Custom Repaint

[PrimusAutobotMatrix]

Hello,

I am a newbie here, need the advice of experts here, I just finished my first custom. Now I like to know what to DO and NOT do when it comes to repainting. I have an airbrush, I am practicing on some figures, but I do not want to screw up on my Dino Combiner. Please feel free to give me the one, two, and three for the processes. Especially the NOT to DO.

Here is my cust I plan to do my first painting on. I will be using grea, silver, blue and red.

[Tramp]

Very nice figure. As for your questions on what to do and not to do when painting.

 

1: Use acrylic model paints. They're water soluble while still wet, and alcohol soluble even when dry so no need for harsh petroleum solvents. Some of the best brands are Tamiya Color, Testors Model Masters, and Pactra Racing Finish, All of which I've used. Tamiya also makes a number of colored clear coats; great for tinting clear plastics or adding high gloss "Candy coat" color to metallic finishes.

 

 

2: Do not use enamels. This is especially true if you haven't primed the figure. Enamels use harsh petroium-based solvents which eat Styrene and , to a lesser degree, ABS and acrylic, and do not cure on other types of plastics, such as nylon, rubber, vinyl, or polyurethane. Enamels cure by eating into the top layers of the plastic and chemically bonding to them. This weakens the structural integrity of the plastic and can eventually destroy it. Polystyrene is especially vulnerable to this.

[OMEGAPRIME1983]

I use enamels all the time O.o... Honestly, they are the best thing for HARD ABS plastics (which most of your TF's are), but as you said, not so good for anything softer, same goes for lacquer paints, they won't bond to your rubbery or softer parts either. For parts like that you would use acrylic paints. Best ones I've found are the Testors Model Master line acryls. As for don't do's, don't forget to wash the parts, don't just jump right into painting after you have washed the parts, even if you HAVE dried them off, because water could still be built up in those hard to reach ares, and DON'T rush yourself. If this is your first project, pace yourself, and take your time. And DON'T use thick coats of paint, you don't need to cover the whole surface in one shot, multiple thin coats are better. Also, don't forget to remove any factory paints, as they will show through your paint most of the time, especially if it's a painted surface with another painted section over it, you'll see the edges of each section. What I do recommend is look through modeling sites, and possibly other fan sites such as this one where you can find tutorials. They're a HUGE help for beginners.