Airbrushing information - UPDATE

[eodtech]

Anyone do airbrushing?

Any particular paint to use for plastics - Testor's?

Any good books or WWW sites to check out /

Tips and tricks for a newbie?

thanx

[Grant Lamontagne]

I used to build alot of models- I still like to but I can't find time to do all the things I have to do, let alone the things I want to do!

The most important thing to remember with an airbrush is to be patient.  Start spraying "off" the piece and stroke gently over what you arre painting.  Keep a good distance from the piece and "layer" the paint lightly, spraying off the opposite side of the piece.  Testors is great paint, but I find you get better color from Tamiya's line of acrylics.  They are water based so easier to clean up and easier to blend.  Once it's dry, it's resistant to just about everything as well.

Of course you are going to want to clear coat it if ou want it to really look good and last for any time.  Don't use automotive paints as they can make a mess of certain plastics, and some won't adhere to plastics, giving you a texture and look of old orange peels.

I usually stick to Badger airbrushes.  They are very user friendly, with parts available from almost every hobby dealer.  If you are thinking of getting one, Badger is the name to stick with, and the 200 is very affordable, but I get the best results with the 350.  External mix is also a heck of alot easier to clean up.

What is it that you are painting?  Different plastics have different properties and need different types of paints and primers.

Def

[eodtech]

What is it that you are painting?  Different plastics have different properties and need different types of paints and primers.
Def

To start of with some plastic flower pots that I want to put some "effects" on to make them stand out. I also have to paint some of these " bufs, birds, butterflies, flowers, etc" that are made out of metal and they are on metal rods and you stick them in the ground in the garden.  The metal ones are faded and they all ( 30 of them ) need to be painted or touched up.

Probably some other small painting projects around the house and garage - " keep busy stuff'.

[Grant Lamontagne]

Be careful- airbrushing gets addictive!  Soon you will be wandering around the house in a daze, looking for things to paint!

Def

[eodtech]

Be careful- airbrushing gets addictive!  Soon you will be wandering around the house in a daze, looking for things to paint!

Def

Today I am off the the " Automotive " paint store to get a can of paint ( Paint Code  51U ) to match my '07 AV.  My plans are once it warms up ( has been in the 50's for almost 2 weeks in northern Florida ) to mask off the rear gold colored plastic Chevrolet Bow Tie in the middle of the tailgate and use my airbrush set to paint the Bow Tie. ( I was just going to remove the rear BT and leave it off, until I learned that it is held on the tailgate with 3M double sided tape, which is not a problem, however GM in their ultimate wisdom placed 3 " plastic locator" pins on the back of the gold colored bow tie AND drilled 3 holes in the tailgate to make placement of the BT easier on the assembly line workers ) - GGRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR.

This is a SOS for airbrushes and paint at GREAT prices with FREE shipping

I had "Joe" make me a USA flag Bow Tie for the front - which was mailed to me on Wednesday so no need to do mess with that one except taker the old one off and install the new one, although I will take the one that is currently on there and paint that one to match the truck also.

Joe's Custom Bow Ties - Canadian flag included !!!

Just waiting - I also have an ALTEC LOF to install - once it gets above 60 degrees. The Line Of Fire acts as running lights, brighten as additional brake light and flash when turn signals are activated.  These LOF's also look great on pick ups and SUV's - it's applied with 3M double sided tape and has a 4 pin flat trailer type connector wired to it so it's a plug and play operation. The LOF attaches  to the space between the bottom edge of the tailgate and above the rear bumper - the LOF does not interfer with the use of the tailgate - easy enough to install, even a caveman can do it. Ordered direct from the guy who makes them ( 50% off retail ) in the USA. Very durable - not like the imports that burn out after a year - these seem to last forever, and they look cool, my opinion.
UPDATE: Temp got to 60 degrees yesterday and the LOF got installed.

ALTEC LOF WWW site

[J-sews]

Those are some pretty awesome mods you are doing there eodtech! I like the Line of Fire lights, and those custom bowties are just too cool!