Problems with painting.

I have a problem with my blaster as when I paint them they always seem "sticky" even after I leave them for a few days. When I paint them I do it on sunny, windy days (or as close to as possible). I only have this problem with gloss paints.

Basically, am I doing some thing wrong?

NORTHENGHOST wrote:I have a problem with my blaster as when I paint them they always seem "sticky" even after I leave them for a few days. When I paint them I do it on sunny, windy days (or as close to as possible). I only have this problem with gloss paints.

Basically, am I doing some thing wrong?

You may be, I get the same result. But the paint I use is cheap (3.50 a can) but I am hesitant to spend the 10-15 a can for a paint job that may not turn out ideal.

Use a clear coat/sealer brah!

If you're using the Australian export stuff, expect that from the gloss finishes. Go get a matt over coat or better yet, fork out some money for decent paint, I tend to use Citadel paints ($30 a can, $6 a pot) and Tamiya ($11-$15 a can, $3-$5 a pot), these paints leave an extremely smooth finish even without overcoat.

Export paint has never done this to me. In my experiance it comes more down to technique. Many light coats and plenty of time to dry aswell as good prep work.

I used Dulux "quick dry" ($10-11 a can). As thats all my local petrol station sells. I will probably just paint in Matte for now until i get my hands on some sealant or clear coat.

Thanks for the help

evozn wrote:If you're using the Australian export stuff, expect that from the gloss finishes. Go get a matt over coat or better yet, fork out some money for decent paint, I tend to use Citadel paints ($30 a can, $6 a pot) and Tamiya ($11-$15 a can, $3-$5 a pot), these paints leave an extremely smooth finish even without overcoat.

I will take the Pepsi challenge with Export branded paint over any other brand you like to choose. After using the following: White Knights, Rustoleum, VHT, KolorKote, Molotow, Ironlak, Krylon, Tamiya, Citadel, Dulux, and a few others I can't remember - Export gives good consistent finishes every time, and is the best value for money.

I've used both gloss and matte finishes, and have had no issues with extended drying times. Actually, the biggest problems I've had with this was when using the rather expensive Acrylic graffiti rattle cans.

The majority of it comes down to either poor prep work, weather conditions (which you've pointed out isn't an issue), or, like Dietzie said, thick coats of paint, or too many coats too close together.

And, even then, you can get away with a heap of thin coats pretty quickly, which is how I paint the camo.

Are you using a proper primer?
Are you sanding the blaster enough?
Are you washing it thoroughly after prep, and waiting long enough for it to dry?

These are the most common mistakes that result in the paint nevery curing properly.

Hope this is of some help.

Cheers,

Yea try using some wax and grease remover to wipe the shell down with after prep. This gets rid of any grease and oil that washing can't do

Could be wrong but I think Clunk and Dietzie nailed the problem. It usually stays sticky when you do two things, one, spraying it too thick and two, spraying a second (third, fourth) coat over a previous coat that you might think is dry, but is not. If you're doing that, even on a sunny day, it won't fully dry.

Hope you get it sorted.
Good luck!

Act in haste, repent in leisure...

+1 on the paint layering

If you want the best results, spray the paint on in light coats. The ones I have done have taken 2 days with 6-7 thin base coats with around 3 hours between each coat. Before I sprayed each coat I would put it in front of a heater to keep the shell warm. I don't know if it's any great benefit but none of mine have come out sticky.

I put a fair bit of value behind the preparation for painting.

Just as an example, once I've prepped a Longshot shell, and washed/waited for it to dry, I can have it fully painted/stencilled/detailed and clear coat finished in a day - which is usually around 8 hours.

I do 2 coats of undercoat, 2 coats of base colour, somewhere around 4 to 6 coats of camo, 1 coat for the stencil, hand-detailing of the stencil, and 3 to 5 coats of clear.

Cheers,

Yea preparation is the key.