Painting Atlas Undec. cars


wheeler1963

wheeler1963

Aurora & Portland Owner
I'm having a bit of a problem painting some undec. Atlas cars. This is the second set I've had this problem with. I'd appreciate any help or suggestions you guys might have.

First set was undec. hopper cars, cleaned with alcohol, painted with Accu Paint.

Second set was undec. tank cars, cleaned with alcohol, painted with Testors Model Masters.

Both times, the paint would pull away and leave dots where the paint didn't stick. Any idea what might be causing this?
 
I'm assuming you primered it first? If so what primer did you use, and did it peal away also?
 
why primer a plastic model?? primer is used to fill imperfections or to lighten a dark shell before applying a light color.
 
I assume you have a moiture trap for your airbrush? Does this only happen with Atlas cars? Have you tried washing the models using soap to clean them instead of alcohol? The alcohol might be attacking the plastic. Probably not but it's a thought.

-Andrew
 
Washing down with alcohol should do the trick. What are you using to thin the paint? Also, even though not required it's not a bad idea to prime before painting. Also make sure the room temp isn't cold < 60 degrees.
 
That's what primer paint is used for - to prime the surface to accept a paint coat. Leaving out the primer is a sure recipe for problems. And maybe wash the cars in plain dish soap and hot water, rinse them off and let them air dry first. This will ensure they are clean, alcohol could possibly contaminate the surface. Primer is especially needed for Accupaint, because it is so thin.
 
Jerome, you need to use primer man! The only way you're safe w/o it is using spray paint, and at that I usually STILL use primer. The cheap primer from Wal*mart will do the trick, and its very thin so you shouldn't end up with any detail muting.
 
Well, you don't absolutely need primer, Jerome. You can do what I've been doing for the last several days, applying coat after coat of yellow paint to black traffic light heads...because I forgot to use primer first! I normally primer everything because it gives it a good base coat and you can see if there are any adhesion problems before you paint the final coat. The darker the undecorated car and the lighter the final paint, the more you need primer. I'm also a soap and water guy. Seems to be better at removing mold release compound than alcohol and I can be sure it can't possibly do any damage to the equipment.
 
Primer is there to give the top coat a surface to bite into.
Plactic is to smooth for the paint to stick.
I wash all shells with soap and water let air dry then a wash with Polly S Plastic Prep before primer. I use Floquil primer mix 75% paint 25% thinner and air brush 2 very light coats. If it is a dark shell with a light top color (yellow, orange or white) I spray 4 very light coats. Let the primmer set 3-4 days and I have no problems getting any brand of paint to stick.
It takes me 4-5 days to paint one shell one color because I let each coat sit and air dry 4-5 hours before the second coat is sprayed.
I don't rush a paint job I let it take as long as it needs to be right.
 
i just primed my n scale atlas mp15 with model master primer thined
for airbrushing. left it to sit for a week and gas out then i sprayed
matt white left it to dry. after the white was dry a week
i sprayed matt yellow. then after the yellow dryed i used ambriod
ez mask to mask off the yellow to spray matt blue. after the blue skinned
i pulled the ez mask off thats when i seen the paint was pulling off
all the way down to the plastic. so i painted the whole loco with
the ez mask and let it dry and with that i stripped almost all the paint
and primer off. now the best i can tell ez mask is nothing more the
white glue with a blue tint to it.
the mp15 was washed with soap and water then wiped with paint thinner
and left to dry1/2 hour before priming. loco was never touched by
my hands after cleaning i wore rubber gloves evert time after the bath
this makes me think atlas plastic is a little funny:confused:
 
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