Panel gaps

[Uncle Pete]

Has anyone tried to blacken the panel gaps on a crawler.
If so how did you do it and how did it come out.
Thanks, Uncle Pete

[chevy55]

Painting body panel shut lines

[mikemcE]

I’ve tried the styrene way..... doesn’t work due to light and inconsistent panel lines molded. Look up hemi storms you tube video’s, his last shows him painting window trim on the outside.... looked great


Hang up and Drive

[dr frankenstyle]

On my last (and next) lexan body I used an ultra-fine Sharpie and drew the lines on the inside before painting. I wiped them lighter with a paper towel to make them more like a shadow line, instead of a heavy black line. Any oopsy's can be wiped away and re-marked easily too. On styrene bodies I paint the lines with a shot of black before the color coat, then lightly sand the black back off of the panel. Then I try to spray the color across the lines, not straight into them. It seems to at least darken the lines, most of the time.


jim

[vinnieb729]

What about the TAMIYA 87131 Panel Line Accent Color? It comes in different colors. I haven't tried it yet but I've seen videos of people using it on models. Seems like very thin paint that just fills in the lines perfectly. Not sure how it would work on Lexan though.

[58_Willys]

On lexan, I've done the Ultra Fine Sharpie marker on the outside, but it requires a steady hand. Some bodies don't have very deep lines so it makes it difficult to get nice clean lines. If your just gonna bash it then this will probably be fine.

I've also done black pin striping on the inside before painting, which is much better, but quite time consuming.

For hard bodies, the best method I've found is acrylic crafting paint. It can be mixed for an accurate shadow color. It can be thinned out to a watery consistency and flowed into the seems or just brushed in. It's flexible enough to stay in the grooves, and it's water proof after it dries.
To paint it, I paint my body completely, right down to the clear coat, then apply a mix of the color I decide to use. I keep a damp paper towel close by and when I get out of line, I just wipe it clean. Then let it dry. I've never done this on a matte finish, so I don't really know how this would turn out, but I'd suspect you'd have to be quick with the wipe off after painting into the seems. You could also spray over this if you use Acrylic spray paint as your final coat.

Hope this helps.

Here's the results on my Tamiya Wrangler.

[B-MOW71]

Originally Posted by 58_Willys

Here's the results on my Tamiya Wrangler.

Great looking Wrangler! Them panel lines are spot on!

[58_Willys]

This is how that same technique turned out on the New Bright TJ...

[durok]

You certainly have built and painted some excellent rigs!

Both are incredibly nice and super-scale appearing...

[58_Willys]

Originally Posted by B-MOW71

Great looking Wrangler! Them panel lines are spot on!

Thank you B-MOW71. The grooves on this body are crisp and clean and make it easy to do the this technique.

Originally Posted by durok

You certainly have built and painted some excellent rigs!

Both are incredibly nice and super-scale appearing...

Thanks for the props durok...I wanted to show the OP how these two bodies turn out with this type of gap dress-up.

[Uncle Pete]

Originally Posted by 58_Willys

On lexan, I've done the Ultra Fine Sharpie marker on the outside, but it requires a steady hand. Some bodies don't have very deep lines so it makes it difficult to get nice clean lines. If your just gonna bash it then this will probably be fine.

I've also done black pin striping on the inside before painting, which is much better, but quite time consuming.

For hard bodies, the best method I've found is acrylic crafting paint. It can be mixed for an accurate shadow color. It can be thinned out to a watery consistency and flowed into the seems or just brushed in. It's flexible enough to stay in the grooves, and it's water proof after it dries.
To paint it, I paint my body completely, right down to the clear coat, then apply a mix of the color I decide to use. I keep a damp paper towel close by and when I get out of line, I just wipe it clean. Then let it dry. I've never done this on a matte finish, so I don't really know how this would turn out, but I'd suspect you'd have to be quick with the wipe off after painting into the seems. You could also spray over this if you use Acrylic spray paint as your final coat.

Hope this helps.

Here's the results on my Tamiya Wrangler.

Definitely helps. Thanks for the tips, and your rigs look fantastic.

[tjohanne]

Originally Posted by vinnieb729

What about the TAMIYA 87131 Panel Line Accent Color? It comes in different colors. I haven't tried it yet but I've seen videos of people using it on models. Seems like very thin paint that just fills in the lines perfectly. Not sure how it would work on Lexan though.

The problem is that lexan bodies simply don't have those fine lines or details.
The good thing about that product (and it is a fantastic product) is that you can wipe it off with thinner if you're not happy with result. Anyway you would have to prime the outside of the body first for the tamiya to stick to it.

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[No2Mud]

I played around with this on a model body - before painting a RedCat Scout. I used an Xacto blade to deepen the gaps and give them more of an edge. After painting the body, I used a black wash - painted the gaps and wiped the paint off (across the gap, not along it).