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

[BananaBlitz]

In the same vein of questioning, say the back brackets are a D and a C in shape. What are you guys using to hold the strapping to the top and bottom outside corners of either bracket? (Keeping with screen accuracy)

I'm going to be welding the bracket sometime next week, but I'd like to know what those are so I can put all four of them in before installation.

 

[freakinkram88]

that bracket you have in the picture is one similar to picture frame hanging hardware. I have similar brackets that came with wall hanging mirrors.

 

[IamJAd]

that bracket you have in the picture is one similar to picture frame hanging hardware. I have similar brackets that came with wall hanging mirrors.

I know what you're talking about, but aren't those usually pretty small?

 

[freakinkram88]

They make them in several sizes actually. D-Ring Hangers.

these can also be made with thin sheet metal and bent wire.

 

[Lord Magneto]

got my sled the other week and I cant seem to find more than 15 mins of free time at the end of the day to start working on the dang thing

 

[IamJAd]

They make them in several sizes actually. D-Ring Hangers.

these can also be made with thin sheet metal and bent wire.

D-Ring Hangers. Bingo! Thanks for your help.

 

[freakinkram88]

D-Ring Hangers. Bingo! Thanks for your help. View attachment 329080

No Problem, now just a matter of sourcing the correct size and look.

On another note, i should be painting my sled soon, can't wait to get it going.

 

[IamJAd]

So I just laid down the blue. Good, bad, or indifferent, it's done.

Duplicolor says it's dry to the touch in one hour, and can be handled in three hours. How long should I wait to peel the tape off and tape for the red coats?

 

[drakeprimeone]

I usually wait 24 hours for it to cure

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk

 

[jeffreygullett]

How long are people having to leave the Citristrip on sled shields? The directions say to check after 30 minutes but I'm not seeing any results in that time. Thanks!

 

[IamJAd]

One hour passed. I took the shield outside to give it a look see.

Is it my imagination, or did I not go heavy enough with the coats? It's hard to tell with an overcast day and the tape still on.

 

[Valor]

My guess, If you put four coats down, the last of them being pretty wet, you probably used enough paint. If you’re seeing a dry, rough finish, that’s okay. It’s just the finish of the Duplicolor, not the coverage. When you spray a clear over the top it will even out the finish.

 

[IamJAd]

My guess, If you put four coats down, the last of them being pretty wet, you probably used enough paint. If you’re seeing a dry, rough finish, that’s okay. It’s just the finish of the Duplicolor, not the coverage. When you spray a clear over the top it will even out the finish.

Too late. It was too light.

Stripped it with acetone and hit it again.

I think it came out correct this time. Tomorrow morning will tell the tale.

 

[John77]

What am I doing wrong here? Any advice? The paint is not as shiny as the ones here in the forum there are spots that are shiny but majority of the red is not. I put 3 coats and painted and waited 5-7min per coat. Did I put too much? Do I have to restart and strip it or just wet sand it and move on to clear coat after I paint the blue?

 

[BananaBlitz]

John: Yup! Too much. I did the same on my first try. It also looks like it might be rather dusty wherever you're spraying it, for what it's worth. Don't be afraid to shake that can like a Polaroid picture, it'll make it much cleaner. Also, before spraying even once, shake it all the same as you normally would, warm it in hot water, and then spray it upside down until it clears. For me, a couple heavy coats of red worked and several light coats worked for the blue. That one in particular looks like you lingered too long in certain areas. Cheers!

 

[IamJAd]

Ok, I think this time the blue came out right. Any reason I should be unsatisfied with this result?

That said, there were a couple spots in the groove that didn't get painted right. The second picture is the worst of it. What is the best way to tackle it? Spray some paint in a cup and touch up with a brush? Tape and respray? Scrap it all and respray the whole thing?

I'm anxious to tape up and spray the red. Thanks for you $.02c.

 

[jeffreygullett]

How long are people having to leave the Citristrip on sled shields? The directions say to check after 30 minutes but I'm not seeing any results in that time. Thanks!

Anybody? I'm having ZERO luck with this.

 

[Kevin Gossett]

Maybe try a different paint stripper?

 

[jeffreygullett]

Maybe try a different paint stripper?

Well after almost 24 hours it seems to kind of work. Although it's going to take a lot of elbow grease.

But I guess it's a little better than dealing with toxic fumes from the harsher stuff.

 

[Trevian]

After two months of work, my sled shield is finally done. Many thanks to Valor for his direct answers to my questions, and to others in this thread for asking the same things I needed to know and/or answering them.

inb4 questions:

Paint
- Duplicolor Red/Blue paints
- Sprayed vertically in 2 thin coats followed by one heavier coat
- Clearcoat - Nearly two full cans of Rustoleum Crystal Clear Enamel, both sides coated (probably 20 thin coats). Overkill? Probably.

Methods
- Citristrip used to remove the red paint, was pretty easy. Bondo spreader used to scrape it off.
- 24 hours between each paint stage and 24 hours between clearing and wet sanding
- final result wet sanded with 1500/2000 grit sandpaper
- finished with Meguiar's Ultimate Compound/Polish/Wax. Compound buffing done by hand, polishing done with a DA buffer.
- Leather straps made from scratch out of bridle leather, hand stitched and edged.
- I know the main adjuster buckles aren't accurate, but I'm working on getting some machined and these are fill-ins.

Any dust on the shield in the pictures is because I took it outside for the good lighting; it's not in the paint. Please let me know what you think or if you have ideas on how I can improve it. Thanks!