painting lexan on the outside. paint suggestions?

[FordFixer]

ive painted alot of lexan bodies but they have always been on the inside. Heres my question. I want to paint my body a specific tan / sand color but its not available anywhere in a lexan paint and i only really use spray cans (tried air brush...epic fail)

is there a specific technique to get thje paint to stay on the body without it flaking? its a new body and i dont want to mess it up but i dont have a spare to try things on.

any ideas?

[Waitwhatsthat?]

Ive been using rustoleum paints lately. I've had good success, by sanding and scuffing up the body first. Then make the first coat very light. The last one I painted is holding up very well. There are a couple of spots where I missed the Sanding and the paint is starting to come up, but thats my own fault. I paint on the inside though, not sure how it'll work painting the outside. When it comes to using non lexan paints, prep, and application is key. Hell Ive have lexan paint flake off before. Here's a pic of my last body. Used Rustoleum camo tan. Can says it works on plastics. So far so good.

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[FordFixer]

yea thats kinda the color im goin for..thats on the inside correct? i would hate to do all the masking and paint only to have it flake after hitting a blade of grass..

[Waitwhatsthat?]

It's on the inside. Backed with black. Like I said it's very important to sand the body before painting and make the first coat very light. This body has taken a lot of nasty hits and the paint is holding up well. This is the paint I used. If you look at the first pic you can see a spot at the rear of the roof that looks like it's coming off. It hasn't yet, it's the only spot that is showing signs of a mistake.

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[Natedog]

For outside lexan body painting I just use Tamiya or Duratrax spray paint, no scuffing needed, works great.

Post #231 and onward you can see my Honcho painted with Duratrax spray paint. The body was very rough before with lots of scrapes, scratches, cracks. I ShoeGoo the cracks with drywall mesh tape, dry overnight and painted.
Natedog's Honcho kit build

Edit: The paint has held up very well and does not scratch easily at all.

[ElChupacabra]

I've used the same line of Rustoleum metioned above and it holds up great. I hit the outside of the body with a scotch brite pad first to very lightly rough up the lexan.

[AngelowDoom]

The thing is that if you want to paint your lexan with anything else than lexan paint, go right ahead. But paint a primer layer with lexan paint first so the other paint sticks to the lexan. If it is on the outside you want to paint. Prime with a lexan paint relative to the paint that goes over. If it is on the inside you want to paint, use a layer of tamiya ps55 first so it sticks.
Personally I lean towards outside paint on scalers, looks more realistic.

[FordFixer]

yea, thats why i wanna do the outside..so u looks alittle more real than shiny plastic...my kit should be here in the next few days, gonna see which way i do it..im gonna cringe and go for the outside paint..lol..it goes against everything ive ever done with lexan...lol.

[RCMFMaxxMan]

Originally Posted by AngelowDoom

The thing is that if you want to paint your lexan with anything else than lexan paint, go right ahead. But paint a primer layer with lexan paint first so the other paint sticks to the lexan. If it is on the outside you want to paint. Prime with a lexan paint relative to the paint that goes over. If it is on the inside you want to paint, use a layer of tamiya ps55 first so it sticks.
Personally I lean towards outside paint on scalers, looks more realistic.

I've used the same method. I think this works best, and there is no extra prep work required. I paint the inside and outside with a Tamiya PS paint that I don't mind showing through when it scratches, then go to town with my color of choice. I used this technique to get a nice matte black finish on an 1/8 scale buggy. PS black on inside, PS black on outside to act as a primer (mask windows inside and out. I just trim out the protective film with a razor blade for masking on the outside), then testors flat black model spray. The body has taken much abuse on top of the 1/8 scale, including skidding upside down across pavement at high speed. No chipping or flaking at all and scratches are pretty minimal as well.

[Mike Flea]

Originally Posted by FordFixer

ive painted alot of lexan bodies but they have always been on the inside. Heres my question. I want to paint my body a specific tan / sand color but its not available anywhere in a lexan paint and i only really use spray cans (tried air brush...epic fail)

is there a specific technique to get thje paint to stay on the body without it flaking? its a new body and i dont want to mess it up but i dont have a spare to try things on.

any ideas?

Use a clear lexan paint, like a Tamiya PS55 Flat Clear, on the outside before you use the color you want. Then you can use the Rust-oleum or Krylon plastic paints over the top.

[FordFixer]

ok..thanks guys. i appreciate the ideas. anyone else have pics of the outside paintjob on lexan?

[durok]

I found this link - it may be helpful in letting you actually see the basic process of painting Lexan inside and then outside, including window frames:

https://youtu.be/Swnet3ELNZs

[RCMFMaxxMan]

I thought I should share some photos of the paint job i was talking about. Again, it was Tamiya PS-5 Black inside and out, and then Testors Flat Black Enamel Spray on the outside. Note: glossy sections and windows were simply trimmed from the protective film on the outside (and left on while applying the paint to the outside) to reveal the glossy lexan beneath at the end.

[Mike Flea]

Originally Posted by FordFixer

ok..thanks guys. i appreciate the ideas. anyone else have pics of the outside paintjob on lexan?

Painted on the outside using Krylon and Testor's flat colors after using a polycarbonate paint first.

[stevem50]

I paint all my bodies on the outside.. use a base layer of polycarbonate silver paint as primer as discussed before, but I use silver specific to mimic the "metal" under as the color layer paint gets scraped off. For an extra level of detail, paint copper on the inside so as the body gets beat up and the plastic gets gouged you will see "rust" thru the paint

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[stevem50]

Here's a shot of one that's seen some abuse. Note the rust around the headlights and the fender corners

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[stevem50]

What color are you looking for, Tamiya has a nice sand color..

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[dltripp71]

Originally Posted by FordFixer

ive painted alot of lexan bodies but they have always been on the inside. Heres my question. I want to paint my body a specific tan / sand color but its not available anywhere in a lexan paint and i only really use spray cans (tried air brush...epic fail)



is there a specific technique to get thje paint to stay on the body without it flaking? its a new body and i dont want to mess it up but i dont have a spare to try things on.



any ideas?

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[FordFixer]

I caved in and painted from the inside..lol...i just didnt wanna make a mistake ...i like the outcome.

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[Waitwhatsthat?]

Looks good. I recently repainted mine on the outside. Happy with how it turned out. It looks better with more scratches on it.

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