Orange peel, what 2 do ?

Hey Chazsmith, awesome tip on the Pine-Sol!!! I'll have to try that!!!

Hey frosty, make sure you post some pics ok???

Good advice above, I'll just give my take on a couple of points.

The best thing to do about orange peel is to

1. Avoid or minimize it in the first place.
2. Use the micro-mesh cloths.

Avoiding the problem requires that you get an even coverage and that the paint has a chance to flow slightly to smooth itself out. Using a low(er) pressure on the airbrush helps avoid blasting the paint out into ridges by force of the air. Having the paint hot lowers the viscosity and (in my opinion) helps the paint dry more evenly. Heating the paint isn't the only thing - the surface of the model should be warm as well (but not hot!). I keep a coffee mug warmer in my painting area, and I warm the paint by immersing it (sealed, of course) in a small pan of water I keep on the warmer. Be sure to warm your paint after you thin it - the thinner needs to be warmed too.. For some reason Testor's paint seems to orange-peel worse than some others. Still, I like the paint for other reasons and continue to use it.

Micromesh is great. You start with the course pad and work to the fine one. The coarser ones dull the finish allowing you to see how much you have taken off. You want to use coarser pads until you can just barely see some original glossy paint sitting in the bottoms of the orange-peel dimples. You have almost leveled the paint at that point. Then go carefully through the sequence of finer pads until the final one (12000 grit) gives you back almost the original gloss. Then proceed to Future or whatever you normally do.

Good luck.

chazsmith:
thanx 4 th reply !
i still haven't bought the CSC...
i have a feeling it'll b easier to ask mom 2 pick up some pine-sol next time she's at the supermarket than 2 convince her i need yet another toxic product 2 feed my modeling habit !
btw, i really like building armor myself...

frosty

Frostygirl:

I'm an armour guy and not used to doing glossy finishes so I got the same condition a Corvette C5-R I'm making. The guys that have replied so far are giving you really good advice (I've printed it out for myself) but I use the original formula Pine Sol to remove enamal paint and car primer from my models and I'm very pleased with the outcome. You can't use the Lemon formula or it crazes the plastic (I found that out the hard way - what a mess) but the original formula leaves it like new. I put the parts in a meatloaf pan, fill it up enough to cover the body, and let it sit overnight . By morning, most of the paint is either foating on the top of the liquid or really easy to wipe off the part with an old rag. You will more than likely have to put a soft tooth brush to it to get at the creases but it won't attack any body filler you use like I've heard Brake fluid does. You still have to wash the parts in clean soapy water to get the excess off but then it's ready to put the primer coat on and repaint.

Good Luck

Charlie

I tried the Castol super clean for the first time today, it worked as advertised. I painted a Nascar Ford Taurus 2 weeks ago. I wasn't quite happy with the paint job, so off it came. I let it soak for a couple of hours in a covered plastic container at full strength. Then I used a firm toothbrush, that I bought for this task, and scrubbed it off. I would wear rubber gloves if I were you. I didn't, and my wife says she has never seen my hands this clean.

Darren

Modelcarguy & littlemoe:
thanx 4 the replies yet again !
and that is indeed an awesome Willys rite down 2 the hi-gloss finish.
and if i decide 2 strip the paint, i can shave the side trim & fill in the door
handles 2 really make it look tight .
castrol super clean, here we go !

frosty

WOW!!!!!!!


Awesome Willys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Frosty girl, if your using rattle cans, dry putting the can in a glass of very warm water, this will bring up the pressure in the can, allowing for a beeter spray, and help in keeping the tip cleaner... If your using an airbrush, check your air pressure, i had mine too high and was getting orange peel, i lowered my PSI and i'm getting a better finish... make sense??? i hope soo!!!


good luck!!!!

Micromesh is a series of polishing cloths usually in 3200, 3600, 4000, 6000, 8000, and 12,000. They are specifically designed for polishing paint on model car bodies. If you have "deep" orange peel in the finish, the polishing kit WILL NOT remove it. Its for light orange peel only. I suggest stripping the old paint off with either Castrol Super Clean or brake fluid and starting over. Orange peel is caused by not putting enough paint on with each coat. Your probably holding the can too far away from the model when spraying. Try getting a little closer and spray evenally without stopping in the middle. There is a fine line between not putting on enough paint and applying too much which causes runs. It takes alot of practice. You'll learn what not to do as you make mistakes. When applied correctly and polished, your enamel paint job can look like this. Click below.

http://public.fotki.com/modelcarguy/my_1941_willys/my_model_cars_002.html

hey everybody !
thanx 4 the replies....
just one question:
is micromesh a hobby shop product or full size auto thing ?
(if this is a silly question, i apologize, but i don't know much about this stuff)

thanx again,

frosty

Everyone has said it, nothing left to say

soak it in brake fluid , it always works for me.Sorry but you might have to start all over again

Hi frosty,

you are talking about orange peel right??? Not about the paint actually peeling off???

for Orange peel, micromesh is the best way to go, however if you dont have that, or the money to buy it, you still have afew options...... one option would be to spray a few coats of FUTURE over the model, this works some of the time, it depends how bad it is.... if it's a heavy peel, i usually start off with 500 grit sand paper, working my way up to 1500 grit, wet sanding of course, but sand lighty so you dont go through the paint.......

Now if you want to strip the paint and start over, Castrol Super Clean (CSC)has worked the best for me. You can buy it at Wal-Mart for about 6 bucks for a gallon container.... If the paint is relativley new, it should only take an hour or two to remove the paint, however it may take a little longer.... It's also a good idea to get an old toothbrush, to help get the paint out of the recessed areas.......

If you use CSC, make sure you use a glass container with a lid, and keep the lid on it at all times, if you don't the CSC will weakin... You can use a plastic container, but you will never be able to use that container for anything else...

Hope this helps you out!!!

I would use a polishing kit. I prefer the Micromesh system myself. This will take care of light to moderate orange peel.

I believe brake fluid will strip paint, but you need to soak the parts for a while in it.

Darren