, so I don't know if that could be an issue. I figured out that I can take better close up pix with my camera on my cell phone then with my digi cam (go figure:rolleyes:) so I will try to post pix when I get time.

[hoosier_rc_nut]

OK so I tried this experiment on a body that I don't care about because I got it off of e-bay and the holes in it didn't line up with my ntc3 chassis. I also did this because I ruined a body that I actually did care about, and got the same results. I used the window tint you see in the first pick on the porsche body and........well you can see the results. The paint is well past dry and the window tint ate through it anyway. I have a feeling this is my own fault because it says in the instructions that I'm supposed to use "a minimum two coats of RC290 Covercoat over the previously painted surfaces prior to applying window tint." So my question is will this RC290 covercoat stuff prevent what you see in the pix? As always thank you in advance to anyone who can help.

[LchevyT]

It looks like the overcoat and window tint had some kind of reaction. Me personally I am trying that store bought window tint for full size cars. I tried the spray before and it didn't work too well. I think it's because of the overcoat and window tint reacting. If you need any help let me know.

[hoosier_rc_nut]

It looks like the overcoat and window tint had some kind of reaction. Me personally I am trying that store bought window tint for full size cars. I tried the spray before and it didn't work too well. I think it's because of the overcoat and window tint reacting. If you need any help let me know.

No it's the other way around......I didn't know I had to have overcoat because I didn't read the directions on the can so I think that's where I messed up because the window tint spray actually touched the paint and ate through it, and that was my question.

[LchevyT]

yeah that's what i meant. Like I said i've only tried that window tint once and I didn't like it.

[hoosier_rc_nut]

hmmmm weird because I would think the point of the overcoat stuff would be to protect the paint from being destroyed by the window tint since it obviously likes to eat through paint.....at least that's what I'm getting from the instructions on the back of the can. In either case I'm thinking of making a trip to the lhs this weekend. There's a guy up there that is good at painting bodies, so if he's there I'll ask him or someone else.

[roadrunnr43]

yeah, overcoat has eaten some of my paint before too.

although it didnt help that i confused wich was the overcoat and thinner. haha.

[InspGadgt]

Well first off don't use Testors model paint on Lexan bodies...that is the wrong type of paint to be using. If you don't have an airbrush you are pretty much limited to Pactra or Tamiya lexan paints in either acrylic or lacquer. Next for body prep simply washing it in water is not enough. You need to use a good grease cutting soap to remove the mold release residue. Dishwashing soap works very well. It does help for adhesion (especially with acrylics) if you scuff the body. A lot of people use the green Scotch Brite pads, lately I have been using SOS pads and find they work very well. After it is dried and you are ready to paint your first few coats should be very light...almost a mist.

As for the tint paint...yeah you need to use the backing stuff first or the tint will eat through. Most people get much better results from just getting tint scraps from a near by tint shop. They throw lots of pieces away that is more then big enough to do windows so you can pretty much tint your RC creation for free.

[hoosier_rc_nut]

Well first off don't use Testors model paint on Lexan bodies...that is the wrong type of paint to be using. If you don't have an airbrush you are pretty much limited to Pactra or Tamiya lexan paints in either acrylic or lacquer. Next for body prep simply washing it in water is not enough. You need to use a good grease cutting soap to remove the mold release residue. Dishwashing soap works very well. It does help for adhesion (especially with acrylics) if you scuff the body. A lot of people use the green Scotch Brite pads, lately I have been using SOS pads and find they work very well. After it is dried and you are ready to paint your first few coats should be very light...almost a mist.

As for the tint paint...yeah you need to use the backing stuff first or the tint will eat through. Most people get much better results from just getting tint scraps from a near by tint shop. They throw lots of pieces away that is more then big enough to do windows so you can pretty much tint your RC creation for free.

Thanks for the tips..I really appreciate it. Just one question if I scuff the body won't it show up after I paint the body as scratches? Just thought I would ask because it would seem that it would......also I painted the body in the pic below with testors lacquer spray paint with white miracle spray enamel underneath to make it brighter as well as the rear wing, as far as I can tell it came out pretty good. About the only things I messed up on were getting the holes for the body posts straight and some of the trimming, but you have to remember it's my first body.

[InspGadgt]

One would think so but it doesn't. The paint fills in the scuffs quite well. Remember your scuffing the inside of the body so after you paint it the lexan acts like a clear coat so as long as the outside isn't scuffed it won't show unless you scratch too deep. Also make sure not to scuff any areas you want to leave clear like windows.

The problem with using model paints is that they are brittle and not able to bend. So over time you'll have the paint crack and chip off. Also other paints really have a hard time adhering to lexan so you may run into issues there too. I have used Enamels in the past too but only on really fine detail work.