Best Paint To Use On Your Xmod

[bondo]

here is a list of the best paints to use when painting your xmod.
the question"what paint should i use" get asked an awful lot, this should help clear up alot about paint.
most of this is personal opinion but its the opinion of someone who spends alot of time with paint.
if you want great looking results..NEVER USE A BRUSH OR PAINT MARKER to paint the body.
brushes should only be used for details and the paint markers arepretty much useless in my opinion.

AIRBRUSH:from best to worst
if you have access to one or have the money this is the ULTIMATE way to go.
1. Tamiya acrylic paints. these come ready to spray and are available in any color you can think of. if you can think of a color they dont have you can easily mix two colors to create it. it is water soluable so cleanup is easy.

2.boyd alkyd enamels. these are extremely durable. not as many color options as testors or tamiya.
they are solution soluable and in most cases need to be thinned before spray.

3.testors enamels. if your going to use testors i reccomend the model master series of paint. solution soluable and needs thinning. reasonable durability.
the regular testors paint is fine for handpainting details but it lacks when sprayed.

4.spraypaint. you can collect paint from a rattlecan and use it in your airbrush for a better spray because you can control the airflow/spray pattern.
if you do this keep in mind that these paints are chemically designed to create pressure when agitated. make sure there is some sort of vent on your cup or bowl.

rattlecans(spraypaint): from best to worst.
rattlecans are cheap and easy to access.
the trade is you lose the ability to controll the air/paint flow and spray pattern.in most cases when you use a ratllecan your paint will end up being thicker then it needs to be resulting in a loss of detail. you can still turn out a **** good looking paintjob with a rattlecan but remember that it would look even better if applied by an airbrush.

1.tamiya enamel. again, best color selection. durable. and easy to get quality results with.

2.testors enamel. durable,decent color selection,and quality results can be acheived with a bit of practice.

3.dupli-color enamel. huge color selection with a few "trick" paints(metalcast,mirage effects,crackleing) durable when fully cured,adjustable nozzle, easy to use with practice.

4.plasti-kote. same as dupli-color.

5. house of kolor shimrin kandies. decent color selection,a bit softer then the dupli-color, high metallic flake content. being a kandy you need more coats to get full color coverage.

6. krylon "fusion" this paint forms a chemical bond to the plastic using an etching agent. its durable but colors are limited with no metallics.

thats about all i would suggest to use on xmod and model bodies.
just about any other brand/type of spraypaint is made to be all pourpose and may have too much hardner or etching agents.
stay away from the rustoleums and engine paints.

i hope this helps people when they go to look for paints.

cheers,
bondo

[Numbchux]

Testors, preferrably acrylic. no thinning required, and most importantly, available at your local michaels crafts store, or wal-mart (there are both within a few miles of my house, and zero hobby stores withing about 100 miles...)

throw a coat or 2 of testors enamal aeresol clear coat over it to get better durability.

[RedSXmodder]

Thanks bondo, this helps alot. I've been thinking about getting an airbrush for the longest time. But when it comes to brands of the airbrush, what is the best brand for the money?

Thanks,
RedSXmodder

[bondo]

CHUX:
where would you rate the testors acrylics on my list?(i'll add it in there by your reccomendation) i've never used the acrylics because im not a huge fan of testors paint.

REDSX:
you can get testors airbrushes from walmart and hobbyshops.$10-15
they shoot better then rattlecans but you cant adjust the pattern/flow.
best bet for the money would be a badger siphon or gravity feed ($60-100 for the lowend series')
you can also get non name brands from harbour freight or the tuul shed(ebay store) that do the same thing at a cheaper price.
keep in mind though, you get what you pay for.

id say go with a badger siphon feed, very good for beginners. usually around $70-80
they come with a 3/4oz. resevior,paint/airflow control,spray pattern control.

cheers,
bondo

[RedSXmodder]

Thanks bondo

RedSXmodder

[firebird74]

they shoot better then rattlecans but you cant adjust the pattern/flow.

actually, i recently got the $20 airbrush from walmart and the flow is adjustable. the cheaper one isn't but this one is. I'm very well aware that badgers are better, some of the best even, i'm just sayin this for the ppl that dont have $80 to spend

[bondo]

thanks firebird, i was unaware that testors had more then one airbrush.
when i buy my models i see the same gun i bought fifteen years ago.
my first testors gun was my last....

[firebird74]

lol, yeah if i ever really get into airbrushing, i would probably get a better one but this does what it's suppost to. my only problem is i'm not sure if i can use some of the other paints, many of the paints out there are very corrosive and i'm not sure what that would do to the plastic parts of a testors airbrush. testors paint can be pretty expensive

[musclecars4life]

i use the testors enamal paint in a can (spray) and the job i did on my friends corvette was pretty good. flat red (made gloss by the clr coat) and gold dodge viper racing stripes. if i can get pics of it i'll post them.

[Numbchux]

Originally Posted by bondo

CHUX:
where would you rate the testors acrylics on my list?(i'll add it in there by your reccomendation) i've never used the acrylics because im not a huge fan of testors paint.

not sure, as I've never used any of the others (not available unless I order them online....). but I've not been disapointed with the testors, the finish looks great. I'm not very hard on them, so it's hard to say on durability. but my chevy got used quite a bit over the last year, and I didn't clear coat over it, and only got a few chips here and there...

[bondo]

Originally Posted by Numbchux

not sure, as I've never used any of the others (not available unless I order them online....). but I've not been disapointed with the testors, the finish looks great. I'm not very hard on them, so it's hard to say on durability. but my chevy got used quite a bit over the last year, and I didn't clear coat over it, and only got a few chips here and there...

wel im guessing its close to the same composition as tamiya so ill put it under the tamiya acrylics.

BTW, any chance this one could be stickied?
its putting a good bit of paint info in one easy to read topic.

Originally Posted by firebird74

lol, yeah if i ever really get into airbrushing, i would probably get a better one but this does what it's suppost to. my only problem is i'm not sure if i can use some of the other paints, many of the paints out there are very corrosive and i'm not sure what that would do to the plastic parts of a testors airbrush. testors paint can be pretty expensive

this one is getting into plastic compositions, the plastic that the gun is made from is the same as the model bodies(poly vinyl) so anything you can put on your body you can shoot through the airbrush.
the problem lies in clear plastics(poly styrene), if anyone has ever tried to paint their windows with rattlecan enamel(mostly acetone), they can tell you that it clouds the plastic because of the etching agent in the paint.
i will get a pic of a 3/4oz. polystyrene cup from my airbrush that has been eaten beyond use.
if you clean enamel paints from your plastic body airbrush use ONLY 100% mineral spirits(thinner)...no acetones or keytones(fingernail polish remover).

i use mainly enamels and acrylics,some alkyds.
the easiest to use by far is acrylic.
acrylic wont harm any plastic and is easily cleaned.
if you muck up and get a sag or run you can wash the paint off within the first 5 minutes.

if anyone has pics of quality paintjobs they have done with these or any other paint please post them and give a small product review.

cheers,
bondo

[firebird74]

this one is getting into plastic compositions, the plastic that the gun is made from is the same as the model bodies(poly vinyl) so anything you can put on your body you can shoot through the airbrush.

actually, i was talking not just about xmods but metal type stuff aswell. Some of the different kinds of paints i've seen look like they would eat right through the plastic. Like less expensive paint that you by more for the quantity. When ur painting graphics on a car or motorcycle, you don't use testors model grade paint.

[bondo]

Originally Posted by firebird74

When ur painting graphics on a car or motorcycle, you don't use testors model grade paint.

and vise versa.
theres is plenty of paint to use on models.
when you get into auto grade paints they tend to get WAAY out of the price range that you would use for hobby cars.
i have a buttload of autograde 2 part paints but im not about to put ANY of them on an xmod or model.
i used a bit of gold and prismatic flake on a couple of my projects and the total price of what the paintjob would have cost if i was paying for it was around $80.00.

[Numbchux]

sure, we can sticky this. good idea.

examples...

Chevy 1500 Xmod


2 coats of acrylic testors silver, airbrushed
" " " blue, "
2 coats of testors aeresol clear

love this combination. I prefer air brushing the clear. but since I build so many models, and use clear on all of them, I bought the aeresol can to save some money...

btw, the toyota pickup was molded in the white...and I used testors aeresol for the flat black (I usually use it for model chassis) 2 tone.


Version VI WRX STi Type-RA


3 coats of testors acrylic white, airbrushed
2 coats of the clear


Skyline Xmods paintjob 2


2 coats of airbrushed silver
masked stripe
2 coats of aeresol purple
2 coats of clear


Chevy Nova monster truck


1 coat of black
2 coats of purple
2 coats of clear

all aeresol enamel


Toyota Land Cruiser model


2 coats of black, acrylic
2 coats of dark flat beret green, enamel
2 coats of clear, acrylic

all airbrushed

put decals on after clear coat....should've put the big 'cruisin' decals on before the clear....


Chevy 1500 xmod


origional paint job....first time with the airbrush...
2 coats of primer
2 coats of blue
NO clear....biggest reason I wanted to redo


xmod skyline, first non-origional paintjob


1 thick coat of testors enamel aeresol yellow
hand painted windows

DON'T do it this way!


that's all the pictures I have of my models...I'm in the process of redoing my old '67 427 corvette convertible model...and it should be pretty sweet when it's finished. so I'll get a pic of 2 of it up.

[VR-4=More~]

Dont have a worthy body to paint up yet. Nice jobs btw. Im more
of a flyboy just gettin into these rides. Planning. A EVO GTO haha.
Automotive body paint should work good... Blingethed?? Yah 1 day~

[BOBCABOB]

How much is the Tamiya acrylic paints, and is there a cheaper way to paint with almost the same results?

[RCHW]

i use cheap walmart 95 cent spray paint. its cheap and drys fast. i do not tape anyhting on my cars. i take the headlights, taillight, the grill and anything chrome that i do not want painted. its not hard takin this stuff off the car it usually pops right out. but somtimes you have to pry it out with a small straight screw driver. i paint the whole car. it easier and much faster this way. i even paint the windows. after i paint he car and let it dry then i will tape up the the car around the windows then i paitn the windows a gloss black. i think it is easier this way or it is for me. then i put the headlights and grill back in the car. you can either glue them in or i like to melt them . like they come from the factory. just hold the headlight in place take a very small screwdriver heat it over a candle or lighter. then when it gets heated up touch the screwdriver where the headlight and body meet under the car. this melts the headlight plastic to the body plastic. but be careful not to melt too much. and that screwdriver gets really hott and it will burn you. thats how i do my cars.

[haider]

hey i have a problem i painted my mustang white and it came out extremeley bad so how should i remove the spray paint plz help my mustang looks really ugly
i have white spray paint but i dont wwant to spoil my mustang can anyone plz help me

[TheB1GDude]

haider this is a very old thread that should not have been added to - I know you are new but please review the rules for the forum.

If you want to ask you question on removing paint please can you create a new thread in the Beginner Questions section or use the search functionality to see what topics have been created previously.

[gilbert22]

does anyone know what model scale size body fits on an xmod chasis, i am new to the site and ive been trying to do modifications to my xmod. also what model brand should i use