Painting propeller tips

I use a fine brush and Tamiya flat yellow.Comes out great!

I posted this back in 2013 on how to create weathered propellers and this is my go-to method.  I have found using an abrasive sponge or fine grit sanding block works well instead of using a blade for exposing the aluminum underneath the black paint.

cs.finescale.com/.../156070.aspx

BS214 that's a great toot. Or, do like Ulterior fears is hard, mask carefully and spray.

I make a lot of little one-off jigs when I model. For instance, cut a slice of stiff paper the same as the tip color top-bottom dimension. Use it as a spacer when you apply the tape.

Trivia question- where do props chip?

Wrong!

On the back- that's the surface that meets the airstream.

I use a scrap  piece of spare yellow decal.  When it's dry, I trim off the spare edges with an Xacto knife.

I've had success dipping the tip in paint.

Here's a funny one :

   I dip the prop in the paint then spin the heck out of it to fling excess paint off  . I also do this when I just paint the tips .

Masking and brush painting works.  Also, freehand brush painting will work but you must practice a bit to get the skill. Once you can do it, repetition keeps skill.

Good tips all thanks.

I did try the dipping method but it did not leave a crisp line. It was kind of rounded off.

The whole assembly yellow? Heh - kinda wasting a lot of yellow just for the tips aren't you? I'd spray just the general area of the tips, never mind the whole propeller assembly.

I make sure the prop is white (or light gray at least) first so I only have to do one coat of yellow. That helps with the depth/thickness issue. I then mask the line. Then i spray a light coat of Testors dullcoat along the masking line, and that really helps me keep a straight edge when I unmask AND helps prevent any bleeding under the tape.

You've gathered some good techniques, so here's another possibility.

Paint the prop the basic color, usually black.  Once the paint is dry, I mask off each tip with a small rectangle of masking tape, making sure to adjust it so the yellow tip won't be crooked or slanted.

Then I mask each blade with strips wound down the blade toward the hub; or up from the hub toward the blade (either direction works)--like a mummy.  I mask the hub with whatever it takes to protect it.

Then spray the tip area with more black paint.  This seals the mask and avoids paint creeping under it.

Then I spray the tip with white, followed by yellow.  The white base keeps the yellow on the tip bright.

Photos below--four props from a B-24.

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Usually works and no touch-up required; but sometimes. . .

And good luck with whatever method you try.

For hand-brush painting,this is the technique I am using. Paint propeller blades, cut a line on the paint for the yellow tip with a blade #11, then using pointed tip brush paint white first, when dry paint yellow. The cut prevents the paint from flowing over (provided paint content on the brush is just right).

I mask and paint,but I love Chucks decal idea,so obvious,but so simple.

The problem with decals for me is getting the edges right. If the prop edges are sharp near the tip, the decal film does not want to bend with a tiny radius. If the decals cannot cover the edges, it is important that the decal color reasonably match a paint color so you can paint any gap left at edges.

IMO it becomes one of those things. Spending some time laying out the line and masking with Tamiya tape. Painting multiple coats.

Silver

Paint the blade w/primer gray flat .Next paint the whole assembly yellow flat.Mask off the yellow areas .Then spray flat black.Weather and final seal.You will then have award winning props.

Beautifyully done GM...you got it down man.

Thanks! I meant to include a caption.

I painted the outer half of the blades white, then masked them with a constant width piece of tape and painted them black. The red stripes are decals.

That's my Argentine Falklands/ Malvinas Neptune.