hey guys..

I have a blue full tower steel chieftec dragon. I would like to paint a design ontop of the existing paint on the side of the case as well as the top. I dont want to touch the original paint or sand it or anything so my question is this.. what type of paint could i use? i have access to an airbrush if that is necessary. Also.. would i clear coat the whole side after i painted the new design on or not clear coat at all?

thanks for any help.


Latts

Well, If you want the paint to stick you will have to sand the finish a bit regardless of what type of paint you use. The best thing to use in your case would be to go to an auto paint supply house and get yourself a couple of Grey 3M Scotchbrite scuff pads. Lightly scuff it down with the pad then clean the dust off somehow,preferably air and a tack rag, apply your artwork and let it dry completely then clear the entire case with a decent enamel clear such as Duplicolor. All the tiny scratches left by the scuff pad will disappear completely when you clear the case as if you never sanded it.

Good post.

Also, be careful how hard you scuff, that paint is a VERY thin layer...

But, we wanna see it done!

ok thanks guys! now.. any type of paint i should be looking for? i'm leaning towards using the airbrush.. any specific brands? types?


thanks!

latts

Createx works well just thin it down a bit with water.

sience you dont want to scuff the original paint i would say tape toe entire surface you want to paint and then cut out the area you want to paint with an xacto knife. sand just the area that you will be painting on. paint your design and i would suggest that you clear coat the entire case afterwords just so it is all as glossy. i am an avid model car builder and i use testors and boyds acrilyc enamel paint in my airbrush. good luck.

Quote: Originally Posted by Kaotix sience you dont want to scuff the original paint i would say tape toe entire surface you want to paint and then cut out the area you want to paint with an xacto knife. sand just the area that you will be painting on. paint your design and i would suggest that you clear coat the entire case afterwords just so it is all as glossy. i am an avid model car builder and i use testors and boyds acrilyc enamel paint in my airbrush. good luck.

You really shouldnt do it this way. If your not carefull the new paint will peel when you take the tape off even if it is scuffed in that spot. You will need to scuff the entire case for the clear to stick anyway. As long as you dont use an extreme amount of pressure on the pad to prevent the paint coming off, when you put clear on, all scratces will disappear. Also, if you plan oc cutting out a design,dont put masking tape all over the case and cut it out,you will end up cutting into the old paint and it WILL peel when you pull the tape off. Instead, go to Wal-Mart or wherever and buy yourself a roll of clear Contact paper,made for lining shelves and such,its only about $5 a roll and there is plenty to do several cases. Draw out your design on the contact paper then cut it out, then apply it to the case. Contact paper has about the same adhesion as masking tape,so you wont have a problem with getting it off. I use it all the time with no problems.

ok great ideas guys.. one more question.. i'm guessing the case is already painted in some sort of oild based paint? so would that eliminate me using an acrylic paint and acrylic clear coat? or can you mix paint types??


thanks

latts

You may use any type of paint on top of the old. And also may use a different type of clear than what you use for the artwork. BUT the underlying paint has to be COMPLETELY dry. Once paints are dry they are essentially the same thing, a sheet of plastic. The only thing that is really different about different types of paint are the solvents used to "melt" the plastic to make the plastic (pigment) sprayable. Although there are different types of pigments.Some use acrylic, some are even organic.

this may be wrong...

but why not cover the part of the case you don't want to scuff/paint in 3m painters tape (whatever its called, blue 5 day release or sumtin)...scruff where you want your design. Then paint the design (thinly if possible), then clear coat just that section. Then when you remove the tape pull it back parallel to the case so it cuts the paint...then it shouldn't peel off or anything. The same concept has worked for me before...on wood though..not metal. Once again I could be wrong.

Quote: Originally Posted by demonstalker this may be wrong... but why not cover the part of the case you don't want to scuff/paint in 3m painters tape (whatever its called, blue 5 day release or sumtin)...scruff where you want your design. Then paint the design (thinly if possible), then clear coat just that section. Then when you remove the tape pull it back parallel to the case so it cuts the paint...then it shouldn't peel off or anything. The same concept has worked for me before...on wood though..not metal. Once again I could be wrong.

Wood is pourous and rough naturally, so it can be done on wood without potential problems. Look at this thread http://forums.pcapex.com/showthread....910#post200910 and look at the latest pics and you will see why its not a good idea to do it that way.

fair enough..