Sparky, thanks for the reply, how much time do you allow between the dope and the auto clear? (gas off time)
Hi Bootlegger; For a quick reply I thought I'd get in here. Bob is very good at finishing and his techniques and answers might vary a bit. However, most of this stuff is learned from others that are good at it. Pro's and amateur craftsmen alike, so...
I like to make sure the dope is gassed off at least a week for my clear application. In high humidity it might even take longer. Dry areas one can get away with a shorter period.
I am looking for your methods of laying down the tape so that you don't have some lift and get paint under the tapa.
I use 3M fineline tape. The greenish and the blue flexy plastic type. I don't use regular masking tape for anything but attaching the masking paper to the fineline tape.
The flexible blue tape is great for going around curves and one can get pretty good at making these curves symetrically too, with practice.
The greenish tape comes in 1/16th, 1/8th, 1/4, etc and I use it for the straight stuff usually, though it does curve well to a point. The way to keep from bleeding is to make sure, right before you shoot the color, you go around every, single inch of the tape a press it down. Some guys will even shoot clear over the edge after that to seal the edge. If that bleeds, it's clear, and when shooting the color the space is filled up and the color can't get in there.
Any and all things that you do when taping and painting as these models really "POP".
Good comment. The word "POP" is a good one. The reason some do and some don't comes down to a few important reasons.
Color dope is usually translucent. It isn't going to cover the darker/lighter colors of the finished surface underneath. Dark colored clear over carbon will look sickly, dark, dead red while the open bay light colored PolySpan parts will look pretty good when shot with your favorite Brodak, Sig, or aircraft red colored dope.
So your paint job is going to start with the undercoat. I used silver as an undercoat on several of my Stunters with good results. Some guys went gold with candy apple lacquer red or green for the effect desired. I use white primer now, as it really leaves a super light colored virgin canvas which the translucent color dope can "POP" it's true color over.
A case in point is some fabric repairs on a biplane I am giving instruction in, that resides in my hangar. Originally built by Bill Byles, a well known aircraft painter and C/L Stunt flyer, it is International Orange and Old White in the older Stits colors. he used white as a base and the airplane just radiates a golden glow when in the sun. It was repaired after a little incident with a later owner, and the color was shot over the gray primer. The color is dull and actually looks like another shade, even though it isn't. It's the effect of the undercoat not being able to reflect the same light through that translucent dope.
Go light on the under coat, make it even, and your color coat will really "POP". Goes for white too!
What type of gun do you use, what pressure at the gun? In other words all the info that I can gather befoe my next paint job sure will help as I know nothing about this process...
I use a trim gun, 25 pounds and mine is a cheapy from Harbor freight , and old fasioned low volume, high pressure type. I only do it that way because thats what I know and I'm always learning how to do it. Many others have much better ways, I'm sure. Please keep asking these great questions. This one I am weakest on, though. The pros, like Bob will know much more.
Again thanks... 
Good luck with your paint job, Gil. Don't worry that the first few are heavy, or lumpy, just keep at it and you'll get it. We all started there!
Chris...
First picture is the Copperhead V-10, PA 61 on Aeropipe. Gray primer with white undercoat. All color shot over white brings bright, true color out in the translucent color paints.
Second pic is Plecan Tigercat, an Old Time Scale ship for VSC. I did NOT undercoat and spray canned it with Lustre Kote. It went on blotchy and covered unevenly because I did not keep to the rule of having a light, even undercoat (what was I thinking!). I payed the price of having to use a LOT of material (heavy) to get an even mediocre finish. Not the wat to go.
Topic: ... Paint jobs... (Read 25917 times)