Help! painting dtfb

[Merv]

I use a water based satin polyeurothane too, it doesn't lift my paper and makes washing the brush easier afterwards.

Good to know, I was following the original recommendation from FT, to avoid the water based products. Clean up will be much easier with water based products.

 

[TheFlyingBrit]

You still need to be wary, I use a UK brand of foamboard. It is possible the adhesive is stronger than that used on Ready Board or Dollar Tree foam board ?
Try it on a sample/test piece first and if the paper doesn't de-laminate your good to go.

I have been using water based Polyeurothane varnish for the past 2 years. Initially I started coating the foamboard then painting with acrylic paint, these days I paint first and varnish afterwards. The only issue I have had, is painting over fibre reinforced tape on wing joints etc. The paint use to flake off easily. Either with the pre-varnish foamboard or paint then varnish technique.
I got around it by abrading the surface of the tape with a medium emery cloth or medium sand paper, this gave the paint something to key into.
Clean the tape with IPA after sanding, to remove dust then paint over the tape. Let it dry for 24 hrs to allow the acryilic molecules to set and bond. I then paint over with the varnish, the flaking issue has now been eliminated with this technique.
If your using enamel paint you probably won't need to wait 24 hrs as the drying time is quicker.

 

[The Hangar]

Well...there is a LOT to cover with this.

1) What type of paint are you using? Some paints don't adhere well or can ruin the foamboard. Spray paint propellant can sometimes eat away at the core of the foam, causing it to fall apart and ruin a plane; brushing on acrylics too heavily can also have an adverse effect, causing the foamboard to warp.

2) Are you using the water resistant foamboard, or some plain white foamboard you bought at the local Dollar Tree?

If you are using the brown, water-resistant foamboard, you'll want to scuff it lightly with something like a piece of steel wool, fine grain sandpaper, or even a scrubbing sponge, so that the paint will adhere.

If you're using plain white foamboard, I recommend using a very thin layer of polyurethane to seal the plane before painting it - this will help prevent the foamboard from being eaten away. Lots of people have suggested Minwax polyurethane, which works great; I personally have been having a hard time finding the non-water based version here in San Diego, at least in something smaller than a gallon size bucket. My local Home Depot has Varathane Ultimate Polyurethane, in a half pint container, which was more than enough to cover my Master Series P-38, and I still have half the container which I plan to use on my P-51 Master Series before painting. It comes in a can like this, for about $7-8, I think, maybe less?

View attachment 192111

And yes, you are adding weight when you apply paint and Minwax on a plane, truthfully, it's adding only a few grams of weight, and it's never been an issue for my planes. If it's increasing a plane by 200-300g, you're applying the polyurethane and paint WAY too thick. You want to apply it SPARINGLY, and VERY lightly.

+1 on the minwax and light coats of paint. Another method I've been trying out recently is painting masking tape and then cutting the shape/line on it and then sticking it to the plane. It worked fantastic on my edge and duster - only coat of paint I applied to the plane was yellow and a tiny bit of black on just the canopy!

 

[slowjo]

Ah awesome it runs in my family as my dad and brother are both colourblind. My brother has got strong deutan so have i. My dad is the only one with mild deutan.

seems to affect mostly male?

 

[Phin G]

seems to affect mostly male?

Yes it does.

 

[tesseract]

haing hard time paintig dtfb
HELP!!!!!!!!!!

First of all what paint are you using? you should use airbrush or one of flitetesr's recommended brands of spraypaint. also what exactly is the problem?

 

[TheFlyingBrit]

Acrylic or Enamel both work fine take your pick.
Enamel usually comes in the form of an aerosol spray and can be expensive, but you can buy it in liquid form for brushing.
Acrylic can come ready to spray from an airbrush, or ready to mix with thinners for spraying or just in pots or tubes to brush by hand and varies in price.
Just dont dont use solvent based car sprays, they can eat away at the foam.

 

[PsyBorg]

Any time I have painted foam board I just covered exposed edges with white gorilla wood glue. then used standard Krylon automotive sanding primer from a rattle can. No scuffing no water proofing with minwax. Wet sanded it and finish painted same way rattle can car paint.

The only other thing I did was use the pink spackle that turns white when dry to smooth wrinkles or fill gaps where things get mated. Sand it to shape coat it with the gorilla wood glue (seems to make it more flexible and less likely to crack) prime and paint as normal.

Never had any issue other then trying a new brand of paint that had a brighter white that I wanted. It nearly instantly bubbled the paper and curled the edges right up even with the wood glue trick.

 

[TheFlyingBrit]

Any time I have painted foam board I just covered exposed edges with white gorilla wood glue. then used standard Krylon automotive sanding primer from a rattle can. No scuffing no water proofing with minwax. Wet sanded it and finish painted same way rattle can car paint.

The only other thing I did was use the pink spackle that turns white when dry to smooth wrinkles or fill gaps where things get mated. Sand it to shape coat it with the gorilla wood glue (seems to make it more flexible and less likely to crack) prime and paint as normal.

Never had any issue other then trying a new brand of paint that had a brighter white that I wanted. It nearly instantly bubbled the paper and curled the edges right up even with the wood glue trick.

Good idea about making the spackle flexible. I bought some acrylic filler recently, great for filling gaps and was flexible but not ideal for sanding. Now if I was to mix the acrylic filler with some drywall filler I may get something more useful Something to experiment with in various percentages thanks for the idea.

 

[sprzout]

Any time I have painted foam board I just covered exposed edges with white gorilla wood glue. then used standard Krylon automotive sanding primer from a rattle can. No scuffing no water proofing with minwax. Wet sanded it and finish painted same way rattle can car paint.

The only other thing I did was use the pink spackle that turns white when dry to smooth wrinkles or fill gaps where things get mated. Sand it to shape coat it with the gorilla wood glue (seems to make it more flexible and less likely to crack) prime and paint as normal.

Never had any issue other then trying a new brand of paint that had a brighter white that I wanted. It nearly instantly bubbled the paper and curled the edges right up even with the wood glue trick.

Krylon and Rustoleum seem to be pretty good at not lifting the paper or eating the foam, but you still don’t want to apply it heavy, from my experience.

If you use any brush on acrylics, I’d definitely recommend doing the Minwax prior to brushing on. I tried skipping the polyurethane when painting the FT Racer, and the rudder curled over.

 

[PsyBorg]

Krylon and Rustoleum seem to be pretty good at not lifting the paper or eating the foam, but you still don’t want to apply it heavy, from my experience.

If you use any brush on acrylics, I’d definitely recommend doing the Minwax prior to brushing on. I tried skipping the polyurethane when painting the FT Racer, and the rudder curled over.

Oh yeah always mist the primer until you get even coverage. Keep forgetting that spray painting isn't a given skill for everyone hehe. Stoopid shop class anyways right. After that you can hit final coat as hard as you want once its sealed up and dry.

 

[sprzout]

Oh yeah always mist the primer until you get even coverage. Keep forgetting that spray painting isn't a given skill for everyone hehe. Stoopid shop class anyways right. After that you can hit final coat as hard as you want once its sealed up and dry.

Very true. The kid who showed me how to spray paint wasn’t that smart. Most kids would spray paint buildings or billboards; he spray painted chain link fences. 😂

I’m just a tad better than that. 😂

 

[The Hangar]

Any time I have painted foam board I just covered exposed edges with white gorilla wood glue. then used standard Krylon automotive sanding primer from a rattle can. No scuffing no water proofing with minwax. Wet sanded it and finish painted same way rattle can car paint.

The only other thing I did was use the pink spackle that turns white when dry to smooth wrinkles or fill gaps where things get mated. Sand it to shape coat it with the gorilla wood glue (seems to make it more flexible and less likely to crack) prime and paint as normal.

Never had any issue other then trying a new brand of paint that had a brighter white that I wanted. It nearly instantly bubbled the paper and curled the edges right up even with the wood glue trick.

I didn't know about the wood glue over spackle - very interesting! I'd recommend using the lightweight spackle over the pink stuff - I've used both and the difference in weight is very noticeable.

 

[mastermalpass]

Very true. The kid who showed me how to spray paint wasn’t that smart. Most kids would spray paint buildings or billboards; he spray painted chain link fences. 😂

I’m just a tad better than that. 😂

You guys had tutorials?

 

[Phin G]

I love black n white art, as Im also colorblind, that way were all seeing the same

Just had an art lesson so i drew a place close to my heart