Clear Coat over DrZooch kits

[cjp]

Those who have built any DR.Zooch kits,what kind of clear coat did you use on the wraps?I was hoping to use Future,but I do have some Rust-oleum Crystal Cear Enamel.

 

[sodmeister]

Those who have built any DR.Zooch kits,what kind of clear coat did you use on the wraps?I was hoping to use Future,but I do have some Rust-oleum Crystal Cear Enamel.

Hopefully NJRick will chime in ,as he has a lovely thread combined with Luke in the "scale" section.Rick`s Dr.Zooch builds are absolutely beautiful and his finishes are smooth and clear.

Rick are you out there ?

Paul T

 

[luke strawwalker]

I've used some of the Krylon clear, among others... I'd have to look at the cans to tell you exactly but I'm not at home and won't be for about a week.

I WOULD NOT use future or any other "brush on" clears... Also, DUST COAT the clears on, building them up in several LIGHT layers one by one... DO NOT put on a heavy single coat... it could cause the printer ink to run on the wraps. In fact, I usually put a couple three light coats on the wraps before applying them, just to ensure that I don't get glue fingerprints on them when gluing them onto the rocket tube.

If you have any more questions, you can email Wes directly at [email protected] directly and he'll get back to you, or PM him here on the forum-- he's around here and posts pretty frequently...

Later! OL JR

 

[gpoehlein]

JR is right about not putting Future on any printed paper wrap - it could really smear the ink and soaks into uncoated paper in a blotchy pattern. You can use Future on the paper wrap AFTER giving the rocket a few light coats of just about any clear coat (gloss or matte), and you can put it over either laquer, enamel or acrylic (be careful if putting Future over acrylic - it can and will disolve acrylic coats or paint - that's what it is designed to do). Brush once and let it self level, or several light airbrushed coats are best.

 

[Bravo52]

If I may, let me do my best impression of Wes...."Why?...these things are meant to be flown...a lot...and lost...bought and built again...and flown a lot more".... While I'll concede that Dr. Zooch rockets would make a fine desk model with a shinny finish, they look a lot better on a launch pad with a big 'ol C motor in them waiting for launch! The more you fly them the better they are!

As for the finish, I've sprayed Crystal Clear on them with no problems but I prefer to use Future through an airbrush. Both work fine with moderation.

 

[sodmeister]

I've used some of the Krylon clear, among others... I'd have to look at the cans to tell you exactly but I'm not at home and won't be for about a week.

I WOULD NOT use future or any other "brush on" clears... Also, DUST COAT the clears on, building them up in several LIGHT layers one by one... DO NOT put on a heavy single coat... it could cause the printer ink to run on the wraps. In fact, I usually put a couple three light coats on the wraps before applying them, just to ensure that I don't get glue fingerprints on them when gluing them onto the rocket tube.

If you have any more questions, you can email Wes directly at [email protected] directly and he'll get back to you, or PM him here on the forum-- he's around here and posts pretty frequently...

Later! OL JR

Krylon Crystal clear non-yellowing UV stuff in gloss ,satin ,flat is very very nice stuff ,my favorite clear coat ,unless I`m using lacquer ,then that`s my choice of clear.


Paul t

 

[NJRick]

CJP...is this for your Zooch Saturn V? How is it turning out? I thought it was a fun kit to build!

I have used Krylon Crystal Clear gloss on all of my Zooch rockets. I agree with Luke's post, you want to use nice light coats. I have not had any problems with his wraps or decals what so ever with the Krylon...no running of the printed materials or anything.

as an aside, I did have a problem with decals that I had purchased...they were not decals from a Zooch kit...but they were an old set I had purchased to use for one of my Zooch Lifting Bodies and the hobby shop owner told me to put a coat of clear on them so that they would not break up when I put them in water because they were old and I think I went too heavy with the Krylon and it made the decals distort....or as Luke advised...they went "wonky"...they looked like the funky print from the 60's or Woodstock or something (I may be dating myself here....)....so I learned that nice light coats is the way to go!!

and thanks for the kind words Paul! I have to thank Luke for much of that as he was very helpful in sharing techniques in his build threads....lots of great builders on this forum! and both Luke and Paul are in that group!!

 

[cjp]

CJP...is this for your Zooch Saturn V? How is it turning out? I thought it was a fun kit to build!

I have used Krylon Crystal Clear gloss on all of my Zooch rockets. I agree with Luke's post, you want to use nice light coats. I have not had any problems with his wraps or decals what so ever with the Krylon...no running of the printed materials or anything.

as an aside, I did have a problem with decals that I had purchased...they were not decals from a Zooch kit...but they were an old set I had purchased to use for one of my Zooch Lifting Bodies and the hobby shop owner told me to put a coat of clear on them so that they would not break up when I put them in water because they were old and I think I went too heavy with the Krylon and it made the decals distort....or as Luke advised...they went "wonky"...they looked like the funky print from the 60's or Woodstock or something (I may be dating myself here....)....so I learned that nice light coats is the way to go!!

and thanks for the kind words Paul! I have to thank Luke for much of that as he was very helpful in sharing techniques in his build threads....lots of great builders on this forum! and both Luke and Paul are in that group!!

Yes it's for my Saturn V,build is rather slow.I painted it flat white a couple of days ago and had some paint runs.It's been snowing and cold with the temps around 30,I went into my garage and painted it in a hurry.Got to close and had some runs.I sanded it down yesterday and reshot it with this time gloss white and it turned out much better.I will start on the wraps tomorrow after 24 hr. wait for the paint to cure.That's the reason for the question about a clear coat.To keep the whole rocket with a gloss finish.This is a fun build and am already thinking of the BT60 Mercury Redstone as my next build.I have a Grandson(my first)whom I would like to build some NASA rockets for to keep in his room until he's old enough to fly.Hoping he will share my passion for rocketry.

 

[NJRick]

hey CJP...that's a great idea! the Mercury Redstone is just a neat rocket all around....cool paint scheme with the red tower and the roll bands...and the Zooch BBT 60 is a great build! I think that is a GREAT idea to put some NASA rockets in his room! I hope you guys will be able to launch them together...that would be great!

I hear you on the paint....I live in NJ so I am probably getting pretty much the same temps as you are...last year I was making a Zooch Saturn 1b (I am a Saturn 1b nut...) so I tried to paint it in the garage and when I brought the tube in the paint had all alligatored up on me....not sure how to describe it...just went all wrinkled and bubbles ....pretty much ruined the tube....now...I run a space heater out there to get it heated up enough so that I can shut it off and paint and have enough time for it to start to dry so I can get it back inside...I miss the summer days when you can take it out and shoot the tube and its dry and no fumes!

Good Luck!!

Yes it's for my Saturn V,build is rather slow.I painted it flat white a couple of days ago and had some paint runs.It's been snowing and cold with the temps around 30,I went into my garage and painted it in a hurry.Got to close and had some runs.I sanded it down yesterday and reshot it with this time gloss white and it turned out much better.I will start on the wraps tomorrow after 24 hr. wait for the paint to cure.That's the reason for the question about a clear coat.To keep the whole rocket with a gloss finish.This is a fun build and am already thinking of the BT60 Mercury Redstone as my next build.I have a Grandson(my first)whom I would like to build some NASA rockets for to keep in his room until he's old enough to fly.Hoping he will share my passion for rocketry.

 

[luke strawwalker]

CJP...is this for your Zooch Saturn V? How is it turning out? I thought it was a fun kit to build!

I have used Krylon Crystal Clear gloss on all of my Zooch rockets. I agree with Luke's post, you want to use nice light coats. I have not had any problems with his wraps or decals what so ever with the Krylon...no running of the printed materials or anything.

as an aside, I did have a problem with decals that I had purchased...they were not decals from a Zooch kit...but they were an old set I had purchased to use for one of my Zooch Lifting Bodies and the hobby shop owner told me to put a coat of clear on them so that they would not break up when I put them in water because they were old and I think I went too heavy with the Krylon and it made the decals distort....or as Luke advised...they went "wonky"...they looked like the funky print from the 60's or Woodstock or something (I may be dating myself here....)....so I learned that nice light coats is the way to go!!

and thanks for the kind words Paul! I have to thank Luke for much of that as he was very helpful in sharing techniques in his build threads....lots of great builders on this forum! and both Luke and Paul are in that group!!

Thanks, I try... glad to be of service...

Bravo made some good points, but in all fairness, it DOES help the rocket to look better longer if you clearcoat the paper wraps... ESPECIALLY if you use a "sooty motor" like the Quest motors... those produce a lot of soot and funk at ejection that will stain and mess up the wraps... and of course smoke and soot out the back that can recirculate and stain the base area as well. Estes motors aren't so bad, but they STILL produce some soot and staining over time, as well as contact at landing with grass, dirt, etc... even dirty hands in prepping the rocket for flight. The clear coat really helps protect the rocket. If it's damp out or wet grass at landing, the inkjet printed wraps can easily be damaged from moisture getting on the rocket, which will ruin the appearance. Clearcoat is cheap, easy protection...

As Wes would say, "your rocket will most likely end up stuck in a tree or rotting on a power line" but until it is, while it's flying, it should look as good as possible... and clearcoat will do that for you...

Later! OL JR

 

[luke strawwalker]

Yes it's for my Saturn V,build is rather slow.I painted it flat white a couple of days ago and had some paint runs.It's been snowing and cold with the temps around 30,I went into my garage and painted it in a hurry.Got to close and had some runs.I sanded it down yesterday and reshot it with this time gloss white and it turned out much better.I will start on the wraps tomorrow after 24 hr. wait for the paint to cure.That's the reason for the question about a clear coat.To keep the whole rocket with a gloss finish.This is a fun build and am already thinking of the BT60 Mercury Redstone as my next build.I have a Grandson(my first)whom I would like to build some NASA rockets for to keep in his room until he's old enough to fly.Hoping he will share my passion for rocketry.

Neat Idea... the BT-60 Redstone is nice, but the BT-50 "Freedom 7" MercRedstone is the exact same scale as the Zooch Mercury Atlas... which makes a REAL nice side-by-side set... Might think about that as well...

There's pics of them somewhere around here... I did a beta build of the Freedom 7 MercRedstone kit when it came out, and I did a Zooch Atlas Agena at the same time (this was before the Zooch Atlas Agena came out). There are some pics of them all together in that build thread... I'm sure a quick search will turn it up...

Later! OL JR

 

[cjp]

Thanks everyone,the Rust-oleum Crystal Clear Enamel I bought to spay on to some decal paper.I'm building a Gemini Titan also and am going to try making my own wraps.I was thinking of getting them from Stickershock who makes great decals but I am using thru the wall lexan fins and would have to cut the wrap to fit.Last thing I would want to do is ruin his decal and have it come out badly.Not to mention the cost,so I have some decal paper to practice with.The tip on the BT-50 "Freedom 7"is a great idea.This is my Grandson's(6 months) first Christmas and I bought him some CAT Construction vehicles,I know he's kind of young but he do play or should I say put those large wheels in his mouth.He's cutting his first tooth,so everything goes in his mouth LOL.But I can't wait till he understands things and wants to do things with Grandpa.

 

[luke strawwalker]

Thanks everyone,the Rust-oleum Crystal Clear Enamel I bought to spay on to some decal paper.I'm building a Gemini Titan also and am going to try making my own wraps.I was thinking of getting them from Stickershock who makes great decals but I am using thru the wall lexan fins and would have to cut the wrap to fit.Last thing I would want to do is ruin his decal and have it come out badly.Not to mention the cost,so I have some decal paper to practice with.The tip on the BT-50 "Freedom 7"is a great idea.This is my Grandson's(6 months) first Christmas and I bought him some CAT Construction vehicles,I know he's kind of young but he do play or should I say put those large wheels in his mouth.He's cutting his first tooth,so everything goes in his mouth LOL.But I can't wait till he understands things and wants to do things with Grandpa.

Congrats... sounds like a fun Christmas... enjoy them while they're young... they grow up TOO fast!

Later! OL JR