Mojave body paint tips needed

[sherbanater]

Don't count out the Duratrax line of paints. In my experience there very easy to work with, plenty of color options and they come in a 4.5oz can witch can easily do up to a 1/8th scale body.
I went with a Gunmetal with white undercoat then finished with flex-seal.

 

[King blitz]

Replenishing my paint stock and noticed traxxas has their own line now. Prices are good, and can get bigger cans of common colors, like black.
Any experience?

I've tried Traxxas paints and what I noticed is that it's not the paint itself that's bad ,it's the spray nozzle that's on the can that is horrible..it clogs up extremely fast and spits ..you can shake the can a hundred times all day and warm the can up and just a few passes the nozzle starts to build up and it becomes a nightmare.
You can reclean the tip by using isopropyl alcohol but it will consistently give you uneven spray pattern. This is why if I only prefer to PS Tamiya and I actually prefer to airbrush instead where you have a steady control of how much air pressure you want and put paint where you want . nothing is better than airbrushing a Rc body .or you can use a Jam gun .And from what I see many doing wrong with which ever paint or method to apply it ,is that they go either normal to heavy on that first coat.
The first coat should be applied very thin almost like you didn't put any paint on ..all's you need is a mist very lightly .purpose to this mist is like it's acting like a primer so the actual first coat bytes .also washing the inside of a cover is not enough..I recommend using a 3M gold scotch pad and scuffing the inside with dawn soap..then follow up with isopropyl alcohol.then rinse and dry using a air compressor .then follow up with a tack cloth very lightly..do not press down hard .that's very important.
These prep steps are important because most body covers have mold release agent that is oily.

 

[Chapinb]

Just bought a couple traxxas cans and a few bodies. Ill keep a lil thing of alcohol nearby for good luck. One for sipping, one for cleaning.

 

[King blitz]

It just didn't have the coverage of other colours, seemed to go on very thinly. Maybe I had a rogue can or maybe I was just terrible at spray painting

One can of PS1 white the small can ,not sure what size it is ..but it will cover a 1/8 scale body with left over..I painted a proline Dodge ram cover for my sons kraton and it came out perfect.
You want it to spray thin . Not thick.
Three light coats will do the job.
To be on the safe side always buy a second can just in case your not satisfied or you run out..not all 1/8 scale body's are the same size and that goes for any scale due to different manufacturers..
Here is my sons v5 kraton.Tamiya PS1 white backed in Tamiya PS5 glossy black ..and for those that think backing white with black will darken the white here is proof that it won't if you use Tamiya...

 

[King blitz]

Also quick tip ...... Before you guys spray your body's make sure the body is warm .lay out in the sun for a bit and also the can ..you will get a much more even spray pattern

 

[Dangerous_Beard]

One can of PS1 white the small can ,not sure what size it is ..but it will cover a 1/8 scale body with left over..I painted a proline Dodge ram cover for my sons kraton and it came out perfect.
You want it to spray thin . Not thick.
Three light coats will do the job.
To be on the safe side always buy a second can just in case your not satisfied or you run out..not all 1/8 scale body's are the same size and that goes for any scale due to different manufacturers..
Here is my sons v5 kraton.Tamiya PS1 white backed in Tamiya PS5 glossy black ..and for those that think backing white with black will darken the white here is proof that it won't if you use Tamiya...View attachment 421551

Yeah my painting skills suck, you have confirmed this. Nice work on this rig.

 

[King blitz]

Just bought a couple traxxas cans and a few bodies. Ill keep a lil thing of alcohol nearby for good luck. One for sipping, one for cleaning.

Before spraying , tip your can upside down press the trigger a few times to clear out any dust build up in the nozzle.. good luck

 

[Dangerous_Beard]

Also quick tip ...... Before you guys spray your body's make sure the body is warm .lay out in the sun for a bit and also the can ..you will get a much more even spray pattern

Another top tip. I will try this next time I spray one.

 

[King blitz]

Yeah my painting skills suck, you have confirmed this. Nice work on this rig.

Lol I didn't confirm anything ..takes time ,don't rush it .. honestly one of the greatest things about RC body painting is that ive seen people spray for the first time with no skills , don't even do most of the steps that I've mentioned and since painting rc body's your eliminating the clear coat ,when you peal off that protective film from the out side you get a perfect shiny paint job ..a lot of times that alone can make a bad paint job look great.. typically it's someone's masking skills that I can pick out due to bleeding.because they didn't use fine line tape and they didn't press down good enough..and then you have those guys that love to destroy a nice paint job by throwing down a tons of stickers lol..why?? Beats me ..leave the stickers on Walmart toys

 

[King blitz]

Another top tip. I will try this next time I spray one.

Yes sir

 

[Dangerous_Beard]

Lol I didn't confirm anything ..takes time ,don't rush it .. honestly one of the greatest things about RC body painting is that ive seen people spray for the first time with no skills , don't even do most of the steps that I've mentioned and since painting rc body's your eliminating the clear coat ,when you peal off that protective film from the out side you get a perfect shiny paint job ..a lot of times that alone can make a bad paint job look great.. typically it's someone's masking skills that I can pick out due to bleeding.because they didn't use fine line tape and they didn't press down good enough..and then you have those guys that love to destroy a nice paint job by throwing down a tons of stickers lol..why?? Beats me ..leave the stickers on Walmart toys

That's my problem- I am impatient. I got sick of waiting for the warm weather so decided to do it when it was sunny but slightly cold and using the girlfriends hairdryer to speed up the drying process. I agree on the stickers though. I have seen far too many awesome paint jobs hidden by awful stickers. I do like stickers on my rigs but I don't go overboard.

 

[332_RC]

That's my problem- I am impatient. I got sick of waiting for the warm weather so decided to do it when it was sunny but slightly cold and using the girlfriends hairdryer to speed up the drying process. I agree on the stickers though. I have seen far too many awesome paint jobs hidden by awful stickers. I do like stickers on my rigs but I don't go overboard.

You can slightly warm the cans too w/ warm water. Just a little. And use the hair dryer 1st on the body to warm it also a bit before painting.

 

[King blitz]

That's my problem- I am impatient. I got sick of waiting for the warm weather so decided to do it when it was sunny but slightly cold and using the girlfriends hairdryer to speed up the drying process. I agree on the stickers though. I have seen far too many awesome paint jobs hidden by awful stickers. I do like stickers on my rigs but I don't go overboard.

Nothing wrong with a few in the right spots . Im ok with that

 

[BashingBrian]

To be on the safe side always buy a second can just in case your not satisfied or you run out..not all 1/8 scale body's are the same size and that goes for any scale due to different manufacturers..

@King blitz ... This is how I've ended up with so much spare paint I think my next body will be about 15 different colors..!!

That's my problem- I am impatient. I got sick of waiting for the warm weather so decided to do it when it was sunny but slightly cold and using the girlfriend's hairdryer to speed up the drying process. I agree on the stickers though. I have seen far too many awesome paint jobs hidden by awful stickers. I do like stickers on my rigs but I don't go overboard.

@Dangerous_Beard ... The UK sucks for painting bodies, the weather is always crap this is the reason why my projects take so long to complete..!!
Only tips I can give you are the same as other have said, put tins in warm water before use, warm the body somehow (hairdryer, put in sun etc) Tamiya paints work best at a certain temp, but the humidity is more important than the actual temp in my opinion..
I've had decent results using the #1 Tamiya 60/60 rule..!!!



Borrowed this from another forum...

[1] Tamiya recommends 60-60 rule. Less than 60% humidity, over 60 degree temperature (16 degrees C). I try to aim for 10% more (less than 50% humidity, warmer than 70 degree temperature: 21C). I don't spray indoors, that's bad for everybody's health. So I only get about 100 days of spraying weather out of a year.

[2] Spray horizontally so the heavier particles would not hit the body, keep the can warm.

[3] Fling the can often to remove the droplet forming at the nozzle. (you can dab it away--be careful not to add lint) That one big droplet at the chin of the nozzle keeps making bigger droplets.

[4] Spray upside down between coats. (not to the shell) Doing that for 1/2 second clears nozzle, and allows cleaner spray for the next coat. Originally, it's a method to keep the nozzle from clogging for long storage. But if you don't clear the nozzle between coats, even if you spray in 15 minutes, half-dried sticky droplets start to fly on the next spray. ( Don't spray upside down for too long, or else you won't have propellant left for the paint. I spray 3-4 times with one can, and there is just enough propellent to clear the nozzle between sprays)

 

[BashingBrian]

Good tips here too...

 

[Dan B.]

Replenishing my paint stock and noticed traxxas has their own line now. Prices are good, and can get bigger cans of common colors, like black.
Any experience?

Paint is ok (I heard the liquids for spray guns is great) but their cans suck. Wait, I should have put that in all caps…SUCK. They spit dots, clog up, then spit more dots. They don’t spray evenly at all and I’ve never gotten completely through half of a single can. Did I mention that they suck?

So I don't need to get new paints?
Or I need to get ps clear?
Both! Thank you for the info!

Good to know ts can go over ps, can still use my old stock.

If you actually run your rig and it’s not a shelf queen, I would buy PS paints. I’ve heard people say it’s ok to use non-polycarbonate paints for backing, but I wouldn’t. When the bodies bend and flex (or you have the inevitable crash) it WILL crack other paints and cause them to flake off. At least in my experience. I did the same thing on the first body I ever painted and was very disappointed. Maybe some can make it work, but it sure didn’t for me.

I've tried Traxxas paints and what I noticed is that it's not the paint itself that's bad ,it's the spray nozzle that's on the can that is horrible..it clogs up extremely fast and spits ..you can shake the can a hundred times all day and warm the can up and just a few passes the nozzle starts to build up and it becomes a nightmare.
You can reclean the tip by using isopropyl alcohol but it will consistently give you uneven spray pattern.

Exactly what he said, in spades. That’s exactly the same experience I’ve had with Traxxas paints. And to a lesser extent, Duratrax. But not nearly as bad as the Traxxas cans. I only use Tamiya PS paints now, no matter what. Someday I’ll probably break down and get a good gun and a compressor, but as long as I’m using rattle cans they’ll all be Tamiya.

 

[305HemiGuy]

Tamiya & Duratrax are top 2 for paint. Stay away from the Traxxas stuff. I bought a Traxxas can since it was bigger than the Tamiya can. Let's just say looks can be deceiving. The larger Traxxas paint can lacked the coverage & quality of the smaller Tamiya can. The finish once dry was rough like sandpaper. I didn't do anything differently from when I painted all my other bodies. I hated it so much I actually threw the body away after like a week.

 

[Dan B.]

I'll give you a top tip.. YOU CAN use TS paint on lexan, the trick is to first paint the body with PS55 flat clear then use your normal PS paints..

I just also picked up that tip on the Hemistorm video you posted above. I’d never heard it before your above reply, but I’m inclined to think it might actually work, as that guy obviously has a lot of experience and without a doubt has done the best rattle-can paint jobs I’ve ever seen. Maybe I’ll try that sometime, as there are definitely browns and blues that don’t exist in the PS line.