Need help on model car

[JE123]

I need to know how everybody paints so good. When I get a model car the part that I dread is the body. I usually mess up. I got a Tamiya Ferrari F50 Yellow version and the yellow paint i put on it is pathetic. Do you use an airbrush or spray paint? Could you tell me how to remove paint off of a Tamiya kit?

[Guiddy]

You didn't say what kind of paint you used!
If it is automotive paint, to remove it buy some cheap car brake fluid and pour it all over the Ferrari (This is the only time you will ever do this! Not to be done on real cars!)
Make sure it is covered well and then place it in the plastic bag with more brake fluid and tie it up. Leave it for a few days, then scrub the now soft paint off the model with a scourer!
Give it a good wash with soapy water and you are now ready to start again!

For the best results at painting, follow the guide I am about to write on my thread about the Subaru WRX. I will detail my painting technique there....

[JE123]

The paint that I used was Testors Yellow. It was not acrylic. It comes in those little bottles. After I get the paint off do you suggest that I put primer on the model first. The plastic is molded in yellow and I want to paint it yellow or red.

[Guiddy]

Go to my thread on the Subaru, and follow EXACTLY what is outlined there.
Ditch using stuff like Testors, you won't get the results I can.

I will take you through painting the Ferrari, and it will be a paint job to be proud of. The good thing about the way I do it is it allows for mistakes, you can work over any problems like runs or bits in the paint!

You will be painting the car using normal automotive spray cans...

Good luck, and keep me posted.

[Jay!]

Hang on with the brake fluid. I know it works, but it's pretty toxic, and you have to be careful where you dispose of it.

Instead, go find a product called Castrol Super Clean. It's a cleaner/degreaser that's usually sold in auto parts stores. I found out about it on usenet. It's really potent, so use gloves, but it's biodegradeable and water-soluble, so you can just dilute it and pour it down the drain.

I hear it will remove all kinds of paint, no matter how old or hard or how long since dried, without hurting the plastic. I know it works great on acrylics.

Go buy a tupperware-type shoe-box sized tub (79 cents at Pic-N-Save) and dump in the CSC and drop in the body. Again, it's potent stuff, so wear gloves and goggles (mine are also from Pic-N-Save)!!!

I recently had to strip my NSX due to a bad masking job And CSC worked wonders. The top coat of paint was lifting in minutes, but I ended up leaving it covered out on my porch for a week. Then take a medium-bristled brush and the rest will flake or peel right off.

Highly recommended!

[Guiddy]

Sounds like you have more experience than me!!!

I used my process on my R34 which had paint cracking problems, and it worked well, though not as quick as that stuff you suggested! It is fine with the plastic though.

Yeah, nasty stuff, and it breaks your heart to poor chemicals on a paint job you polished!!! The paint looked like it does on my R33, but after a few days it started to crack!:cry:

Let me know how you get on with Silver S2000's suggestion, I may try and get some myself!

[primera man]

Well believe it or not but i dont own a air brush. All my cars are painted from a can (bodys) and most of the other parts are hand painted.
Try and paint as much as i can with a can first.

The tamiya cans are way better then anything else i have used.
The air to paint is just right.
The Testors i have found to be to heavy in the amount of paint coming out.

[Guiddy]

Originally posted by primera man
Well believe it or not but i dont own a air brush. All my cars are painted from a can (bodys) and most of the other parts are hand painted.
Try and paint as much as i can with a can first.

The tamiya cans are way better then anything else i have used.
The air to paint is just right.
The Testors i have found to be to heavy in the amount of paint coming out.

Yeah, I only use an air brush if I need to use a colour I can't get in cans!
Cans are great and so convenient. We have trouble getting all the colours in Tamiya here, and the cans are about $8 each in your money!
So I use cans from a large car accessory shop called Halfords. They have the right pressure in too!
It makes all the difference!

[primera man]

yeah.....its a lot quicker alright
Just shake,point and spray

Saves all the cleaning up of a air gun

[Jay!]

I've got a pretty crappy, I mean simple airbrush, but I swear by it now. I use it for almost everything. I only use Tamiya's acrylics, so clean up is with water. I don't have an air compressor, so I have to but the cans of compressed air. Oh, well, they last a good while.

I still go buy the Tamiya sprays for the body base coats, though. I use their primer, too. Good stuff. I think I pay $5 a can for the paint; $6 for the primer.

[Guiddy]

I tend to spray everything anyway, and then add final details with a brush. To keep cleaning the gun would be a pain.

I restored some old cars over the years, so I ended up buying a compressor. It is great when you have one, and it comes in so handy when doing work on the Honda!
I have done a bit of my own sparying on that too! Big models!!!

[ales]

So you all use acrylic water-based paint, right? How long does it take for it to dry? I use enames, and it takes forever.

Is the clear coat also water-based?

[primera man]

I only use enames as the finsh is a lot better.
If you are doing a large area by brush, the paint will go "off" to quick and if you try and go back over it it will start to "pull" the first coat off making it look like crap

[ales]

Originally posted by primera man
I only use enames as the finsh is a lot better.
If you are doing a large area by brush, the paint will go "off" to quick and if you try and go back over it it will start to "pull" the first coat off making it look like crap

Sounds very, VERY familiar!

[Guiddy]

Originally posted by ales


Sounds very, VERY familiar!

Oh come on you guys! Patience!!!