2018-10-28

Do you use acrylic primer?


20170522-193822 Wooden Toy Car - Hot Rod Freaky Ford - 32 Deuce Coupe - MDF - Blue - Black - Gold
Brush Painted Wooden Toy Car - Hot Rod Freaky Ford - 32 Deuce Coupe - MDF - Blue - Black - Gold

I tried an acrylic primer once. It was such a pain to sand that I never did it again. I've tried all sorts of methods for painting wood and MDF including using automotive primer filler I had left over. As far as I can tell it doesn't make any difference.  If I want to seal the material, I use shellac for the base coat. If I'm using a color that doesn't cover well I use white for the first coat or two.

No matter what finish I use, I apply at least two layers of finish sanding between each layer.  The first seals and makes the fuzzies stiff so the sandpaper can smooth the surface. If I get an acceptable finish, I stop at the second coat. If not, I continue to paint and sand until I am satisfied with the result.

I have tried just about every method I can find for applying finishes to my toys. The best I have used so far is spraying with an airbrush. I don't have a spray booth and need to spray outdoors. Painting outdoors is very dependent on weather conditions. Therefore, I use a brush to paint most of my toys. This one is brush painted with Behr acrylic house paint. Oops paint I purchased from Home Depot for $0.50 with no primer coat.

20181003-202131 482476086 Wooden Toy Car Hot Rod Deuce Coupe From the Hot Rod Freaky Ford Series Pink
Painted With An Ait Brush - 20181003-202131 482476086 Wooden Toy Car Hot Rod Deuce Coupe From the Hot Rod Freaky Ford Series Pink

2018-10-09

Spray Booth For Painting Toys

Spray booths need venting outside., Unless you like brain damage.

I researched this subject a while back and experimented with some cardboard box with a fan and filters. Even with the box fan and filters, I got paint dust all over the shop. This method doesn't filter out fumes. I was using acrylic paint, so I was not concerned about fire. I would not use this configuration to spray solvent based finishes.

If you re spraying outdoors that is a different matter altogether. I know someone who lets his the truck tailgate down and covers the back of his truck with a blue tarp to use for painting.  I have a table I make from saw horses to use when painting outdoors.  I don't use a backstop or a cover on the table. It's getting colorful.

The inexpensive spray booths they sell on eBay and else where are very small and ineffective.  Worst of all they use proprietary filters.

Larger commercial spray booths are available but, they cost prohibitive for a small shop and also use expensive challenging to find filters.

A DIY spray booth is the best alternative I could find. You need one that will spray anything including flammable finishes, filter out the paint overspray with relatively inexpensive, easy to find filters, and exhaust all the fumes outdoors. This DIY spray booth is the best I found. It's on my todo list.
 
 
Build Your Own Paint Spray Booth For Painting Toys
Build Your Own Paint Spray Booth For Painting Toys