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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....

Should have been good at that temperature, can't see what else could do this. Personally, I wait 24 hours before putting my bodies in the dehydrator after painting them but again, that's just me....

You can manually obtain different stages of sheen on any paint my friend if you so desire. For example, if you don't have semi gloss black handy but yet you have gloss black and some clear, you can mix a bit of clear together with the flat black until you get the desired effect. Another way is to shoot light coats of clear onto a flat surface. I am currently building a 250 Testa Rossa and just finished up with the seats. The seats were painted flat red but I wanted a "vinylish" look to it so I sprayed just one coat of clear from a distance using my airbrush and gave the part the desired effect i was going for. This is the seat painted in flat red...... Hosted on Fotki In this phase, it has one coat of clear, just enough for the effect.... Hosted on Fotki Hosted on Fotki

What was the temperature on?

Glad to be of help man.

This is acrylic and yes, it works great. Make sure that it's completely dry if you are planning to polish it. It polishes great also. Just ask Bill Geary, it's the clear of choice for him!!

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/

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.

I've never tried it on glue, only on paint but probably of you leave it longer, it might just help....

This stuff is pretty powerful, it strips Tamiya paint like nothing else, I am sure it will work on that paint. Go to WalMart and get it, buy 2 of them, pour the contents on a small container just big enough to accomodate the body in, leave it in for a few hours or a day and then just use a toothbrush to remove all the left on stuff in the small crevices and that's it. Please make sure to wear gloves, don't even think about touching this stuff. Yes, it's very safe on plastic..... Hosted on Fotki

Brutal mi pana!!!!!

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!

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

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.

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.

Awesome stuff man!!!!

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.....

Very cool!!!

There is reason for a semi gloss coat and a regular clear coat, I suggest you use your regular, it will definitely have a better shine....

If you have a clearcoat, apply at least another 2 coats just to be on the safe side. It is imperative that your paint is completely dry before sanding it again. Pace yourself and take it easy, you get out what you put in. If you mess up, no problem, you can always strip the paint and start fresh. Believe me, it will not be the first time you mess up a paintjob, it will happen a few times even if you are an expert.

http://public.fotki.com/MCRUZ1/scale-auto-mag-pain/ Hopefully this link helps.....

Tamiya paints have enough inherent gloss in them that you really don't need any clear coats, you can just wetsand the paint starting with 3200 grit and ending with 12,000 grit. You can also start with 3200 and end at 6000 and finish up with your Novus system. You have to remember that your 3200 is the workhorse of your sanding cloths, this is the one that will get rid of all your orange peel. The other grits in conjunction with the Novus system will get rid of all the scratches. One thing to remember which is very important is that you must have enough paint on the body, 2 or 3 coats are not enough, you must have 4 to 5 coats.

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