Didact Posted July 26, 2013 Author Share Posted July 26, 2013 Buy the Testor's Wet Look clear, you should be okay with that. You can also use Model Master enamel clear without any issues. Make sure you wash the body well before adding the clear..... I ordered a can of Testors Wet Look Clear. Thanks for the advice on that. So now I do: - Spray 2-3 more coats of my paint - Give it 24 hours to dry - Spray a coat of the Clear Coat - Let that dry, wash with soap water once it's fully dried. - Wet Sand 3200, 4000, 6000 - Use the Novus Polish Kit Am I correct on all points? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruz Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 I ordered a can of Testors Wet Look Clear. Thanks for the advice on that. So now I do: - Spray 2-3 more coats of my paint - Give it 24 hours to dry - Spray a coat of the Clear Coat - Let that dry, wash with soap water once it's fully dried. - Wet Sand 3200, 4000, 6000 - Use the Novus Polish Kit Am I correct on all points? The ideal thing to do is to strip the paint and start over, you will need more than one coat of the clear, that's what you will be rubbing out, one coat is not enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Didact Posted July 26, 2013 Author Share Posted July 26, 2013 The ideal thing to do is to strip the paint and start over, you will need more than one coat of the clear, that's what you will be rubbing out, one coat is not enough. Should I sand the paint off? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruz Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 Should I sand the paint off? No my friend, too much trouble and chances of damaging the body lines. Go to WalMart and buy this: Hosted on Fotki Buy at least two bottles and dump them in a small container. Dump the body in the solution and wait a few hours and make sure to wear vinyl gloves, this stuff is very strong. After a while, the paint will just run right off. Grab a toothbrush, preferably one that you are not using and clean the body under running water making sure you get into all the small crevices of the body. If you still have a bit of paint on the body, just place it back in the solution and give it more time. You can use Easy Off oven cleaner also but Easy Off does not work on Tamiya paints, this stuff will. This is the way I would do it, I always try to teach people to start right even if it takes more work. Believe me when I tell you, you will not regret ever starting fresh when you want things done correctly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruz Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 This is a model I did one time in which I was not very happy with the paint so I dumped it in this solution and in less than 30 minutes, the paint was stripped right off. Hosted on Fotki Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace-Garageguy Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 Didact, this is the real inestimable value of this forum...when you have guys like Cruz who are willing to talk you through doing things right, and who have the work available to see right here that proves they know what they're doing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blown03SVT Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 Didact, this is the real inestimable value of this forum...when you have guys like Cruz who are willing to talk you through doing things right, and who have the work available to see right here that proves they know what they're doing. Or the magazine features to back his work up as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Didact Posted July 27, 2013 Author Share Posted July 27, 2013 I truly appreciate all the help Cruz. I've asked for help in 2 other forums and no one was as helpful as you. Going to head to Wallmart tomorrow and pick that up so that I can start from scratch. Hopefully all goes well in the end! Thanks everybody I'll post and update down the road. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruz Posted July 27, 2013 Share Posted July 27, 2013 Thank you for the compliments guys, it sure is good to know that I can be of some help, after all this is what this place is all about. Andrew, even if it doesn't work out, be glad to know that it's just another step to becoming a better modeler. My best advice for everyone is to first learn to pace yourself, I know it's not easy specially when that project is nearing completion and you just can't wait to see it done. I am still in the process of learning a lot of things myself and that's what makes this pastime so unique. Don't be afraid to ask questions and if you see I don't respond in one of the threads, feel free to private message me, I will try my best to have an answer for you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MitchP Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 Cruz: This is a great thread. I'm just back into modeling after a 45+ year layoff and only build two originally which required no paint. My 1st return project was a Jungle Jim F/C which turned out amusingly; I am now working on an AMT '66 Nova Street car. This is my 2nd body as I ruined the 1st one. My intentions were good, however So far, I have washed the body parts in soapy water, and applied 1 mist and two wet coats of Tamiya white fine primer. I had a crazy idea that I could apply 3-4 coats of a cheap gold spray enamel after that, then apply a Testors MM Clear Coat to preserve the gold. The final "base coat" was to be a Testors "one coat" metallic green, with the result being a green with a gold "shimmer" just underneath. I would then finish off with several coats of clear on top of that. Hopefully, you haven't choked while laughing up to this point. My understanding now is that if I'm going to use aerosol can paints (that's all I can economically handle right now), I need to stick to laquer for it's quick drying purposes, correct? As for my approach to an underlying gold finish before the green, is there any practical purpose? I also take it that applying a clear coat on the gold enamel was pretty much foolish. I'm going to use your advice and completely strip the body back down with Power Dissolver; can you give me a simple, step by step approach as to starting again with the primer, number of coats, thickness, etc. and proceed up through base coat using Testors "One Coat", then on to any sanding or finishing required prior to the final clear coat? I'm not trying to achieve a competitive level, I'd just hate to keep this foolish experimentation and wasting good model parts!!! BTW, I spent quite some time living in Frederick Md before relocating to Berryville Va. Many Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruz Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 (edited) Cruz: This is a great thread. I'm just back into modeling after a 45+ year layoff and only build two originally which required no paint. My 1st return project was a Jungle Jim F/C which turned out amusingly; I am now working on an AMT '66 Nova Street car. This is my 2nd body as I ruined the 1st one. My intentions were good, however So far, I have washed the body parts in soapy water, and applied 1 mist and two wet coats of Tamiya white fine primer. I had a crazy idea that I could apply 3-4 coats of a cheap gold spray enamel after that, then apply a Testors MM Clear Coat to preserve the gold. The final "base coat" was to be a Testors "one coat" metallic green, with the result being a green with a gold "shimmer" just underneath. I would then finish off with several coats of clear on top of that. Hopefully, you haven't choked while laughing up to this point. My understanding now is that if I'm going to use aerosol can paints (that's all I can economically handle right now), I need to stick to laquer for it's quick drying purposes, correct? As for my approach to an underlying gold finish before the green, is there any practical purpose? I also take it that applying a clear coat on the gold enamel was pretty much foolish. I'm going to use your advice and completely strip the body back down with Power Dissolver; can you give me a simple, step by step approach as to starting again with the primer, number of coats, thickness, etc. and proceed up through base coat using Testors "One Coat", then on to any sanding or finishing required prior to the final clear coat? I'm not trying to achieve a competitive level, I'd just hate to keep this foolish experimentation and wasting good model parts!!! BTW, I spent quite some time living in Frederick Md before relocating to Berryville Va. Many Thanks! No my friend, I am not laughing or telling you that you are going about it wrong, you are doing what you think is best with the amount of information or experience that you have. Every person goes about it different but the best thing that you are doing is that you are getting your hands dirty, that's always the best way to learn. The first thing I do is address the plastic, you know? Little things like mold lines, indentations in the body or anything that may show up once the body is painted. Remember, paint will only reveal all the faults, you can take that to the bank! If you want to have great results when painting, the foundation work is a must, I can't never stress this enough. If you are using Tamiya primers, you are starting off on the right foot, Tamiya primers are great, personally I just think they are a bit expensive. I use Floquil primers but let's stick with the Tamiya brand since this is the one you are using. I would shoot three coats of the primer and let it dry completely. Let that primer really dry, you want to make sure that when you sand it, it truly feels dry, not humid or anything like that. Yes, you have to sand the primer no matter how smooth it looks on the model. Think about this, in a real 1/1 car scenario, have you ever seen anybody shoot primer and go on to the paint? If you have, your painter should be looking for another job. The primer reveals all the faults on the plastic and gives you the chance to fix anything that might haunt you in the long run. After everything is smooth and you are happy, it's time for the color coats. I see that you mentioned the gold color under the main color that you ultimately wanted to use. Personally, I would do something like that if I were to use something like a candy color which normally is more transparent than let's say an enamel or lacquer based coat. For explanations sake, let's just go with a color and the clear, I don't want to create confusion over what we are trying to explain here, just the basics of painting. You can always practice your gold base and color coats on a spare hood or plastic spoons some other time and see what you get. Okay, lets say you are going with a yellow, this is the color I am using for the explanation because these light colors present bigger challenges than your darker counterparts. First thing you want to do is make sure you get complete and even coverage, very important because you don't want your hood to end up a dark yellow and the body a light yellow. Concentrate on covering all the areas of the body evenly even if you have to count your coats as you go. Personally, what I like to do in these types of cases is, once I have at least 3 to 4 coats of paint on the body, I let these completely dry and then I would place the hood in place and shoot at least 2 more coats, this will reassure that you have an evenly painted surface on the hood and body. Now, I was just explaining the importance of coverage using light colors but I also want to explain the misting process I use no matter what color I decide to go with, it is something I always do. Why misting? Well, if you just shoot one coat and try to get coverage in one pass, you will only be asking for a lot of trouble, trust me when I tell you, please mist your coats. I will do this with the airbrush or the can, it doesn't matter, the process is still the same. Mist your first coat but make sure it is a light mist, just enough to cover the body, it doesn't have to be fully covered, you just want a light mist. Wait 15 to 20 minutes and mist the body again only you are trying to cover more of the body this time. Again wait another 15 to 20 minutes and start with your wet coats. Have you ever noticed how sticky paint gets while it's drying? That "stickiness" helps the next coats to actually stick better to the paint as you go, the chances of getting a run in your paint are a lot less when doing this. Go ahead and wait another 20 minutes and again shoot another wet coat which means that you are actually getting your airbrush or can a little closer to the body. The wetter your coats, the less orange peel you will see at the end but again, be careful, you don't want to see runs at this stage. Following this method, not only would ensure good and even coverage, it will also keep a lot of the details on the body, you know? Important little things like badges or emblems and even body lines. I always end up putting 4 to 5 coats of paint on my cars but I usually don't go any further than that. Let that paint completely dry, read this word again, COMPLETELY! Make sure that paint is dry before handling it and of course make sure your hands are always clean. Look for any small pieces of dust or imperfections and if you find any, grab a 3200 grit sanding cloth and take care of them. Try to fix any little issues but don't go too crazy with the sanding cloth, you just want to work with the fault right at the surface of the paint. When you are satisfied with the results, go ahead and give the body a nice wash and get it ready for clear. Some paints have enough inherent gloss in them that you might want to avoid using clear but it's up to you to decide that. If you do decide to use clear, follow the exact method of misting and wet coats that I just finished explaining, it's as simple as that. This is the method I have always used and it has always worked for me, this doesn't mean that it will work for you or anybody else but one thing is for sure, the basics are addressed and that always means something. Edited July 31, 2013 by cruz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruz Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 Here is a link to the painting tutorial I wrote for Scale Auto Magazine, it also addresses the wetsanding and polishing process, hope it works.... http://public.fotki.com/MCRUZ1/scale-auto-mag-pain/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MitchP Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 Awesome! This is exactly what I was hoping for! FYI - I picked up the Dawn and will be stripping down to the beginning. Just as a note, 12 hours after shooting over the cheap gold enamel with the enamel clear coat, the surface was tacky. After reading this thread, I knew I was going to tack everything back to the beginning so I shot a quick cover of the "One Coat" Testors green laquer I intend to use as the final cover. I ran some errands for about 1.5 hours and came home to find it bone dry! Of course, since it hadn't been misted, it didn't run; however, it did completely cover the S/S and SuperSport molded text and left obscure lumps. I believe I'll leave the gold undercoat idea for some time in the future when I'm better acquainted with painting, but everything you've told me is EXACTLY what I need to get a great start on the basics. I'm so glad I joined up here. As you can tell from my avatar, I've got the "Shoebox Ford" coming up next and then the Revell Streetburner '55 Pro Mod. That one's gonna be in One Coat Inca Gold!!!! Thanks for the link also. I need a "primer" in sanding LOL! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruz Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 Awesome! This is exactly what I was hoping for! FYI - I picked up the Dawn and will be stripping down to the beginning. Just as a note, 12 hours after shooting over the cheap gold enamel with the enamel clear coat, the surface was tacky. After reading this thread, I knew I was going to tack everything back to the beginning so I shot a quick cover of the "One Coat" Testors green laquer I intend to use as the final cover. I ran some errands for about 1.5 hours and came home to find it bone dry! Of course, since it hadn't been misted, it didn't run; however, it did completely cover the S/S and SuperSport molded text and left obscure lumps. I believe I'll leave the gold undercoat idea for some time in the future when I'm better acquainted with painting, but everything you've told me is EXACTLY what I need to get a great start on the basics. I'm so glad I joined up here. As you can tell from my avatar, I've got the "Shoebox Ford" coming up next and then the Revell Streetburner '55 Pro Mod. That one's gonna be in One Coat Inca Gold!!!! Thanks for the link also. I need a "primer" in sanding LOL! Glad to be of help man. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MitchP Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 Cruz - any idea of how caustic this product is with polystyrene bodies? I ask because I put the body, hood and two-piece hood scoop (only primed and painted flat black) into the slurry and after an hour I started scrubbing. Oddly enough, the hood scoop pieces came completely clean right down to the molded color; however, the body and hood itself didn't budge and inch. As a test after the epic fail with the enamel clear coat over the original enamel gold undercoat, I test sprayed Testors One Coat green laquer to check my spraying techniques. That green has all but completely disappeared; however, I really can't tell if the gold that's left is from the original 3-4 coats after primer or if it's the enamel clear coat I tried over the gold. Is it o.k. to leave the body in the slurry for another hour? I know this has gotten confusing, so I'll go over what I did again: Prepped (washed) and primed body & parts (no sanding, prolly a total of wet primer coats) Mist of gold enamel, then 3 coats wet Dry 12 hours, then mist and 1 wet coat of Testors MM Enamel clear coat 1 wet coat of Testors "One Coat" metallic green laquer I know I really screwed it up badly, but I want to salvage the body and start from scratch with your methodolgy. I'd really hate to buy a 3rd Nova body, hood and scoop... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruz Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 (edited) Leave it in the solution for as long as it takes, it will not attack the plastic. I've done it on bare plastic and left it in there for a week just for testing purposes and it was okay.... Edited August 1, 2013 by cruz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MitchP Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 Cruz: I checked out your link and it's well documented and photograped. I'm hesitant when it comes to the sanding (especially repeatedly) and the polishing as it removes the very thing I'm trying to apply (paint). Like you've said, I have a practice body now that I can use to develop skills on. I'll be checking on the body parts in the Dawn slurry later this morning to see how things are progressing or if I've created some kind of "toxic avenger" in the ooze... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MitchP Posted August 1, 2013 Share Posted August 1, 2013 Cruz: Hey, I changed my mind - can you help me build one like this? (I hope I'm not breaking any rules posting a link here). http://www.automotiveforums.com/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=1050294 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MitchP Posted August 4, 2013 Share Posted August 4, 2013 Hey gang: The Dawn dissolved (literrally) and I scrubbed everything out with soap and water. I found a big container of that Purple stuff and that's where the parts are now. The old parts body is 75% and the newer one for the build is 80%. Should I keep on soaking another 1-2 days or pull them now? I've picked up a pack of 150, 200, 400, 600, 1000, 2000, 4000, 5000 and 6000 grit sandpapers, so would this be a good time to fight through the remaining enamel and start making some headway? BTW, call me "poor man's" modeller, but I took some of my wife's "arts & crafts" thin wound hemp, painted it silver, let it harden, then measured and cut it into lengths for my original Vega F/C I built this winter. Now both cars have wires and the Nova will get a light fuel line treatment. Boy, it's way easier to detail before installation!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beach Bum Posted August 5, 2013 Share Posted August 5, 2013 Cruz, all I can say is wow! Thanks for that information! Glad I was able to find this info before I started my base coat, into the "purple pond" and back to square one. Thanks again for taking the time to explain that all! Kevin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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