Michael Wessels
New Member
I recently got into sculpting and mold making with my first big project. I wanted to make a large, 3D version of the board game Settlers of Catan.
I started by modelling each hex and then proceeded to mold them with gelatin and cast them in plaster. I wanted to tidy up some surfaces and generally add a bit more detail that I was unable to do with the clay.
Once I was happy I molded them with Oomoo30 from Smooth-On then cast them in Smooth-Cast 310, hoping to save my molds for as long as possible. I oversized the pieces so each mold took nearly 2 pints.
I have hit a major pain in the ass when it comes to painting this 310. I checked smooth-on's site and it seems to be a kind of known issue that painting it can suck, but even when following their instructions I am getting really poor adhesion.
Here is what I did.
Krylon Matte Black Dual Superbond Primer. This was the first paint I used, as I knew going in resin was tough to paint. I used universal mold release, left the part for about a day to ensure it was set and then tried to paint it. Not knowing you should wash the surfaces. Paint basically fell off.
Read up on the subject and found I needed to wash them.
Krylon Fusion for Plastic. This is the next paint I tried. Mold release, let the part set, pulled it, washed it with dish soap and warm water, let sit for a day to let it dry properly. painted.
It seemed to work better, and I was too afraid to really try scratching it off, but it seemed to be sticking more. Until today, I noticed one of the hexes has a chip.
The part has 4 coats of the Fusion for plastic and a coat of the superbond. Then it has some green and brown base coats of model paint that were supposed to be laying down for the final painting. Nothing has really contacted this piece notably. All the hexes sit on my desk away from anything else to allow drying and working. I don't pile things on them. But still the paint chipped straight to the resin, which is the white visible.
I don't understand what I am doing wrong. I have tried washing them with soap and water, leaving them to dry. Tried rubbing alcohol and then soap and water. Used two different primers that are supposed to promote adhesion. I do really thin coats to stop them from beading or running. I even left them for a week after priming because the paint says it reaches full chip protection in 7 days.
Any info would be a great help.
I started by modelling each hex and then proceeded to mold them with gelatin and cast them in plaster. I wanted to tidy up some surfaces and generally add a bit more detail that I was unable to do with the clay.
Once I was happy I molded them with Oomoo30 from Smooth-On then cast them in Smooth-Cast 310, hoping to save my molds for as long as possible. I oversized the pieces so each mold took nearly 2 pints.
I have hit a major pain in the ass when it comes to painting this 310. I checked smooth-on's site and it seems to be a kind of known issue that painting it can suck, but even when following their instructions I am getting really poor adhesion.
Here is what I did.
Krylon Matte Black Dual Superbond Primer. This was the first paint I used, as I knew going in resin was tough to paint. I used universal mold release, left the part for about a day to ensure it was set and then tried to paint it. Not knowing you should wash the surfaces. Paint basically fell off.
Read up on the subject and found I needed to wash them.
Krylon Fusion for Plastic. This is the next paint I tried. Mold release, let the part set, pulled it, washed it with dish soap and warm water, let sit for a day to let it dry properly. painted.
It seemed to work better, and I was too afraid to really try scratching it off, but it seemed to be sticking more. Until today, I noticed one of the hexes has a chip.
The part has 4 coats of the Fusion for plastic and a coat of the superbond. Then it has some green and brown base coats of model paint that were supposed to be laying down for the final painting. Nothing has really contacted this piece notably. All the hexes sit on my desk away from anything else to allow drying and working. I don't pile things on them. But still the paint chipped straight to the resin, which is the white visible.
I don't understand what I am doing wrong. I have tried washing them with soap and water, leaving them to dry. Tried rubbing alcohol and then soap and water. Used two different primers that are supposed to promote adhesion. I do really thin coats to stop them from beading or running. I even left them for a week after priming because the paint says it reaches full chip protection in 7 days.
Any info would be a great help.
