ferrari 348tb

instead of the vw i promised you all, i got a hasegawa ferrari 348tb. it is one of the most detailed models i have ever seen. my plans to wire it were foiled seeing how my grandma has no small wires. so far, i will post it in the wip threads on tuesday. the color is tamiya ts gun metal and i need some tips on how to use clear coat as i have never used it before.

Well, here is my advice, but don't rely only on it because I am certainly no paint expert. This is merely my method, which seems to be successful. At least I am happy with the results.

Apply the paint. Do not sand, polish, or mess with the paint, even if it has orange peel and dust. Only large flaws, like runs, should be sanded out. The reason here is that sanding is risky--it's very easy to wear through, and you have to sand the whole model because sanding changes the color slightly.

After the paint is dry, apply decals. If the model is a race car (I know yours isn't, but just for future knowledge), with lots of decals, you will probably want to put on a couple of coats of clear, then sand it before applying decals, because they need a smooth surface. This particular piece of advice is NOT CERTAIN. I really have never built a race car, so I do not "recommend" this method as by experience. Hopefully a more experienced painter will respond and correct me, so that I can also learn what to do.

Back to advice I can give confidently. Once the paint is thoroughly dry--that is important--apply clear coat. I use a spray can, just because I can't seem to find clear coat in the jar. I airbrush everything else (well, except primer, for the same reason). Apply a light mist coat, let it dry, and repeat until the model is covered. This is so that the clear will not damage the paint or decals, as clear is often lacquer, which will eat into paint. If the clear is acrylic then this is not critical.

After there is a good coat, continue building it up until there are at least five coats. The reason is that when you are polishing, you don't want to wear through to the paint, which will then change in color as I mentioned.

When the clear is very dry (like after 2 weeks), I would use polishing cloths from 3200 to 4000. If the clear is very smooth, maybe start at 3600 or just use 4000. However, if there is any orange peel or dust, you want to get it out. Don't go any farther with the polishing; you don't want to wear through, and besides it is unneccessary, as long as you use compound.

Apply Tamiya polishing compound, first the Fine and then the Finish. Wear-through with this stuff is very unlikely, so you can polish edges and everything. Just put it on a cloth, apply it in a circular fashion, then wipe it off. When you are done, use a toothpick to get dried compound out of the panel lines and creases. You may wish to repeat, but that is probably unneccessary if you have already used polishing cloths.

To me, waxing is unneccessary and even detrimental after you use Finish compound. The paint should look very shiny and deep.

At this point you can apply trim and such.

Hope this helps.

Alex

If you're clearly looking for advice on clear coating, I suggest using the search feature.

I tired the search feature for the same question and to avail.... I spent a while looking so I am doing it my own way or at least what makes sense to me and what I have seen done on television.
1) Paint
2) Wet sand
3) clear
4) Poish
5)wax
decals... I guess if there are alot you want to seal them.... but I am not sure.
I still haven't found what I am looking for regarding this topic so I am just following these steps.

I tired the search feature for the same question and to avail.... I spent a while looking so I am doing it my own way or at least what makes sense to me and what I have seen done on television.
1) Paint
2) Wet sand
3) clear
4) Poish
5)wax
decals... I guess if there are alot you want to seal them.... but I am not sure.
I still haven't found what I am looking for regarding this topic so I am just following these steps.
2) Wet sand (only for solid colors), no dry/wet sand for metallic, pearl or mica

You don't have to clearcoat the Gun Metal in the TS range as it dries to a glossy finish anyway.I built my Mitsubishi Evo VIII MR recently and never used a clearcoat on it.I just polished the finish with Tamiya compound and it came out fine.I suppose clearcoating it would be personal preference.

thanksfor the tips. i steve noble, i will just use the clear because i have no polishing compound the paint isn't really that glossy and so i need to get tamiya polishing compound for my next model. oh and by the way, it will have body color wheels with no clear.