The "I'm painting a Captain America Shield" thread

Well, it could be the lighting, but that was also how my shields came out with dupicolor paints and satin coats... the paint isn't as smooth and doesn't have quite as good of an "anodized" look to it compare to the testors paints, but it still looks great. The way I tell is by following the shine lines from the metal onto the paint. If the shine line continues as a fine line on the paint side, then it gives the anodized look really well. If that fine line diffuses out over the paint, then it's not quite as good... i'll see if I can find some pics. Of course it will always diffuse a little over the paint, even the film shields do, unless it' had a glossly clear coat.. but then the shine lines are from the gloss coat, not from the underlying metal.

That last pic you posted looks really good though... the statement above are for the pics on the 1st page. The red still is too maroonish compared to the film shields, but it looks great.
 
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Here is another view of my test paint.
Again, this was painted with the Duplicolor, wetsanded, buffed, satin coated and another buff.
20120625_104139.jpg

Frosty, that looks pretty darn good. Let me ask you, before you put on the satin coat, did the surface of the paint feel a bit rough or grainy? And/or did you attempt a gloss coat with the spray paint before wetsanding?

Do you have any plans to have an automotive clear coat applied? I know opinions on that vary, but I was stunned when I picked up my shield from the shop and have no plans to dull it down.
 
Ok, here are some pics that put into visual what I was trying to describe. Follow the bright shine lines from the metal to the paint. GeneralFrosty's last picture gives a great display of this. The lines continue pretty crisp into the paint, which is what you want.

I found some older pics..

Three shields in the works from last year.. check out the shine lines from the metal onto the paint, they continue and are very crisp. The very front is reflecting the flash, so that is why it diffuses out a bit and isn't as clear.
DSC00448.jpg


Here is another, check the back shield.
DSC00444.jpg


Also found an old pics of the testors vs the dupilcolor... you can see how much darker and blotchy the dupicolor was turning out for me.. could be the humidity down here. I also wasn't as good yet with either paint, but the shade difference is clear with the red colors.

IMG_0986.jpg
 
I don't know, I think I like the shade of red on the left better. A little blotchy, yes, but the shade just looks 'right' to me.

Speaking of clear coats, I just checked with a local shop and they say they use Sherwin Williams Clear, do 3 coats, and cost would be $75-100. He did say that he has seen some issues with reaction with bare metal and clearcoats, but said they don't often happen.

Chewie, is that the kind of clear coat they used at your place? About how much did yours cost?
 
I don't know, I think I like the shade of red on the left better. A little blotchy, yes, but the shade just looks 'right' to me.

Speaking of clear coats, I just checked with a local shop and they say they use Sherwin Williams Clear, do 3 coats, and cost would be $75-100. He did say that he has seen some issues with reaction with bare metal and clearcoats, but said they don't often happen.

Chewie, is that the kind of clear coat they used at your place? About how much did yours cost?

Ok, just an FYI, I compared the colors to the real props of TFA, and the one on the right is far better match. :) But personal preference is different.

TFA shield..
captain-america-movie-shiel.jpg


2nbdmc6.jpg
 
I think both are a LITTLE off, not exactly right, but the Testor's looks too much like 'apple' red to me and not enough 'candy apple' if that makes sense. Looking at artwork from the Bluray cover, the shield on it looks more like the left to me.

Eh, it's all good either way, they're freaking kickass replicas.

BTW the place I checked with is Maaco, they apparently have hundreds of body shops across the country so may also be a good place to check for anyone else looking for a body shop clearcoat.
 
I think both are a LITTLE off, not exactly right, but the Testor's looks too much like 'apple' red to me and not enough 'candy apple' if that makes sense. Looking at artwork from the Bluray cover, the shield on it looks more like the left to me.

Eh, it's all good either way, they're freaking kickass replicas.

BTW the place I checked with is Maaco, they apparently have hundreds of body shops across the country so may also be a good place to check for anyone else looking for a body shop clearcoat.

yeah, it's difficult to see in pictures, but in person, they match really well. The film shields used airbrush paint, so that is why it looks a bit cleaner. Maaco can be good, make sure to bring a test sample first with the same paints you used.
 
Chris,
I know exactly what you are talking about with the reflection lines.
It's a clear sign that you've either layed on too much paint, or just the right amount.

So far, I prefer the color of the Duplicolor, but I do plan on at least testing out the Testors paint on a sheet of alluminum.
I'm really hoping that extracting the Duplicolor paint from the can and using in an air brush will work better.

As for the questions asked, I do not plan on doing a gloss coat at all. Only a satin clearcoat as that gives the shield a screen-accurate finish. Gloss makes it tol shiney and reflective.
What you see in my photos represents paint that was wetsanded, buffed, then coated with Krylon Satin.
Although our shop is set up for autobody paint capabilities, I am confident a can of Krylon will work perfectly just like my pictures show.
The Krylon clear goes on very smooth and dries quickly and can be buffed after the fact.

For those considering spending big bucks to have a professional body shop gloss coat your shield, I'd like to suggest just using a can of Krylon. It's under $10 and if you can manage working with the metalcast paint, you will find that the Krylon is a walk in the park.
 
Frosty, that looks great. I'm in the camp (apparently there are camps :)) that likes the Duplicolor coloring better overall. I had a quick question, though, and I'm a noob so forgive me. How did you go about buffing the paint after wetsanding it? And the Krylon satin you used to clear coat is what you find at Walmart, right? Thanks to everyone for this thread, btw!
 
Looks like I'll be painting this on my own. I have a buddy that runs his own paint shop and here is his reply:
"the issue with this is that it is a urethane over a bare aluminum.if it is used as a display or show piece only the materials will hold up,but if it is going to be used,it will most likely peel down the road after getting a chip in it...there is a clear that is used directly over bare metals that will adhere to it,but it is very pricey.i would have to metal prep it,clear it,sand the clear,do the transperent candys,then reclear it..looks like a very cool job,but i could see it getting into the $300-$450 range very easy depending on what route you take."
 
Frosty, that looks great. I'm in the camp (apparently there are camps :)) that likes the Duplicolor coloring better overall. I had a quick question, though, and I'm a noob so forgive me. How did you go about buffing the paint after wetsanding it? And the Krylon satin you used to clear coat is what you find at Walmart, right? Thanks to everyone for this thread, btw!

We have a gigantic box of shop cloths here which are just recycled shirts. I just picked one that felt right and buffed with it.
Keep in mind, that choice was made purely to experiment. After this is stripped and repainted, I will use mu full size buffing tool.

One other thing I wanted to mention, I did NOT clearcoat the bare metal ring. I just think clearcoating the alluminum takes something away from the natural sheen and color of the bare metal.

Is anyone curious how I temporarily put the star on without the edges popping up?
 
Looks like I'll be painting this on my own. I have a buddy that runs his own paint shop and here is his reply:
"the issue with this is that it is a urethane over a bare aluminum.if it is used as a display or show piece only the materials will hold up,but if it is going to be used,it will most likely peel down the road after getting a chip in it...there is a clear that is used directly over bare metals that will adhere to it,but it is very pricey.i would have to metal prep it,clear it,sand the clear,do the transperent candys,then reclear it..looks like a very cool job,but i could see it getting into the $300-$450 range very easy depending on what route you take."

As I'm just going to hang mine on the wall, I'll probably have no issue with it.
 
So, uh, is there anyone in the St Louis area that might want to paint my shield for me? I'm only partially kidding, as I'm on attempt 6, and its not working out very well.
 
So, uh, is there anyone in the St Louis area that might want to paint my shield for me? I'm only partially kidding, as I'm on attempt 6, and its not working out very well.

May I plug my kit build and paint services thread in the junkyard?

As for the star, thats temporarily stuck on with just one piece of blue painters tabe rolled up in the center.
I just very gently eased the curvature of the star by bending the star at a few select pressure points. Not a sharp bend at all, I just flexed it into shape.
This will make gluing it down later much more reliable as I will be less likely to have any edges popping up.
 

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