MR Saber Grip "rubberized paint"

[cayman shen]

My MR Anakin ROTS says the grips are something like ABS coated with a rubberized paint. Am I remembering that correctly? If so, is it commercially availiable?

I want to make styrene Yoda VD grips, and I'm thinking Plasticote will be a) too glossy and B) too difficult to apply evenly.

So I guess what I'm asking is if there are any really durable, nice-looking, rubber coatings out there that will give me a look like the MR Anakin grips?

 

[Gilmortar]

there is some at my parents house, Its a 3M product in an aerosol, dont know what its called, just remember seeing it this weekend while I was there

 

[Mr_Creepy]

I have no idea what the MR grips look like, but you can get Plasti-Dip rubber coating in dipping cans and spray cans.

The dip cans are for dipping pliers/srewdrivers/etc in to coat the grip area, and the spray cans are for doing rakes/shovels/etc. Never tried either one, but I've seen the stuff at ACE, Home Depot, etc.

http://www.plastidip.com/consumer/index.html

 

[Funky]

I'm a huge fan of Plastidip. To answer your question, it sprays very evenly, just make sure your paint station is well ventilated as the fumes from this stuff is like no other.

 

[Darth Detroit]

What about Plasti-Dip spraying Saberfreak's T-track grips? Anyone do this yet? :confused

 

[cayman shen]

I wasn't sure about the spray-on kind...I'll look into it. I thought just dipping the grips or pouring it on them would never in a billion years give me satisfactory results.

I once used a texturied spray-on rubber, I think by Plastikote/dip (?), but it wasn't particularly durable. I want to handle the prop periodically, so the grips are obviously a concern.

OKAY...I just went to the Plastidip link above, and the spray stuff looks like what I need. Two questions:
1: How can I reduce/eliminate the extreme gloss?
2: Will it conform to an angular object? I don't want my nice squared saber grips to look too "soft" or have the edges too rounded. Does anyone know if you can get a light, even coat that will keep the underlying shape crisp? It says it can be thinned, but not in the spray can, I'm guessing. I mean, it's a simple part, but I don't want it to look like I smeared tar on my saber...

 

[GrenadeKing]

Do you guys think it would be possible to pour that plastidip into a mold to make a solid rubber peice?

 

[E Williams]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(cayman shen @ Nov 25 2006, 08:03 PM) [snapback]1365664[/snapback]</div>

1: How can I reduce/eliminate the extreme gloss?
2: Will it conform to an angular object? I don't want my nice squared saber grips to look too "soft" or have the edges too rounded. Does anyone know if you can get a light, even coat that will keep the underlying shape crisp? It says it can be thinned, but not in the spray can, I'm guessing. I mean, it's a simple part, but I don't want it to look like I smeared tar on my saber...
[/b]

I've used the black spray a few times- the finish always came out to a very satin look. It was never glossy for me, but it may be because I was careful to do thin coats (since it's rubber, I couldn't sand between coats, leading to the satin finish). I'd say the finish is along the lines of Krylon Semi-flat black.

It seems to do well with details and doesn't go on heavy at all. You will have to try very hard to get the spray version to look "thick," and by that point you're bound to have runs. If you just treat it pretty much like a normal spray paint you will get great results- thin coats, follow directions, etc.

Here's a pic of a rubber batarang I painted with the Plasti-dip spray a while back, next to a saber painted with Krylon Semi-flat black. The batarang has been a little abused so there are some stress lines in the paint that show up under flash, but other than that it's held up great (so much better than a normal paint would have on something that bends and flexes as much as the batarang). If you were using it on something rigid you wouldn't have to worry about it at all.

[image]http://home.austin.rr.com/ethanwil/batarang.JPG[/image]

Hope this helps.
Ethan

 

[jedichef]

i've used plastidip for a lot of non-prop applications. the spray on variety sprays very evenly and dries to a semi-gloss almost matte finish. i don't think the dipping variety would do well as a poured mold. i plan to use the spray on for grips for my yoda saber, once i find a suitable base material. Hey cayman, any word on the emitters?

 

[cayman shen]

OOOHHH E Williams, very nice. I'm sold.

 

[SG Merc]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(GrenadeKing @ Nov 26 2006, 02:14 AM) [snapback]1365788[/snapback]</div>

Do you guys think it would be possible to pour that plastidip into a mold to make a solid rubber peice?
[/b]

In my experience I would say that it depends on the thickness and complexity of the cast.

Plastidip has a hard time drying if applied too thick. I've had excess material in cups etc that would gel but never reach the rubber stage. With this in mind, you would have to apply it in layers.

The second thing is that, as others have already pointed out, it isn't very durable. I wouldn't use it for anything that needs strength, as the cast would be likely to tear if put under stress. Also, keep in mind that demolding will put a lot of stress on it, so that could tear the cast too.

Someone who has actually tried to cast with it may have a totally different experience, but this is what I've found based on general use.

 

[thorssoli]

It may be worth checking out AlsaCorp's Soft Feeling Paint. The sample that came in their last advertising mailer looked and felt pretty good, not glossy at all. I haven't used it myself though, so I don't know how tough it is.

 

[eFXBarry]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(cayman shen @ Nov 25 2006, 11:06 PM) [snapback]1365572[/snapback]</div>

My MR Anakin ROTS says the grips are something like ABS coated with a rubberized paint. Am I remembering that correctly? If so, is it commercially availiable?

I want to make styrene Yoda VD grips, and I'm thinking Plasticote will be a) too glossy and B) too difficult to apply evenly.

So I guess what I'm asking is if there are any really durable, nice-looking, rubber coatings out there that will give me a look like the MR Anakin grips?
[/b]

The ANAKIN ROTS grips are co-molded, meaning they have an inner core of ABS over which is molded a rubber material. They are NOT painted. Earlier sabers like the YODA AOTC were finished with a rubberized spray finish but all of the sabers in the last two years or so have employed this co-molding technique.

Hope that helps.

Barry

 

[cayman shen]

Yes, thank you. I'm guessing I'll never be able to achieve something of that quality in my basement...sigh.

 

[TheRealMcFly]

I have recently tried to use the plastidip spray on some genuine T-track for a saber. It is very nice to the touch, but any excess friction (rubbing really hard with your finger) will cause it to peel off unfortunately. I am going to try this one more time and use a primer instead of just sanding the grips. I'll be posting a tutorial should it work... otherwise it'll just be regular paint.

 

[cheech9898]

I used the liquid brush on electrical tape on my ST helm for the mouthpiece and the aeratores. I just scuffed them with 120g sandpaper and brushed it on. Its held up decently over the last few years. Just another idea out there for you.

 

[cayman shen]

Any pics?

 

[cheech9898]

Here's pics of how the 3M liquid electrical tape looks. Best I can do tonight with the poor overhead light conditions in the room. The only downside is you have to get the part coated quick due to it skinning over on the surface within 20-30 seconds.

I'll try and snag another pic tomorrow afternoon with the window shade open for better natural light conditions or if you guys want pics of the whole curio case (the Vader helm is a 1st batch MR that made it unscathed)