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Ive been fallowing all your advice carefully guys, and ive finally made my first custom. He was just for learning though, an experiment, thats all.

I think Im ready for my first project. I'm going to turn Animated Rodimus into a TF Prime version of the Vehicon Thrust. I bought a can of purple Tamaya Spray Laquer, masking tape, sandpaper, and a ton of Testors Acrylics ive already tested.

I want to know the best way to proceed.

Its my first custom, I want it to not be horrible.

BeastProwl wrote:Ive been fallowing all your advice carefully guys, and ive finally made my first custom. He was just for learning though, an experiment, thats all.

I think Im ready for my first project. I'm going to turn Animated Rodimus into a TF Prime version of the Vehicon Thrust. I bought a can of purple Tamaya Spray Laquer, masking tape, sandpaper, and a ton of Testors Acrylics ive already tested.

I want to know the best way to proceed.

Its my first custom, I want it to not be horrible.

I don't know how experienced you are with airbrushing and spray painting, so here's just some of the basics.

I suggest getting good quality masking tape, preferably Tamiya's own brand. It makes all the difference in a paint job.

Also, prime or sand the fig to provide better adhesion for the paints. If you don't mind the hassle, sand the plastic, then prime, before finally applying the paint.

Secondly, always apply the strongest medium at the bottom and the mildest over it--otherwise, the stronger paint solvents will eat into the weaker one. That means lacquer at the bottom, enamel in the middle, and acrylic at the top.

While it's not always necessary, you should clear coat the fig for better paint protection. For a glossy look, go for Future Floor Polish, although it goes by a different name these days. It's even tougher than most clear coat sprays out there (it's a floor varnish, after all) and it's self-leveling properties means you can apply it with a brush.

Here's a complete guide to using it, and where to buy it:

http://www.swannysmodels.com/TheCompleteFuture.html

Hope this helps, and good luck on your first custom, Beastprowl!

Thank you! I didn't buy any primer because its an animated figure. I figured sanding it would be enough since the plastic is so soft. I'll go out and buy some if im wrong though,

As for the tape, its not name brand high end stuff. Its my main hurdle because looking at Rodimus, there is alot I dont want painted besides just the windows. What do cover the wheels up with? The lights? Just really small exacto-knived strips of masking tape...?

And a side question, why are some paints so easy to apply, while others take like 4 coats? I thought they all needed multiple coats? I only need to apply one coat of black and its perfect, but gold takes several. I was planning on doing some gold detail work, but its so runny...

Could I apply the gold first, wait for it to fry, mask it, then spay over it? If yes, then cant I do that with all the details?

Sorry for being a noob...

No need to apologize! We all start out as noobs!

BeastProwl wrote: I didn't buy any primer because its an animated figure. I figured sanding it would be enough since the plastic is so soft. I'll go out and buy some if im wrong though,

It's not 100% necessary, but it never hurts prime a figure. If you can't find any primer, just sanding should be good enough.

BeastProwl wrote:As for the tape, its not name brand high end stuff. Its my main hurdle because looking at Rodimus, there is alot I dont want painted besides just the windows. What do cover the wheels up with? The lights? Just really small exacto-knived strips of masking tape...?

This is going to sound crazy, but the best way to mask entire parts is tin foil. It's ridiculously malleable, and yet holds its shape perfectly! Trust me, it works.

As for the headlights, it'd be best if you could pry it them off--it's risky, though, so try to avoid doing so if you can help it. Headlights usually peg into the figure, and you might be able to push out the pegs from behind on certain figs. I don't have Animated Rodimus, so I don't know it you can do that particular fig.

Just small strips of masking tape cut to shape will work if you can't find other ways.

BeastProwl wrote:And a side question, why are some paints so easy to apply, while others take like 4 coats? I thought they all needed multiple coats? I only need to apply one coat of black and its perfect, but gold takes several. I was planning on doing some gold detail work, but its so runny...

As far as applying multiple coats, it depends on the color of the surface. Obviously, you'll need to apply a crapload of white paint on black plastic in order to achieve full coverage. Speaking of which, primer does double duty in letting you use less paint by giving a neutral color to the surface.

Generally, the best way to apply any color of paint is to apply multiple light coats to ensure a smooth, even finish. While you CAN get away with a single, heavy coat sometimes, it's best not to. If you go too heavy, you run the risk of the paint cracking.

Hope this helps!

Foil? That's actually a good idea, easier too.
The headlights are molded and painted on, so I need to cover them beforehand. They are molded on in such a way that they look just painted on to the naked eye, but they pop out ever so slightly, wich means if I painted over them, it's look like TF Prime Wheeljack's headlights. They wanted it to look cartoony but they wanted the detail to pop at the same time.

I'm going to paint alot of the details on beforehand, wait for them to dry, then coat him with purple, then apply finishing touches... Hopefully that'll yield ideal results...

BeastProwl wrote:The headlights are molded and painted on, so I need to cover them beforehand. They are molded on in such a way that they look just painted on to the naked eye, but they pop out ever so slightly, wich means if I painted over them, it's look like TF Prime Wheeljack's headlights. They wanted it to look cartoony but they wanted the detail to pop at the same time.

In this case, I guess masking tape is the best way to go. I suggest trying to spraying in light coats, to minimize the risks of paint pooling around the edges of the masking tape.

BeastProwl wrote:I'm going to paint alot of the details on beforehand, wait for them to dry, then coat him with purple, then apply finishing touches... Hopefully that'll yield ideal results...

Can't wait to see how it turns out!