Painting help needed, how to hold prop so entire piece can be painted and then dried

[bcstanding]

I'm finally at the point where I'm declaring both my ST3 PII phasers ready to paint! thumbsup I've got everything I need except for an idea of how you prop builders hold the piece you are painting so that you can paint the entire piece and then set it down to dry - when the piece can't lay flat but needs to be suspended in the air somehow. For example, on a ST3 PII, the part of the phaser where the PI sits has a hollowed out part that isn't visible when the PI is attached. I need to somehow figure out how to hold the phaser by only touching that hollow part, then paint the entire phaser, and then somehow set it down on something that will keep the phaser off of the table AND have it be stable enough that the phaser doesn't fall over. I don't know how well I'm explaining this, but hopefully you experienced propmakers will understand what I'm getting at. The only other thing I can think of is to paint one side, let it dry, and then paint the other side, but I know I've read somewhere on prop boards that you should paint the whole thing if it's at all possible. I'm planning on painting them both in the garage and then bringing them inside to dry since the temps are getting pretty cold at night here in Utah. I'd appreciate any insight any of you have to offer. Thanks for the help!

 

[franz bolo]

Re: Painting help needed, how to hold prop so entire piece can be painted and then dr

Do you have a photo of the piece?

Sometimes you can use putty on the inside of a piece then stick a long wooden skewer in the putty. I've done this for car bodies.

Hanging things by a metal hangar also works well.

Without seeing the piece, I can only guess. On the piece below, I stuck the skewer in the small hole where they rotocast it.

FB

 

[RGPFX]

Re: Painting help needed, how to hold prop so entire piece can be painted and then dr

If you have a part that will not be attached until later, perhaps the emitter nozzel, I would drill a hole there in the body where it will later be covered by that part, and insert a piece of coat hanger wire or stiff piano wire. Then insert the other end of the wire in a block of wood to make it free standing. A second similar hole in another location would be even more helpful in stabilizing the piece.

RGP

 

[Petseal]

Re: Painting help needed, how to hold prop so entire piece can be painted and then dr

Hello,
One trick I have found that works really well on solid resin, which I am assuming this is, is to find a spot that will be covered or not seen! Drill a hole the same diameter as a coat hanger! Then super-glue a modified coat hanger piece into the hole!
By bending the wire into shapes it can be used as a handle to hold it for painting or if bent correctly as a stand! I find a triangle base works great but you have to get the balance right or it may fall over!
Once the painting is done it can be left standing or hung-up, less likely to fall or get knocked over, to dry!
Then the best part! When you are SURE the paint is completely dry grab the part in one hand and the wire in the other, may need a pair of pliers for a better hold! Then a quick twist in opposite directions and the wire "snaps" out! Literally, there is a sharp "snap" sound when the glue lets go!
Afterwards you are left with a small hole which can be covered or touched up if need be and a re-usable wire hanger! I have several that are shaped for specific paint jobs! By the way I have never had the glue not let go or break the model part!
The absolute best situation I have found for this method has been a Phaser I bought that was basically a one piece body!
I very carefully drilled a hole down what would be the "barrel" until I passed the emitter and entered the body of the piece!
I then took a fine toothed saw and with even more care cut the emitter away from the body! I cleaned the saw marks away and super-glued both parts as described above! I put a little putty in the emitter business end, let it dry and cleaned it up!
Then I "got it done"! After everything was dry I popped the wire out of the body but not the emitter! For that I cut it off leaving about 1/2" or so! This I used for alignment between the parts and it seconds as a pin for strength!
This particular method I would recommend for heavier, solid pieces!
Hope that helps, Petseal

 

[bcstanding]

Re: Painting help needed, how to hold prop so entire piece can be painted and then dr

Great ideas! Thanks for the help on this. I think the coat hanger method will work very well in this case since I've already got small holes drilled into the body where they can't be seen in order to connect wire to the trigger. I'll post pics when I'm done!

 

[PHArchivist]

Re: Painting help needed, how to hold prop so entire piece can be painted and then dr

FB

Yeah, that's what I do too - flip my kid a quarter and tell him to hold still for 45 minutes!