Conference vmszoo::rc

    
      Is it a lexan ( clear body ) or a solid plastic body?
    
      The painting process is totally different.
    
    

    Use the Pactra paints made for the Lexan bodies. Other paints will
    crack and peel.
    
    Spray the "inside" of the body, not the outside. General rule of thumb
    is to paint the dark colors first, then progress to the lighter colors.
    
    If you have decals/stickers, put them on the inside before anything.
    Make sure the Lexan body is throughly cleaned. Otherwise, mask off
    your design and then paint the base color coat. Make sure the design
    color is "lighter" then the base color otherwise the darker color will
    probably show through and change the appearance or the original color.
    I always masked off the windows and left them clear so I could see
    inside.
    
    Mask off the outside of the body to prevent overspray from getting on
    the outside. If it happens, the paint can be cleaned off with lighter
    fluid or acetone (finger nail polish remover) but will probably dull
    the finish.
    
    Make sure the edges of the masking tape are "really" stuck, otherwise
    the paint will "bleed" under the edge and look like hell. When all the
    painting is done, finish off by spraying the entire inside of the car
    with white or silver paint.
    
    Usually, painting bodies is a matter of trial and error and practice.
                               

    Thanks for the tips the body is clear plastic.  I am glad I asked for
    tips, I was going to put the decals on the outside, i can see putting
    inside will make them last.
    
    Brian

    As far as stick on stuff goes, whether they go on the outside or inside
    depends on which side the sticky stuff is on.
    
    Your average wet transfer decal or stick on decal would "have" to go on
    the outside being as how the sticky stuff is only on the back. They
    DO make them, however, with the sticky stuff on the front so you could
    put them inside.
    
    Decals tend to hold up much better than paint so I wouldn't be "too"
    concerned with putting them on the outside. The paint, however, will
    chip and scratch very easily so is best on the inside. Plus, once your
    done, you have a nice hard clear plastic coating over the paint that
    really makes it look good.
    
    If it's a plastic body (as opposed to Lexan), make sure you get the
    correct paint.

    
       The only other tip I would add is that for masking off thin lines
    (ie; door panels, outline of a hood, etc, they make a plastic type of
    tape in 1/8" and 1/4" widths. It sticks better than masking tape for
    these type of jobs, can be manipulated around some curves, and it
    easy to remove. I also use it where ever two colors meet. I apply
    it along the edge of the panel to be masked, then I apply masking tape
    over the area to be masked, allowing for some overhang, next I use an
    exacto knife to cut the masking tape that overlaps back to the edges of
    the blue tape. This method almost eliminates any "bleeding" and makes
    better edges.
    
       You can buy it at automotive stores that sell body shop supplies,
    and at some hobby shops. It is usually blue or red in color.
                   

    
     Another technique for doing panel lines is with a paint pen. I've seen
    them sold in a few different hobby stores. It looks like a magic
    marker. Since most of the newer lexan bodies have the door and window
    lines already molded into the body, it's easy to paint in the lines
    with the pen. No masking required !!! The pen's I did see were
    compatible with Lexan.
    
    George

    This seems the best place to put this ....
    
    I stopped by the hobby store to ask some questions and they gave me 
    a good tip for masking windows.  My truck body came out with some
    bleeding so I was looking for advice for the next time.  And there 
    WILL be a next time!  ;-)
    
    First, draw lines around the window with a narrow marker in the ditch
    around the "glass".  They sell hobby markers at the hobby store, or you 
    can use a Sharpie.  They suggested using wide (2") masking tape purchased 
    any-old-place.  Lay it down over the windows, with some overlap onto the 
    body.  Burnish it down so it's sticking really well.  Then use a very 
    sharp x-acto knife to cut on the marker line, leaving just the window
    masked.  Paint.  Remove tape.
    
    One of the guys had his race car there and the lines around his windows
    were extremely sharp, well defined, and had no bleeding.  I was impressed, 
    and will try this method on the next body I paint.
    
    Karen.

    The method you describe will work just fine, however the KEY is getting
    the edges of the tape firmly "stuck" to prevent bleeding. So basically
    what I'm saying is to use whatever method you feel comfortable with,
    just make sure the edges are stuck down.
    
    There is a masking tape available at any old hardware store that works
    a little better than regular old masking tape. Naturally I can't
    remember the name right now, but it's blue. It's a little more plyable
    than standard tape, will lift easier without taking paint with it, and
    the edges stay down better to prevent bleeding.
    
    I'm also making the assumption here that you are painting the "inside"
    of the car body and not the outside....right???????
    
    Steve

    One more hint.
    
    Make sure you use very light coats of paint. The thicker the paint the
    easier it runs under the tape.
    
    An Air-brush makes light coats easy, the paint is almost dry when it
    hits the body, no way to go under the tape.
    
    regards
    Fred
    

    Hi all,
    
    Thanks for the further tips.  Yes, I'm painting the inside of the 
    body, and it sure does look nice when done!  I'll try to find the 
    blue masking tape at Home Depot for the stock body, which I'd like
    to paint this weekend.  I assume if I describe what I'm looking for 
    they'll know what I mean even if I don't know the brand. 
    
    I haven't invested in an airbrush.  I'm just using spray cans.  I'm
    hoping to keep this from becoming TOO expensive.  I'm using the Pactra 
    paints that were recommended somewhere in this file.  They seem to do 
    a nice job and I haven't had any cracking or chipping yet, even though 
    I've rolled the truck and crashed it a time or two on the pavement 
    already.  This thing is SO fun to drive!
    
    Speaking of which, does anyone know if it's likely to ruin anything
    if I slam the truck into reverse to have it screech to a halt?  This 
    is SO fun to do!  But I imagine it's not the best for the engine.
    
    Thanks,
    Karen.

    >Speaking of which, does anyone know if it's likely to ruin anything
    >if I slam the truck into reverse to have it screech to a halt? 
    >This is SO fun to do!  But I imagine it's not the best for the engine.
    
    I wouldn't think you could hurt the *motor* doing this (it hasn't hurt
    the motors on my kids stadium trucks after a couple of years of doing
    this). But your *wallet* will get hurt when you replace the sneakers
    more often ;^) 
    
    fwiw: About the only problems we have had with these critters is when
    the kids run them in the coldest days of winter. Then they start losing
    suspension parts (wishbones/A-arms, struts, shocks, etc) because the
    plastics get brittle from the cold. Otherwise they jump/bounce/slam
    over/into just about anything and everything in the neighborhood...
    
    Have a ball!
    
    /dave

    Nope. You won't hurt it a bit, and home depot should be able to come up
    with the blue masking tape no problem at all.
    
    I raced 1/10th scale cars for a couple of years before getting into
    planes. Had an RC10 that I did rather well with. There were some
    horendous crashes that resulted in no damage or little damage. These
    things can be pretty tuff.
    
    One of the best ways to "become one" with your truck is to do just what
    your doing. Have a ball and do whatever comes to mind. Before you know
    it, you'll be turning that wheel and pointing the truck exactly where
    you want it to go without even thinking about it. BIG advantage in
    races.
    
    Steve

    Just to close the loop on the masking tape thing ... I stopped at Home
    Depot at lunchtime today.  The blue stuff that they recommended is 
    Scotch Long-Mask Masking Tape.  It's 2" wide and a medium blue in
    color.  I'll let you know how it works out.  With any luck at all I'll
    paint the stock truck body on sunday.
    
    Thanks all,
    Karen.

    Keep us posted.

    Hi all,
    
    I painted the stock body on my truck last weekend and the masking
    worked great!  I used the blue tape and it works very well.  My
    only problem was in using the pen to outline the windows.  Now,
    I have excellent hand/eye coordination, and even have a degree in
    fine arts, but I couldn't for the life of me get them straight.
    I tried using rulers and such but the marker bled or the ruler was
    too long, or something always went wrong.  I removed the lines with 
    paint thinner and started over.  Note that paint thinner will dull
    the Lexan, so if you're leaving clear windows, do NOT use this!  
    But once it's painted over it doesn't show, and since I am planning
    to tint my windows I think I'm ok.
    
    My suggestion for marking the lines to cut the masking tape is: Put
    masking tape on inside and burnish down. Then use black electrical 
    tape on the outside of the truck along the edge of the windows where 
    you want to cut, hold the truck up to the light, and cut along the 
    edge.  Then remove the tape from the outside.  This worked great and 
    I have very crisp, clear window edges now.
    
    The paint job looks great too!  It's a wild combination of Daytona
    yellow with black and red streaks through it.  I like it a lot!  I
    just bought some white paint to back it up to brighten up the yellow,
    but the store has been out of window tint for ages now.  Sigh.  I
    don't want to run with this body until the painting is done because
    I don't want to get dirt on it until it's done.
    
    Karen.

    Sounds like a neat color scheme. You can get into some really wild
    designs if your not careful. All you'll be doing is painting car/truck
    bodies. 8^) There are also some hobby shops/arts/crafts stores that
    sell a liquid mask. I've never used it, but you paint it on and my
    assumption is it dries something like rubber cement. When done, you
    just peel it off.
    
    Keep up the good work and let us know about all your trophies when you
    start racing.
    
    Steve

    I'm doomed, doomed I say ....
    
    I bought my second RC vehicle this weekend.
    
    In driving the monster truck and some of my brother's vehicles I
    realized I wanted something more low-slung, faster, and with tighter
    steering.  I also wanted something better made with less freeplay and
    such.
    
    I studied the Tower Hobbies catalogs on friday night and picked out an
    off-road buggy that I thought sounded really good.  I also tentatively
    chose an ESC and decided to buy its own radio so two of us could drive.
    
    Then saturday I went to Hobby Etc.  I figured I'd look at motors and
    ask some questions.  If the prices weren't too much higher then Tower
    I thought I'd buy stuff there to support them.  So, imagine my surprise
    when the car was only $2 more and the ESC was $2 less!  Needless to say
    I bought it.
    
    I am now the proud owner of a Team Associated RC10 B2 Stealth.  I
    bought a Novak Racer EX ESC and another Futaba 2PCKA radio so someone
    can drive my truck while I drive the buggy.  I don't remember what
    motor I bought but it's a mild modified.  I don't know how I'll live
    without reverse on this ESC, but I guess I'll get used to it.  ;-)
    
    I've got the buggy about 20%-30% assembled and have some ideas of how
    I'll paint the body.  And it's true what they say, you do get what you
    pay for.  This chassis is obviously much better quality then my truck.
    Everything is going together very smoothly, with little to no play in
    the linkages and such.  
    
    I've been painting some small pieces of Lexan cut off the body to test
    various color schemes.  The previous noter is correct, that I could 
    spend all my hobby time just painting bodies!
    
    Karen.
    
    p.s.  My brother's trying to convince me to buy a gas-powered car!  I
    may get that hooked, but feel I have a lot to learn before I'm ready 
    to maintain one.  I told him if I bought gas-powered he'd have to be
    a permanent member of my pit crew.  ;-)  His is really cool though....

    You'll be happy with the RC10 (I used to own one). There a quality
    machine, have been around along time, and have good parts/upgrade
    availability. Once it's together and your driving it, you'll be
    thrilled at the performance.
    
    Have fun
    
    Steve

    I second the vote for RC10, the B2 is the latest/best.
    
    Did you find out about the racing ? The B2 should fit in almost
    any class, use a stock motor (ROAR 95) and run in the stock class or a 
    modified for modified class. I would suggest that stock is the way to start.
    
    You made the right choice about gas, learn how to set up the car, then
    you will have the time to learn how to run the gas engine. It takes
    almost as much time to learn both aspects.
    
    Next expence will be batteries/charger, don't go for the high end matched. 
    SCRC 2000's will work just fine in stock class. A good charger will be 
    worth the investment, I would suggest a Tekin BC110, it is lower price than
    most but very reliable when charging.  You will need a peak charger as
    a minimum, once you are racing watching the timer and keeping track of
    charged packs becomes a lot harder.
    
    Good luck
    Fred