Anybody ever paint their plastics themselves? I'm thinking about doing it myself cuz it don't sound that hard. I'm going flat army green. Any tips or bad experiences let me know. thanks

 

Difference between a good & bad paint job is the prep. I use 1200 Wet 'n' dry with good sudsy water.
Make sure you you put on a good generous layer of undercoat (cos you a going to cutting it back with the sandpaper. Don't be tempted to overspray, wait between coats, if you make a mistake, let it dry and then sand it back. If you can spray in a garage, make sure its dust free. If you do it outside, thats ok, but your going to capture a few flying bugs. Practice your spray technique on a piece of cardboard or similiar, wot your going for it nice easy overlaps & let the paint build up. Biggest mistake is trying to put to much paint in one go, cos it will run (sag). Get your distances right, to far and paint will go on almost dry (lemon peel) to close and you will concentrate the paint to quickly. Good luck, oh & wear a mask

 

sweep the fugg out of the floor, then sweep it again, then spray it with water (keeps dust down). Like Pacemaker said, practice on some cardboard if you aren't super familiar with spraying. Nice, CONSISTANT overlaps. Too little is better than too much, too much makes runs. Runs are bad, mmmmkay? Okay. Hold the gun approx. 12 inches from the material you are painting and maintain that pattern throughout your spray. Spray from BEFORE the plastic til AFTER the plastic, otherwise you will not have consistent thickness throughout.

Thats about all I really have to add. Keep in mind, I'm no professional but Im a mad man with a spray can!

 

I like the water on the floor tip... thanks.

 

dont use 1200 grit, that is way way too fine of grit for preping. 1200 is a finishing grit. Use 600-800 grit for preping then paint and then clear it. I do custom painting and start with the 600 grit then primer it then put down a few coats of my base, do a few light coats rather than one wet coat. Then clear it and then color sand with 1000 grit then clear again and then color sand with 1000 then 1500 and then I buff and it is done.

 

Think you have all the good advice you need, all i could add is patience, you must have it.

 

can anyone recommend where to get paint from, the shop charge me $30 a can and the hardware store doesnt seem to have a good glossy paint.

 

Thanks everybody. Ill post pics when I ***** up and find some time to do it.

 

I like where this thread is going, lots of good info.

I'd like to ask one question to clarify something. ride_002000 You said

Quote:

Then clear it and then color sand with 1000 grit then clear again and then color sand with 1000 then 1500 and then I buff and it is done.

Define "color sanding" for me. I've always heard the term but never knew exactly what it meant.

 

what paint are you planning on using and what sort of quality do you hope to achieve?

i spray my own race bikes with spray cans and get a decent result however theres a different way of using cellulose or 2 pack paint so which one are you going for?