Painting resin tires

[landman]

I have to paint some resin tires. What is best?

1. Flat
2. Semi Gloss
3. Flat with pearl clear
4. Shoe Shine
5. Any other suggestions?

[afx]

I custom mix my own "tire black".  I don't have a recipe but I start with flat black and then add gray until I think it looks right.

[935k3]

If you do not have an airbrush you can get Tamiya's spray for it

 

Edited June 5, 2016 by 935k3

[Bernard Kron]

I didn't know made a rubber black. I'll have to give it a try. I've had good luck shooting Testors DullCote over Tamiya SemiGloss Black brushed on from the jar.

 

[landman]

Thanks guys.

[TarheelRick]

Just wondering, shouldn't the tread area be a different color to better represent road wear?  And if so, any suggestions on that?

[BigTallDad]

Just wondering, shouldn't the tread area be a different color to better represent road wear?  And if so, any suggestions on that?

I paint the tread of the tire with a medium brown, let it dry, then sand off the flat portion of the paint. That way, you have "dirt" in the tread and it looks more realistic.

Of course if you're going for the "show room fresh" look, this doesn't apply.

 

[landman]

I paint the tread of the tire with a medium brown, let it dry, then sand off the flat portion of the paint. That way, you have "dirt" in the tread and it looks more realistic.

Of course if you're going for the "show room fresh" look, this doesn't apply.

 

Now there's an idea.

[BigTallDad]

I just realized my original reply was aimed at the vinyl tires we're used to seeing. Sanding the flat surfaces wouldn't work very well on a resin tire that has been painted.

For resin tires, use mixed media: paint the tire with enamel or lacquer as mentioned above, then use an acrylic for the dirt/mud. That way, you can wipe the acrylic off the flat tread surfaces while it's still wet, or wait until it's dry and use an ammonia-based cleaner (Windex, etc.) to remove the acrylic paint.

The above approach, using acrylic, will also work on vinyl tires.

Edited June 6, 2016 by BigTallDad

[aurfalien]

If you do not have an airbrush you can get Tamiya's spray for it

 

I have there acrylic bottle paint of this color which looks super cool.