On the last project I started, I was working on a ship for a friend and after painting the waterline and waited about a week to start the main hull. After I painted it I removed the masking from the red and the red paint started to pull away from the hull. I was using low tack tape but it still pulled the paint off.
Particulars?
Plastic, resin, 3D? Whose kit-plastic varies? Did you wash/clean the surface? Did you prime? With what? Whose paint? Thin it properly? Heavy or light application?
Yes,need more info.
[dto:]
In particular, did you prime the plastic before applying the red?
Also are you using enamels or acrylics. Enamels pulling up, with or without primers, off of plastic is a major anomaly. Certain acrylics, such as Model Master and Vallejo, pulling up off of unprimed plastic is normal due to their poor adhesion qualities to bare un primed styrene.
Let’s see what I can remember aboiut this. It happened on two kits, one TGamiya and the other I think was Academy.
I don’t remember if I washed them or not.
I think I may have primed one.
The paint I have been using has been the Tamiya spray cans.
Something with the broad area of a ships hull I would scuff with a scuff pad/steel wool/micro pad etc. I’d probably wash it and I’d definitately ( this is standard procedure for me on any model) wipe down with mineral spirits to get any oils, including my own skin oil off the surface after handling the plastic. I’ll assume the spray cans you mention contain lacquer paint, so you want lacquer primer. Tamiya, Mr Primer surfacer 1000, Mr Surfacer 1000, 1200 or 1500 or Duplicolor would all work. Then nothing should lift when you demask.
If you don’t have the mineral spirits then 70% household alcohol should work to get oils off the surface. This is the final wipe down before priming I’m speaking of at any rate.
For larger parts, I clean those with a paste made from Comet and water using a cheap electric toothbrush. For smaller parts, I soak those for an hour or two in Simple Green, rinse with hot water, followed by a quick dunk in 99% isopropyl alcohol to speed up the drying process, then put them on a paper towel to air dry. Before applying paint, I prime everything with decanted Tamiya Surface Primer, thinned with MEK for extra bite on the plastic. Haven’t had any issues with paint peeling away. I know that not everybody washes their parts and have no problems, but its a step that won’t hurt anything, and I’d rather do something unnecessary than not do it and wish I had later. It costs a lot more time on a build to fix a botched paintjob caused by skipping a step in surface preparation.
Ikar 01!
Now you know why, no matter which paint I use, I always prime with the hottest primer I can get. Rustoleum Haze grey, Light!. Now, there are times I’ve had a wee bit of a problem. That’s why I started wet sanding all hulls with 800 grit Before priming.
It gets rid of All the oils from handling and the Mold release. I have found that some release products will actually blend into the plastic so sand first! Definitely wear disposeabe Non-Latex gloves too!
Hmmm, I could be wrong but I’ve been under the impression that Rustoleum primer is enamel based. If so the Duplicolor being a fairly hot lacquer will have considerably more bite and will receive lacquer paints better… In fact I’d bet so would the Mr line of primers, though not quite as hot as Duplicolor. Tamiya I believe is a bit milder lacquer primer but still should be sufficient for this project…
Some of the car guys over in Model Car Mag forums love the Duplicolor primer.
IDK, I use two different primers, Mr Primer Surfacer 1000 and Stynylrez, never had lifting with either one even using detacked blue painters tape, never mind the model specific tapes. The key is in the prep work. I’ll just say to skip Vallejo’s primer.