Help with clear coat Ferrari California.

[panzer360]

Hello i´m very green at clear coating model kts. I just finished one model and was a DTM Car with semi-gloss black.

Now i´m doing the Ferrari California, i´m using for the first time Zero Paints and i never clear coated anything.
So my doubt is i have painted the car in this order:

1-I painted with Dupli-Color Grey Primer
2-Then i used Zero Paint Ferrari Color "F1 2007" , that have a groundcoat and a basecoat. I sprayed the silver as groundcoat
3-then sprayed the red as basecoat

It looks something like this:


It looks matt like it says in the Zero paints manual, what i want to know is if i can use one of this products to give the model a good shine.



I know that Zero paints have clears but i would like to use one of these is possible. I also have Micromesh and polishing compounds (coarse/medium/fine).

I hope someone can help me, i never did this and i would like to achieve somthing like this. I know it would be difficult for a first time but i would appreciate some tips.


Thanks and sorry for my bad english

[Helico]

From what I can see here, you have done a good job with the base coat. Before applying clear coat, it is critical to make sure the surface of base coat is smooth. This means that you may need lightly sand the surface with P2000 sand paper. Remember to clean the surface to avoid dirt or grease afterward.

Since you decide to use lacquer instead of 2K, you must apply light coat rather than heavy coat. The solvent in lacquer is pretty strong and can potentially melt the base coat. You should definitely apply multiple light coats and allow brief drying (~10 min) between each application. Build up the clear coat little by little and layer by layer.

If this is your first time polishing a paint surface, I would recommend you aim for a slightly thicker clear coat. Therefore, you don't need to worry about over-sanding or over-polishing through the clear coat and ruining the paint.

Good luck!

[BVC500]

I think the Alclad Acqua Gloss is water based, right? So you shouldn't have a problem spraying over the base coat. Just follow what Helico said.

[turbothirtytwo]

DONT sand basecoat, its automotive paint and it is sprayed in thin layers so u can burn trough, its perfect for clearing as it is

[panzer360]

I can´t sand the basecoat like turbo said because is very thin, in the bottle they say "2 thin coats" of red. Since my airbrush/compressor are very limited i had to put 4 thin coats or else i wouldnt manage to get a even coverage.

So based on your replies i´m going to spray thin coats of Aqua Gloss waiting 10 min between coats.
I´m worried that i wouldn´t get the result i want, i searched on the internet and i couldn´t find a single car clear coated with ALclad 2 Klear/Aqua Gloss. I just see planes and tanks, things that doesn´t have great shine or reflections.

Thanks for the replies guys!

[360spider]

If your primer surface is smooth enough and you spray color coat that were thinned to appropriate consistency, chances are you don't need to sand the color coats. Lacquer clears tend to be a bit hot, and they smooth some of the paint texture with the first coat, second makes the paint gloss. With 2K clears, they are usually shiny enough to make paint glossy no matter how textured the surface is. Just don't over do it - its easy to with 2K.

[panzer360]

The panel lines is before or after the clear? Should i make the panel lines with a very thin brush and black matt acrylic paint or is best a very thin black marker?

Thanks!

[Helico]

I do the panel line before clear coat because clear coat will somewhat fill up the panel line. I use fine brush and diluted matt black or clear smoke acrylic paint. When the paint is diluted, capillary effect will suck the paint from the brush into the panel line.

[BVC500]

Most of the time, I find Revell kits to have deep enough panel lines that you don't need to highlight them further with paint. But if you do, I'd use a darkened red. Mix red with a few drops of black.

[aacikgoz]

use regular alclad, it is not as hot as their mettalics, it is safe even for enamels... it is my favorite clear for my aircraft models and I've used it many times over humbrol and model master enamels... but, it is not as shiny as others. maybe you can buff it with micromesh, but I've never tried it. it is good for decalling and commercial airplane models for scale shine, but not for a nice deep shine of a sport car. I do not have any idea about water based one, and I do not like watebased clears for ages..

[panzer360]

Originally Posted by aacikgoz

use regular alclad, it is not as hot as their mettalics, it is safe even for enamels... it is my favorite clear for my aircraft models and I've used it many times over humbrol and model master enamels... but, it is not as shiny as others. maybe you can buff it with micromesh, but I've never tried it. it is good for decalling and commercial airplane models for scale shine, but not for a nice deep shine of a sport car. I do not have any idea about water based one, and I do not like watebased clears for ages..

You are right, i tried in a spoon that i have painted with the Zero Paint and then used the Alclad 2 Aqua Gloss the gloss was good for airplane like you said, but that big shine that cars have couldnt do it with Alclad.

I have asthma so i was trying to avoid the clears from Hiroboy, is this the one you guys are talking?



Thanks!

[BVC500]

always use a airmask when spraying with zero! If you don't, you risk inhaling the paint particles, which crystallize in your lungs.

[panzer360]

Originally Posted by BVC500

always use a airmask when spraying with zero! If you don't, you risk inhaling the paint particles, which crystallize in your lungs.

I use this one, i know that this doesn´t protect 100% so i try to do quick paint sessions.

[turbothirtytwo]

you already use automotive paint which is diluted with same thinner as 2k clear so no worries mate. 3or 4 kits per year shoudlnt kill u

[panzer360]

I don´t want to turn this into a WIP thread, but since i asked how do you do the panel lines i´m going to post how i did.

Since is the first time i do this, i decided to buy a marker with 005 point instead of painting with a brush.

Its not perfect because there is spots that the pen can´t reach too well, next time i know i have to pay more attention to the panel lines. But overall i liked very much the result especially if we compare to the first pic of this thread.