# Quick tips on painting bodies please



## Anti-Cop (Jan 25, 2005)

I've got a few extra bodies laying around as duplicates since I bought a couple of boxes of FF Rel 2 cars. I was thinking they might be a good test bed for me to learn to paint and detail before I ruin some resin bodies. 

Could someone give me a quick point form of what I will want to do? In my head I've got it that I just wanna sand the body a bit, pain over existing colors and then clear coat it when I'm done. I am willing to bet I am wrong. So if there's anything I should be using to strip a body, any type of special paints, general tips etc etc. I'd like to learn to do some original paint jobs and eventually get to the detail some of you guys do over time. A lot of the cars I see blow my mind and I woould love to be able to do some. 

Thanks in advance for whoever responds. :wave: 

~Sean~


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## coach61 (Sep 6, 2004)

Anti-Cop said:


> Could someone give me a quick point form of what I will want to do? In my head I've got it that I just wanna sand the body a bit, pain over existing colors and then clear coat it when I'm done. I am willing to bet I am wrong. So if there's anything I should be using to strip a body, any type of special paints, general tips etc etc.
> 
> 
> I use ELO to strip my bodies. Its a bit pricey but it doesn't leave nay residue after you wash them off and its quick. Don't sand, our cars are so small you can lose details really fast.
> ...


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## ParkRNDL (Mar 20, 2002)

I agree... avoid sanding these little things. I've stripped several JL bodies with plain old Pine Sol and an old toothbrush. It takes longer than stuff made specifically for stripping, but I had it in the house and it's cheap and relatively safe and easy to get rid of. I've noticed, however, that it takes paint off older early-release JL's and pullback cars faster and easier than it does the newer, later releases. For whatever reason, the paint on the newer cars is tougher. Dunno how it'll work on F&F cars. It DID manage to take all the paint off a JL diecast hearse that I stripped recently...

Someday I'll invest in an airbrush and learn how to use it, but for now I'm honing my spray-bomb technique. My biggest problem is finding the patience to "fog" the first coat on lightly... just enough to give subsequent coats something to stick to...

--rick


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## 2.8powerranger (Dec 13, 2004)

go to napa and see if they have any small leftover portions of automotive base coat and then buy some clear coat and hardner ,hardner aint cheap but it would probably last you a lifetime.go to harbor freight and buy an inexpensive airbrush. use med to slow reducer ,that will allow the paint to dry and it will be flat with no orange peel,the automotive clear will go on rough then even out leaving a glass like finish,when you sand the body just light sand to remove the origional gloss,and level out places where there were stripes ,ive painted several j/l cars ,they came out like actual auto finishes,they dont yellow with the automotive grade clear coat.and is extreamly tough,if ya scratch it ,just hit it with a little 2000 grit and buff it just like a car only with a dremmel buffer attachment. hope this helps.
matt


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## coach61 (Sep 6, 2004)

Thanks Matt...

I will definatly give that a try sounds like a great idea. and shinney is always better lol...


Dave


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## Anti-Cop (Jan 25, 2005)

sheesh. and here i was about to sand off the bodies on the weekend. I would have felt like an idiot. I'm going to try a few different ways based on what you guys have said and whichever one works best for my ability will be my saving grace. hehe. Thanks VERY much for the tips guys. I'll post a pic or two if I get around to doing a body or two this weekend.


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## coach61 (Sep 6, 2004)

Looking forward to seeing them Matt, I just got back from Hobby Lobby and picked up a few jars of primer and hmm well 20 bucks worth of paints I MIGHT need lol..


Dave


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## zig (Mar 11, 2004)

Anti-Cop said:


> I've got a few extra bodies laying around as duplicates since I bought a couple of boxes of FF Rel 2 cars. I was thinking they might be a good test bed for me to learn to paint and detail before I ruin some resin bodies.
> ~Sean~


Too much practice never hurts anything,
Before you "ruin" your resin bodies though, I've learned that Laquer type paints work best on resin. I like the small spray cans of Duplicolor Automotive touch up paint... It dries super fast,and can be lightly sanded with 2000 grit wet paper,and can be compounded and waxed! :thumbsup: 
Just remember to NEVER paint laquer over enamel,and wipe the body down with rubbing alcohol to remove any oils that may cause problems. 

I have also had good luck with Krylon Fusion it bonds to plastic.

Also go real light on the primer,it can build up real fast and you'll lose detail just like sanding.

Zig


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## 2.8powerranger (Dec 13, 2004)

i generally dont use the primer,i have stripped a couple ,but only because the orig paint was kinda sloppy,generally speaking though ,i just rough them up.im not sure about most base coats,but i thin it with laquer thnner,it dries so fast i havnt had it hurt the under paint.the ones that have, have usually been where a stripe was sanded and the edge wrinkled.another good source is some of your local body shops,alot of times there may be a 1/2 pint to a pint left in the bottom of a gallon can,it doesnt hurt to ask.these little cars require very little.if i had a digital camera i'd post some pics ,but i dont.soon as i get one i,ll post them.
matt


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## scratch (May 16, 2005)

To poster about painting model cars . . .

Do yourself a favor and get an air brush ... makes life easier. Also permits more varied use of paints and finishes. I use a single action Badger I've had forever and it does anything I need it to do. There are several other air brushes to use, such as Paasche and Iwata. There are also double action air brushes out there as well. 

For example ... painting plastic bodies. I find petro based goes on more smoothly than water based -- once read a bit about molecular size, petro being the smaller. Not sure that means diddly. I use water base on about half my efforts, just am more aware when using water based. Improperly thinned paints will "dry" on their way to the surface. If your result is "crunchy" looking, you've fallen prey to either/or pass over time, distance, humidity, temperature, ratios and so forth. If orange peal, same bit, just in reverse. Always use a test plastic piece before beginning application to end result.

An easy and smooth finish for beginner is to air brush flat paints. Flat paints almost never orange peal. When dry, you can literally rubbed out light crunchies with your finger tips. Then finish with a couple coats of Future. Future makes a tough, bright, glossy finish coat ... but not too glossy. You will almost have to want to screw up when air brushing flat paints followed up by Future. If my cat had fingers, I could teach her to do it ... it's that easy.

Moreover, is very inexpensive to boot. A $4.95 bottle of Future will clear coat dozens and dozens of model cars for pennies each. If HO, probably hundreds . . . Also when using water based paints, Future can be also used to remove the paint by soaking in the stuff. Will not hurt plastic bodies, and is friendly to your skin. Windex will remove Future as well.

I'm not into resin that much, so don't know about soaking in Future . . .

In fact, I've used Future to remove petro based paints from plastic also, just takes longer and is just as benign.

I don't use primers any longer, since details become more hidden when applying more and more paint. This is especially so when using a silver or gold undercoat to be followed by metallic or transparent overcoats. The only time I use primers is when I need to repair a body, using putty, then the primer's "filling" abilities are useful. That's what primers do is fill, that's why details get lost when using the stuff.

Sand only when finishing a repair, in which some sort of body putty has been used. I find that auto body finish putty makes a finer finish than model putties sold by hobby manufacturers. Be sure you light sand primer if you use it, since it will form its own version of orange peal. 600 or 1,000 grit is okay for your 1 to 1. But for model cars, 1,500, 2,000 grit is better. I often use a fine [real car] polishing compound after a painted repair has seasoned for a few days to get a nice, smooth finish. GS27 works well too. 

Not sure, new to this forum, if most are HO types or what. I'm into 1/32. Know a little about HO from past hobbying. Can't see sanding them period. Maybe a scratch removing compound, like GS27 . . .

Should you use cans then go to air brush ... you'll immediately notice a fairly noticeable difference. That being amount of paint being applied. I'll bet two passes of compressed can equals 22 passes of an air brush. 

First coat is toughest, since one is supposed to go light. For me, it seems to not matter, whether I go light or medium ... the finished product is the same. The thing not to do is go to heavy on the first coat.

Lastly, wait over night before you handle any of your freshly painted cars. Let them dry! I find with younger buds I know, they can wait to see if it is dry, usually by touching it. "Why not wait?" I ask them. "Gotta know," they respond. They then complain about how tough it is to get that finger print off the surface. 

Finger prints contain all sorts of nasties, oils, acids, water, what have you. Learn to wait, before handling, makes outcome more harmonious. May sound silly, but I will take a can of petro based thinner, pour a little on a clean rag, or paper towel, to get my finger tips "dry" by removing acids, oils, et cetera. 

When you get more accomplished with an air brush, then distance, air brush paint to thinner ratios, humidity, temperature, all can conspire to make outcomes less harmonious ... then there is air born stuff. Which means hoods or special places to paint. And on it goes . . .


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