Trouble With Tamiya & Testors Paint

[Jim B]

I am trying to paint my Ford LN8000 as a Ryder rental truck from the1970s, so I need a "hurt your eyes" yellow for the cab & box. I tried Testors yellow, and it covered terribly. I tried Tamiya yellow, and after about ten coats it still has a green tint to it from the plastic beneeth it. Now I don't own an airbrush, so I'm stuck with rattle cans.

What can I do? Does Duplicolor have the "hurt your eyes" yellow similar to the Ryder trucks of the 1970s? Should I strip the Tamiya & Testors off first? How do I get it off? Do I need to use a primer?

Thanks for your help. I'm quite frustrated here!

Edited January 8, 2008 by Jim B

[asterisk]

Well to start off, did you use a primer base before applying the yellow? Tamiya sells a great primer in white or grey that doesn't require any sanding and helps make the color coats cover better.

[Aaronw]

I'm not sure exactly what shade of yellow you want but Krylon has several varieties from school bus or Cat yellow to some very bright in your face yellow yellows. I find Krylon covers well, and a good white or grey primer coat underneath really helps bring out the yellow. I've had good luck with Duplicolor too. I used their school bus yellow over a grey primer on black plastic, two coats and it came out great.

Edited January 9, 2008 by Aaronw

[trucker3216]

I am trying to paint my Ford LN8000 as a Ryder rental truck from the1970s, so I need a "hurt your eyes" yellow for the cab & box. I tried Testors yellow, and it covered terribly. I tried Tamiya yellow, and after about ten coats it still has a green tint to it from the plastic beneeth it. Now I don't own an airbrush, so I'm stuck with rattle cans.

What can I do? Does Duplicolor have the "hurt your eyes" yellow similar to the Ryder trucks of the 1970s? Should I strip the Tamiya & Testors off first? How do I get it off? Do I need to use a primer?

Thanks for your help. I'm quite frustrated here!

I'd soak it in some castrol super clean, I think there's prob an indepth thread on how to strip a body somewhere on this site. Decide what color you like and prime it with that brand first, wetsand a couple coats an shoot it with the yellow. What color is the plastic for that kit?

[Robert Myers]

After you strip it completely try using the white or grey primer as suggested above. ..... I use Krylon for a lot of my car and truck kits, it covers great and if you keep the can warm (in warm tap water, not heated on the stove) it will give an even better finnish. I have not had any of it orange peel on me.

I always use primer. Krylon can etch the plastic.

[Jason]

Hey, As stated above the castrol super clean works very well, It may take a few days. Be careful, use gloves when handling the solution, it will eat your skin!

As far as the model goes be sure its completely submerged in the liquid and dont let the solution dry on the plastic. When the paints been removed wash the pieces very well with a mild soap and water and rinse very well. I didnt rinse a sleeper good enough and the paint bubbled and cracked like no other. I think duplicolor has a "Sun yellow" that was very vibrant and hurts your eyes. I painted a pete with that color with a white primer.. looked pretty good. For primer i usually use the cheap flat white that wal-mart has for 96 cents.

(Yes, Im cheap) I dont know if your LHS or wal-mart carries House of color rattle cans but they have a yellow thats really bright! The only problem i have with house of color is the paints very thin and takes more coats to get proper color but when you get the proper color.. Wow! Good luck!

[Jim B]

Thanks for all of your advice, guys. I really appreciate it.

asterisk, no, I didn't prime it. Probably should have. Well, hindsight is 20/20.

trucker3216, the plastic in the kit is grey. I didn't think that grey would be a problem (which is why I didn't prime it), but it sure gave the yellow a green tint.

Aaronw, the yellow I'm looking for is a nice bright yellow. Remember the Ryder trucks of the 1980s? Sort of like the Penske Rental Trucks of today. Nothing too obnixous!

Once I strip this thing down, and repaint it; I'll try and get some pics posted. Might not be for a while as it's going to get cold here again. Had a couple of days in the mid-60s & low 70s, and tomorrow they're predicting snow. Oh, well. Life in Central New York!

[Olle F]

It seems like yellow paints in general won't cover well, and it has a tendency to pull away from edges like door seams, trim etc. I had a similar problem when painting an AMT '57 Chevy (to make it even worse, it was molded in brown plastic), and I solved it by priming with flat yellow enamel. The flat paint covered much better, and the yellow enamel top coat turned out great. I guess it can be difficult to find flat yellow paint in a rattle can though, so an airbrush is definitely a life saver in situations like that.

Edited January 9, 2008 by Olle F