Planecrazy232

My Feedback: (2)

I am painting my orange Euro a gray military scheme. I have it all sanded and prepped. Do I necessarily have to prime it, or can I shoot my basecoat right over the factory finish? I am trying to cut down on some steps, but I do not want to sacrifice the longevity of the job either. If priming is necessary, is it because of adhesion or hiding the stock stripes so the do not bleed through?

Thanks,
Anthony


Edit: Here are the finished pics. Thanks for the advice! I just shot the color right over the orange. One coat on just the graphics, then 2 more full coats and then flat clear. Looks great!!

SPLIT S

If the existing finish is sound, then a thorough cleaning and sanding is all that is required. Today's paints are formulated that bleeding through is almost non-existent. On a car we would definitely seal the existing finish. A sealer keeps the new paint from "soaking in" to the existing finish, maintains a consistent color over the entire vehicle and helps to keep the gloss up and long lasting. On your plane, just go for it. Any advantages priming could give you are far out-weighed by the weight penalty.

Regards,
Dan

www.gocolours.com

KC36330

the only necessity of primer is to enhance the base cote. if you have a dark original paint you won't have as 'bright' a finish as you would with a white primer, same way if you're going for a dull look you use a dark primer (gray or red).

kc

Planecrazy232

My Feedback: (2)

The issue is that this is the orange & blue color scheme with the blue eurosport lettering on the wings and the white & blue stripes on the wings & fuse. Will the DBC Cloud Gray have enough pigment to hide this?

KC36330

not without a heavy coat which i wouldn't advise. in bright sun you'd be able to see the different shades underneath.

kc

SPLIT S

A gray in DBC will have plenty of hiding power to cover the stripes. You can test this by asking for a sprayout card from the jobber you bought the paint from. These are either black and white checks or differing shades of gray. Their use is specific in the automotive world but for our case get one and put 2 light coats of your color on. Let dry and hold it up to a bright light - you won't see the checks showing through. Almost all DBC whites and grays are made up of only pigment - no basecoat binder - they are extremely high hiding colors.

Regards,
Dan
www.gocolours.com

grbaker

My Feedback: (29)

Another option is to just use K36 primer as your finish. This idea came from Buck and worked out real well. That's what I used on this Eurosport, which started out with the yellow paint job. I tinted the K36 with Model Master black paint.

I shot 2060 clear over it.

Planecrazy232

My Feedback: (2)

See Post #1 for update.