Chrome Finish?

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pepe

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I'm starting on a retro looking rocket that I think would look great with a chrome finish.I've read enough about chrome paint and how most people are not happy with the results that I was thinking about alternative methods. Is monokote an option for rockets? I have some aluminum paint I used to use on plastic models that I think might look nice if chrome turns out to be impractical.Any advice on this would be appreciated.By the way the kit I'm talking about is Leading Edge's X-10 Express and the quality of the parts is superb, highly recommended.Thanks
 
Mark (Stickershock) has some chrome vinyl that he sends with his Omega decal set.

And doug79 used chrome trimkote to cover his Omega clone's silver payload section:

omegaD5p.jpg
 
One thing I've read about the chrome monokote is that your surface has to be clean and bump-free.
 
Avery, 3m, Oracal, and several other adhesive backed vinyl's have mirror chrome products, They to not work well on curved surfaces but like Chrome Trim Monokote do great on body tubes and fins. I did my Cineroc/Omega clone with 3m chrome vinyl.

There is an adhesive backed stretchable vinyl from Alsa Corp. the is used to wrap Autos, but it is pretty expensive and takes a time or two to learn how to apply it without bubble or wrinkles on tight radii such as on Nose-cones and transitions. It does work once you get the process down;0

The ONLY Mirror Chrome Rattle can spray in existence it also by Alsa Crop. It come in a 3 12oz can kit. The product is know as "Killer Chrome" which is a High Gloss Blk Base coat, the Chrome and a spray Clear that does not turn the chrome into a flat grey as all the other rattle can chrome paint do. This product kit is also on the expensive side listing usually for about 130buck a kit. The other disadvantage to this stuff is once you break the seals inside the cans you have a limited amount of time (couple days) to use the entire contents or it becomes unusable. Alsa Corp sometime runs sales on these products the Last Killer Chrome kit I purchased with shipping ended up at 102.00 dollars.

A year or so ago I went through every type and manufacturer of Spray can Chrome paint to see if any would or could do a decent job. unfortunately not a single one could be overcoated with anything not even Pledge with future without completely greying the surface. I have a couple models done with these chrome paints that can only be handled with White Cotton Glovers to avoid damaging and dulling the surface. Even after two years of drying the surface picks up every finger print and will not soft cloth wipe away.
 
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I'm working on a rocket right now that I am going to spray with Rustoleum Metallic Chrome. I used it on another project, and I was satisfied by the results, but maybe my standards are not as high as some --- and I had already resanded and repainted the rocket so many times with Testors and had unsatisfactory results, that maybe I just decided enough was enough! It does not give an actual mirror chrome, maybe more of a shiny silvery aluminum. But that was actually what i wanted, so I was good with it. I have not noticed it picking up fingerprints and dirt (the Testors was awful for that), but I don't fly or handle it very much, so maybe it will over time. Rockets get banged up so much over time anyway, that I mostly only aim to have them look good once --- after that they are allowed a "patina" of use.

I should have the new project all primed, sanded and painted this week if you are interested in pics. It is also a retro sci-fi looking rocket.
 
Thanks everyone for the ideas. I think I'll try Thirsty Barbarians approach. It might look more "real' then a true chrome and it won't cost as much
 
I'm starting on a retro looking rocket that I think would look great with a chrome finish.I've read enough about chrome paint and how most people are not happy with the results that I was thinking about alternative methods. Is monokote an option for rockets? I have some aluminum paint I used to use on plastic models that I think might look nice if chrome turns out to be impractical.Any advice on this would be appreciated.By the way the kit I'm talking about is Leading Edge's X-10 Express and the quality of the parts is superb, highly recommended.Thanks

Yes, chrome monokote (applied with an iron) or trim monokote (no iron required-- self-sticking) are both good alternatives. Problem is doing compound curved surfaces like nosecones and stuff.

You're correct that chrome spray paints are pretty awful. They simply don't hold up to any kind of contact without going to pot, IF you can even get them to go on right and cure if the first place. Not worth the time/trouble IMHO.

You CAN get much better chrome in a can, but it's pretty much prohibitively expensive unless you're just made out of money. Alclad and some others, but you're talking about like $90 bucks for the primer and paint "kit", and it has to be applied in a particular way according to the instructions for it to work right.

Best of luck! OL JR :)
 
I have used the silver chrome mylar with adhesive backing from an auto parts store on models. With patience it works good, but sometimes it hard to get the bubbles out. Nevertheless, the mylar will only work of flat surfaces (fins), cylindrical surfaces (tube fins and body tubes), and frustums of a cone. I have given up using it on nose cones. Last week I used plasti-kotes metallic silver and it worked good, but do not touch the paint for several hours, otherwise finger prints will show up.
 
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Thanks everyone for the ideas. I think I'll try Thirsty Barbarians approach. It might look more "real' then a true chrome and it won't cost as much

True "chrome" (mirror finish) from a can, unless it's the type of specialized stuff that Micromeister mentioned, is pretty much impossible. I used a chrome-in-a-can Rusto or Valspar on my Dr. Zooch Mercury Atlas Friendship 7 Anniversary build https://www.rocketryforum.com/showt...Zooch-Mercury-Atlas-build&p=285218#post285218 and it never really worked completely right. Fingerprints just really messed it up, and had a devil of a time getting it to fully cure. It's basically a sort of "plain silver" look now, which is okay with me.

IF you REALLY want a TRUE "mirror" finish chrome, your only REAL choices are either the $100 buck a can paint systems previously mentioned, or monokote type films of whatever type or kind. Other than that, you're not going to really be happy with the chrome-in-a-can stuff from your typical home improvement store or wallyworld.

IMHO, a good high quality non-metal-flake silver looks almost as good for most rockets, and it's MUCH easier to apply, and works a LOT better than common off the shelf chrome in a can type materials. You're not going to get a true mirror finish, but it'll look good. Beware that silver paints of any type are a little more sensitive than other colors, when it comes to fingerprints, handling, picking up marks or stains or stuff like that. Silvers, for the most part, are more sensitive to clear-coating as well-- some clear coat with little change in appearance, but a lot of them will turn very "muddy" looking and tend to shift toward looking more like a flat gray than an aluminum silver look. ALWAYS do a paint test of silvers with whatever finish you're looking to apply over it beforehand so that you can judge what the final appearance will be, and if it's satisfactory to you, before applying it over the silver on the rocket.

I painted a rocket with some plain silver and it looks pretty good. More of an "aluminum" finish to it than a mirror finish to be certain, sort of a flat aluminum look to it, which was okay. As I said, the mirror finish is virtually impossible without adhesive films or high dollar paint systems like those mentioned. I've even used some "metallic silver" (which has metallic flakes or bits in it) and it looks pretty good, depending on what you're using it on and the final effect your trying to achieve. I wouldn't use it on scale rockets, though... but for sport rockets, it might be just the ticket... looks a little more "silvery" than a plain aluminum "silver" non-metallic type paint...

Best of luck! OL JR :)
 
Pepe, did you try it yet?

I painted my rocket yesterday with Rusto Metalic Chrome and will get a picture of it up tomorrow or the next day so you can see how it looks. It turned out pretty good (at least I am happy with it). I'd say you want to work in very thin coats and recoat again in about 10 minutes. If I get poor coverage in one spot, my tendency is to want to immediately hit it again, but it is better to come back and recoat it in 10 minutes so you do not get too much on and get a run. I got about 3 coats on it. Everything went great until toward the end when the nozzle started to make a less uniform spray, and the surface was not quite as uniform and shiny. I had a second can of the same paint, so I grabbed a nozzle off of that one. Oddly enough, it was a different style of nozzle, even though it was the same paint. That nozzle worked much better and I finished the job. There is one area that is not quite as shiny as the rest, but it is fine.

The other advice I have is to not handle the thing at all while it is curing. It says the paint is dry in 24 hours and cured in 48. I would not touch it until 48 hours is up. It's more sensitive than other paint. We'll see how it holds up over time.

Good luck!
 
I have heard that one technique is that you spray gloss black first as a base coat, then the silver is applied in several mist coats. Somehow the black gloss makes the silver "pop". I haven't tried it, but I think I might do it at some point as a test.

Greg
 
I have heard that one technique is that you spray gloss black first as a base coat, then the silver is applied in several mist coats. Somehow the black gloss makes the silver "pop". I haven't tried it, but I think I might do it at some point as a test.

Greg

That sounds like a great thing to test. As the paint was going on, it looked great! Like liquid metal, very smooth and shiny sliver, almost like real chrome. But as it dried, it lost a bit of the shine and became a bit duller.
 
One other thing about shiny silver finishes --- they really amplify any flaw in the underlying surface. You need to get it really smooth to have it look its best. I thought I got out every spiral and seam, but the shiny surface revealed some I missed. I used plenty of filler primer, and that works pretty well. For the final sanding, I used one of those thin sanding sponges --- 320 grit on a soft, flexible sponge material that is about 1/4" think. That thing worked great! It's kind of expensive, but nice for the final sanding.
 
an observation about mirror finish chrome, it makes a remarkably good camouflage :).
Rex
 
an observation about mirror finish chrome, it makes a remarkably good camouflage :).
Rex

Ha ha! I bet that's true! I've only ever flown my Silver Comet in a schoolyard where I'm not likely to lose it. But anything likely to land far away might be a problem. One thing I really liked about flying that rocket was launching it on a bright sunny day and watching the sun reflect and flash off the surface during flight. Maybe a bright neon chute is in order, definitely not a camo chute!
 
I used chrome monokoat on the fins for my Jart...looks great when the sun is bouncing off them, otherwise at 10' or more the fins are almost invisible.
Rex
 
I used chrome monokoat on the fins for my Jart...looks great when the sun is bouncing off them, otherwise at 10' or more the fins are almost invisible.
Rex

Quite True Rex!
Use of Mirror Chrome monokote is one of the tricks used to "Visually" Hide structures inside Clear payload tubes. Since the mirror reflects whatever surroundings are in front of it, to our eye the internal piece seems to disappear. Same thing happens to fins or other surfaces on or close to the ground, they reflect whatever they are laying on or near making them almost invisible until the sun hits them at a right angle or we get right up on the location.

There is another Spray-Can Mirror Chrome Kit out there (but have no experience with it) it's called Spaz-Stix
it's also a 4part 3.5oz can kit consisting of Szx10009 Mirror Chrome, SZX00119 Gloss Black Base, SZX10909 Ultra mirror Chrome Clear. and and over coat thinner I didn't get the stock number on. Last time I looked at this product (about 3 years ago) the kit was about 53.00 plus shipping. AS mentioned I have NOT used this product but wanted to at least get the name out there so people can have all the info to choose from.

I've been using Rustoleum Metallic Silver #89137 (model#1915830) 11oz cans for a couple years now. It's fine flake makes and excellent silver sparkle and has NO problems with clears or Pledge with Future overcoats. Of all the metallic silvers I've used it is by far my favorite.
Not sure it this is the same Rustoleum metallic ThirstyBarb is talking about as it Does NOT have the word "Chrome" on the can anywhere. Metallic silver and Chrome silver are two very different things. Please check the stock numbers and post them Thristybarbarian so we can know for sure what Restoleum product your using....Thanks

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Here's the chrome finish on my rocket. This was Rustoleum Metallic Chrome. I'm pretty happy with it, but you can see some flaws, like the little seam on the pod above the action figure, and some spots where the shine is not quite as good as others. After taking these shots, I realized there was a little bit of dust on some spots, and it cleaned up pretty well with a clean cloth. That would have been good to do BEFORE pictures ... oh well. It does pick up finger prints a bit too. But I think it looks really cool with the sun reflecting off of it.

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Here's the chrome finish on my rocket. This was Rustoleum Metallic Chrome. I'm pretty happy with it, but you can see some flaws, like the little seam on the pod above the action figure, and some spots where the shine is not quite as good as others. After taking these shots, I realized there was a little bit of dust on some spots, and it cleaned up pretty well with a clean cloth. That would have been good to do BEFORE pictures ... oh well. It does pick up finger prints a bit too. But I think it looks really cool with the sun reflecting off of it.


ThirstyBarb That's a darn Good looking paint job. keep in mind nothing on this old earth is ever perfect, you should be right proud of that rocket...Wonderful finish.

Couple questions:
* Did you clear coat or Pledge this finish?
* Most important Where did you get this Rattle can paint? I've been to Home Depot and Lowe's where I usually get my Rustoleum products but No luck locating a Metallic Chrome.
Went on-line this morning looking and cannot find a can that has that description. Plenty of Metallic Silver but no Metallic Chrome.
Would you Please post the product number off the side of the can? I'd really like to track down some of that exact paint.
Thanks
 
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There are some new processes for spraying chrome finishes onto things that are water-tolerant (fiberglass and plastic for example), but they are typically quite expensive:

https://www.justdipit.net/liquid-chrome/

You could get a nice DIY metal finish from some sort of DIY hydrographics kit (again requiring parts that can survive immersion in liquid), but that is usually limited to brushed finishes or patterns like diamond plate. Also, flames, wood grain, camo, etc.

Commonly available chrome paints are a pain in the tail.

https://www.skypirate.net/rocketry/con_paint_03.htm

To quote Micromeister from the archives:

Here's a list of the things tried so far:

Krylon #1301 Krystal clear
Krylon Triple Thick Clear
Krylon #1307 UV resistant Clear
Krylon #1305 Clear
Krylon matte clear
Krylon Workable Fixatif
Rustoleum Clear Gloss
ColorWorks Gloss Clear
Dupli-Color Gloss Clear
Testors Gloss Coat
Testors Dull Coat
Folkart clear Acrylic (spray)
Dupont polyurethane Clear (topcoat touchup Sparycan)
Dupont Imron Clear (spraycan)
PPG ultra urethane Clear (topcoat touchup spray)
Micro Scale Decal clear (brush on)
Future
Future/SimpleGreen
Nazdar Decal Clear screen ink
Minwax clear polyurethane (brush on - Airbrushed)
Valspar urethane Clear (brush on/airburshed)
Spar Varnish
Shallac
Sickens Clear polyurethane topcoat (touchup spray)
Sickens straight clear enamel topcoat (airbrush)
Matthews Gloss clear polyurethane (2 part) (airbursh)

every one greys on contact, except Micro Scale which turns milky white ....Lions-26, Christians-0: I'm running out of things to test folks.

Discussions of this well-known problem can be found on scale modeling forums and on fishing forums (from the guys who make their own lures). The only way I know of to get a metal finish is to use metal.
 
ThirstyBarb That's a darn Good looking paint job. keep in mind nothing on this old earth is ever perfect, you should be right proud of that rocket...Wonderful finish.

Couple questions:
* Did you clear coat or Pledge this finish?
* Most important Where did you get this Rattle can paint? I've been to Home Depot and Lowe's where I usually get my Rustoleum products but No luck locating a Metallic Chrome.
Went on-line this morning looking and cannot find a can that has that description. Plenty of Metallic Silver but no Metallic Chrome.
Would you Please post the product number off the side of the can? I'd really like to track down some of that exact paint.
Thanks

Micro, thanks for the compliments! I'm pretty happy with it.

I did not use any kind of clear coat on it. It would be great to be able to clear coat it for protection, but I've heard the warnings and have not tried. Maybe I'll try painting some scrap and clear coating that as an experiment.

I got this paint at a store in California called Orchard Supply Hardware. It's a local chain.

The label on the front of the can does not actually show the word "Chrome", but the UPC label and the store's shelf label do. The label actually says Rust-Oleum Bright Coat Metallic Finish. The odd thing is that there is another paint that has the exact same front label in gold color, and the only difference I can see is that the cap on the can is gold, not chrome, like this can.

Here are the numbers. The UPC number is 20066 77188. The other number printed on the can is 225465 1105. I hope those are the numbers you need. Good luck, and Happy Painting!
 
I'm going to take back a bit of what I said about the resilience of the Rusto Metallic Chrome. I have had to do a lot of handling of this rocket after painting to get it ready for launch on Saturday. And I'm seeing some marks from all that. There are some finger prints showing up, and the paint seems susceptible to damage from small impacts, pressure, abrasions, etc. maybe the paint is just not fully cured. I have a Silver Comet in the same paint, and it seems drier and more resistant to damage.
 
Thanks TB:
Yes the UPC numbers do help. Your paint and the Metallic silver I have are different. After a long search on-line and around here DMV area I haven't come up with the same paint. Will try Rustoleum home site after our launch on Saturday night or Sunday.

In the mean time: If you'll waste just a little of the open can you have, would you spray a small piece of any kind of cardboard. Let it cure for a week or so, then try applying Pledge with future or whatever your using as a clear coat. I'm curious to see if like most other "Chrome" or Near Chrome rattle can paints this one also Greys immediately on contact with any protective coating.
Thanks.
 
Thanks TB:
Yes the UPC numbers do help. Your paint and the Metallic silver I have are different. After a long search on-line and around here DMV area I haven't come up with the same paint. Will try Rustoleum home site after our launch on Saturday night or Sunday.

In the mean time: If you'll waste just a little of the open can you have, would you spray a small piece of any kind of cardboard. Let it cure for a week or so, then try applying Pledge with future or whatever your using as a clear coat. I'm curious to see if like most other "Chrome" or Near Chrome rattle can paints this one also Greys immediately on contact with any protective coating.
Thanks.

I can do a test on it to see what happens. In the instructions on the can, it says that a clear coat is not recommended, so I'm not very optimistic.
 
This is the paint that I used recently for the external plastic plumbing on my "Godspeed, John Glenn". It is more shiny than ordinary aluminum color paint and after about 2 hours can be handled without making finger prints. Years ago I remember using Rustoleum chrome and finger prints showed even a day later. I vaguely remember seeing plasti-kote recommended on one of the forums, so when I saw it on the shelf at the store I grabbed it right away. I can't remember which store it was. It might have been Home Depot. IMG_2602.jpg
 
Here's the chrome finish on my rocket. This was Rustoleum Metallic Chrome. I'm pretty happy with it, but you can see some flaws, like the little seam on the pod above the action figure, and some spots where the shine is not quite as good as others. After taking these shots, I realized there was a little bit of dust on some spots, and it cleaned up pretty well with a clean cloth. That would have been good to do BEFORE pictures ... oh well. It does pick up finger prints a bit too. But I think it looks really cool with the sun reflecting off of it.

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View attachment 184671

Looks awesome!
 
Here's the chrome finish on my rocket. This was Rustoleum Metallic Chrome. I'm pretty happy with it, but you can see some flaws, like the little seam on the pod above the action figure, and some spots where the shine is not quite as good as others. After taking these shots, I realized there was a little bit of dust on some spots, and it cleaned up pretty well with a clean cloth. That would have been good to do BEFORE pictures ... oh well. It does pick up finger prints a bit too. But I think it looks really cool with the sun reflecting off of it.

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These are really fantastic. Great job.
I'd really be interested in how it holds up long term.
My experience has been that I've found a few ways to get a good looking "metallic/chrome/silver/type" finish, but none of them hold up to ANY sort of use, handling, cleaning, polishing, clear-coating, etc. I've resigned myself to getting a great looking photo or two if I'm VERY careful, but then accepting that it's all downhill from there. Even handling with cotton gloves long after the paint has "cured" leaves marks and blemishes that get even worse if I try to fix/polish them. Ah well, I kinda like battle scars in my rockets anyway once they start flying.
Here's what mine look like (immediately after the paint dries).

Szegre pics.jpg

s6
 
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