Zyphruk Posted January 24, 2020 Share Posted January 24, 2020 Has anyone had success with using plastikote to paint their lexan body? ive heard mixed reviews, some say it works fine some say it flakes on when bashing hard. i want to paint my Losi 5 body which is very think plastic and quite rigid so i dont think flexing would be a big issue? can anyone shed light on this for me? or tell me of your experience thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CattoCattoExo Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 (edited) no, no and no.... do not use plastikote on lexan... it isnt any good, auto paint is bad for lexan. use specific paint for lexan shells, it has stuff in it that etches the surface and sticks better. auto paint chips and flakes when it gets hit, it cracks too easily. use tamiya PS or some form of polycarbonate paint/acrylic for plastic i can show you first hand, the difference between a shell painted with auto paint, and a shell painted with tamiya ps paints. the shell with auto paint isnt pretty Edited January 25, 2020 by CattoCattoExo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m4inbrain Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 (edited) Automotive paints do not work on lexan applications without additives (softeners/flex additives). A lexan body, regardless of how thick it is, is nowhere near rigid enough to not have the paint crack unless you don't drive your RC at all. It's soft plastic. You don't even need to roll it, the process of taking the shell off already is enough flex to crack paint that does not flex, at all. http://www.rccrawler.com/forum/paint-body/122041-automotive-paint-lexan.html edit: to be clear, the problem isn't "sticking", it's the fact that the paint doesn't flex whereas your shell does. And it does when you drive, make no mistake. Edited January 25, 2020 by m4inbrain Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m4inbrain Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 3 minutes ago, 1111 said: I have used dupi colour with the adhesion primer with no problem at all. It works just fine if you prep the body right. You should learn to read the entire comment first! You were saying? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
babylon Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 Plasti-Kote dose not work, I've tried it because it's only 7 quid for a big tin from the local B&M, Flakes just like ordinary car paint. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snfu Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 I used it on a brand new summit shell. I session later & the brand new shell looked absolutely crap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
babylon Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 Are we talking about This Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.AJ. Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 Horrible paint 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zyphruk Posted January 25, 2020 Author Share Posted January 25, 2020 understood loud and clear! the reason i asked is i really want to get this shell painted this weekend but my local hobby store is nearly 2 hours drive away. has anyone use "revell" polycarbonate paint from amazon? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisT Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 16 minutes ago, Zyphruk said: understood loud and clear! the reason i asked is i really want to get this shell painted this weekend but my local hobby store is nearly 2 hours drive away. has anyone use "revell" polycarbonate paint from amazon? That's acrylic paint but the description states it can be used on polycarbonate. Could be misleading. Quote Acrylic spray paints which dry very quickly Spray color paints can also be used on polycarbonate bodies of RC cars Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Honeybadger Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 Do you have a Hobbycraft store near you? They do Tamiya paints. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zyphruk Posted January 25, 2020 Author Share Posted January 25, 2020 Just now, Honeybadger said: Do you have a Hobbycraft store near you? They do Tamiya paints. closest is wheelspin nearly 2 hours away, there has been 4 model shops near me they all closed down. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zyphruk Posted January 25, 2020 Author Share Posted January 25, 2020 4 minutes ago, ChrisT said: That's acrylic paint but the description states it can be used on polycarbonate. Could be misleading. so is that no good? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m4inbrain Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 I honestly have no idea, a brief google revealed that you probably could. But it doesn't seem very durable from what i read, scratches very easily. And people suggest using an airbrush to do so to "dust" the shell. I personally wouldn't try, in case it goes south the shell's kinda ruined. Honeybadger didn't mean "an RC shop", but Hobbycraft. https://www.hobbycraft.co.uk/storefinder/leicester Check here if there's one near you, they do Tamiya paints too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zyphruk Posted January 25, 2020 Author Share Posted January 25, 2020 1 minute ago, m4inbrain said: I honestly have no idea, a brief google revealed that you probably could. But it doesn't seem very durable from what i read, scratches very easily. And people suggest using an airbrush to do so to "dust" the shell. I personally wouldn't try, in case it goes south the shell's kinda ruined. Honeybadger didn't mean "an RC shop", but Hobbycraft. https://www.hobbycraft.co.uk/storefinder/leicester Check here if there's one near you, they do Tamiya paints too. just been on their webiste cant see any tamiya spray paints Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisT Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 My local Hobbycraft sell an abundance of Tamiya stuff including acrylic paint pots and acrylic primer. Unfortunately they don't sell polycarbonate spray. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zyphruk Posted January 25, 2020 Author Share Posted January 25, 2020 2 minutes ago, m4inbrain said: I honestly have no idea, a brief google revealed that you probably could. But it doesn't seem very durable from what i read, scratches very easily. And people suggest using an airbrush to do so to "dust" the shell. I personally wouldn't try, in case it goes south the shell's kinda ruined. Honeybadger didn't mean "an RC shop", but Hobbycraft. https://www.hobbycraft.co.uk/storefinder/leicester Check here if there's one near you, they do Tamiya paints too. interestingly though i found this. "for flexible serfaces" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Honeybadger Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 9 minutes ago, Zyphruk said: just been on their webiste cant see any tamiya spray paints I'm sure my local one does. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisT Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 That's acrylic as well, says so on the can. Flexible surfaces as in flexible plastic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m4inbrain Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 Acrylic paint as well, i think they also do Humbrol Acrylic paint. It's kinda weird, i could've sworn i've seen polycarbonate paints a while back, maybe i remember wrong. Here's the apparent problem with acrylic paint/ Quote PC paint bonds with Lexan, acrylic doesn't, it merely 'sits' on the surface and then flakes off. Running out of ideas, brief google didn't show any shops near leicester (same problem in many places 😕), probably tuesday would be the soonest you could get Tamiya stuff. Or take a long drive, lol. The closest shop i found is an hour away, roughly: https://www.emodels.co.uk/paints/tamiya-paints They do next day delivery or pick up. Other than that, i'm out of ideas. Sucks that amazon prime doesn't do PS paint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zyphruk Posted January 25, 2020 Author Share Posted January 25, 2020 7 minutes ago, m4inbrain said: Acrylic paint as well, i think they also do Humbrol Acrylic paint. It's kinda weird, i could've sworn i've seen polycarbonate paints a while back, maybe i remember wrong. Here's the apparent problem with acrylic paint/ Running out of ideas, brief google didn't show any shops near leicester (same problem in many places 😕), probably tuesday would be the soonest you could get Tamiya stuff. Or take a long drive, lol. The closest shop i found is an hour away, roughly: https://www.emodels.co.uk/paints/tamiya-paints They do next day delivery or pick up. Other than that, i'm out of ideas. Sucks that amazon prime doesn't do PS paint. might have to take a long drive. thanks for your help guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bajadre Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 Avoid plastikote on lexan OP it will take but as soon as you mount it it just falls off trust me i tried doing a pink shell before xmas i went with tamiya spray paint in the end its expenisve but give great coverage etc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisT Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 49 minutes ago, 1111 said: You just can't buy Plastikote paint and paint a lexan or abs body with it. You need the plastic primer for the paint to adhere. I have said this over and over. DING DONG KNOW ONE IS HOME!! Read the label on the can first! How do you prime a lexan body on the inside and then paint the main colour so it shines through? With ABS body's, yes. Spray the primer on the outside of the body, then plastikote on top of the primer. We are discussing lexan which requires painting on the inside. Spraying primer inside a lexan body first and then the main colour wont work as you'll only see the colour of the primer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisT Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 OK, so I overlooked the fact that primer is available in clear. Never heard of it. DUH . It does seem like a long winded way to spray a shell when you can just use the right stuff in the first place with guaranteed results. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
babylon Posted January 25, 2020 Share Posted January 25, 2020 42 minutes ago, 1111 said: For a small body it isn't practical but 1/4 scale or larger project it's cheaper. So you've pretty much come here, Thrown an attitude about, Then gone and stuck up a picture of a couple cans of Plasti-Kote from a US eBay listing which is advertising said cans as 'Vintage' , Nice, I won't bother asking were you got them from then. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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