How to Paint Plastics??

[FMFblaster97]

I've seen a lot of people say how to paint fenders, but everyone is a little different. Has anyone ever painted their plastics and had it work?? How did you do it?? I want to paint mine, and I want to know what works the best, without buying new plastics, cuz i know thats the best way, but thats too expensive. Thanks...

 

[sheeblast]

i painted mine. it is all in the prep work.
first i look at some porn and drink some beer to relax while i let the garage heat up. no one likes to work in the cold and paint doesn't like to stick in the cold.
once warmed up, i start with sanding the plastic. start out with 400grit and work to 1000 or 1500 grit. this is wet sanding, i usually wet sand with warm water and a drop of soap, helps out. once all the scratches are out, i wash the plastic. once dry, i use a scuff pad to get it ready for the primer. i use bulldog adhesive promoter. i let it dry overnight.
next morning, i reheat the garage and go throught the beer and porn again to relax.
once garage is heated, i start painting. i used kyrlon fusion paint, but if you have the money and ability to use car paint and a paint gun do it. i spray light layers of paint and allow the paint to dry before i put the next layer on. i do 5-6 light coats before i wet sand again with 1500. after sanding, i will do 3-4 more light coats. then i do a light wet sanding. then it is time to clear. i will do 3-4 light coats of clear, wet sand again, then 2-3 more layers of clear. let it dry overnight. next morning, it should look good.

 

[FMFblaster97]

alright thanks man... how much did all the paint and paper cost??

 

[sheeblast]

idk about the paper, never bought any. dad has a lot of that sh*t.

but for the fusion paper, i think i used a can on just the grill for my banshee, and have a can of clear on the grill. it was like $3-$4 a can. so ya.

if i had to redo it, i would totally use my dad paint gun and auto paint, but i didn't feel like taking the time to do it really. i am getting new plastic soon too.

 

[Surfrjag]

i have never used the krylon fusion paint but i have painted cars for almost ten years so if you do choose to use automotive paint with a base and clear system, you would want 2 med coats of bulldog. you want to let it flash for 3-5 minutes and then a light coat of basecoat as the basecoat is supposed to go on the bulldog while its still wet. you will want to let this flash has well about 10-15 mins and then 2 more coats of basecoat letting it flash between coats. At this point you can let it dry completelly and if you have trash in the paint you can wetsand it out with 800 and put another coat on. i usually do this till the paint looks flawless with no trash in it, then you will be ready for 2 wet coats of clear. once the clear has dried you can wetsand and buff to get any additioinal trash that landed in the clear as it was drying. always follow the paint specifications and prep work is key as shee says. i usually clean the plastics as best as i can and then wetsand with 600 but if the plastics have gouges in it its a little more in depth with sanding them out or filling. good luck and feel free to ask if you have anymore questions

 

[FMFblaster97]

ok. so when you say "flash", do you mean dry??

 

[Surfrjag]

not completelly dry but you can tell the top isnt as shinny but may still be wet underneath. the bulldog is supposed to be wet on wet but you dont want it so wet that it runs. check this out..Bulldog®. the only thing i dont do is mix the bulldog with the paint and clear. the paint actually has no problems flexing its when it stretches that it cracks and the bulldog will not help with that anyways.

 

[sheeblast]

a tip with the bulldog, make sure you dont sand through it when wet sanding the paint or your paint job is pretty much f*cked. it will lift if you sand through the bulldog.

 

[FMFblaster97]

ok i think i got it now... i might give it a try today or tomorow. but when im done, ill tell ya how it went. thanks guys... I:I

 

[Surfrjag]

do you already have a paint gun and air compressor?

 

[00blaster200]

I used krylon fusion and it worked pretty good. I wishi would have done more prep work though because it scratched off pretty easily. Look in my sig

 

[blastem]

who knows if there is spray paint out there that wont scratch off easily?? also has anybody had there's wrapped? ive thought about doin both... any suggestions?

 

[03blasterider]

Im thinking about doing it, would a power sander work? i wan to do it but don't want to screw up.

 

[blastem]

DO NOT use a palm sander... i use a Ryobi palm sander to take down all the deep scratches on mine and it left little c shaped divets all in the plastic that i had to turn around and get out by hand... electric sanders are just too much for plastic i think.. but thats just my experience.

 

[03blasterider]

ok thanks don't want that to happen. haha I"l use another type of sander that i know will work.

 

[rocky318]

been having my same paint job for over 3 years now and it still looks awesome