Whilst I agree that the analogy : " do the best you can " is completely spot on for any project you do, I've found these tips will help any modeler have better finished results.
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The basic idea is to finish building the rocket completely - following the direction that come with the kit/scratchbuilt project, and when done, let her sit for a day or so to thouroughly let the glue/epoxy/CA dry. Once thats done, you can move on to Prepping the rocket for painting:
NOTE
I build mostly scale kits, so the procedures listed here will help you to complete a quality looking scale design, and can certainly help your sports/fictional designs look and perform better.
Nosecone:
IF Balsa - Use fine sand paper and lightly sand the nose cone - this is just to make it smooth, and prepare it for the sealer step.
On some larger nose cones made from Balsa, you may discover that hitting it with a thin coat of Great Planes Wood Glue or Elmer's White Glue, letting it dry, then sanding it again before the sealing step helps make the nose cone stronger and less likely to bend/break.
IF plastic, trim off the mold lines and sand them smooth. IF NEEDED - fill with Squadron Green or White putty and sand smooth - some kits have really bad or old molds they use, so you'll want a smooth look, with no discernable lines sticking up.
Body tube/Airframe
1) If the seams are very deep - that being the thin wrap line that runs in a spiral all the way down the airframe, fill all seams with Elmer's Fill-n-Finish , then sand smooth, you might have to repeat if the seams are deep. The idea is to have a smooth tube, with no visual seams.
2) Some tubes have seams that tend to crack if older, so you can fill these with Squadron Green or White putty if needed to supplement the Elmer's Fill & Finish.
Fins
Same basics apply for Balsa and Plastic fins as with the nose cone, but just make sure your fillets are completely dry, and smooth before moving on to painting.
I highly recommend letting the fins dry for 24 hours after creating the Fillets. In the long run, this extra drying time helps solidify the glue joints and makes for a stronger finished rocket.
Sanding Sealer, Primer and Paint
RULE #1
Always try to use the same products from the same company - if you use Testors for everything, then continue to use that as you progress throughout the various coats in the rocket. Why?
Less chance of having a reaction between coats - which can lead to wrinkles, melting of paint, or worst of all, the paint refuses to dry properly- if at all. IF this happens, well, your looking at stripping off all the paint, and restaring over. Trust me, it will happen at least once to you, and when it does you'll know to be more careful the next time.
When all else fails, and you can't match all the sprays together..use a test piece of balsa and plastic and see how the paints react. Well worth the trouble to do this in advance.
Sanding Sealer
RULE #2
Always use a Sanding Sealer first to seal balsa or any type of wood thats on your rocket. It helps seal the pores in the wood, and gives the following coats of primer and paint a better base to be added and gives a smoother finished look.
On the off chance you just wish to seal and not paint, sanding sealer works fabulous followed by a gloss, or flat clear cote.
So, following this rule, seal the cone, attached fins and any other porous wood surfaces first. Then let dry, and hit with a second light coat and repeat the drying. Then sand the wood lightly, and repeat sealing if you wish. I do this on the airframe because it helps prep for primer.
Primer
RULE #3
However good, or bad the primed coat looks when your done sanding, thats how the finished top coat will look. Period.
A grey or white primer is next on the finish list. Why?
Your going to spray the entire model with the same color and let her dry. From there, you can check the model and see what needs to be sanded or in the case of those seams on the airframe we worked on earlier - you can see exactly where any problems are.
Sand the model smooth and let her sit for a bit. Close your eyes, and slowly run your fingers all over the model, letting your touch guide you to the problem spots.
Make sure your hands are free of dust and are clean. I've found that before doing the touch test if I wash my hands, I feel the surface better and can detect problem areas.
When done, hit her again with the Primer, and repeat till perfectly smooth.
REMEMBER:
A finish coat can not hide scratches, bumps etc. - and even with 4 or 5 coats, it still doesn't help. So, take your time and make the primed coat the best you can, smoothing, filling (with Testor's or Signal Green or White putty) so it looks sharp.
Paint
Rule #4
3 or 4 light coats are better than 1 heavy runny coat. Let the coats dry for 30 minutes before spraying the next one, so that your not creating pockets of tacky paint under a new cote, as it can cause wrinkles etc.
1) IF you have access to an airbrush you can use either Testor's enamal (thinned) or go with Acrylics.
Spray cans work just fine if:
1) Make sure the can is shaken soundly for 2 to 3 minutes. That can help ensure most globbing will be avoided.
One tip for paint can users, when you buy a new can at the store - make sure you shake it to ensure that little agitation ball is in there BEFORE you buy it. Some clear coat flat paints do not have the agitation ball, but most every other paint does to help stir up the can.
If that ball isn't in there, get a different can.
2) Invert the can when you get done to clean the nozzle for about 10 seconds. This helps on the next use to prevent globbing right away.
3) Almost to the letter, every cans directions says " Shake for 10 seconds for every minute of use " - Do this without fail when covering larger areas. It helps keep the contents shaken, and again can help prevent splatter.
4) Spray only 6 to 8 inches away from the model ( any further away and you risk the paint starting to dry before it reaches the model. IF this happens, you'll have a splotchy appearance, which can lead to resanding etc.
But when you do spray... do it in quick sweeps. Example:
Say your painting the fins - start spraying about 4 inches to the right of the fins, across them, and finish the pass about 4 inches beyond - this keeps the spray from drying before it reaches the surface of the model. You should see a light sheen of wetness when the pass is made.
Too close and you risk having the paint run, which can kill a finish.
5) Finally, ensure that you don't shake the dickens out of the can and start spraying right away at full blast, remember a can is like a car's engine, it needs time to warm up, so spray away from the intended target for 3 to 10 seconds to help clear her throat..so to speak.
6) IF you plan to paint in colder weather, bring the cans of spray paint indoors, so it and the model are at the same temperature. You will have to work quick, which in the case of a cool climate means pre-shaking the can to warm her up, and having your model masked ready to go - and then spraying accurately and quickly.
7) Cold weather spraying works well for me with finished coats, and primers. I tend to wait till warmer days - or build a fire in the fire place when I do the finished coat. Less chance the finish will dry cloudy.
Decals
Apply all decals once the rocket has dryed for a couple days - do not rush to decal until you can hold the rocket/model to your nose and not smell the paint odor. If you can, your rocket needs to dry for another day or 2 in a room temperature climate.
1) Use Microscale Liquid Decal Film and brush it on your decal sheet - NO MATTER if its a homemade decal set, or ones from professional kits. This toughens the decals up and makes them easier to adjust once added to the rocket.
2) Fill a bowl with warm 65-70 degree water, and add a few drops of dish soap. When you add the decals, the soap will help them slide a bit easier on your model as your placing them.
3) Dip the decals in the water by attaching it to a pair of tweezers that auto-grasp (on the corner of the backing sheet - NEVER on the decal itself). Then let the decal set for 10 to 15 seconds, remove from the water and place on a soft towel. This lets the decal loosen from the backing sheet.
OPTIONAL: IF your working with simple decals, I tend to drop them in and let them set in the water with the tweezers attached, then slowly remove them, dabbing at the corner of the decal to remove excess water with a soft tissue, Q-tip or dry brush.
NOTE:
Never put more than one decal in the water at a time. You might have a problem with the decal your working on, and forget about the soaking one. Which in its own right isn't bad, just that its a pain to get it out once it seperates from the backing sheet.
4) Use Microscale Microset and brush a thin coat on the area where the decal will live.
5) Apply the decal, sliding it into position and once your positive of its placemement - blott away the excess water with a Q-Tip, or a small dry brush.
Then brush on a light coat of Microscale Microsol on the decal. DO NOT touch it at this point, as the chemical will start to soften the decal, and make it "mold" to your model. You may see wrinkles on the decal as it starts to change, but this is normal and will dissappear as it dries.
NOTE:
On very large decals, like on the Quest Tomahawk, you may want to do them in sections, cutting them precisely in half/quarters to make the process easier.
All these steps will help ensure the decals mold to the model, and give them that painted on look.
You want a crash course ?
1) Go buy a cheapo plastic model (that has a lot of markings on the box art) and practice attaching the included decals till you have it down.
2) Buy some Plastruct/evergreen sheeting, buy a set of "generic decals" from Phred (Astronboy) at Excelsior and practice.
3) Check Ebay for decals to use to practice. Estes did a set of 4 packs of Standard Decals as well.
All these steps will help ensure the decals mold to the model, and give them that painted on look.
Finish
After the decals have dried for a day or so, hit her with a finish coat.
1) IF you want a scale look, a dull coat is best, because no extra shine will reflect off the bird, thus giving a crisper and cleaner look.
2) If you want the bird to reflect in the sunlight, use a gloss coat.
3) Some people use Future Floor Wax after applying the decals and letting the model dry completly for 24-36 hours. Its a good product to use and all results I've heard say that the finish tends to be a bit stronger to scratches and the like. I've yet to try Future, but will do so soon.
Finally, I use DEFT Lacquer Sanding Sealer, American Tradition Primers and Paints made by Valspar - both are available at Lowes. When you compare the price to Testors - a small can of Testors is over 4 bucks at the local Hobby Store, and these are under 3 bucks for cans 3 times the size.
My finish coats is American tradition Satin and Flat clear cotes.
I've tested all of these together, and they work very well, with a finish thats as smooth as glass.
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Cheers,